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EARLY SCOTTISH POETRY 
 
Published by 
 William Hodge & Co., Glasgow 
 
 Williams & Norgate, London and Edinburgh 
 
HbbotsforO Series 
 
 of tbe 
 
 Scottfsb poets 
 
 Edited by GEORGE EYRE-TODD 
 
 EARLY SCOTTISH POETRY 
 
 THOMAS THE RHYMER 
 JOHN BARBOUR 
 ANDROW OF WYNTOUN 
 HENRY THE MINSTREL 
 
 Glasgow: WILLIAM HODGE & CO 
 
 1891 
 
 K 
 
NOTE. 
 
 It has long been a reproach that, owing to the 
 absence of an accessible edition, no popular know- 
 ledge of the early poetry of Scotland was possible 
 — that, while texts of the early English poets, such as 
 Chaucer, Langland, and Gower, were within reach of 
 all, no such facilities were available for the equally 
 interesting and valuable works of Thomas the 
 Rhymer, Barbour, Wyntoun, and Henry the Minstrel. 
 The present volume is an attempt to supply this want. 
 From their great bulk the works of the poets here 
 dealt with may with obvious advantage be studied 
 in selected form. In each case, however, an effort 
 has been made, by means of summaries between 
 the selected passages, to afford a view of the entire 
 poem. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Early Scottish Poetry, 
 
 Thomas the Rhymer, 
 Sir Tristrem, . 
 
 John Barbour, . 
 The Bruce, 
 
 Androw of Wyntoun, 
 
 The Cronykil of Scotland, 
 
 Henry the Minstrel, 
 Sir William Wallace, 
 
 PAGE 
 
 I 
 
 9 
 
 21 
 
 59 
 
 73 
 
 129 
 
 143 
 177 
 189 
 
EARLY SCOTTISH POETRY. 
 
 One of the commonest of popular mistakes 
 upon philological subjects has been the supposi- 
 tion that the Lowland Scots language was 
 nothing more than a rude or corrupted dialect 
 of ordinary English. The making of two 
 dictionaries and the writing of many dissertations 
 have not completely dispelled this impression. 
 Students, however, have long been aware that 
 the popular idea was mistaken ; their only 
 difficulty has been in ascertaining the actual 
 origin of the tongue. Dr. Jamieson, in the 
 earlier Scottish dictionary, was at great pains 
 to prove the language a dialect of Gothic ; and 
 Dr. Charles Mackay, in his more recent com- 
 pilation, though right in the main, betrayed 
 something of a tendency to advocate Gaelic 
 sources. It is now agreed by those most 
 competent to judge that the tongue spoken 
 in the Scottish lowlands was the most northern 
 of the three great dialects of English. Of these 
 dialects the southern form, once the language 
 
 B 
 
2 EARLY SCOTTISH POETRY. 
 
 of Kent and Devon, has now all but entirely- 
 died out ; and while the midland form, by 
 regular evolution, has developed into the written 
 and spoken English of to-day, the northern, by 
 literary use and from the fact of its national 
 foundation, obtained a permanence in Scotland 
 for at least five centuries. It was the language 
 of court and bar, made golden by the tongues 
 of poets and gentle by the lips of fair dames. 
 There are those yet living who say that in 
 their youth there were few pleasures more 
 delightful than to listen to the talk of some 
 old lady who retained the quaint and noble 
 manner of the '' auld Scots tongue." This 
 language possessed a charm unknown to our 
 modern speech. English was admitted by 
 Dr. Mackay to be perhaps the most muscular 
 and copious language in the world, but he 
 remarked that it was harsh and sibilant, while 
 the Scottish, with its beautiful terminational 
 derivatives, was almost as soft as Italian. An 
 Englishman, he said, speaks of a " pretty little 
 girl," a Scotsman of a " bonnie wee lassie." 
 
 In course of time, owing to the intimate 
 relations of the Scottish court with France, 
 the language of the northern kingdom became 
 strongly tinctured with French modes of ex- 
 pression. Indeed, finally it came in many 
 respects to resemble the tongue rather of the 
 
EARLY SCOTTISH POETRY. 3 
 
 country's ally than of its neighbour. The 
 foreign influence is strongly marked in the 
 language of Dunbar and the later fifteenth and 
 sixteenth century poets, and is conspicuous in the 
 pronunciation of such words asy?(9?/rj,more like the 
 French yf^/rj than the English j^cw^rj'. To the 
 present day many words in common use north of 
 the Tweed, such 3iS fashed {fdche), ashet {assiette), 
 and jigot {gigot), are no less than pure French. 
 In the times of earliest Scottish poetry, however, 
 the influence of France had hardly begun to 
 affect Scottish speech, and in that poetry, 
 accordingly, a monument is preserved of the 
 Scottish language in something like its native 
 state. It would be impossible to render into 
 modern English of equal simplicity and strength 
 many of the most ordinary passages in this old 
 poetry, and for this reason some regret might 
 be expressed that, at anyrate in Scotland, the 
 study of poems like Barbour's Bruce and 
 Henry's Wallace is abandoned so completely 
 for the study of early middle-English models. 
 About the verse of the early Scottish poets 
 there is a bloom whose secret has vanished 
 irrevocably with the freshness of their morning- 
 time ; but from a study of that verse modern 
 English might at least be enriched with many 
 beautiful words at present without even a 
 counterpart in the language. 
 
4 EARLY SCOTTISH POETRY. 
 
 No fewer than four distinct races were united 
 in the making of the Scottish nation — the 
 original Picts of the north, the Cymry of Strath- 
 clyde, the Scots from Ireland, and the Angles 
 of Northumbria. To these might be added a 
 slight later infusion of Norman blood from the 
 south, and the descendants of the sea-roving 
 Norse and Danes who for centuries built their 
 eyries on the coast and among the western isles. 
 So late as the present day the physical char- 
 acteristics of each of these separate races are 
 observable everywhere with more or less dis- 
 tinctness in the people of the country. With as 
 much truth, though perhaps more subtly, may 
 the mental characteristics of the different races 
 be distinguished. The fact is marked in Sir 
 Walter Scott's famous saying : " Gentlemen of 
 the north, people of the west, men of the south, 
 and folk of Fife." Pains have been taken by 
 more than one critic to identify the respective 
 qualities of these races in the national poetry. 
 Without going so far, it is possible perhaps to 
 trace thus the origin of one or two of the most 
 salient features of the poetry of the north. 
 
 To the Celtic element in the Scottish blood 
 Mr. Stopford Brooke attributes the passionate 
 love of wild nature and the love of colour 
 which everywhere distinguish early Scottish from 
 early English poetry. " There is," he says. 
 
EARLY SCOTTISH POETRY. S 
 
 speaking of the special Celtic elements in 
 the Lowland verse, " a passionate, close, and 
 poetical observation and description of natural 
 scenery in Scotland from the earliest times of its 
 poetry such as we do not possess in English 
 poetry till the time of Wordsworth," while " all 
 early Scottish poetry differs from English in the 
 extraordinary way in which colour is insisted 
 upon, and at times in the lavish exaggeration 
 of it." The critic's truth in attributing these 
 characteristics may be easily allowed when it is 
 remembered how largely to the present hour 
 colour tinges the nomenclature of the Highlands, 
 and how full of tenderness for glen and stream 
 the Highlander still remains. The same delight 
 in colour may be seen in such passages of 
 the early Sir Tristram as the description of 
 Ysonde : 
 
 Ysonde of highe priis, 
 
 The maiden bright of hewe 
 That wered fow and griis 
 
 And scarlet that was newe. 
 
 The same tenderness for wild nature may be 
 
 remarked in delicate descriptive passages like 
 
 the opening of a certain scene of The Bruce : 
 
 This wes in ver, quhen wynter tid, 
 With his blastis hidwyss to bid. 
 Was our diywyn : and birdis smale. 
 As turturis and the nychtyngale, 
 Begouth rycht sariely to syng. 
 And for to mak in thair singyng 
 
6 EARLY SCOTTISH POETRY. 
 
 Swete notis and sownys ser 
 And melodys plesand to her, 
 And the treis beguth to ma 
 Burgeans and brycht blomys alsua. 
 
 Equally, perhaps, to the Cymric blood may be 
 traced the enthusiasm of nationality which every- 
 where inspires the poetiy of the north. The 
 emigrant Highlander at the present day pines 
 for the "white shieling," and the " yellow island," 
 the "blue mountains," and the "nut-brown maid" 
 he has forsaken ; but no less does the modern 
 farmer of the Clyde valley and the Lanark 
 moors waken to a lively energy at mention of 
 Wallace and the wars with the English. It was 
 in the west that independence always was first 
 asserted, alike in the times of Wallace, of Bruce, 
 and of the later Covenanters ; and in the light of 
 this fact it seems fair to attribute something at 
 least of the strenuous nationality of Scottish 
 poetry, from Barbour's Bruce to Burns' Scots wlia 
 hae, to the strain of British blood in the race. 
 
 It cannot be supposed that in the poems 
 which remain to us we possess the very earliest 
 efforts of the Scottish muse. Song is the first 
 of all the arts to make its appearancfe, and in 
 the two hundred years from the time when 
 Malcolm Canmore, marrying a Saxon wife, 
 began to discourage Celtic as the language of 
 his court, till the time of Thomas the Rhymer, 
 it is not likely that minstrelsy was mute in 
 
EARLY SCOrriSH POETRY. ^ 
 
 the country. Allusions indeed are not lacking 
 which show that the reading or hearing of 
 romances was at an early time a popular 
 relaxation in Scotland ; and there appears to 
 be reason for believing, as Dr. Irving in his 
 History of Scottish Poetry suggested, that 
 the earliest authentic Scottish poem, the Sir 
 Tristrem of Thomas the Rhymer, was one of a 
 cycle of romances upon the adventures of 
 ancient, half-mythical Cymric heroes which 
 formed the popular north-country poetry until 
 the newly-welded Scottish race came, in 
 Wallace, Bruce, and Douglas, to possess 
 national heroes more particularly its own. 
 Whether or not this be the case, it may be 
 pointed out that in Scottish poetry there exists, 
 complete and unbroken from very early times, a 
 golden vein of historic material. From iron 
 facts — from the deeds of kings, the fortunes of 
 war, the loss and gain of provinces — the 
 historian of Scotland may limn upon his canvas 
 the outer features of the nation's past. For his 
 subtler purposes there remains this more delicate 
 resource. Poetry in Scotland has ever been, not 
 only a criticism, but a reflection of life, and a 
 reflection which, like that in the Arabian mirror, 
 has shown not alone the deeds and manners of 
 its time, but the thoughts behind the deeds. 
 
 Like one of Scotland's own mountain streams 
 the course of Scottish poetry can be traversed 
 
8 EARLY SCOTTISH POETRY. 
 
 almost in a day's journey, and at every turn it is 
 seen to have taken its character from its sur- 
 roundings. From its earhest traces in romance 
 recited to the knights errant of a heroic age, 
 rushing bold and strong down rough defiles in 
 the national war-epics of Barbour and Blind 
 Harry, it is found sunning itself presently in the 
 love-song of James through a primrose strath of 
 peace. At each descent the passion which 
 inspires the verse was the spirit of its age. The 
 wandering knights who after the Conquest 
 pushed their fortunes into the north saw their 
 ideals mirrored in the adventures of a hero like 
 Sir Tristrem. The people new-welded into a 
 single nation by the wars of succession, and 
 battling still against heavy odds for freedom, 
 heard their aspirations echoed in the verse 
 of the chronicler-poets. And the sweet lay 
 penned by the Scottish king heralded the 
 incoming of a gentler time. 
 
 Alike as the illustration of a beautiful and 
 heroic old language, as a richly-sparkling fountain 
 of emotion, eloquence, and enthusiasm, and as a 
 reflection, in bright, unfading colours, of the 
 national mind and manners of the north in times 
 that have passed away, the early poetry of Scot- 
 land holds a place and character peculiarly its 
 own in the gallery of English literature. 
 
THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 On the shadowy borderland between myth and 
 reality, in the early literary history of Scotland, 
 stands The Rhymer, Thomas of Ercildoune. Few 
 names are more familiar than his in the folk-lore 
 of the north, yet regarding few is so little generally 
 known. With his fame as a maker of early Scottish 
 romance a weird reputation for prophecy has been 
 handed down by tradition, while in the ancient 
 ballad poetry of the Borders he is celebrated as 
 the hero of elfin adventure. In this respect he 
 stg.nds on the same platform as Michael Scott and 
 Merlin the Wild, with the latter of whom he has 
 sometimes been confounded; and in the three cases 
 it is curious to note how the superstition of a rude 
 age has, with or without their own connivance, 
 invested the poet and the religious ascetic with the 
 gift of prophecy, and the student of nature with 
 the powers of the wizard. 
 
 Of the actual facts of the Rhymer's life very little 
 is known. His name itself even has been subject 
 of speculation. Scott in his introduction to Sir 
 Tristrem stated that according to uniform popular 
 
12 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 tradition the poet's surname was Learmont, and 
 that the appellation of ' The Rhymer ' was conferred 
 on him in consequence of his poetical compositions. 
 But the same writer also remarks that surnames 
 were not yet always hereditary in the 13th century. 
 It has never been disputed, however, that the 
 residence and probable birthplace of the bard was 
 Ercildoune, now Earlston, a village on the Leader 
 Water two miles above its junction with the Tweed. 
 After the lapse of eight centuries a ruined tower 
 known as his dwelling-place may still be seen at 
 the western extremity of the village. In a deed of the 
 thirteenth century by Peter de Haga de Bemersyde, 
 in the chartulary of Melrose, the Rhymer appears as 
 a witness ; and a charter is extant in the Advocates' 
 Library at Edinburgh by which Thomas of Ercildoune, 
 "son and heir of Thomas Rymour of Ercildoune," 
 conveys his family lands to the Church of the Holy 
 Trinity of Soltra. The latter deed is dated 1299, 
 and from the two charters, and a reference by Henry 
 the Minstrel, the poet's life may be roughly estimated 
 as extending from about 1220 to 1298. 
 
 Whether he himself explicitly assumed the character 
 of seer in order to give greater weight to his political 
 advice is impossible to say. Jamieson, in his Popular 
 Ballads, suggested that, "in order to give a sanction 
 to his predictions, which seem all to have been 
 calculated in one way or other for the service of his 
 country, the Rhymer pretended to an intercourse 
 with the Queen of Elfland, as Numa Pompilius did 
 with the nymph Egeria.'' This may have been the 
 
THOMAS THE RHYMER. 13 
 
 case, or the story may be altogether a popular and 
 later invention ; but the narrative of his intercourse 
 with the elfin queen, whether composed by himself 
 or not, is extant to the present day, and forms one 
 of the most characteristic of the Border ballads. 
 According to this ballad, Thomas sojourned with 
 the queen in Elfland for seven years, though to 
 him it seemed "nought but the space of dayis 
 three." At parting, by way of consolation, she 
 revealed to her sorrowing lover a long roll of 
 prophecies, and as a farewell token conferred on 
 Thomas himself the prophetic gift : 
 If thou wilt spell or tales tell, 
 Thomas, thou never shall make lee. 
 
 With a Story of this sort once established in the 
 popular mind it is easy to see how the Rhymer 
 might acquire the reputation of a prophet. There 
 exists, as has been said, no absolute proof that he 
 assumed the prophetic role himself, but it is certain 
 that very shortly after his death the foresight of many 
 momentous events was attributed to him. The 
 most striking of these perhaps is that of the 
 accidental death of Alexander III. at Kinghorn, 
 and the subsequent disastrous wars of succession. 
 The story is related both by Fordun and Boece. 
 The latter, translated by Bellenden, gives it with 
 no small dramatic skill. " It is said the day afore 
 the kingis deith the Erie of Marche demandit ane 
 prophet namit Thomas Rymour, otherwayis namit 
 Ersiltoun, quhat wedder suld be on the morow. 
 To quhome answerit this Thomas that on the 
 
H THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 morow, afore noun, sail blow the gretist wynd that 
 ever was hard afore in Scotland. On the morow, 
 quhen it was neir noun, the lift appering loune, but 
 (without) ony din or tempest, the Erie send for this 
 propheit and reprevit hym that he prognosticat sic 
 wynd to be, and nae apperance thairof This 
 Thomas maid litel answer, bot said, noun is not 
 yet gane. And incontinent ane man came to the 
 yet (gate) schawing the king was slane. Than said the 
 prophet, yone is the wynd that sail blaw to the 
 gret calamity and truble of al Scotland." Prophecies 
 attributed to the Rhymer are recorded by Barbour, 
 Wyntoun, and Blind Harry, and are mentioned in 
 the Scala-chronicon, a history written, it is supposed, 
 in the time of Edward III. Bits of local prophecy 
 quoted as his were floating in the popular mind so 
 late as the beginning of the present century, and 
 may indeed remain in currency to the present day. 
 One of these is pathetic enough : 
 
 The hare sail kittle (litter) on my hearth stane, 
 And there will never be a laird Learmont again. 
 
 Most of the extant political rhymes passing as the 
 prophecies of True Thomas are to be found, with 
 other productions of the same sort, in a small 
 volume published by Andro Hart at Edinburgh in 
 1615. 
 
 Behind all this popular tradition of elfin intercourse 
 and prophetic insight, however, Thomas the Rhymer 
 claims the solid reputation of maker of the earliest 
 Scottish romance. There exist two other compositions 
 of competing claim — the romances of Gawen and 
 
THOMAS THE RHYMER. 15 
 
 Gologras and Galoran of Galloway — both also 
 attributed by Scott to the thirteenth century. Strong 
 doubts as to their date, however, have been expressed 
 by later critics, while their rudeness and excessive 
 alliteration render them hardly intelligible. Sir 
 Tristrem therefore may fairly be looked upon, not 
 only as the most outstanding, but as the earliest 
 extant poem of the north. 
 
 The poem is contained in the famous Auchinleck 
 manuscript, " a portly quarto volume of early English 
 poetry written on vellum in the beginning of the 
 fourteenth century," and presented to the Advocates' 
 Library in 1744 by Lord Auchinleck, father of 
 Boswell, the biographer of Johnson. The former 
 history of the volume is unknown. From this source 
 Sir Tristrem was very fully edited by Scott in 
 1804, and in 1886 was made still further accessible 
 in an admirable edition for the Scottish Text Society 
 by Mr. G. P. M'Neill. 
 
 It is true of this, of course, as of most other 
 productions of obscure times, that the authorship 
 has been subjected to question. The point upon 
 which doubt has been chiefly urged is the opening 
 stanza of the romance : 
 
 Y was at Ertheldoune 
 
 With Tomas spak Y thare, &c. 
 
 It may be possible to make too much of this 
 point. The insertion of his name in the text was in 
 early times a poet's only method of perpetuating 
 his claims of authorship. After detailing all that 
 has been said for and against the authenticity 
 
i6 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 of the romance, Mr. M'Neill quotes the direct 
 testimony of the Rhymer's contemporary, Robert 
 Mannyng of Brunne, and concludes by remarking 
 that "the arguments which assail the trustworthiness 
 of these documents are suggested by somewhat 
 hypercritical doubts, and the theories designed to 
 supplant them are based upon conjectures wholly 
 unsupported by evidence.'' 
 
 The invention of the story told in the poem, 
 however, cannot be attributed to the Rhymer. The 
 tale of Tristrem most probably had a foundation 
 in the exploits of an actual chieftain of the ancient 
 Cymric kingdom of western Britain. In the early 
 Welsh Triads Tristrem appears, already famous, 
 chiefly as the lover of Essylt, wife of his uncle Mark. 
 In the history of King Arthur, compiled by Geoffrey 
 of Monmouth in the ninth century, the hero is 
 recorded as one of the knights of the Round Table. 
 Frequent mention of the story of Tristrem and Isolde 
 is found in the twelfth and thirteenth century songs 
 of the troubadours and trouveres of France ; and it 
 formed one of the four great romances of Cymric 
 tradition recited at the court of the Anglo-Norman 
 kings. It is for casting the romance into Scottish 
 verse that credit is given to the Rhymer ; and his 
 composition soon became known throughout Europe 
 as the best version of the famous tale. Robert of 
 Brunne declared — 
 
 Ouer gestes it has the steem, 
 
 Ouer all that is or was, 
 
 If men it sayd as made Thomas. 
 
THOMAS THE RHYMER. 17 
 
 After wanderings down the centuries in almost every 
 tongue of Europe, the story is found living yet in 
 modern days in the verse of Richard Wagner, 
 Matthew Arnold, Lord Tennyson, and Mr. Swinburne. 
 
 As it remains, the early Scottish composition is 
 a vivid example, as indeed it was perhaps the most 
 famous model, of the romances of chivalry. Already 
 the story had lost the primitive simplicity of legend 
 and had had incorporated with it all the mediaeval 
 devices of plot and motive. Love and arms are 
 the subjects — the rescue of usurped kingdoms and 
 the prosecution of amorous intrigues. To these ends 
 giants and dragons have to be overcome and a love- 
 potion has to be drunk. These were the regular 
 machinery of the singers of Europe in the Middle 
 Ages. The chief thread of the narrative bears that 
 the British knight Tristrem is sent to bring home 
 from Ireland his uncle's bride Isonde, and by the 
 mistaken drinking of a love-philtre by the two on 
 the way, becomes engaged in an amour which 
 occupies the remainder of the lovers' lives. Strata- 
 gems, estrangements, stolen interviews follow, a very 
 doubtful regard is paid to conjugal relations, and 
 the whole tale forms material for somewhat curious 
 speculation upon the morals and habits of a society 
 which had these romances for its approved intellectual 
 food. 
 
 The poem is written in an involved stanza in 
 
 striking contrast to the simple style of the narrative 
 
 and the obvious eagerness of the narrator to press 
 
 on with his tale. The design of the composition, 
 
 c 
 
i8 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 as in most old romances, is of the character best 
 adapted for recitation — a series of adventures, each 
 complete in itself, strung upon the lives of the lovers. 
 At the same time there is a certain arrangement, 
 a proportion and balance of parts round the central 
 idea, which give to the story an artistic unity. The 
 situations frequently possess strong dramatic point, 
 as when Tristrem, having drunk the love-potion with 
 Isonde, has to fulfil his mission and hand her over 
 in marriage to the king. Most notable of all, the 
 characters of the tale from first to last are firmly 
 and even subtly drawn. Limned from the outside 
 by their actions and words, they stand distinct as 
 if reproduced from life or from the most intimate 
 tradition. Reliably as in actual contact one comes 
 to know them all — Isonde, another Lady Macbeth, 
 crafty of brain and passionate of heart ; " Brengwain 
 the Bright," the maid and confidant of the queen, 
 careful by the possession of compromising secrets 
 to keep Isonde in her power, but at the same time 
 both lending her wits and submitting her person to 
 screen her mistress ; Mark, the rich king and foolish 
 husband, tricked and deceived, yielding up his queen, 
 Herod-like, for a minstrel's song, and ever ready to 
 believe a protestation in face of the clearest evidence ; 
 and Tristrem, the doughty knight, skilled alike in arts 
 and arms, fertile in amorous devices, and faithful 
 everywhere to the lady of his passion. Even the 
 subordinate characters are touched to the life. A 
 modern analytic poet might be glad to own a 
 delicate bit of motive-painting like the scene in 
 
THOMAS THE RHYMER. 19 
 
 which Sir Canados woos Isonde and receives his 
 answer. 
 
 The example of Sir Tristrem had some following 
 in Scottish poetry. To the Rhymer himself Scott 
 was inclined to attribute Hornchild, or The Geste of 
 King Horn, a romantic narrative poem extant in six- 
 syllable couplets. There exist also the two alliterative 
 Arthurian romances before-mentioned of Gawen and 
 Gologras and Galoran of Galloway ; The Pystyl of 
 Swete Si/san, a poem in involved stanza like that of 
 Sir Tristrem, but of longer line, on the Apocryphal 
 subject of Susanna ; and The Taill of Rauf Coilzear, 
 how he harbreit King Charles, a vigorous romance 
 concerning Charlemagne and Ralph a collier, similar 
 in incident to the story of King Alfred and the 
 shepherd. But another inspiration was already 
 in the air. Shortly after the composition of Sir 
 Tristrem the last of the line of Celtic kings fell 
 over the fatal cliff at Kinghorn, and amid the dire 
 wars of succession and independence a new era 
 dawned upon the history and literature of Scotland. 
 
The selections from Sir Tristrem which are here given 
 include the most salient episodes of the romance. No 
 liberties have been taken with the text, saving the 
 insertion of capitals for the first personal pronoun and 
 at proper names. The ancient spelling, yhce (give), 
 yuere (ivere, ivory), tviis (twice), possesses a historic 
 interest of its own. The chief peculiarity of the com- 
 position is its elliptic style : 
 
 That man hye neuer seighe 
 That bifor Tristrem wold, 
 
 is left to stand for 
 
 That man she never saw 
 
 That before Tristrem she would choose. 
 
 Notwithstanding this obstacle it is curious to discover 
 how clearly the meaning appears when the stanzas are 
 read aloud. Phonetically the language differs but little 
 from modern English. 
 
SIR TRISTREM. 
 
 WAS at Ertheldoune : 
 
 With Tomas spak Y thare; 
 Ther herd Y rede in roune' 
 
 Who Tristrem gat and bare, 
 Who was king with croun, 
 
 And who him forsterd yare', 
 And who was bold baroun, 
 
 As thair elders ware. 
 Bi yere' 
 
 Tomas tells in toun 
 This auentours'' as thai ware. 
 
 I nine, perhaps 
 rhythm. 
 
 2 fostered 
 willingly. 
 
 3 year by year. 
 
 4 adventures. 
 
 The Birth of Tristrem. 
 
 [Truce having been declared between two chiefs, the Duke 
 Morgan and Rouland Riis, Lord of Ermonie, the latter betakes 
 himself to the court of King Mark. Victorious at a tournament, 
 he becomes the object of a passion on the part of the king's 
 sister, Blancheflour, who, the knight presently being wounded, 
 visits him secretly in his chamber. Word, however, arrives 
 from Rohand, a trusty vassal, that Morgan has broken the truce. 
 Rouland therefore, followed by Blancheflour, takes leave of 
 Mark.] 
 
 Thai busked and maked hem boun^, 
 Nas ther no leng abade; 
 
 S prepared and 
 made ready. 
 
THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 « raised ensign. 
 
 2 brave, faithful. 
 
 Thai lefted goinfainoun', 
 
 And out of hauen thai rade 
 Till thai com til atoun, 
 
 A castel Rohand had made. 
 Her sailes thai leten doun, 
 
 And knight, ouer bord thai strade 
 Al cladde. 
 
 The knightes that wer fade', 
 Thai dede as Rohand bade. 
 
 4 nourished. 
 
 5 much honour. 
 
 6 swiftly. 
 
 Rohand right he radde : — 
 
 " This maiden schal ben cure, 
 Rouland Riis to wedde. 
 
 At weld^ in castel tour. 
 To bring hir to his bedde 
 
 That brightest is in bour. 
 Nas neuer non fairer fedde'' 
 
 Than Maiden Blauncheflour 
 Al blithe," 
 
 After that michel anour = 
 Parting com ther swithe''. 
 
 7 in public it was 
 not hidden. 
 
 8 amiably (meek- 
 ly) 'gan mix. 
 
 9 speak. 
 
 In hird nas nought to hele ' 
 That Morgan telles in toun, 
 
 Mekeliche he gan mele ° 
 Among his men to roun'; 
 
 He bad his knightes lele 
 Come to his somoun'° 
 
S/Jf TRISTREM. 
 
 23 
 
 With hors and wepenes fele 
 And rered goinfaynoun, 
 
 That bold. 
 He rode so king with croun 
 
 To win al that he wold. 
 
 Of folk the feld was brade, 
 
 Ther Morgan men gan bide'; 
 Tho Rouland to hem rade, 
 
 Oyain him gun thai ride; 
 Swiche meting nas neuer made 
 
 With sorwe on ich aside. 
 Ther of was Rouland glade, 
 
 Ful fast he feld" her pride. 
 With paine 
 
 Morgan scaped that tide 
 That he nas nought slain. 
 
 Morganes folk cam newe^ 
 
 Of Rouland Riis the gode, 
 On helmes gun thai hewe, 
 
 Thurch brinies brast" the blod; 
 Sone to deth ther drewe 
 
 Mani a frely fode^. 
 Of Rouland was to rewe^ 
 
 To grounde when he yode', 
 That bold: 
 
 His sone him after stode, 
 And dere his deth he sold. 
 
 1 abide, take up 
 position. 
 
 2 felled. 
 
 ■5 came anew 
 upon. 
 
 4 through helmet 
 burst. 
 
 5 noble person. 
 
 6 rue. 
 
 7 go-ed, went. 
 
 Rewthe mow^ ye here 
 
 Of Rouland Riis the knight; 
 
 s sorrow must. 
 
I pierced. 
 
 24 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 Threhundred he slough there 
 
 With his swerd bright; 
 Of all tho that ther were 
 
 Might none him felle in fight, 
 But on with tresoun there 
 
 Thurch the bodi him pight'. 
 With gile 
 
 To deth he him dight — 
 Alias that ich while! 
 
 " Great wonder 
 had he gained 
 by his marvel- 
 lous activity. 
 
 3 damsel. 
 
 4 But she linger- 
 ed not. 
 
 His hors o feld him bare 
 
 Alle ded hom in his way; 
 Gret wonder hadde he thought thare 
 
 That folk of ferly play'. 
 The tiding com with care 
 
 To Blauncheflour, that may^. 
 For hir me reweth sare: 
 
 On child bed ther sche lay 
 Was born 
 
 Of hir Tristrem that day, 
 Ac hye no bade* nought that morn. 
 
 3 noble lady. 
 
 A ring of rich hewe 
 
 Than hadde that ^euedi fre^; 
 Sche toke it Rouhand trewe, 
 
 Hir sone sche bad it be: — 
 "Mi brother wele it knewe, 
 
 Mi fader yaf^ it me; 
 
SIS TRISTREM. 
 
 25 
 
 King Markes may rewe, 
 The ring, than he it se, 
 
 And moun. 
 As Rouland loued the, 
 
 Thou kepe it to his sone." 
 
 The folk stode vnfain' 
 
 Bifor that leuedi fre: — 
 "Rouland, mi lord, is slain. 
 
 He speketh no more with me. 
 That leuedi, nought to lain'', 
 
 For sothe^ ded is sche. 
 Who may be ogain ? 
 
 As God wil it schal be, 
 Vnblithe." 
 
 Sorwe it was to se. 
 That leuedi swelted swithe*. 
 
 • sad. 
 
 2 not to dispute, 
 
 without a 
 doubt. 
 
 3 forsooth. 
 
 4 died soon. 
 
 Geten and born was so 
 
 The child, was fair and white. 
 Nas neuer Rohand so wo. 
 
 He nist^ it whom to wite^ 
 To child bed ded he go 
 
 His owhen wiif al so tite'. 
 And sej'i he hadde children to, 
 
 On hem was his delite 
 Bi crist. 
 
 In court men cleped^ him so :- 
 Tho tram bifor the trist. 
 
 5 wist not. 
 
 6 to blame, to put 
 
 it upon. 
 
 7 quickly. 
 
 s called. 
 
26 
 
 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 1 Foremost then 
 among the folk. 
 
 2 press in. 
 
 3 promised. 
 
 strangely. 
 
 Tristrem at the Court of Mark. 
 
 [For fifteen years Tristrem, disguised as Tramtrist, is educated 
 by Rohand, becoming marvellously expert in all knightly games, 
 in minstrelsy, and hunting. At last, one day, Tristrem having 
 won heavily at chess from the master of a Norwegian vessel, the 
 latter, to avoid payment, carries his opponent off. A heavy 
 storm constraining the master of the vessel to put him ashore, 
 Jonahlike, in England, Tristrem makes his way by chance to 
 the court of Mark, and there, by his skill in music and venery, 
 becomes a favourite of the king. Meanwhile Rohand, searching 
 through seven kingdoms for his foster-son, arrives at last at 
 the palace gate. On account of his tattered and travel-stained 
 clothes he is refused entrance, first by the porter, then by the 
 usher.] 
 
 The pouer man of mold 
 
 Tok forth another ring, 
 The huscher he yaf the gold, 
 
 It seemed to a king; 
 Formest tho in fold' 
 
 He lete him in thring"; 
 To Tristrem trewe in hold 
 
 He hete^ he wold him bring, 
 And brought ; 
 
 Tristrem knewe him no thing, 
 And feriy Rohand thought. 
 
 5 believed. 
 
 6 indeed ijit. 
 
 among the 
 people). 
 
 7 wore such a 
 
 dress. 
 
 8 asked. 
 
 9 before, first. 
 
 10 judge. 
 
 Thei men Tristrem had sworn, 
 He no trowed^ it neuer in lede' 
 
 That Rohand robes were torn, 
 That he wered swiche awede'. 
 
 He frained^ him biforn': — 
 "Child, so God the rede'", 
 
SIX TRISTREM. 
 
 27 
 
 How were thou fram Rohand lorn'? 
 
 Monestow neuer° in lede?" 
 Nought lain 
 
 He kneled better spade 
 And kist Rohand ful fain. 
 
 I lost. 
 
 2 Rememberest 
 thou never. 
 
 "Fader, no wretthe the nought', 
 
 Ful welcome er ye ! 
 Bi God, that man hath bought, 
 
 No thing no knewe Y the; 
 With sorwe thou hast me sought. 
 
 To wite it wo is me!" 
 To Mark the word he brought, 
 
 "M'^il ye mi fader se 
 With sight? 
 
 Graithed'' Y wil he be, 
 And seththen^ schewe him as knight." 
 
 3 be not wrath- 
 ful. 
 
 4 clad. 
 
 5 afterwards 
 {^wod. Scot. syne). 
 
 Tristrem to Mark it seyd, 
 
 His auentours, as it were, 
 Hou he with schipmen pleyd, 
 
 Of lond hou thai him bare, 
 Hou stormes hem bi stayed. 
 
 Til anker hem brast and are". 
 "Thai yolden' me that Y layd 
 
 With al mi wining there 
 In hand; 
 
 Y clambe the holtes hare^ 
 Till Y thine hunters fand." 
 
 <3 anchor and oar 
 
 broke. 
 7 yielded. 
 
 s woods hoar. 
 
28 
 
 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 1 rough. 
 
 2 head. 
 
 3 a scarlet robe 
 
 fur-lined. 
 
 A bath thai brought Rohand inne, 
 
 A harbour was redi thare; 
 Al rowe' it was, his chinne, 
 
 His heued° was white of hare ; 
 A scarlet with riche skinne' 
 
 Ybrought him was ful yare. 
 Rohand of noble kinne, 
 
 That robe ful fair he bare, 
 That bold; 
 
 Who that had seyn him thare 
 A prince him might han told. 
 
 4 thither he let 
 him come. 
 
 5 way. 
 
 6 knew. 
 
 Fair his tale bi gan 
 
 Rohand; thei he com laf; 
 Tristrem, that honour can, 
 
 To halle led him the gate 5. 
 Ich man seyd than 
 
 Nas non swiche, as thai wate*. 
 As was the pouer man 
 
 That thai bete fram the gat 
 With care; 
 
 Nas non that wald him hate, 
 Bot welcom was he thare. 
 
 7 drawn. 
 
 s pleasant. 
 
 9 servants. 
 
 10 ready. 
 
 Water thai asked swithe. 
 Cloth and board was drain' 
 
 With mete and drink hthe" 
 And seriaunce' that were bayn" 
 
 To serve Tristrem swithe 
 And Sir Rohand ful fayn; 
 
S/H TRISTREM. 
 
 29 
 
 Whasche", when thai wald rise, 
 The king ros him oyain 
 
 That tide ; 
 In lede is nought to layn^ 
 
 He sett him bi his side. 
 
 I wash. 
 
 = in company is 
 not to be dis- 
 puted, to be 
 brief. 
 
 Rohand that was thare, 
 
 To Mark his tale bi gan : — 
 "Wist ye what Tristrem ware, 
 
 Miche gode ye wold him an 3. 
 Your owhen soster him bare," 
 
 — The king lithed'' him than — 
 " Y nam sibbe^ him na mare, 
 
 Ich aught^ to ben his man, 
 Sir king. 
 
 Knowe it yiue' ye can, 
 Sche taught^ me this ring 
 
 3 grant. 
 
 4 listened to. 
 
 5 kin to. 
 
 6 owned. 
 
 7 gif, if. 
 
 8 entrusted to. 
 
 When Rouland Riis the bold 
 
 Douke Morgan gan mete.'' 
 The tale when Rohand told. 
 
 For sorwe he gan grete'. 
 The king biheld that old. 
 
 How his wonges" were wete. 
 To Mark the ring he yold, 
 
 He knewe it al so sket", 
 Gan loke : 
 
 He kist Tristrem ful skete, 
 And for his nevou" toke. 
 
 9 weep. 
 
 10 cheeks. 
 
 II quickly. 
 
 12 nephew. 
 
3° 
 
 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 I then they 
 kissed. 
 
 2 asked. 
 
 3 in short. 
 
 Tho thai kisten" him alle, 
 
 Bothe leuedi and knight 
 And seriaunce in the halle 
 
 And maidens that were bright. 
 Tristrem gan Rohand calle, 
 
 And freined^ him with sight:— 
 " Sir, how may this falle ? 
 
 How may Y proue it right? 
 Nought lain^ 
 
 Tel me, for Codes might, 
 How was mi fader slain?" 
 
 Tristrem's Revenge. 
 
 [Told of the death of his father and mother by Morgan's 
 treachery, Tristrem at last obtains Mark's permission to make 
 war. He is knighted by the king, and, sailing for Ermonie, 
 garrisons Rohand's castle with a thousand men. Grown weary 
 there of inaction, he determines to put his fortune to a 
 personal issue.] 
 
 "With Morgan speke wil Y 
 
 And spede. 
 So long idel we ly, 
 
 Myself mai do mi nede." 
 
 4 promised. 
 
 5 ready. 
 
 6 His fifteen 
 
 knights. 
 
 7 gaed, went. 
 
 ° sheared, cut. 
 
 Tristrem dede as he highf. 
 
 He busked and made him yare^ 
 Hi fiftend som of knight', 
 
 With him yede' na mare. 
 To court thai com ful right 
 
 As Morgan his brede schare^; 
 
S/j; TKISTREM. 
 
 31 
 
 Thai teld tho bi sight 
 
 Ten kinges sones thai ware; 
 Vn sought 
 
 Heuedes of wild bare 
 Ichon' to presant brought. 
 
 each c 
 
 Rohand bi gan to sayn=, 
 
 To his knightes than seyd he : 
 " As woman is, tviis for lain^, 
 
 Y may say bi me. 
 Yif Tristrem be now sleyn, 
 
 Yuel yemers'' er we. 
 To armes, knight and swayn, 
 
 And swiftly ride ye 
 And swithe ! 
 
 Till Y Tristrem se, 
 No worths Y neuer blithe.'' 
 
 - speak. 
 
 Ai a woman 
 who is twice 
 seduced. 
 
 4 ill guardians. 
 
 Tristrem speke bi gan : — 
 
 "Sir King, God loke" the 
 As Y the loue and an' 
 
 And thou hast serued to me!" 
 The Douke answerd than : — 
 "Y pray, mi lord so fre, 
 Whether thou bless or ban, 
 
 Thine owhen mot it be. 
 Thou bold! 
 
 Thi nedes tel thou me. 
 Thine erand, what thou wold." 
 
 6 look on. 
 
 7 regard. 
 
32 
 
 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 1 syne, there- 
 after. 
 
 2 Thou art come 
 quickly. 
 
 " Amendes ! Mi fader is slain, 
 
 Mine hirritage Hermonie!" 
 The Douk answerd ogain : — 
 
 " Certes, thi fader than slough Y. 
 Seththen' thou so hast sayd, 
 
 Amendes ther ought to ly. 
 Ther fore, prout swayn, 
 
 So schal Y the; for thi 
 Right than 
 
 Artow comen titly^ 
 Fram Marke thi kinsman. 
 
 3 weenedst to 
 find. 
 
 4 bound. 
 
 5 liest. 
 
 6 know. 
 
 " Yongling, thou schalt abide ! 
 
 Foles thou wendest to fand' ! 
 Thi fader thi moder gan hide, 
 
 In horedom he hir band"*. 
 How comestow with pride? 
 
 Out, traitour, of mi land ! " 
 Tristrem spac that tide : — 
 
 "Thou lext^, ich vnder stand 
 And wot*!" 
 
 Morgan with his hand 
 With a lof Tristrem smot. 
 
 On his brest adoun 
 
 Of his nose ran the blod. 
 
 Tristrem swerd was boun, 
 
 And near the Douke he stode.* 
 ***** 
 
 ***** 
 
 * Two lines are here wanting, as is evident from the difference 
 in the stanza, though there is no blank in the MS. 
 
S!R J-RISTKEM. 
 
 33 
 
 With that, was comen to toun 
 Rohand with help ful gode 
 
 And gayn'. 
 Al that oyain° hem stode 
 
 Wightly^ were thai slayn. 
 
 1 pleasant, 
 z against. 
 3 quickly. 
 
 To prisoun tliai gun take 
 
 Erl, baroun, and knight. 
 For Douke Morgan sake, 
 
 Mani on dyd doun right. 
 Schaftes they gun shake 
 
 And riuen scheldes bright 
 Crounes thai gun crake 
 
 Mani, ich wene, apHght*. 
 Saunfayl^, 
 
 Bitvene the none and the night 
 Last the batayle. 
 
 4 outright. 
 
 5 without pause. 
 
 Thus hath Tristrem the swete 
 
 Yslawe the Douke Morgan. 
 No wold he neuer lete' 
 
 Til mo castels were tan ' ; 
 Tounes thai yold him skete, 
 
 And cites stithe of stanl 
 The folk fel to his fet, 
 
 Ayaines him stode ther nan 
 In land. 
 
 He slough his fader ban,' 
 Al bowed to his hand. 
 
 6 forbear. 
 
 7 ta'en. 
 
 8 strong of stone. 
 
 9 father's 
 murderer. 
 
34 
 
 THOMAS THE RHYMEK. 
 
 ■ ruled. 
 
 Tvo yere he sett' that land, 
 
 His lawes made he cri. 
 Al com to his hand, 
 
 Almain, and Ermonie, 
 At his wil to stand 
 
 Boun and al redy. 
 Rohand he yaf° the wand, 
 
 And bad him sitt him bi, 
 That fre^. 
 
 "Rohand lord make Y, 
 To held this lond of me." 
 
 4 was called. 
 
 5 song. 
 
 6 lief, pleased. 
 
 7 teach. 
 
 Tristrem's Teaching of Ysonde. 
 
 [Returned to his uncle's court, Tristram finds the country 
 groaning under a huge, unjust tribute demanded by Ireland — 
 three hundred pounds each of gold, coined silver, and brass, and 
 every fourth year three hundred children. Tristrem persuades 
 the council to refuse, takes upon himself the denial of the tribute, 
 and in a great duel with Moraunt, the Irish ambassador, cleaves 
 that champion's skull. At the same time he is himself wounded, 
 and the wound gangrenes. He lies ill for three years. At last, 
 despairing of cure and forsaken by all because of his wound's 
 stench, he asks a ship. In this he drifts from Carlion to Dublin. 
 There his skill in music, chess, and tables enlists the interest of 
 the queen, who, expert in surgery, after the manner of the ladies 
 of that day, undertakes his cure. The queen is sister to the 
 dead Moraunt, but, remembering his duel, Tristrem has taken 
 care to assume the name of Tramtris, and to declare himself a 
 merchant robbed by pirates. As an accomplished companion he 
 is frequently invited to court, and there he turns his skill to 
 good account.] 
 
 The king had a douhter dere 
 That maiden Ysonde highf. 
 
 That gle^ was lef^ to here 
 And romaunce to rede aright. 
 
 Sir Tramtris hir gan lere' 
 
S/A' TRISTREM. 
 
 35 
 
 Tho with al his might 
 What alle pointes' were, 
 
 To se the sothe^ in sight, 
 To say. 
 
 In Yrlond nas no knight 
 With Ysonde durst play. 
 
 I accomplish- 
 ments. 
 = truth. 
 
 Ysonde of heighe priis^, 
 
 The maiden bright of hewe 
 That wered fow and griis'' 
 
 And scarlet that was newe. 
 In warld was non so wiis 
 
 Of craft that men knewe 
 With outen Sir Tramtris, 
 
 That al games of grewe 
 On grounde. 
 
 Hom longeth^ Tramtris the trewe. 
 For heled was his wounde. 
 
 3 praise, fame. 
 
 4 fur and grey 
 furred cloth. 
 
 5 entertains with 
 fair talk. 
 
 Sir Tramtris in Irlond 
 
 Duelled al ayere. 
 So gode likeing^ he fand 
 
 That hole he was and fere. 
 The Quen to fot and hand 
 
 He serued dern and dere''; 
 Ysonde he dede vnder stand 
 
 What alle playes were 
 In lay". 
 
 His leue he asked at here 
 In schip to founde' oway. 
 
 6 entertainment. 
 
 7 secretly and 
 with favour. 
 
 = la 
 
 9 go. 
 
36 
 
 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 I counselled to 
 rid himself of 
 (Tristrem). 
 
 = suffer. 
 3 become. 
 
 The Embassy for Ysonde. 
 
 [Returned to the court of Mark, Tristrem is received with 
 great joy by his uncle, and has to give a full account of his 
 absence and cure. He dilates upon the charms of Ysonde, and 
 the king, struck by the description, offers to make Tristrem his 
 heir if he will bring the princess to Cornwall. The idea pleases 
 the jealous barons.] 
 
 In Inglond ful wide 
 
 The barouns hem bi thought 
 To fel Tristremes pride 
 
 How thai fairest mought; 
 The king thai rad to ride", 
 
 A quen to him thai sought, 
 That Tristrem might abide - 
 
 That he no were^ it nought, 
 No king : 
 
 Thai seyd that Tristrem mought 
 Ysonde of Irlond bring. 
 
 4 chose. 
 
 A brid bright thai ches" 
 
 
 As blod opon snoweing : 
 
 S of such sort. 
 
 "A maiden of swiche reles^, 
 
 
 Tristrem may to the bring.' 
 
 6 lies. 
 
 Quoth Tristrem :— " It is les^ 
 
 7 leasing,treason. 
 
 And troweth it for lesing'; 
 
 
 To aski that neuer no wes, 
 
 8 foolish. 
 
 It is a fole^ askeing 
 
 
 Bi kinde; 
 
 9 strange, silly. 
 
 It is a selli' thing, 
 
 
 For no man may it finde. 
 
S/A' TRISTREM. 37 
 
 "Y rede' ye nought no striue ; 'counsel. 
 
 A swalu Ich herd sing, 
 Ye siege Ich wern mi nem to wiue=, ' ^^ ^'^ \ '^^'■'= 
 
 °° ' my uncle to 
 
 For Y schuld be your king. '^^''• 
 
 Now bringeth me atte riue^ 3 (a/anw)shore. 
 
 Schip and other thing. 
 
 Ye se me neuer oliue "* ■'Ye wi'i never 
 
 see me alive. 
 
 Bot yif Ich Ysonde bring, 
 
 That bright. 
 Finde me min askeing, 
 Mine fiftend som of knight.'' 
 
 The Drinking of the Love-potion. 
 
 [Tristrem sails for Ireland with rich presents, to find the 
 people of Dublin in dire terror. They are threatened by a 
 monstrous dragon which has done so much damage that the 
 hand of Ysonde is offered to him who shall slay it. Tristrem 
 undertakes the adventure, and after a dreadful encounter slays 
 the beast. Cutting out the dragon's tongue he attempts to 
 carry it away in his hose, but is overcome by its poison. 
 \Presently the king's steward, passing, cuts off the dragon's head, 
 carries it to court, and claims the victory and the hand of Ysonde. 
 The princess disbelieves the tale, and proceeding with her 
 mother to the scene of encounter, finds Tristrem. Revived by 
 their aid, he claims the victory, proves his claim by producing 
 the tongue, and pledges his ship and cargo that he will make 
 good his story upon the person of the steward. So dignified is 
 the supposed merchant's bearing that Ysonde exclaims " Alas 
 that thou art not knight !" While Tristrem is in a bath Ysonde 
 discovers that a break in his sword fits a fragment of steel which 
 had been taken from the skull of her uncle Moraunt. With her 
 mother she rushes to despatcB the champion in his bath, but the 
 king interposes. Tristrem defends himself as having slain 
 Moraunt in fair fight. Smiling upon Ysonde, he tells her that 
 he is her late preceptor Tramtris, and asks her why she did not 
 slay him when she had opportunity before. Finally he declares 
 his embassy. The match is accepted, the steward relinquishing 
 his claim, is thrown into prison at Ysonde's request, and 
 preparation is made for the voyage of the princess. 
 
38 
 
 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 I compact. 
 - bound. 
 
 Tristrem swore that thing; 
 
 Thai seyd it schuld stand 
 That he schuld Ysonde bring 
 
 — Thai token it vnder hand — 
 To Marke, the riche king, 
 
 Oliue yif thai him fand, 
 And make hir with his ring, 
 
 Quen of Ingeland, 
 To say ; 
 
 The forward' fast thai band^ 
 Er thai parted oway. 
 
 3 neither land nor 
 people. 
 
 4 speedily. 
 
 5 beget. 
 
 No asked he lond no lithe^, 
 
 Bot that maiden bright; 
 He busked him al so swithe*. 
 
 Both squier and knight. 
 Her moder about was blithe 
 
 And tok adrink of might, 
 That loue wald kithe^ 
 
 And tok it Brengwain the bright 
 To think : 
 
 "At er spouseing a night 
 Yif Mark and hir to drink." 
 
 6 rowed. 
 
 Ysonde bright of hewe 
 
 Is fer out in the se. 
 A winde oyain hem blewe 
 
 That sail no might ther be. 
 So rewe° the knightes trewe, 
 
 Tristrem, so rewe he, 
 Euer as thai com newe — 
 
S//i TRISTREM. 
 
 39 
 
 He on oyain hem thre' 
 
 Gret swink^ 
 Swete Ysonde the fre 
 Asked Bringwain adrink. 
 
 ' He one against 
 three of them. 
 
 2 toil. 
 
 The coupe was richeli wrought, 
 
 Of gold it was, the pin*; 
 In al the warld nas nought 
 
 Swiche drink as ther was in. 
 Brengwain was wrong bi thought. 
 
 To that drink sche gan win 
 And swete Ysonde it bi taught^: 
 
 Sche bad Tristrem bigin, 
 To say. 
 
 Her loue might no man tvin", 
 Til her endingday. 
 
 3 gave. 
 
 4 part. 
 
 An hounde ther was biside, 
 
 That was ycleped Hodain; 
 The coupe he licked that tide 
 
 Tho doun it sett Bringwain; 
 Thai loued al in lide^ 
 
 And ther of were thai fain ; 
 To gider^ thai gun abide 
 
 In ioie and ek in pain 
 For thought : 
 
 In iuel time, to sain', 
 The drink was y wrought. 
 
 * Scott explained this line by a note: "The practice of putting 
 gold and silver pins into drinking vessels was intended to regulate 
 the draught of each guest. " Hence perhaps the vulgar expressions, 
 " drinking to a merry pin," and " taking one down a peg." 
 
 5 in common. 
 
 6 Together. 
 
 7 to say, forsooth. 
 
40 
 
 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 I Two weeks. 
 
 Tvai wikes' in the strand 
 
 No seyl thai no drewe ; 
 Into Inglond 
 
 A winde to wille hem blewe. 
 The king on hunting thai fand ; 
 
 A knaue that he knewe, 
 He made him knight with hand 
 
 For his tidinges newe, 
 Gan bring. 
 
 Ysonde bright of hewe 
 Ther spoused Mark the king. 
 
 [Brengwain on the nuptial night is substituted for the guilty 
 queen. Presently the latter, fearing betrayal, orders two 
 ruffians to dispatch her maid. The damsel, however, induces 
 these to spare her, protesting that her only crime has been to 
 lend the queen a clean smock on her bridal night. This being 
 reported to the queen as Brengwain's last speech, Ysonde 
 perceives the fidelity of her maid, laments her death, and vows 
 vengeance on her murderers. Brengwain is then produced and 
 restored to full favour.] 
 
 Mark surrenders his Queen. 
 
 2 between, across. 
 
 3 without pause. 
 
 Fram Irlond to the king 
 An harpour com bi tven'' ; 
 
 An harp he gan forth bring, 
 Swiche no hadde thai neuer sen 
 
 With sight; 
 Himself, with outen wen^, 
 
 Bar it day and night. 
 
S/Ji TRISTREM. 
 
 41 
 
 Ysonde he loved in are", 
 
 He that the harp brought ; 
 About his hals° he it bare, 
 
 Richelich it was wrought ; 
 He hidde it euer mare^ 
 
 Out no com it nought. 
 "Thine harp whi wiltow spare, 
 
 Yif thou ther of can ought 
 Of gle9" 
 
 "Out no Cometh it nought 
 With outen yiftes fre^" 
 
 I erst, formerly. 
 
 2 neck. 
 
 J noble gifts. 
 
 Mark seyd, "Lat me se 
 
 Harpi hou thou can, 
 And what thou askest me 
 
 Yiue Y schal the than.'' 
 "Blethely^" seyd he; 
 
 A miri lay he bigan. 
 "Sir king, of yiftes fre 
 
 Her with Ysonde Y wan' 
 Bidenel 
 
 Y proue the for fals man. 
 Or Y schal haue thi quen." 
 
 6 Blithely. 
 
 7 win. 
 
 « speedily. 
 
 Mark to conseyl yede', 
 
 And asked rede" of tho to : 
 " Lesen Y mote" mi manhed. 
 
 Or yeld Ysonde me fro.'' 
 Mark was ful of drede, 
 
 Ysonde lete he go. 
 
 10 advice. 
 
 " Lessen I must. 
 
42 
 
 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 1 extremity. 
 
 2 slaying deer. 
 
 Tristrem in that nede' 
 At wode was, dere to slo°, 
 
 That day; 
 Tristrem com right tho 
 
 As Ysonde was o way. 
 
 3 anger. 
 
 4 Gjvest thou 
 
 gleemen. 
 
 5 a musical 
 
 instrument, 
 hand-organ. 
 
 6 without delay. 
 
 7 reached for. 
 
 * listen. 
 
 Tho was Tristrem in ten^, 
 
 And chidde with the king; 
 "Yifstow glewemen'' thy quen? 
 
 Hastow no nother thing?" 
 His rote^, with outen wen'', 
 
 He raught' by the ring ; 
 Tho folwed Tristrem the ken 
 
 To schip ther thai hir bring 
 So blithe; 
 
 Tristrem bigan to sing, 
 And Ysonde bigan to Hthel 
 
 9 soon sorrowful. 
 
 10 nigh broke in 
 two. 
 
 " The earl. 
 
 Swiche song he gan sing 
 
 That hir was swithe wo'; 
 Her com swiche louelonging, 
 
 Hir hert brast neighe ato'°. 
 Therl" to hir gan spring 
 
 With knightes mani mo, 
 And seyd, "Mi swete thing, 
 
 Whi farestow so, 
 Y pray?" 
 
 Ysonde to lond most go, 
 Er sche went o way. 
 
S//i TRISTREM. 
 
 43 
 
 "Within a stounde' of the day 
 
 Y schal ben hole and sounde; 
 Y here amenstreP, to say, 
 
 Of Tristrem he hath asounl" 
 Therl seyd, "Dathet him ay" 
 
 Of Tristrem yif this stounde ! 
 That minstrel for his lay 
 
 Schal have an hundred pounde 
 Of me, 
 
 Yif he wil with ous founded 
 Lef,^ for thou louest his gle.'' 
 
 1 short space. 
 
 2 a minstrel. 
 
 3 a song. 
 
 4 Ill-luck have 
 
 him always. 
 
 5 go. 
 
 6 Love, darling 
 
 His gle al for to here 
 
 The leuedi was sett on land 
 To play bi the riuere; 
 
 Therl ladde hir bi hand; 
 Tristrem, trewe fere'', 
 
 Mirie notes he fand 
 Opon his rote of yuere^. 
 
 As thai were on the strand ; 
 That stounde 
 
 Thurch that semly sand' 
 Ysonde was hole and sounde. 
 
 7 friend. 
 
 9 sound. 
 
 Hole sche was and sounde 
 Thurch vertu of his gle; 
 
 For thi therl that stounde 
 Glad a man was he; 
 
 Of penis to hundred pounde 
 He yaf "° Tristrem the fre ; 
 
44 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 To schip than gun thai founde, 
 In Yrlond wald thai be 
 I willingly. Ful fain", 
 
 Therl and knightes thre 
 With Ysonde and Bringwain. 
 
 Tristrem tok his stede 
 And lepe ther on to ride; 
 = lead. The quen bad him her lede° 
 
 To schip him bi side; 
 3 as she bade. Tristrcm dedc as hye bede^ 
 
 In wode he gan hir hide. 
 To therl he seyd, " In that nede 
 ■• 'ost. Thou hast ytenf thi pride, 
 
 Thou dote ! 
 With thine harp thou wonne hir that tide. 
 Thou tint hir with mi rote." 
 
 Meriadok's Discovery. 
 
 [After a week spent together in the forest Tristrem restores 
 Ysonde to the king, telling him to give minstrels other gifts in 
 future. The suspicions of one of Mark's courtiers, however, 
 have been excited.] 
 
 Meriadok was aman 
 5 trusted always. That Tristrem trowed ay=; 
 
 Miche gode he him an, 
 ' one. In o^ chaumber thai lay. 
 
 7 won. Tristrem to Ysonde wan' 
 
 A night with hir to play; 
 
S/j; TRISTREM. 
 
 45 
 
 As man that miche kan', 
 A bord he tok oway 
 
 Of her hour*; 
 Er he went, to say, 
 
 Of snowe was fallen aschour. 
 
 I can do much. 
 
 A schowr ther was y falle, 
 
 That al the way was white ; 
 Tristrem was wo with alle, 
 
 With diol, sorwe, and site'. 
 Bitven the hour and the halle 
 
 The way was nam and litel 
 Swiche cas him was bi falle, 
 
 As we finde in scrite''. 
 Ful sket 
 
 A siue^ he fond tite', 
 And bond vnder his fete. 
 
 - dule, sorrow, 
 and anxiety. 
 MS. "and 
 sorwe site." 
 
 3 little. 
 
 4 writing. 
 
 3 sieve. 
 6 quickly. 
 
 Meriadok with his might 
 
 Aros vp al bi dene' ; 
 The way he went right 
 
 Til he com to the quen ; 
 The bord he fond of tvight"*. 
 
 To wite, and nought at wene'. 
 Of Tristrem kertel the knight 
 
 He fond a pece grene 
 Of tore ; 
 
 Meriadok the kene 
 Wondred ther fore. 
 
 * Scott notes here the primitive domestic architecture. The 
 queen's chamber was a. wooden bower apart, "the art of 
 partitions being probably unknown." 
 
 7 with speed. 
 
 S twitched off. 
 
 9 To be perceived 
 without doubt 
 (plainly). 
 
46 
 
 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 1 test the purity 
 
 of. 
 = law. 
 
 3 went. 
 
 4 blame. 
 
 The Trial of Ysonde. 
 
 [Meriadok opens his suspicions to the king. The latter 
 accordingly pretends a journey to the Holy Land, and asks 
 Ysonde to whose charge she wishes to be committed. At first 
 she names Tristrem, but presently, advised by Brengwain, she 
 pretends a hatred to the knight, and the Icing is satisfied. 
 Further interviews of the lovers are discovered by a dwarf, 
 concealed in a tree. The king assumes the dwarf's place, but 
 the lovers, discovering him by his shadow, pretend mutual 
 recrimination, and Mark is again persuaded of their innocence. 
 Finally, however, Meriadok invents a device. The king, the 
 queen, and Tristrem have blood let the same day, and Meriadok 
 strews the floor of Ysonde's chamber with flour. Tristrem 
 coming at night, leaps thirty feet over the flour, but his vein 
 bursting betrays his visit.] 
 
 Tristrem was fled oway, 
 
 To wite, and nought to wene. 
 At Londen on a day 
 
 Mark wald spourge' the quen. 
 Men seyd sche brak the lay^; 
 
 A bischop yede^ bi tvene, 
 With hot yren, to say, 
 
 Sche thought to make hir clene 
 Of sake^ 
 
 Ysonde said bidene 
 That dome sche wald take. 
 
 5 marches. 
 
 6 in poor weed 
 clad. 
 
 Men sett the merkes^ there 
 At Westeminster ful right, 
 
 Hot yren to here 
 
 For Sir Tristrem the knight. 
 
 In pouer wede to were' 
 Tristrem com that night 
 
S/Ji TRISTREM. 
 
 — -Of alle the knightes here 
 No knew him non bi sight 
 
 Bidene — 
 To swete Ysonde bright, 
 
 As forward' was hem bitvene. 
 
 47 
 
 ; tryst. 
 
 Ouer Temes she schuld ride, 
 
 That is an arm of the se : 
 " To the schip side, 
 
 This man schal bere nie." 
 Tristrem hir bar that tide, 
 
 And on the quen fel he. 
 Next her naked side 
 
 That mani man might y se 
 San schewe". 
 
 3 without being 
 shown. 
 
 In water thai wald him sink, 
 
 And wers^, yif thai may. 
 "Ye quite him iuel his swink';" 
 
 The quen seyd to hem ay ; 
 " It semeth mete no drink 
 
 Hadde he not mani aday ; 
 For pouerte=, methenk. 
 
 He fel, for sothe to say. 
 And nede": 
 
 Yeueth' him gold, Y pray. 
 He may bidde god me spede." 
 
 4 Ye requite him 
 ill his toil. 
 
 5 poverty. 
 
 6 want. 
 
 7 Give. 
 
4S 
 
 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 I consistory (a 
 bishop's court.) 
 
 2 one. 
 
 3 saw well then. 
 
 4 Strangely nigh 
 
 he won. 
 
 5 A true thing 
 
 I say. 
 
 Gold thai youen him thare: 
 
 The constori" thai bigan. 
 Swete Ysonde sware 
 
 Sche was giltles woman ; 
 " Bot on- to schip me bare, 
 
 The knightes seighe wele than 3; 
 What so his wille ware, 
 
 FerH neigbe he wan*. 
 Sothe things, 
 
 So neighe com neuer man 
 Bot mi lord the king." 
 
 6 appointed. 
 
 7 before, forward. 
 
 s then prayed 
 they. 
 
 1 But Mark 
 forgave. 
 
 Swete Ysonde hath sworn 
 
 Hir clene, that miri may; 
 To hir thai had y corn'' 
 
 Hot yren, Y say. 
 The knightes were bi forn'; 
 
 For hir tho praiden thai'*. 
 The yren sche hadde y born, 
 
 Ac Mark foryaue' that day 
 And dede. 
 
 Meriadok held thai, 
 For fole in his falshede. 
 
 10 In spite of 
 Meriadok his 
 (accusation). 
 
 Ysonde is graunted clene, 
 Meriadok maugre his'°; 
 
 Neuer er nas the quene 
 So wele with Mark, Y wis. 
 
 Tristrem, with outen wene. 
 Into Wales he is; 
 
Sl/i TRISTREM. 
 
 49 
 
 In bataile he hath ben, 
 And fast he fraines' this 
 
 Right thare: 
 For he ne may Ysonde kisse 
 
 Fight he sought ay whare. 
 
 I eagerly he 
 seeks. 
 
 Ysonde of the White Hand. 
 
 [After famous exploits in Wales, where he relieves the kingdom 
 from the tyranny of a giant, Urgan, Tristrem is invited back to 
 court ; but fresh amours with the queen appearing, Mark 
 banishes the two together. They find a dwelling in the forest 
 for a year, till the king, hunting one day, finds them asleep with 
 a drawn sword lying between them. Persuaded of their innocence 
 by this chance circumstance, and enamoured once more by 
 the beauty of Ysonde, he stops with his glove a sunbeam falling 
 through a cranny on her face, and presently recalls his wife and 
 nephew to court. Again surprised by a dwarf, however, in a 
 stolen interview with the queen, Tristrem is compelled to fly.] 
 
 Tristrem is went oway 
 
 Withouten coming oyain, 
 And siketh, for sothe to sain°, 
 
 With sorwe and michel^ pain. 
 Tristrem fareth ay 
 
 As man that wald be slain, 
 Bothe night and day, 
 
 Fightes for to frain'', 
 That fre; 
 
 Spaine he hath thurch sayn^, 
 Geauntes he slough thre^ 
 
 Into Bretein he ches' 
 
 Bi come the doukes knight; 
 
 He set his lond in pes^, 
 That arst« was ful of fight. 
 
 2 sighs, truth to 
 say. 
 
 3 much. 
 
 6 Giants three he 
 slew. 
 
 7 chose. 
 
 8 peace. 
 
 9 formerly. 
 
50 
 
 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 I offered. 
 ~ '* without lies, 
 i.e.. in fact. 
 
 Al that the doukes wes 
 He wan oyain with right. 
 
 He bade' him, with outen Ies°, 
 His douhter that was bright 
 
 In land. 
 That maiden Ysonde hight 
 
 With the White Hand. 
 
 3 weened, 
 guessed. 
 
 4 desire. 
 
 5 make moan. 
 
 6 fair. 
 
 7 offered. 
 
 Tristremes loue was strong 
 
 On swete Ysonde the quene; 
 Of Ysonde he made a song, 
 
 That song Ysonde bidene. 
 The maiden wende^ al wrong 
 
 Of hir it hadde y bene. 
 Hir wening'' was so long. 
 
 To hir fader hye gan mene= 
 For nede. 
 
 Ysonde with hand schene** 
 Tristrem to wiue thai bpde'. 
 
 8 There is a wish 
 in Tristrem 
 which he has 
 found in his 
 thoughts. 
 —McNeill. 
 
 9 The Bihle saith 
 it is not. 
 
 lo was called. 
 
 Tristrem a wil is inne, 
 
 Has founden in his thought^ : 
 " Mark, mi nem, hath sinne, 
 
 Wrong he hath wrought. 
 Icham in sorwe and pine, 
 
 Ther to hye hath me brought. 
 Hir loue, Y say, is mine. 
 
 The boke seyt it is nought' 
 With right." 
 
 The maiden more he sought 
 For sche Ysonde hight". 
 
Sm TRISTREM. 
 
 SI 
 
 That in his hert he fand, 
 
 And trewely thought he ay ; 
 The forward fast he band' 
 
 With Ysonde ; that may 
 With the white hand 
 
 He spoused that day. 
 O night, Ich vnder stand, 
 
 To boure wenten thai 
 On bedde. 
 
 Tristrem ring fel oway 
 As men to chaumber him ledde. 
 
 T The compact 
 fa<!t he bound. 
 
 Tristrem bi held that ring, 
 
 Tho was his hert ful wo : 
 " Oyain me swiche athing 
 
 Dede neuer Ysonde so; 
 Mark, her lord, the king, 
 
 With tresoun may hir to. 
 Mine hert may no man bring 
 
 For no thing hir fro, 
 That fre. 
 
 Ich have tvinned ous to"". 
 The wrong is al in me." 
 
 2 I have parted 
 us two. 
 
 Tristrem to bedde yede 
 With hert ful of care. 
 
 He seyd, " The dern dede^. 
 Do it Y no dare;" 
 
 The maiden he for bede", 
 Yif it hir wille ware. 
 
 3 The secret 
 deed. 
 
 4 demanded. 
 
52 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 " ''"^orf*' '"' '" The maide answerd in lede', 
 
 " Ther of haue thou no care. 
 Al stille 
 Y nil desiri na mare 
 
 Bot at thine owen wille." 
 
 The Suit of Sir Canados. 
 
 [Presented with lands by the Duke Florentin of Brittany, 
 Tristram is attacked by Beliagog, a neighbouring giant. He 
 cuts off the giant's foot and compels him to build a splendid hall 
 containing in sculjDture the whole history of Tristrem. 
 Presently Ganhardin, brother of Ysonde of the White Hand, 
 discovers Tristrem's neglect of his sister. He upbraids the hero, 
 and for answer is shown the sculptured hall. Here he 
 acknowledges the superior charms of the Cornish Ysonde, and 
 becomes so enamoured of the presentment of Brengwain that 
 Tristrem and he set out for England. IWeanwhile Sir Canados, 
 a new character, the constable of Mark, seeks to offer his 
 addresses to the queen.] 
 
 Sir Canados was than 
 
 Constable, the quen ful neighe; 
 ^ 'xris'trein won. Fo^ Tristrcm Ysonde wan=, 
 
 3 thinketh. So weneth^ he be ful sleighe 
 
 To make hir his leman 
 < ring- With broche and riche beighe'. 
 
 For nought that he do can, 
 Hir hert was euer heighe 
 To hold; 
 ^ ^^"^ That man hye never seighe^ 
 
 That bifor Tristrem wold. 
 
S/J? TKISTKEM. 
 
 Tristrem made asong, 
 
 That song' Ysonde the sleighe' 
 And harped euer among. 
 
 Sir Canados was neighe ; 
 He seyd, " Dame, thou hast wrong, 
 
 For sothe who it seighe. 
 As oule and stormes strong, 
 
 So criestow on heye 
 In herd^ 
 
 Thou louest Tristrem dreighe*. 
 To wrong thou art ylerd^ 
 
 I bUng. 
 = cunning, 
 skilful. 
 
 3 in public. 
 
 4 exceedingly. 
 
 5 Thou art 
 
 wrongly in- 
 formed. 
 
 " Tristrem, for thi sake, 
 
 For sothe wiued hath he. 
 This wil the torn to wrake'; 
 
 Of Breteyne douke schal he be. 
 Other semblaunt' thou make 
 
 Thiseluen", yif thou hir se; 
 Thi love hir dede him take. 
 
 For hye hight as do ye' 
 In land. 
 
 Ysonde men calleth that fre, 
 With the white hand." 
 
 6 turn to 
 
 vengeance. 
 
 7 appearance. 
 
 8 Thyself. 
 
 9 she is called as 
 are ye. 
 
 "Sir Canados, the waite'°! 
 
 Euer thou art mi fo. 
 Febli thou canst hayte, 
 
 There man schuld menske" do. 
 Who wil lesinges layt", 
 
 Tharf him no ferther go. 
 
 ro guard thee. 
 
 "in manly 
 fashion. 
 12 treachery seek. 
 
54 
 
 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 1 slander. 
 
 2 ever will be to 
 
 thee sorrow. 
 
 3 A curse. 
 
 Falsly canestow fayt' 
 That euer worth the wo^ 
 
 For thi 
 Malisoun' haue thou also 
 
 Of God and our Leuedy ! 
 
 4 Thy good 
 
 fortune mayst 
 thou lose. 
 
 S Hence quickly 
 flee. 
 
 " A yift Ich yiue the : 
 
 Thi thrift mot thou tine"! 
 That thou asked me, 
 
 No schal it neuer be thine. 
 Y hated al so thou be 
 
 Of alle that drink wine ! 
 Hennes yern thou fle^ 
 
 Out of sight mine 
 In lede. 
 
 Y pray to seyn Katerine 
 That iuel mot thou spede." 
 
 The Queen's Tournament. 
 
 [Ysonde, disconsolate at the news of Tristrem, betakes herself 
 with Brengwain to the forest. Here they are found by Tristrem 
 returning with his friend. Tristrem and the queen are reconciled, 
 and Brengwain is betrothed to Ganhardin. After spending two 
 days together in the forest the party is nearly surprised by 
 Canados. Coming with the whole force of the country he 
 compels Tristrem and Ganhardin to fly, and carries Ysonde, 
 bitterly upbraiding him, back to court. Tristrem remains in 
 Cornwall, disguised as a beggar, with "cup and clapper." 
 Brengwain, disapproving his conduct, threatens to betray his 
 interviews with Ysonde. Instead, however, she reveals to Mark 
 the presumptuous love of Canados for the queen, and the 
 constable is forthwith banished. Ysonde, fain for her lover, 
 seeks to justify him to Brengwain, and, reduced to flatter her 
 maid, begs her to bring him back. Nevertheless, upon 
 Tristrem's next visit to the queen Brengwain proceeds to taunt 
 him with his late flight.] 
 
S/J^ TRISTREM. 
 
 5S 
 
 Txistrem in hour is blithe, 
 
 With Ysonde playd he thare; 
 Brengwain badde he hthe': 
 
 " Who ther armes bare, 
 Ganhardin and thou that sithe' 
 
 Wightly oway gun fare'." 
 Quath Tristrem, " Crieth swithe'' 
 
 A turnament ful yare 
 With might: 
 
 Noither of ous nil spare 
 Erl, baroun, no knight." 
 
 I bade him listen. 
 
 3 Gallantly fled. 
 
 4 Proclaim 
 
 quickly. 
 
 A turnament thai lete crie ; 
 
 The parti Canados tok he^; 
 And Meriadok sikerly^. 
 
 In his help gan he be. 
 Tristrem ful hastilye, 
 
 Of sent Ganhardin the fre'; 
 Ganhardin com titly 
 
 That turnament to se 
 With sight; 
 
 Fro the turnament nold thai fle* 
 Til her fon' were feld doun right. 
 
 5 Canados took 
 
 the other side. 
 
 6 surely. 
 
 7 Sent for the 
 noble Gan- 
 hardin. 
 
 3 they would not 
 flee. 
 
 9 their foes. 
 
 Thai com into the feld. 
 
 And founde ther knightes kene ; 
 Her old dedes thai yeld'° 
 
 With batayle al bi dene". 
 Tristrem gan bi held, 
 
 To Meriadok bi tvene; 
 
 iQ gave up. 
 II speedily. 
 
S6 
 
 THOMAS THE RHYMER. 
 
 I wreaked his 
 wrath. 
 
 For the tales he teld, 
 
 On him he wrake his tene' 
 That tide; 
 
 He yaf him awounde kene 
 Thurch out bothe side. 
 
 2 palli. 
 
 3 lose. 
 
 4 hurled. 
 
 5 lay there. 
 
 6 through helmet 
 
 pressed. 
 
 Bitvene Canados and Ganhardin 
 
 The fight was ferly strong; 
 Tristrem thought it pin= 
 
 That it last so long; 
 His stirops he made him tine^, 
 
 To grounde he him wrong*. 
 Sir Canados ther gan lyn^, 
 
 The blod thurch brini throng^. 
 With care 
 
 On him he wrake his wrong, 
 That he no ros na mare. 
 
 7 Their foes 
 
 eagerly they 
 cast down. 
 
 8 The country 
 
 with them 
 joined. 
 
 9 took the high 
 keep. 
 
 Her fon fast thai feld', 
 
 And mani of hem thai slough ; 
 The cuntre with hem meld**, 
 
 Thai wrought hem wo ynough. 
 Tristrem hath hem teld 
 
 That him to schame drough. 
 Thai token the heighe held', 
 
 And passed wele anough. 
 And bade. 
 
 Vnder wode bough 
 After her fomen thai rade. 
 
SIJR TRJSTREM. 57 
 
 Conclusion. 
 
 [Tristrem and Ganhardin, their vengeance accomplished, retire 
 to Brittany. There Tristrem undertakes the aid of a young 
 knight bereft of his mistress. In the combat the young knight 
 is slain. Tristrem avenges his death and slays the fifteen 
 ravishers, but, fatal hap, receives an arrow in his old wound. 
 
 At this point the remainder of the romance in the Auchinleck 
 MS. is torn away. Sir Walter Scott in his edition of the poem 
 with curious art supplied a conclusion "in the stile of Thomas of 
 Erceldoune" from two extant fragments of the French metrical 
 version of the tale. This relates how Tristrem's gangrene 
 became daily worse and could be cured by none but Ysonde of 
 Cornwall. Ganhardin, bearing Tristrem's ring, is despatched for 
 the queen, and instructed to hoist a white sail upon his return if 
 accompanied by Ysonde, but a black sail if his embassy be 
 unsuccessful. At last the vessel appears in sight flying a white 
 sail. Ysonde of Brittany, knowing the signal and fired with 
 jealousy, hastens to inform Tristrem. He conjures her to tell 
 him the colour of the sail. She says it is black, whereupon, 
 concluding himself forsaken by Ysonde, Tristrem sinks back 
 in despair and dies. Ysonde of Cornwall lands, and hearing 
 from an* old man the death of her lover, rushes to the castle. 
 
 When Ysonde herd that 
 
 Fast sche gan to gonne, 
 At the castel gate 
 
 Stop hir might none. 
 Sche passed in there at, 
 
 The chaumbre sche won. 
 Tristrem in cloth of stat 
 
 Lay stretched thar as ston 
 So cold. 
 
 Ysonde loked him on 
 And faste gan bihold. 
 
 Fairer ladye ere 
 
 Did Britannye never spye, 
 Swiche murning chere 
 
 Making on heighe. 
 On Tristreme's here 
 
 Doun con sche lye ; 
 Rise ogayn did sche nere, 
 
 Bot thare con sche dye 
 For woe. 
 
 Swiche lovers als thei 
 Never schal be moe. ] 
 
JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 Historian of the national hero as well as author of 
 the national epic, John Barbour remains not only the 
 first but the most famous of the poet-chroniclers of 
 Scotland. But for his pen the passion of patriotism 
 which gave Scotland a soul for four hundred years 
 might have died with Douglas and Bruce, and but 
 for him the living heroes of the Scottish wars of 
 succession and independence might have come down 
 to us little more than empty names. 
 
 Considering the fame of his work even in his own 
 day, it seems strange that hardly anything is known of 
 the facts of the poet's life. A few dates only have 
 been discovered here and there, and imagination is 
 left to clothe these with circumstance. His birth is 
 set in Aberdeenshire in 1316, two years after the 
 battle of Bannockburn, but the first certain knowledge 
 of him does not occur till 1357. His appearance 
 then is closely connected with the history of the time. 
 Since the death of Alexander IH. force of arms had 
 been tried by the English kings for the subjugation of 
 Scotland, and had failed. Now, however, according 
 to Tytler, " Edward HI. seemed to have fallen upon 
 
62 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 a more fatal and successful mode of attack." After 
 eleven years of captivity the Scottish king, David II., 
 was held to ransom, and, among other attractions, there 
 being then no such institutions in their own country, 
 " the youth of Scotland were induced to frequent the 
 universities of Oxford and Cambridge by the ready 
 kindness with which the king gave them letters of 
 protection." In 1357 Barbour, as Archdeacon of 
 Aberdeen, was one of the commissioners appointed to 
 arrange the treaty of ransom at Berwick, and in the 
 same year and in 1364 he accompanied parties of 
 young men to Oxford for the purposes of study. His 
 passports upon these occasions are still extant, " teste 
 Rege, apud Westmonasterium." There also exist 
 permits dated 1365 and 1368 allowing him with a 
 suite to pass through England to France upon 
 scholarly research. Three times Barbour appears as 
 one of the auditors of exchequer, and by a charter of 
 5th December, 1388, he received from Robert II. a 
 pension of ^10 in acknowledgment of his literary ser- 
 vices. Previously, besides a gift of ^10 and a Crown 
 wardship, he had received a perpetual annuity of 20s. 
 from his royal master. The annuity he made 
 over to the chapter of Aberdeen for the saying of an 
 annual mass for his soul, and regularly till the 
 Reformation the mass was said in the cathedral there 
 on the 13th of March. This, accordingly, has been 
 presumed to be the day of Barbour's death. The 
 year of his decease has been set at 1395, the last 
 recorded payment of his larger pension occurring on 
 3rd April of that year. 
 
JOHN BARBOUR. 63 
 
 Dr. Merry Ross, in his Scottish History and Litera- 
 ture, stated somewhat boldly that before the date of 
 Barbour's work the great age of the chroniclers in 
 England was already past. " Besides a solid array of 
 historical names," he adds, " England can show a 
 splendid list of poets, satirists, and critics, when 
 empty silence reigns beyond the Tweed." To some 
 extent, no doubt, this is true, though it was hardly an 
 utter silence which produced Sir Tristrem and its 
 following, the ballads of Ercildou7ie, Auld Maitland, 
 and the like, and the other spirited popular poetry 
 which found mention in Gavin Douglas's Palice of 
 Honour, and is referred to by Barbour himself 
 
 Young wemen when thai will play 
 Sing it amang them ilk day. 
 
 The comparative silence of the north, however, is 
 accounted for by the absence of cohesive nationality. 
 Without this the greatest inspiration of poetry was 
 lacking. No sooner were the various races of 
 Scotland united in a common sympathy by the wars 
 of succession than the national spirit burst full-grown 
 into vigorous poetic flower. In Barbour's Bruce 
 appeared, fully developed, the perfervidum ingenium 
 Scotorum — no crude fervour, but the earnest, high- 
 hearted enthusiasm for things chivalrous and tender 
 which has been the keynote of Scottish poetry ever 
 since. 
 
 The Bruce was not its author's only work. Several 
 passages in Wyntoun's Cronykil attest the existence of 
 another : 
 
 This Nynus had a sone alsua, 
 Sere Dardane lord de Frygia, 
 
64 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 Fra quham Barbere sutely 
 Has made a propyr genealogy 
 Tyl Robert oure secownd king 
 That Scotland had in governyne. 
 
 Again : 
 
 Of Bruttus lyneage quha wyll her, 
 
 He luk the tretis of Barbere 
 
 Mad in-tyl a genealogy 
 
 Rycht wele, and mare perfytly 
 
 Than I can on ony wys 
 
 Wytht all my wyt to yowe dewys. 
 
 Barbour himself in The Bruce, speaking of the 
 conquests of Arthur, says — 
 
 The Broite beris thairoff wytnes. 
 
 This poem, called by Wyntoun elsewhere The Brut, 
 has now been completely lost, unless some two 
 thousand lines said to exist in the MS. Troy-books by 
 Lydgate at Cambridge be a part of it. The 
 composition appears to have contained in metre an 
 account of the descent of the Scottish kings from 
 the Trojan Brutus, grandson of ^neas. A work of 
 similar name and purpose was the Brut of Layamon 
 in England, and the two are chiefly notable perhaps 
 for showing the praiseworthy desire of all early 
 chroniclers to begin at the beginning of things. 
 
 Still another work remains to be attributed to 
 Barbour. Not many years ago Mr. Bradshaw 
 discovered the Book of Legends of the Saints. The 
 MS. of this, " a tall, narrow volume, closely written in 
 unmistakably Scottish hand," is now in Cambridge 
 University library, and a printed edition was given to 
 the pubhc in 1889. 
 
JOHN BARBOUR. 65 
 
 But the fame of the Archdeacon of Aberdeen rests 
 with neither of these. It is Tlie Bruce which has 
 kept his name shining through the centuries, and it is 
 by The Bruce that he will be remembered while the 
 English-speaking race has a heart to be touched and 
 thrilled by generous emotion. 
 
 Barbour's poem naturally was neither the first nor 
 the last upon so popular a subject. Patrick Gordon, 
 Gentleman, about 16 15 wrote in heroic verse The 
 Famous History of the Renown' d and Valiant Prince, 
 Robert, Sirnamed the Bruce, King of Scotland.^ and in 
 his preface referred to a MS. poem previous to 
 Barbour's. This was by Peter Fenton, a monk in the 
 abbey of Melrose in 1369; but it was tattered and 
 almost illegible when Gordon saw it, and nothing 
 is known of it now. 
 
 Of the two manuscripts of Barbour's poem known 
 to exist, one, penned by John Ramsay in 1489, lies 
 now in the Advocates' Library, Edinburgh ; the 
 other, dated 1487, and probably by the same hand, 
 as it is signed J. R., is in the archives of St. John's 
 College, Cambridge. By the end of last century there 
 had been made many printed editions " to answer the 
 demand of the common people for this book, which, 
 to the credit of their good sense," said Pinkerton, its 
 editor of 1790, "is very great." Since then there 
 have appeared Dr. Jamieson's edition of 1820, an 
 edition for the Spalding Club by Mr. Cosmo Innes in 
 1856, and one for the Early English Text Society 
 by the Rev. Mr. Skeat in 1870. , 
 
 The historical value of The Bruce was early recog- 
 F 
 
66 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 nised. Wyntoun and Boece both excused their 
 brevity regarding the reign of King Robert by re- 
 ferring their readers to Barbour. It is partly 
 owing, therefore, to the excellence of Barbour's 
 masterpiece that no other contemporary account 
 of the period which it records is extant upon the 
 Scottish side. On the part of England, it is true, 
 there exist chronicles like those of Lanercost and of 
 William of Malmesbury. These, however, touch only 
 externally upon matters in which the interests of the 
 southern kingdom were concerned. The fact remains 
 that for the inner atmosphere of Scottish life at the 
 time, for the detail, character, and circumstance which 
 give history its meaning, Barbour's Bruce is all but the 
 only source of information. Nor has the general 
 truth of his narrative ever been questioned. Upon 
 every point but one upon which comparison can be 
 made his statements accord with otherwise ascertained 
 facts. He had every opportunity of acquiring inform- 
 ation. The country was ringing from end to end 
 with details of the great struggle; at court he was 
 near the most trustworthy sources of knowledge, and 
 in his youth at least there must have been about him 
 many who had ridden by Randolph's side and who 
 had heard the battle-bugles of the king. For the 
 circumstances of Edward Bruce's raid in Galloway he 
 quotes his actual informant by name : 
 
 A knycht, that then wes in his rowl, 
 Worthi and wycht, stalwart and stont, 
 Curtaiss, and fayr, and off gud fame, 
 Schyr Alane off Catkert by name, 
 Tauld me this taile, as I sail tell, 
 
JOHN BARBOUR. 67 
 
 In one conspicuous instance only, as has been said, 
 did Barbour depart from actual fact. With true 
 instinct he perceived the one possible exception 
 which might be taken to his hero's history — the fact 
 that he, bred at Edward's court, had renounced his 
 allegiance ; and in order to display briefly the under- 
 lying right of Bruce's action he took the hberty of 
 attributing to the grandson the wrong which had 
 been done to the grandfather by the English king. 
 It made a point of poetic justice that the noble 
 who had suffered the wrong should be he who 
 finally took redress at the hands of fortune : 
 whereas it was the grandfather who suffered in 
 Baliol's time and the grandson who triumphed at 
 Bannockburn. 
 
 It was not, however, altogether as history that 
 Barbour wrote TM Bruce. Something of the ancient 
 function of the bard was in his purpose. His 
 intention was the exhibiting of a hero, the stirring of 
 popular enthusiasm, as much as the recording of 
 simple fact. His scheme was larger than mere detail 
 of history. He painted the birth of a nation, and his 
 work remains outstanding among national poems as 
 conspicuously the epic of freedom. The sword had 
 already done its part — Scotland stood erect; it was the 
 poet's time to step forward, to show the true meaning 
 of the struggle which was just over, and to pen its 
 lesson upon the hearts of the people in letters of fire. 
 
 None who read The Bruce will aver that Barbour 
 failed in what was demanded of him. The awakened 
 soul of the nation was to be kept alive, and, for its 
 
68 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 growth in strength and beauty, heroic and gentle ideals 
 had to be kept before its eyes. These things Barbour 
 accomplished. It is impossible to estimate the service 
 to the civilization of his country silently effected by 
 the praise of such gentle traits as that detailed in the 
 passage beginning "The king has heard a woman 
 cry." His work is a gallery of noble portraits, and 
 when one has closed the book his characters remain 
 alive in the mind, a strength and an inspiration. On 
 the southern side Edward I., it is true, is painted all 
 black, as he appeared to Scottish eyes at that time. 
 But there is Sir Aymer de Valence, courteous and un- 
 embittered throughout in face of continued mis- 
 fortune; and no one can read without a thrill the 
 farewell of Sir Giles de Argentine to his flying king on 
 the field of Bannockburn. There is Edward Bruce, 
 hot-hearted and hot-headed, ever ready to charge 
 against any odds with no more thought than 
 
 The ma thai be 
 The mar honour all out haff we. 
 
 There is Douglas, ever full of deft resource, expert in 
 all arts alike of peace and war, the daring guerilla 
 chief, gentlest squire of dames, but the terrible "Black 
 Douglas'' in the field. There is Randolph, the king's 
 nephew, strict in honour as Bruce himself, mettled as 
 became his princely blood, and wise beyond his age 
 in governing. There are the gallant young Walter 
 Stewart and the gentle old bishop, William Lamberton; 
 the latter heroic through his love for Douglas. Last 
 and greatest of all appears the hero-king himself, 
 unmatched in courtesy to noble foes and friends, 
 
JOHN BARBOUR. 69 
 
 terrible beyond telling to traitors, ever ready with the 
 right word or parable to inspire his followers, his 
 every act pregnant with the art of conduct. With 
 rare skill Barbour has shown how the king's greatness 
 made his followers great and inspired the whole hero- 
 ism of his time, so that Sir Ingraham de Umphraville 
 could justly be made to say of him 
 
 Ilk yowman is sa wicht 
 Of his that he is worth a knycht. 
 
 The poem should end, perhaps, after the battle of 
 Bannockburn. The object of its action was then 
 attained and its epic meaning complete. There is 
 interior evidence, indeed, that it was originally meant 
 to end here, the date and a general summing up being 
 given. The remainder appears as a sequel, and, like 
 all sequels, possesses diminished interest. The Irish 
 wars of Edward Bruce and the Border exploits of 
 Douglas, well told as they are, lag somewhat after the 
 master-stroke by which the king set firm his throne. 
 For some passages, however, the after part possesses a 
 value of its own, among them being the unique story 
 already referred to of the king's courtesy to women, 
 and a valuable account of the warlike proceedings of 
 that time in a long detailed description of the defence 
 of Berwick. 
 
 Of the incidents of the poem, such as Bruce's 
 encouragement of his knights with stories of romance 
 during the tedious crossing of Loch Lomond, Mr. 
 Cosmo Innes has said that "they give us a higher 
 idea of chivalry than any writer of fable has reached." 
 Pinkerton, the earlier editor, took occasion to say that 
 
70 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 he preferred the hfe, spirit, and ease of Barbour, the 
 plain sense, pictures of real manners, and perpetual 
 incident and entertainment, to the melancholy subli- 
 mity of Dante and the amorous quaintness of Petrarch. 
 And of the purely literary part Warton, the historian of 
 English poetry, declared that "Barbour has adorned 
 the English language by a strain of versification, 
 expression, and poetical imagery far superior to his 
 age." When the opportunity occurs, the historian of 
 Bruce has shown that he can touch the details of 
 natural description with a sure hand. 
 
 This wes in the moneth of May, 
 
 Quhen byrdis syngis on ilka spray ; 
 
 Melland thair notis with seynily soune 
 
 For softnes of the suet sesoun ; 
 
 And levys of the branchys spredis, 
 
 And blomys brycht besid thaim bredis ; 
 
 And feldis are strowit with flouris 
 
 Well sawarand, of ser colouris ; 
 
 And all thing worthis blith and gay, 
 
 Quhen that this gude king tuk his way 
 
 To rid southwart. 
 
 The poem is rich in shrewd observation of the 
 springs of feeling. There is a quaint philosophy 
 about lines like the following : 
 
 To tell off paynis passyt by 
 
 Plesys to heryng petuisly, 
 
 And to reherss thar auld disese 
 
 Dois thaim oft-syss confort and ese. 
 
 With thi thar-to folow na blame 
 
 Dishonour, wikytnes, na schame. 
 A certain sort of aphorism, too, is constantly 
 occurring : 
 
 For gud help is in gud begynnyng. 
 
 For gud begynnyng and hardy, 
 
JOHN BARBOUR. ^t 
 
 Gyfif it be folowit wittily, 
 May ger oftsyss imlikly thing 
 Cum to full conabill ending. 
 
 Barbour was a scholar, apt with classic allusion, and 
 ready always to justify the action of his characters by 
 a comparison with facts of Greek or Roman history — 
 the resolution of Hannibal, the fate of Alexander or 
 Csesar, or the habits of Aristotle. Although not 
 altogether free from the superstition of his time — 
 inclined, for instance, to credit the presence of a 
 fiend at the deathbed of Edward I. — he had doubts 
 on such possibilities worthy of a later day. 
 
 In one respect at least The Bruce may be shown 
 to possess an immense advantage over the great 
 epics of Greece and Rome. The reader has im- 
 measurably greater satisfaction in the success of its 
 hero. In the Scottish poem there is no mean bribing 
 of partizan gods, no unfair interference of a deiis ex 
 niachina. All victory is fairly won, and is the natural 
 reward of superior prudence, forethought, and courage. 
 The difference in moral effect which this means may 
 be seen at a glance. 
 
 John Barbour, as known by his work, possessed in a 
 superlative degree the poet's heart for appreciating all 
 nobleness ; and his epic altogether, with the far-famed 
 panegyric on Freedom which it contains, is hardly to 
 be read yet without catching something of the glow, 
 the high, brave-born enthusiasm of its heroic time. 
 
In the manuscripts of The Bruce, as in other ancient 
 MSS., there is no punctuation. Besides this necessary 
 addition, in the following pages hyphens have been 
 introduced to connect words which now form compounds, 
 such as in-till (into), quhar-euir (wherever), euir-mar 
 (evermore). It is thought unnecessary to burden the 
 margin with translations of familiar peculiarities of 
 Scottish spelling like quh for wh (quhom for whom), 
 dd for th (thiddyr for thither), ch for gh (rycht for right). 
 Words and passages of the text enclosed in brackets are 
 gaps supplied by Dr. Jamieson from the reading of early 
 editions and otherwise. As in the case of Sir Tristrem, 
 an effort is made by means of summaries between the 
 selected passages to afford a view of the entire poem. 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 IJTORYS to rede ar delitabill, 
 
 Supposs' that thai be nocht hot fabill : 
 Than suld storyss that suthfast= wer, 
 And thai war said on gud maner, 
 Hawe doubill plesance in heryng. 
 The fyrst plesance is the carpyng^ 
 And the tothir the suthfastnes, 
 That schawys the thing rycht as it wes. 
 And such thyngis that are likand* 
 Tyll mannys heryng^ ar plesand. 
 Tharfor I wald fayne set my will, 
 Giff my wyt mycht suffice thartill, 
 To put in wryt a suthfast story, 
 That it lest ay furth in memory, 
 Swa that na tyme of lenth it let^, 
 Na ger it haly be foryet'. 
 For auld storys that men redys 
 Representis to thaim the dedys 
 Of stalwart folk that lywyt ar^, 
 Rycht as thai than in presence war. 
 And cartes, thai suld weill hawe pryss' 
 That in thair tyme war wycht and wiss". 
 
 I Although. 
 ~ true. 
 
 ; narration. 
 
 4 agreeable. 
 
 5 To man's 
 
 hearing. 
 
 6 So that no 
 
 length of time 
 obstruct it. 
 
 7 Nor cause it 
 
 wholly be 
 forgot. 
 
 8 lived of yore. 
 
 9 have praise. 
 
 ro strong and 
 wise. 
 
74 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 2 void of cowar- 
 dice. 
 
 3 praise and 
 goodness. 
 
 And led thair lyff in gret trawaill, 
 And oft, in hard stour' off bataill, 
 Wan rycht gret price off chewalry, 
 And war woydyt off cowardy°; 
 As was king Robert off Scotland, 
 That hardy wes off hart and hand; 
 And gud Schyr James off Douglas, 
 That in his tyme sa worthy was, 
 That off hys price and his bounte^ 
 In fer landis renownyt wes he. 
 Off thaim I thynk this buk to ma. 
 Now God gyff grace that I may swa 
 Tret it and bryng it till endyng 
 That I say nocht bot suthfast thing! 
 
 4 in this wise. 
 
 5 forfeited. 
 
 6 in haste. 
 
 Scotland under Oppression. 
 
 [Upon the death of Alexander III. the barons of Scotland, 
 disagreeing upon the competing claims of Baliol and of Bruce 
 to the throne, invite Edward I. of England to act as arbitrator. 
 To turn the dissension to his own advantage Edward offers the 
 crown to the competitor who will do him sovereign homage. 
 Bruce refuses. Baliol accepts, is made king, but presently on a 
 slight pretext is degraded.] 
 
 Quhen Schyr Edward, the mychty king, 
 Had on this wyss* done his likyng 
 Off Jhone the Balleoll, that swa sone 
 Was all defawtyt^ and wndone, 
 To Scotland went he than in hy**, 
 And all the land gan occupy 
 Sa hale that bath castell and toune 
 War in-till his possessioune, 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 7S 
 
 [Fra Weik anent' Orkenay] 
 
 To Mullyr snwk= in Gallaway, 
 
 And stuffyt^ all with Ingliss men. 
 
 Schyrreffys and bailyheys maid he then, 
 
 And alkyn-* othir ofi&ceris 
 
 That for to gowern land afferis^ 
 
 He maid off Inglis nation; 
 
 That worthyt than sa rych fellone^ 
 
 And sa wykkyt and cowatouss, 
 
 And swa hawtane and dispitouss', 
 
 That Scottis men mycht do na thing 
 
 That euir mycht pleyss to thar liking. 
 
 Thar wyfifis wald thai oft forly*, 
 
 And thar dochtrys' dispitusly : 
 
 And gyff ony of thaim thair-at war wrath, 
 
 Thai watyt"° hym wele with gret scaith"; 
 
 For thai suld fynd sone enchesone" 
 
 To put hym to destructione. 
 
 And gyff that ony man thaim by 
 
 Had ony thing ,that wes worthy. 
 
 As horss or hund or othir thing 
 
 That war plesand to thar liking, 
 
 AVith rycht or wrang it have wald thai. 
 
 And gyf ony wald thaim withsay'^, 
 
 Thai suld swa do, that thai suld tyne"* 
 
 Othir land or lyff, or leyff in pyne. 
 
 For thai dempt'^ thaim eftir thair will, 
 
 Takand na kep to rycht na skill '^ 
 
 A! quhat thai dempt them felonly"! 
 
 For gud knychtis that war worthy, 
 
 For litill enchesoune or than nana 
 
 I From Wick op- 
 posite. 
 = point. 
 
 3 furnished. 
 
 4 all kinds of. 
 
 5 pertains. 
 
 6 Who became 
 
 then so ex- 
 tremely rich. 
 
 7 haughty and 
 
 despiteful. 
 
 8 lie with. 
 
 9 daughters. 
 
 10 plundered. 
 " hurt. 
 
 13 gamsay. 
 ■4 lose. 
 
 15 doomed. 
 
 16 Taking no 
 
 heed of right 
 or reason. 
 
 17 cruelly. 
 
76 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 Thai hangyt be the nekbane. 
 
 Als that folk that euir was fre 
 
 And in fredome wount for to be, 
 
 Throw thar gret myschance and foly 
 
 War tretyt than sa wykkytly 
 
 That thair fays thair jugis war. 
 
 Quhat wrechitnes may man have mar? 
 
 ■ pleasure. 
 
 = Is yearned for 
 above. 
 
 3 peculiar state. 
 
 4 grief. 
 
 5 coupled with 
 
 foul thraldom. 
 
 6 by heart he 
 should know it. 
 
 7 praise, prize. 
 
 8 Revealers of 
 the other are. 
 
 9 not so much 
 free. 
 
 A ! fredome is a noble thing ! 
 Fredome mayss man to haiff liking". 
 Fredome all solace to man gififis. 
 He levys at ess that frely levys! 
 A noble hart may haiff nane ess, 
 Na ellys nocht that may him pless, 
 Gyff fredome failyhe: for fre liking 
 Is yharnyt our" all othir thing. 
 Na he that ay hass levyt fre 
 May nocht knaw weill the propyrte^ 
 The angyr"*, na the wrechyt dome. 
 That is cowplyt to foule thyrldome^. 
 Bot gyff he had assayit it, 
 Than all perquer he suld it wyt^; 
 And suld think fredome mar to pryss' 
 Than all the gold in warld that is. 
 Thus contrar thingis euir-mar 
 Discoweryngis off the tothir ar^. 
 And he that thryll is has nocht his; 
 All that he hass embandownyt is 
 Till hys lord, quhat-euir he be. 
 Yheyt has he nocht sa mekill fre' 
 As fre wyll to leyve or do 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 77 
 
 That at hys hart hym drawis to. 
 
 Than mayss clerkis questioun, 
 
 Quhen thai fall in disputacioun, 
 
 That gyif man bad his thryll owcht do, 
 
 And in the samyn tym come him to 
 
 His wyfif, and askyt hym hyr det', 
 
 Quhethir he his lordis neid suld bet°, 
 
 And pay fryst that he awcht^, and syne* 
 
 Do furth his lordis commandyne; 
 
 Or leve onpayit his wyff, and do 
 
 Thai thingis that commandyt is him to? 
 
 I leve all the solucioun 
 
 Till thaim that ar off mar renoun. 
 
 Bot sen thai male sic comperyng^ 
 
 Betwix the dettis off wedding'^ 
 
 And lordis bidding till his threll ; 
 
 Ye may weile se, thoucht nane yow tell, 
 
 How hard a thing that threldome is. 
 
 For men may weile se, that ar wyss. 
 
 That wedding is the hardest band 
 
 That ony man may tak on hand: 
 
 And thryldome is weill wer than deid'; 
 
 For quhill a thryll his lyff may laid 
 
 It merrys him, body and banys"; 
 
 And dede anoyis him bot anys'. 
 
 Schortly to say, is nane can tell 
 
 The halle" conditioun off a threll. 
 
 I duty. 
 = abate. 
 
 3 owes. 
 
 4 afterwards. 
 
 5 comparison. 
 
 6 duties of mar- 
 riage. 
 
 7 much woi-se 
 than death. 
 
 K mars him, body 
 and bones. 
 
 9 death troubles 
 but once. 
 
 10 whole. 
 
78 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 "f- loyal. 
 
 2 deigned. 
 
 3 falseliood. 
 
 4 demeaned in 
 such fashion. 
 
 S somewhat. 
 
 6 lisped. 
 
 James of Douglas. 
 
 [Among sufferers is William of Douglas. He is seized by 
 Edward and slain in prison, and his lands are given to Lord 
 Clifford. Fleeing from the country, his son, young James of 
 Douglas, lives in Paris for nearly three years. Returning then 
 to see whether he cannot do something to regain his heritage, 
 he lands at St. Andrews, where he is warmly received by the 
 bishop. His open heart wins him many friends.] 
 
 He wes in all his dedis lele'; 
 For him dedeynyeit^ nocht to dele 
 With trechery na with falsetl 
 His hart on hey honour wes set, 
 And hym contenyt on sic maner' 
 That all him luffyt that war him ner. 
 Bot he wes nocht so fayr that we 
 Suld spek gretly off his beauts. 
 In wysage wes he sumdeill^ gr^-Y) 
 And had blak har, as Ic hard say. 
 Bot off lymmys he wes weill maid, 
 With banys gret, and schuldrys braid. 
 His body wes weyll [maid and lenye;] 
 As thai that saw hym said to me. 
 Quhen he wes blyth he wes lufly, 
 And meyk and sweyt in cumpany: 
 Bot quha in battaill mycht him se 
 All othir contenance had he. 
 And in spek wlispyt*^ he sum-deill; 
 Bot that sat him rycht wondre weill. 
 Till gud Ector of Troy mycht he 
 In mony thingis likynt be. 
 Ector had blak har as he had, 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 79 
 
 And stark lymmys', and rycht weill maid, 
 
 And wlyspit alsua as did he, 
 
 And wes fulfillyt of leawte', 
 
 And wes curtaiss and wyss and wycht. 
 
 Bot off manheid and mekill mycht 
 
 Till Ector dar I nana comper, 
 
 Off all that euir in warldys wer. 
 
 The quethyr in his tyme sa wrocht he 
 
 That he suld gretly lovyt be. 
 
 I strong limbs. 
 
 2 complete in 
 loyalty. 
 
 He duellyt thar quhill on a tid 
 The king Eduuard, with mekill prid, 
 Come to Strevillyne with gret mengye^ 
 For till hald thar ane assemble. 
 Thiddirwart went mony baroune; 
 Byschop Wylyame off Lambyrtoun 
 Raid thiddyr als, and with him was 
 This squyer James of Dowglas. 
 The byschop led him to the king, 
 And said, " Schyr, heyr I to yow bryng 
 This child that clemys' your man to be, 
 And prayis you per cheryte 
 That ye resave her his homage 
 And grantis him his herytage." 
 ' Quhat landis clemys he?' said the king. 
 " Schyr, giff that it be your liking, 
 He clemys the lordschip off Douglas; 
 For lord tharofif hys fadyr was." 
 The king then wrethyt him encrely^, 
 And said, ' Schyr byschop, sekyrly 
 Gyff thow wald kep thi fewt^'= 
 
 3 following. 
 
 4 claims. 
 
 5 was wroth in- 
 
 wardly {fin 
 C{£ur). 
 
 6 fealty. 
 
So 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 I fierce foe. 
 
 2 thereof has he 
 none i' faith 
 
 3 dared. 
 
 4 dreaded sore 
 his cruelty. 
 
 5 much strength. 
 
 Thow maid nane sic speking to me. 
 Hys fadyr ay wes my fay feloune", 
 And deyt tharfor in my presoun, 
 And wes agayne my maieste; 
 Tharfor hys ayr I aucht to be. 
 Ga purches land quhar-euir he may; 
 For tharofif haffys he nane perfay°. 
 The Clyffurd sail thaim haiff, for he 
 Ay lely has serwyt to me.' 
 The byschop hard him swa ansuer, 
 And durst 3 than spek till him na mar; 
 Bot fra his presence went in hy, 
 For he dred sayr his felouny'': 
 Swa that he na mar spak thairto. 
 The king did that he com to do, 
 And went till Ingland syn agayn, 
 With mony man off mekill mayn=. 
 
 Bruce Defeated. 
 
 [Riding from Stirling one day Sir John Cumyn proposes to assist 
 Bruce in a rising. Bruce consents, but the compact is betrayed 
 by Cumyn. Bruce is summoned to London, and, unwitting of 
 treachery, narrowly escapes arrest. He posts north to Loch- 
 maben, raises his vassals, stabs Cumyn at the high altar at 
 Dumfries, and takes the field. He is joined by the young 
 Douglas and crowned at Scone, but is surprised and, in spite of 
 prodigies of personal valour, defeated first at Methven, and after- 
 wards, while wandering with the queen and her ladies among 
 the hills, by John of Lorn at Dairy.] 
 
 The king that nycht his wachis set, 
 And gert ordayne that thai mycht at; 
 And bad conford to thaim tak, 
 And at thar mychtis mery mak. 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 " For disconford," as then said he, 
 " Is the werst thing that may be. 
 For throw mekill disconforting 
 Men fallis off in-to disparyng, 
 And fra a man disparyt be, 
 Then trewly wtterly wencusyt' is he, 
 And fra the hart be discumfyt, 
 The body is nocht worth a myt°. 
 Tharfor,'' he said, "atour' all thing, 
 Kepys yow fra disparyng. 
 And thynk thouch we now harmys fele. 
 That God may yeit releve ws weill. 
 Men redys off mony men that war 
 Fer hardar stad* then we yhet ar, 
 And syne our lord sic grace thaim lent 
 That thai come weill till thair entent. 
 
 1 vanquished. 
 
 2 mite. 
 
 3 above. 
 
 4 harder beset. 
 
 For Rome quhilum sa hard wes stad 
 Quhen Hanniball thaim wencusyt had, 
 
 Ye may weill be ensampill se 
 That na man suld disparyt be, 
 Na lat his hart be wencusyt all 
 For na myscheiff that euir may fall. 
 For nane wate^ in how litill space 
 That God wmquhile* will send grace. 
 Had thai* fled and thar wayis gane 
 Thar fayis swith' the toune had tane. 
 Tharfor men that werrayand war'' 
 
 5 know. 
 
 6 sometimes. 
 
 7 quickly. 
 
 3 carry on war. 
 
 *The people of Rome. 
 
S2 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 = choice. 
 
 3 rather. 
 
 Suld set thair etlyng' euir-mar 
 To stand agayne thair fayis mycht, 
 Wmquhile with strenth and quhile with slycht, 
 And ay thynk to cum to purpos; 
 And giff that thaim war set in choss'' 
 To dey or to leyff cowartly, 
 Thai suld erar' dey chewalrusly." 
 
 4 In this fashion. 
 
 5 in several hard 
 
 trials. 
 
 6 thwarted. 
 
 Thusgat" thaim confort the king, 
 And to confort thaim gan inbryng 
 Auld storys off men that war 
 Set in-tyll hard assayis ser', 
 And that fortoun contrary it ^ fast, 
 And come to purposs at the last. 
 
 The Parting with the Queen. 
 
 7 feigned. 
 
 s went from ill to 
 worse. 
 
 9 suffer. 
 
 He prechyt thaim on this maner. 
 And fenyeit' to mak better cher 
 Then he had matir to, be fer: 
 For his causs yeid fra ill to wer^- 
 Thai~war ay in sa hard trawaill, 
 Till the ladyis began to fayle, 
 That mycht the trawaill drey' na mar. 
 Sa did othir als that thar war. 
 The erle Jhone wes ane off tha, 
 Off Athole, that quhen he saw sua 
 The king be discumfyt twyss, 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 83 
 
 And sa feile' folk agayne him ryss, 
 And lyff in sic trawaill and dout, 
 His hart begane to faile all out. 
 And to the king apon a day 
 He said, " GyfF I durst to yow say, 
 We lyff in to sa mekill dreid. 
 And haffis oft-syss'' off met sic ned, 
 And is ay in sic trawailling, 
 With cauld and hungir and waking, 
 That I am sad off my-selwyn^ sua 
 That I count nocht my liff a stra. 
 Thir angry s'* may I ne mar drey, 
 For thoucht me tharfor worthit dey. 
 I mon soiourne, quhar-euir it be. 
 Leuys me^ tharfor per cheryte." 
 The king saw that he sa wes failyt, 
 And that he ik wes for trawaillyt^ 
 He said, " Schyr erle, we sail sone se 
 And ordayne how it best may be. 
 Quhar-euyr ye be, our Lord yow send 
 Grace fra your fais yow to defend!" 
 With that in hy to him callyt he 
 Thaim that till him war mast priu^: 
 Then amang thaim thai thocht it best. 
 And ordanyt for the liklyest. 
 That the queyne and the erle alsua 
 And the ladyis in hy' suld ga 
 With Nele the Bruce till Kildromy. 
 For thaim thocht thai mycht sekyrly^ 
 Duell thar quhill thai war wictaillit weile. 
 For swa stalwart wes the castell 
 
 2 often. 
 
 3 myself. 
 
 4 These griefs. 
 
 5 Give me leave. 
 
 6 also was sore 
 fatigued. 
 
 7 in haste. 
 
 8 securely. 
 
84 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 1 Leaped. 
 
 2 weep. 
 
 3 aU whole, every 
 
 one, 
 
 4 necessity. 
 
 5 no ease might 
 prevent. 
 
 That it with strenth war hard to get 
 
 Quhill that thar-in wer men and mete. 
 
 As thai ordanyt thai did in hy: 
 
 The queyne and all hyr cumpany 
 
 Lap' on thair horss and furth thai far. 
 
 Men mycht haifF sene, quha had bene thar, 
 
 At leve-takyng the lady is gret' 
 
 And mak thar face with teris wet, 
 
 And knychtis for thar luffis sak 
 
 Bath sich and wep and murnyng mak. 
 
 Thai kyssyt thair luflSs at thair partyng. 
 
 The king wmbethocht him off a thing; 
 
 That he fra thine on fute wald ga, 
 
 And tak on fute bath weill and wa, 
 
 And wald na horss-men with him haiff. 
 
 Tharfor his horss all haile^ he gaiff 
 
 To the ladyis that my stir* had. 
 
 The queyn furth on hyr wayis rade, 
 
 And sawffly come to the castell, 
 
 Quhar hyr folk war ressawyt weill 
 
 And esyt weill with meyt and drynk. 
 
 Bot mycht nane eyss let^ hyr to think 
 
 On the king that wes sa sar stad 
 
 That bot twa hundre with him had. 
 
 The quhethir thaim weill confortyt he ay: 
 
 God help him, that all mychtis may! 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 85 
 
 The King a Fugitive. 
 
 [Bruce with his two hundred men wanders for a time among 
 the mountains, but, winter coming on, he determines to retreat 
 to Kintyre. He sends Sir Neil Campbell in advance to procure 
 provision.] 
 
 The king, eftir that he wes gane, 
 
 To Lowchlomond the way has tane' 
 
 And come thar on the thrid day. 
 
 Bot thar-about na bait fand thai° 
 
 That niycht thaim our the water ber. 
 
 Than war thai wa^ on gret maner, 
 
 For it wes fer about to ga, 
 
 And thai war in to dout alsua 
 
 To meyt thair fayis that spred war wyd. 
 
 Tharfor endlang"" the louchhis syd 
 
 Sa besyly thai socht and fast, 
 
 Tyll Jamys of Dowglas at the last 
 
 Fand a Htill sonkyn bate 
 
 And to the land it drew fut hate 5. 
 
 Bot it sa litill wes that it 
 
 Mycht our the watter bot thresum flyt*- 
 
 Thai send tharoff word to the king, 
 
 That wes joy full off that fynding; 
 
 And fyrst in-to the bate is gane. 
 
 With him Dowglas. The thrid wes ane 
 
 That rowyt thaim our deliuerly' 
 
 And set thaim on the land all dry. 
 
 And rowyt sa oft-syss to and fra, 
 
 Fechand ay our twa and twa, 
 
 That in a nycht and in a day 
 
 I taken. 
 
 = no boat found 
 they. 
 
 ! woful. 
 
 4 along. 
 
 S straightway 
 (hot-foot). 
 
 6 transport but 
 three together. 
 
 7 nimbly. 
 
86 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 Cummyn owt-our the louch ar thai. 
 For sum off thaim couth swome full weill 
 I a burden. And on his bak ber a fardele'. 
 
 Swa with swymmyng and with rowyng 
 Thai brocht thaim our, and all thair thing. 
 
 » overcome. 
 
 3 the Twelve 
 Peers ofFrance 
 (Douze Pairs). 
 
 4 besieged. 
 
 The king, the quhilis, meryly 
 Red to thaim that war him by 
 Romanys off worthi Ferambrace,* 
 That worthily our-cummyn° was 
 Throw the rycht douchty Olywer; 
 And how the Duk Peris ^ wer 
 Assegyt* in-till Egrymor. 
 
 The Death of Edward I. 
 
 [Bruce betakes himself to winter at the Isle of Rachryn. The 
 queen and her daughter, leaving shelter, are made prisoners at 
 the Girth of Tain, and Kildromy itself, after a gallant defence by 
 Neil Bruce, is betrayed and reduced by the English.] 
 
 Bot quhen the king Eduuard hard say 
 
 How Neill the Bruce held Kildromy 
 
 Agayne his sone sa stalwartly, 
 
 He gaderyt gret chewalry 
 
 And towart Scotland went in hy. 
 
 And as in-till Northummyrland 
 He wes with his gret rowt ridand, 
 A seknes tuk him in the way, 
 
 *Sir Fierabras, one of the romances concerning Charlemagne 
 and his twelve peers. It was edited from the Ashmole MS. by 
 Mr. Sidney J. Herrtage for the Early English Text Society in 
 1879- 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 87 
 
 And put him to sa hard assay 
 
 That he mycht nocht ga na ryd. 
 
 Him worthit, magre his", abid 
 
 In-till an hamillet thar-by, 
 
 A litill toun and wnworthy. 
 
 AVith gret payne thiddir thai him broucht; 
 
 He was sa stad that he ne mocht 
 
 Hys aynd bot^ with gret paynys draw, 
 
 Na spek bot gifif it war weill^ law. 
 
 The quhethir he bad thai suld him say 
 
 Quhat toun wes that, that he in lay. 
 
 " Schyr," thai said, " Burch in the Sand 
 
 Men callis this toun, in-till this land." 
 
 'Call thai it Burch? Alas!' said he, 
 
 ' My hop is now fordone'' to me. 
 
 For I wend neuir to thoile^ the payne 
 
 Off deid till I, throw mekill mayn, 
 
 The Burch off Jerusalem had tane. 
 
 My lyff wend I thar suld be gayne^ 
 
 In Burch I wyst weill I suld de, 
 
 Bot I was nothir wyss na sle' 
 
 Till othyr Burch kep to tal 
 
 ' Now may I na-wiss forthyr ga.' 
 
 Thus pleynyeit' he off his foly. 
 
 As he had mater sekyrly'" 
 
 Quhen he cowyt" certante 
 
 Off that at nane may certan be. 
 
 [Edward, it appears, had consulted a certain fiend as to the 
 date and place of his death, and the familiar, after the manner of 
 his kind, had deceived his patron with an equivocal answer.] 
 
 I It behoved him, 
 despite his 
 (desire). 
 
 2 His own boot. 
 
 3 actually. 
 
 4 quite worn out. 
 
 5 weened never 
 to suffer. 
 
 6 finished. 
 
 7 cunning. 
 
 8 to take excep. 
 tion. 
 
 9 complained. 
 
 10 surely. 
 " coveted. 
 
 At Jerusalem trowyt" he 
 Grawyn'' in the Burch to bej 
 
 " trusted. 
 ■3 Interred. 
 
JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 > died. 
 
 2 yielded. 
 
 3 Hang and draw, 
 
 4 such a saying. 
 
 5 Without com- 
 
 passion, 
 
 6 truly judges. 
 
 7 In such state of 
 body. 
 
 s burial. 
 
 The quethyr at Burch in-to the Sand 
 
 He swelt' lycht in his awn land. 
 
 And quhen he to the dede wes ner, 
 
 The folk, that at Kyldromy wer, 
 
 Come with prisoneris that thai had tane, 
 
 And syne to the king ar gane. 
 
 And for to confort him thai tauld 
 
 How thai the castell to thaim yauld°; 
 
 And how thai till his will war broucht, 
 
 To do off that quhat-euir he thoucht ; 
 
 And askyt quhat men suld off thaim do. 
 
 Then lukyt he angyrly thaim to, 
 
 And said grynnand, " Hyngis and drawys'." 
 
 That wes wondir of sic sawis*, 
 
 That he, that to the dede was ner, 
 
 Suld ansuer apon sic maner, 
 
 For-owtyn menyng^ and mercy; 
 
 How mycht he traist on hym to cry, 
 
 That suthfastly demys" all thing, 
 
 To haiff mercy for his criyng, 
 
 Off him that, throw his felony, 
 
 In-to sic poynt' had na mercy? 
 
 His men his maundment has done. 
 
 And he deyt thareftir sone. 
 
 And syne wes broucht till berynes". 
 
 His sone syne king eftir wes. 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 89 
 
 1 arrived. 
 
 2 presently. 
 
 3 took quarters in 
 in a hamlet. 
 
 A inquired. 
 5 tidings. 
 
 The Return of the King. 
 
 [Douglas, irking at idleness and pitying the burdened islanders, 
 leaves Rachryn, makes a. descent upon Arran, succeeds in 
 cutting off a convoy of supplies, and all but takes the castle of 
 Brodick. Ten days later Bruce sets sail.] 
 
 With thretty small galayis and thre 
 
 The king arywyt' in Arane, 
 
 And syne° to the land is gane 
 
 And in a toune tuk his herbery^ 
 
 And speryf syne speceally 
 
 Gyff ony man couth tell tithand= 
 
 Off ony Strang men in that land. 
 
 "Yhis," said a woman, " Schyr, perfay, 
 
 Off Strang men I kan yow say, 
 
 That ar cummyn in this countre, 
 
 And schort quhile syne, throw thair bounte, 
 
 Thai haff discomfyt our wardane, 
 
 And mony off his men has slane. 
 
 And till a stalwart place herby 
 
 Reparis all thair cumpany." 
 
 ' Dame,' said the king, ' wald thow we wiss* 
 
 To that place quhar thair repair' is, 
 
 I sail reward the but lesing^; 
 
 For thai ar all off my duelling, 
 
 And I rycht blythly wald them se, 
 
 And swa trow I that thai wald me.' 
 
 "Yhis," said scho, "Schyr, I will blythly 
 
 Ga with yow and your cumpany. 
 
 Till that I schaw yow thair repair." 
 
 'That is inewch', my systir fayr; 9 enough. 
 
 G direct uy. 
 7 gathering. 
 
 H without fraud, 
 indeed. 
 
90 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 I without more 
 delay. 
 
 " showed a place. 
 
 ' Now ga we forth wart,' said the king. 
 Than went thai furth but mar letting", 
 Folowand her as scho thaim led, 
 Till at the last scho schawyt a sted^ 
 To the king in a wode glen, 
 And said, " Schyr, her I saw the men 
 That yhe sper eftir mak logyng ; 
 Her I trow be thair reparying." 
 
 3 caused. 
 
 4 as soon as the 
 
 last (blast 
 sounded). 
 
 5 long time since. 
 
 6 without doubt. 
 
 7 fared. 
 
 5 praised. 
 
 The king then blew his horn in hy. 
 And gert^ the men that wer him by 
 Hald thaim still and all priwe \ 
 And syne agayn his horn blew he. 
 James of Dowglas herd him blaw, 
 And at the last alsone"" gan knaw, 
 And said, " Sothly yon is the king : 
 I knaw lang quhill syne^ his blawyng." 
 The thrid tym thar with all he blew. 
 And then Schyr Robert Boid it knew. 
 And said, " Yone is the king but dreid*; 
 Ga we furth till him bettir speid." 
 Than went thai till the king in hy, 
 And him inclynyt curtasly. 
 And blythly welcummyt thaim the king, 
 And wes joyfull of thair meting, 
 And kissit thaim, and speryt syne 
 How thai had fame' in thair huntyn. 
 And thai him tauld all but lesing : 
 Syne lowyt^ thai God off thair meting. 
 Syne with the king till his berbery 
 Went bath joyfull and joly. 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 91 
 
 The Landing in Carrick. 
 
 [A council of war is held, and a descent upon the opposite 
 mainland determined. Cuthbert, a scout, is sent over to 
 Carrick with orders if landing appears feasible to light a fire 
 on Turnberry Head. On the appointed day the fire is seen. 
 As the king prepares to leave the beach a woman beckons him 
 apart and in a spirited harangue prophesies his approaching 
 triumph. He then sets sail.] 
 
 This wes in ver', quhen wyntir-tid, 
 With his blastis hidwyss to bid', 
 Was our-drywyn^, and byrdis smale, 
 As turturis and the nychtyngale, 
 Begouth rycht sariely'' to syng, 
 And for to mak in thair singyng 
 Swete notis, and sownys ser^, 
 And melody s plesand to her; 
 And the treis begouth to ma 
 Burgeans^ and brycht blomys alsua, 
 To wyn the helyng off thair hewid' 
 That wykkyt wyntir had thaim rewid*; 
 And all gressys beguth to spryng. 
 In-to that tyme the nobill king, 
 With his flote and a few mengye, 
 Thre hundyr I trow thai mycht be, 
 Is to the se, owte off Arane, 
 A litill forouth ewyn gane'. 
 
 1 spring. 
 
 2 hideous to 
 abide. 
 
 3 over-driven. 
 
 4 Began right 
 artfully. 
 
 5 sounds many. 
 
 « Buds. 
 
 ' To get the 
 covering of 
 their head. 
 
 8 reft. 
 
 9 gone forth in 
 even array. 
 
 Thai rowit fast with all thair mycht 
 Till that apon thaim fell the nycht, 
 That woux myrk" apon gret maner, 
 Swa that thai wyst nocht quhar thai war. 
 
 10 waxed dark. 
 
92 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 1 in one body. 
 
 2 dear. 
 
 3 adventure. 
 
 4 grief. 
 
 5 well-disposed. 
 
 6 "choke-full." 
 
 7 quartered in the 
 steading. 
 
 For thai na nedill had, na stane, 
 
 Bot rowt alwayis in-till ane', 
 
 Sterand all tyme apon the fyr 
 
 That thai saw brynnand lycht and schyr° 
 
 It wes bot auentur^ thaim led, 
 
 And thai in schort tyme sa thaim sped 
 
 That at the fyr arywyt thai, 
 
 And went to land but mar delay. 
 
 And Cuthbert, that has sene the fyr. 
 
 Was full off angyr* and off ire: 
 
 For he durst nocht do it away. 
 
 And wes alsua dowtand ay 
 
 That his lord suld pass to se. 
 
 Tharfor thair cummyn waytit he. 
 
 And met thaim at thair arywing. 
 
 He wes wele sone broucht to the king, 
 
 That speryt at hym how he had done. 
 
 And he with sar hart tauld him sone 
 
 How that he fand nane weill luffand^, 
 
 Bot all war fayis that he fand: 
 
 And that the lord the Persy, 
 
 With ner thre hundre in cumpany, 
 
 Was in the castell thar besid, 
 
 FuUfillyt^ off dispyt and prid ; 
 
 Bot ma than twa partis off his rowt 
 
 War herberyt in the toune' without: 
 
 " And dyspytyt yow mar, Schir king. 
 
 Than men may dispyt ony thing.'' 
 
 Than said the king, in full gret ire, 
 
 'Tratour, quhy maid thow than the fyr?' 
 
 "A! Schyr," said he, "sa God me se! 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 93 
 
 The fyr wes newyr maid for me. 
 Na, or' the nycht, I wyst it nocht; 
 Bot fra" I wyst it, weill I thocht 
 That ye and haly your menye 
 In hy suld put yow to the se. 
 For-thi^ I cum to mete yow her, 
 To tell perellys that may aper." 
 
 = from the time 
 when. 
 
 3 therefore. 
 
 The king wes off his spek angry, 
 And askyt his pryw6 men, in hy, 
 Quhat at thaim thoucht wes best to do. 
 Schyr Edward fryst answert thar-to, 
 Hys brodyr that wes swa hardy, 
 And said, " I say yow sekyrly 
 Thar sail na perell that may be 
 Dryve me eftsonys" to the se. 
 Myne auentur her tak will I, 
 Quhethir it be esfull or angry." 
 ' Brothyr,' he said, ' sen thou will sua. 
 It is gud that we saymn ta= 
 Dissese or ese, or payne or play, 
 Eftyr as God will ws purway. 
 And sen men sayis that the Persy 
 Myn heretage will occupy,* 
 And his menye sa ner ws lyis, 
 That ws dispytis mony wyss, 
 Ga we and wenge sum off the dispyte; 
 And that may we haiff done alss tite^ 
 For thai ly traistly, but dreding' 
 
 * Bruce inherited Carrick through his mother, whose first 
 husband had been earl of that district. 
 
 4 presently. 
 
 5 together take. 
 
 6 also soon. 
 
 7 trustfully, with, 
 out fear. 
 
94 
 
 fOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 I wamor no 
 scruple. 
 
 Off ws or off our her cummyng. 
 
 And thoucht we slepand slew thaim all, 
 
 Repruff tharoff na man sail. 
 
 For werrayour na forss' suld ma, 
 
 Quhethir he mycht ourcum his fa 
 
 Throw strenth or throw sutelt6. 
 
 Bet that gud faith ay haldyn be.' 
 
 2 prepared on an 
 
 evening. 
 
 3 suppress. 
 
 4 every. 
 
 5 information. 
 
 6 many. 
 
 7 that. 
 
 The Defence at the Ford. 
 
 [Percy abandons Turnberry. A lady of the country, cousin to 
 Bruce, joins the king with forty followers and informs him of the 
 fall of Kildromy and the taking of the queen. Douglas, obtaining 
 permission, departs alone for Douglasdale, declares himself to 
 his people, and surprising his enemies at kirk on Palm Sunday, 
 puts them to the sword. His slaughter of prisoners among the 
 meal and wine on the castle floor is called "The Douglas Larder." 
 Meanwhile the king, attacked by traitors in a covert, excites his 
 followers' admiration by his single-handed defence. 
 
 Presently the men of Galloway, seeing him with but few 
 retainers, come upon him suddenly, two hundred strong. ] 
 
 Thai schup thaim in an ewynnyng'' 
 To suppriss^ sodanly the king; 
 And till him held thai straucht thair way. 
 Bot he, that had his wachis ay 
 On ilk" sid, off thair cummyng, 
 Lang or thai come, had wyttering=. 
 And how fele' that thai mycht be. 
 Tharfor he thoucht, with his menye, 
 To withdraw him out off the place. 
 For the nycht weill fallyn was. 
 And for the nycht he thoucht at' thai 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 95 
 
 Suld nocht haiff sycht to hald the way 
 That he war passyt with his menye. 
 And as he thoucht rycht swa did he, 
 And went him doun till a morrass, 
 Our a wattyr that rynnand was; 
 And in the bog he fand a place 
 Weill strait, that weill twa bow-drawcht' 
 Fra the wattyr thai passit haid. 
 He said, " Her may ye male abaid, 
 And rest yow all a quhile and ly. 
 I will ga wach all priuely 
 Giff Ik her oucht off thair cummyng : 
 And giff I may her ony thing, 
 I sail ger warn you, sa that we 
 Sail ay at our awantage be.'' 
 
 I quite two bow- 
 shots. 
 
 The king now takys his gate' to ga, 
 And with him tuk he sergeandis twa^; 
 And Schyr Gilbert de la Hay left he 
 Thar, for to rest with his menye. 
 To the wattyr he come in hy, 
 And lysnyt full ententily 
 Giff he herd oucht off thair cummyng; 
 Bot yeit mocht he her na thing. 
 Endlang the wattyr than yeid hC 
 On athyr syd a gret quantite, 
 And saw the bray is ^ hey standand. 
 The wattyr holl throw slik rynnand'; 
 And fand na furd that men mycht pass, 
 Bot quhar him-selwyn' passit was. 
 And swa strait wes the wpcummyng 
 
 2 takes his way. 
 
 3 two squires. 
 
 4 Along the 
 
 stream then 
 went he. 
 
 5 hillsides. 
 
 6 The deep water 
 
 running 
 through slime. 
 
 7 himself. 
 
96 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 : thrust together. That twa men mycht nocht samyn thring', 
 Na on na maner press thaim swa 
 That thai to-gidder mycht lang ga. 
 
 2 A hound's ba 
 ing far ofiF. 
 
 3 betokening. 
 
 4 in haste, 
 
 5 waken his fol- 
 
 lowing. 
 
 And quhen he a lang quhile had bene thar 
 He herknyt, and herd as it war 
 A hundis questionyng on fer'', 
 That ay come till him ner and ner. 
 He stude still, for till herkyn mar, 
 And ay the langer he wes thar 
 He herd it ner and ner cummand. 
 Bot he thocht he thar still wald stand, 
 Tyll that he heard mar takynnyng^, 
 Than, for ane hundis questionyng, 
 He wald nocht wakyn his menye. 
 Tharfor he wald abid, and se 
 Quhat folk thai war, and quhethir thai 
 Held towart him the rycht way. 
 Or passyt ane othyr way far by. 
 The moyne wes schynand clerly. 
 Sa lang he stude, that he mycht her 
 The noyis off thaim that cummand wer 
 Than his twa men in hy* send he 
 To warne and walkyn his menye^; 
 And thai ar furth thair wayis gane 
 And he left thar all hym allane. 
 And swa stude he herknand. 
 Till that he saw cum at his hand 
 The hale rout, in-till full gret hy. 
 Then he wmbethoucht him hastily 
 Giff he held towart his menye 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 97 
 
 That, or he mycht reparyt be', 
 
 Thai suld be passit the furd ilkan^ 
 
 And then behuffyt him chess ane 
 
 Off thir twa, othyr to fley or dey. 
 
 Bot his hart that wes stout and hey 
 
 Consaillyt hym hym allane to bid. 
 
 And kepe thaim at the furde syd, 
 
 And defend weill the wpcummyng; 
 
 Sen he was warnyst of armyng^ 
 
 That he thar arowys thurch nocht dreid. 
 
 And gyff he war off gret manheid 
 
 He mycht stunay thaim euirilkane*, 
 
 Sen thai ne mycht cum bot ane and ane. 
 
 He did rycht as hys hart hym bad. 
 
 Strang wtrageouss curage he had, 
 
 Quhen he sa stoutly him allane, 
 
 For litill strenth off erd^, has tane 
 
 To fecht with twa hundre and ma. 
 
 Thar-with he to the furd gan ga, 
 
 And thai, apon the tothyr party, 
 
 That saw him stand thar anyrly"*, 
 
 Thringand' in-till the wattyr rad. 
 
 For off him litill dout thai had. 
 
 And raid till him in full gret hy. 
 
 He smate the fyrst swa wygorusly 
 
 With his sper, that rycht scharp schar^. 
 
 Till he doun till the erd him bar. 
 
 The lave' come then in-till a randoun"; 
 
 Bot his horss, that wes born doun, 
 
 Combryt thaim the wpgang to ta"- 
 
 And quhen the king saw it was swa. 
 
 1 ere he might 
 
 join his men. 
 
 2 each one. 
 
 3 furnished with 
 armour. 
 
 4 dismay them 
 every one. 
 
 5 ground. 
 
 6 alone. 
 
 7 Thronging. 
 
 Scut. 
 
 9 remainder. 
 
 10 torrent. 
 
 " Cumbered 
 them in the 
 ascent. 
 
98 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 I stabbed. 
 
 He stekyt' the horss, and he gan flyng, 
 And syne fell at the wpcummyng. 
 The layiF with that come with a schout; 
 And he, that stalwart wes and stout, 
 Met thaim rycht stoutly at the bra, 
 And sa gud payment gan thaim ma, 
 That fyvesum in the furd he slew. 
 The lave then sumdele thaim withdrew, 
 That dred his strakys wondre sar, 
 For he in nathing thaim forbar. 
 
 = fights. 
 
 3 Whoeverknew. 
 
 4 all whole. 
 
 5 without doubt. 
 
 6 So many. 
 
 7 closed up. 
 
 Then said ane, " Certes, we ar to blame. 
 Quhat sail we say quhen we cum hame, 
 Quhen a man fechtis" agane ws all? 
 Quha wyst euir^ men sa foully fall 
 As ws, gyff that we thusgat leve?" 
 With that all haile" a schout thai geve. 
 And cryit, "On him! he may nocht last." 
 With that thai pressyt hym sa fast 
 That had he nocht the better bene 
 He had bene dede with-owtyn wen=. 
 Bot he sa gret defence gan mak 
 That quhar he hyt ewyn a strak 
 Thar mycht na thing agane [him] stand. 
 In litill space he left hand 
 Sa fele*" that the wpcummyng wes then 
 Dyttyt' with slayn horss and men; 
 Swa that his fayis, for that stopping, 
 Mycht nocht cum to the wpcummyng. 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 A! der God! quha had then bene by, 
 And sene how he sa hardyly 
 Addressyt hym agane thaim all, 
 I vvate weile that thai suld him call 
 The best that levyt in his day. 
 And giff I the suth sail say, 
 I herd neuir in na tym gane 
 Ane stynt' sa mony him allane. 
 
 99 
 
 t stop. 
 
 On this manner, that Ik haiff tauld, 
 
 The king, that stout wes and bauld, 
 
 Wes fechtand on the furd syd, 
 
 GifiFand and takand rowtis roid^ "rude blows. 
 
 Till he sic martyrdom thar has maid 
 
 That he the ford all stoppyt haid, 
 
 That nane off thaim mycht till him rid. 
 
 Thaim thoucht than foly for to byd. 
 
 And halely the flycht gan ta. 
 
 And went hamwartis^ quhar thai come fra. 
 
 For the kingis men with the cry 
 
 Walknyt full effrayitly", 
 
 And com to sek thair lord the king. 
 
 The Gallowaymen hard thar cummyng, 
 
 And fled, and durst abid no mar. 
 
 The kingis men, that dredand war 
 
 For thair lord, full spedyly 
 
 Come to the furd; and sone in hy 
 
 Thai fand the king syttand allane. 
 
 That off hys bassynet^ has tane 5 helmet. 
 
 3 homewards. 
 
 4 Wakened 
 affrightedly. 
 
JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 3 piaised. 
 
 3 hastily. 
 
 4 all in a host. 
 
 5 behoved. 
 
 ' single. 
 
 Till awent' him, for he wes hate. 
 Than speryt thai at him off his state, 
 And he tauld thaim all hale the cass, 
 Howgate that he assailyt was, 
 And how that God him helpyt swa 
 That he eschapyt hale thaim fra. 
 Than lukyt thai how fele war ded; 
 And thai fand lyand in that sted 
 Fourtene, that war slayne with his hand. 
 Than lovyf" thai God fast^, all weildand". 
 That thai thair lord fand hale and fer; 
 And said thaim byrd^ on na maner 
 Drede thair fayis, sen thair chyftane 
 Wes off sic hart and off sic mayn 
 That he for thaim had wndretan 
 With swa fele for to fecht ane"*. 
 
 7 wondered. 
 
 8 what honour is 
 
 a perfect deed. 
 
 9 praise. 
 
 10 consistently. 
 
 " notwithstand- 
 ing. 
 
 Syk wordis spak thai of the king. 
 And for his hey wndretaking 
 Farlyit', and yarnyt hym for to se. 
 That with him ay wes wont to be. 
 A! quhat worschip is perfyt thing ^! 
 For it mayss men till haiff loving', 
 Giff it be folowit ythenly"". 
 For pryce off worschip nocht-forthi" 
 Is hard to wyn. For gret trawaill, 
 Offt to defend and oft assaill, 
 And to be in thair dedis wyss, 
 Gerris men off worschip wyn the pryce. 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 loi 
 
 The Goodwife of Carrick. 
 
 [The English warden, Sir Aymer de Valence, determined on a 
 decisive blow, approaches with a great force. The king attacks 
 him, but finds himself in turn attacked behind by John of Lorn 
 with eight hundred men. Seeing the odds hopeless, he divides his 
 following into three parties to distract pursuit. Again and again 
 this device is resorted to, but John of Lorn, with a bloodhound, 
 continually pursues the king's company. At last Bruce, left alone 
 with his foster-brother, slays with his own hand four of five pursuers 
 who overtake him. Then, losing heart, he declares he will go no 
 further. But the foster-brother rallies him, and presently he 
 remembers a device. Wading a bowshot down a running stream 
 they throw the hound off the scent and escape. In this fight, 
 it is said, Thomas Randolph on the English side won great 
 honour by capturing Bruce's banner. The king and his man 
 the same night are attacked when asleep by three assassins. The 
 foster-brother is slain, but Bruce avenges his death on the three 
 traitors. Afterwards he sets forth towards his tryst.] 
 
 The king went furth way and angry', 
 Menand^ his man full tendirly; 
 And held his way, all him allane, 
 And rycht towart the houss is gan 
 Quhar he set tryst to njeit his men. 
 It wes Weill inwith^ nycht be then. 
 He come sone in the houss, and fand 
 The howsswyff on the benk"" sittand; 
 That askit him quhat he was, 
 And quhens he come, and quhar he gas. 
 " A trawailland man, dame," said he, 
 " That trawaillys her throw the contre." 
 Scho said, ' All that trawailland er, 
 For ane his sak, ar welcum her.' 
 The king said, " Gud dame, quhat is he 
 That gerris yow haiff sic specialte' 
 To men that trawaillis?" ' Schyr, perfay,' 
 
 r woful and 
 grieved. 
 2 lamenting. 
 
 3 towards. 
 
 4 bench. 
 
 5 whence. 
 
 6 pecuHarregard. 
 
102 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 J struggle. 
 
 2 ere any length 
 of time. 
 
 3 truly. 
 
 S devised. 
 
 6 quickly. 
 
 Quoth the gud wyff, ' I sail yow say. 
 The king, Robert the Bruyss, is he, 
 That is rycht lord off this countre. 
 His fayis now haldis him in thrang'; 
 Bot I think to se or ocht lang° 
 Him lord and king our all the land, 
 That na fayis sail him withstand.' 
 " Dame, lufiSs thow him sa weil?" said he. 
 'Ya Schyr,' said scho, 'so God me se!' 
 " Dame," sayd he, " [lo] hym her the by ; 
 For Ik am he, I say the soithly^; 
 Yha certes, dame." 'And quhar are gane 
 Your men, quhen ye ar thus allane?' 
 " At this time, dame, Ik haiff no ma"." 
 Scho said; ' It may na-wyss be swa. 
 Ik haiff twa sonnys, wycht and hardy; 
 Thai sail becum your men in hy.' 
 As scho diuisyt^ thai haiff done; 
 His sworne men become thai sone. 
 The wyff syn gert him syt and ete ; 
 Bot he has schort quhile at the mete 
 Syttyn, quhen he hard gret stamping 
 About the howss. Then, but letting. 
 Thai stert wp the howss for to defende. 
 That sone eftre the king has kend 
 James off Dowglas. Than wes he blyth, 
 And bad oppyn the durris swyth^ 
 And thai cum in, all that thar war. 
 Schyr Eduuard the Bruce wes thar, 
 And James alsua of Dowglas, 
 That wes eschapyt fra the chace 
 
THE BRUCE. 103 
 
 And with the kingis brothyr met. 
 Syn to the tryst that thaim was set 
 Thai sped thaim with thair cumpany, 
 That war ane hundir and weile fyfty. 
 
 Edward Bruce in Galloway. 
 
 [Successful in several minor engagements and in repulsing 
 another private attack upon his life, the king determines to essay 
 greater things. A detachment of a thousand men under Sir 
 Philip Mowbray, coming from Bothwell to surprise him, are 
 waylaid by Douglas near Kilmarnock and put to rout. Bruce 
 then accepts a challenge from De Valence to join battle under 
 Loudon Hill. Beforehand he takes care ;o manipulate the field 
 so that the forces will meet on something like equal footing, and 
 the result is the final overthrow of the English warden. Setting 
 out forthwith to meet the hostile lords in the north, the king 
 falls seriously ill. He is carried from place to place in a litter, 
 and his friends begin to lose heart, till one day, his forces being 
 attacked at Old Meldrum by Sir David of Brechin, he calls for 
 his horse and armour, and routs at once his sickness and his 
 enemies. Forfar Castle is taken and demolished, and Perth, 
 after a six weeks' siege, falls before the king's attack in person. 
 Meanwhile in the south Douglas has again by stratagem taken 
 and destroyed his own castle, and Edward Bruce has set forth to 
 free Galloway. After routing a large force by the Water of 
 Cree he does not hesitate with only fifty men to fall upon 
 fifteen hundred.] 
 
 Throw his chewalrouss chewalry 
 
 Galloway wes stonayit gretumly', ■ greatly dis- 
 
 mayed. 
 And he dowtyt for his bounte°. 2 feared for his 
 
 Sum off the men off the countre 
 
 Come till his pess, and maid him aith. 
 
 Bot Schyr Amery, that had the skaith' 3 hurt. 
 
 Off the bargane* I tauld off er, 4 fight. 
 
 Raid till Ingland till purches ther 
 
 Off armyt men gret cumpany. 
 
 To weng him off the welany=' s avenge the 
 
 disgrace. 
 
104 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 ■ wonder. 
 
 2 nimbly. 
 
 3 caused he each 
 one. 
 
 That Schyr Eduuard, that noble knycht, 
 Him did by Cre in-to the fycht. 
 Off gud men he assemblit thar 
 Weill fyftene hundyr men and mar 
 That war off rycht gud renowme. 
 His way with all that folk tuk he, 
 And in the land all priuely 
 Entryt with that chewalry, 
 Thynkand Schyr Ecjuuard to suppryss, 
 Giff that he mowcht on ony wiss. 
 For he thoucht he wald him assaile, 
 Or that he left, in playn bataill. 
 Now may ye her off gret ferly' 
 And off rycht hey chewalry. 
 For Schyr Eduuard in-to the land 
 Wes, with his mengne, rycht ner hand. 
 And in the mornyng rycht arly 
 Herd the countre men mak cry. 
 And had wyttryng off thair cummyng. 
 Than buskyt he him, but delaying, 
 And lapp on horss delyuerly"- 
 He had than in route fyfty, 
 All apon gud horss armyt weill. 
 His small folk gert he ilkdeilP 
 Withdraw thaim till a strait tharby, 
 And he raid furth with his fyfty. 
 
 A knycht that then wes in his rowt, 
 4 Valorous. Worthi'' and wycht, stalwart and stout, 
 
 s proper. Curtaiss and fayr^ and off gud fame, 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 los 
 
 Schyr Alane off Catkert by name, 
 
 Tauld me this taile, as I sail tell. 
 
 Gret myst in-to the mornyng fell, 
 
 Sa thai mycht nocht se thaim by, 
 
 For myst, a bowdraucht fullely. 
 
 Sa hapnyt it that thai fand the traiss, 
 
 Quhar-at the rowte furth passyt waiss 
 
 Off thair fay is, that forowth raid' 
 
 Schyr Eduuard, that gret yarnyn had 
 
 All tymys to do chewalry, 
 
 With all his rout in full gret hy 
 
 Folowyt the traiss quhar gane war thai, 
 
 And befor midmorne off the day 
 
 The myst wox cler all sodanly. 
 
 And than he and his cumpany 
 
 War nocht a bowdrawcht fra the rout. 
 
 Than schot thai on thaim with a schout. 
 
 For gyff thai fled thai wyst that thai 
 
 Suld nocht weill feyrd" part get away. 
 
 Tharfor in awentur to dey 
 
 He wald him put or^ he wald fley. 
 
 And quhen the Inglis cumpany 
 
 Saw on thaim cum sa sodanly 
 
 Sik folk, for-owtyn abaysyng", 
 
 Thai war stonayt for efifraying^. 
 
 And the tothyr, but mar abaid^ 
 
 Swa hardely amang thaim raid 
 
 That fele off thaim till erd thai bar. 
 
 Stonayit sa gretly than thai war 
 
 Throw the force off that fyrst assay 
 
 That thai war in-till gret effray; 
 
 I rode before. 
 
 2 fourth. 
 
 4 Such folk with- 
 out abashment. 
 
 6 without more 
 delay. 
 
lo6 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 1 supposed. 
 
 2 ridden through. 
 
 3 Charged head- 
 long. 
 
 4 dispersed. 
 
 3 spurred. 
 
 6 scattered. 
 
 7 shelter. 
 
 s went his way. 
 
 9 right proper 
 point of war 
 indeed. 
 
 And wend' befor thai had bene ma, 
 
 For that thai war assailit swa. 
 
 Quhen thai had thyrlyt^ thaim hastily 
 
 Than Schyr Eduuardis cumpany 
 
 Set stoutly in the heid' agayne. 
 
 And at that courss borne doune and slayn 
 
 War off thair fayis a gret party, 
 
 That thai effrayit war sa gretly 
 
 That thai war scalyt" gretly then. 
 
 And quhen Schyr Eduuard and his men 
 
 Saw thaim in-till sa ewill aray 
 
 The thrid tyme on thaim prekyt^ thai. 
 
 And thai that saw thaim sa stoutly 
 
 Come on, dred thaim sa gretumly 
 
 That all thar rowt, bath less and mar, 
 
 Fled prekand, scalyt^ her and thar. 
 
 Wes nane amang thaim sa hardy 
 
 To bid; bot all comonaly 
 
 Fled to warand'; and he gan chass 
 
 That wilfull to destroy thaim was. 
 
 And sum he tuk, and sum war slayn ; 
 
 Bot Schyr Amery with mekill payn 
 
 Eschapyt, and his gat is gayn^. 
 
 His men discumfyt war ilkane; 
 
 Sum tane, sum slayne, sum gat away. 
 
 It wes a rycht fayr poynt perfay^. 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 107 
 
 Thomas Randolph. 
 
 [Douglas coming one night to a house on the Water of Lynn 
 listens and hears someone inside say, " The devil !" Judging 
 his enemies to be within he surrounds the house, and after a 
 fierce fight secures several notable prisoners, among others 
 Bruce's nephew, Randolph, and his own cousin, Alexander 
 Stewart.] 
 
 That nycht the gud lord off Dowglas 
 Maid to Schyr Alysander, that was 
 His emyss' sone, rycht glaidsome cher. 
 Swa did he als, with-owtyn wer°, 
 Till Thomas Randell; for that he 
 Wes to the king in ner degre 
 Off blud, for his sistre him bar. 
 And on the morne, for-owtyn mar', 
 Towart the noble king he raid, 
 And with him bath thai twa he haid. 
 The king off his present was blyth. 
 And thankyt him weill fele syth". 
 And till hys nevo gan he say 
 " Thou has ane quhill renyid thi fay', 
 Bot thou reconsalit now mon be." 
 Then till the king ansueryt he, 
 And said, 'Ye chasty'^ me; bot ye 
 Aucht bettre chastyt for to be. 
 For sene ye werrayit' the king 
 Off Ingland, in playne fechting^ 
 Ye suld press to derenyhe' [your] rycht, 
 And nocht with cowardy na with slycht.' 
 The king said, "Yeit fall it may 
 Cum, or oucht lang", to sic assay. 
 
 1 uncle's. 
 
 2 without restric- 
 tion, lit. guard. 
 
 3 without more 
 (ado). 
 
 4 very many 
 times. 
 
 5 forsworn thy 
 allegiance. 
 
 6 reprove. 
 
 7 made war on. 
 
 8 in open fight. 
 
 9 determine by 
 
 battle. 
 
 10 erelong. 
 
io8 
 
 fOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 2 bend to it as 
 thou ought. 
 
 3 effort. 
 
 Bot sen thow spekys sa rudly, 
 It is gret skylP men chasty 
 Thai proud wordis till that thow knaw 
 The rycht, and bow it as thow aw°." 
 The king, for-owtyn mar delaying, 
 Send him to be in ferme keping 
 Quhar that he allane suld be 
 Nocht all apon his powste^ fre. 
 
 4 engaged. 
 
 5 heighten. 
 
 6 valorous 
 
 achievement. 
 
 7 hissagacityand 
 
 his prudence. 
 
 8 he put faith. 
 
 9 goodness. 
 
 10 much. 
 
 11 discourse. 
 
 And quhen a litill time wes went, 
 Eftre Thomas Randell he sent; 
 And sa weile with him tretit he, 
 That he his man hechf* for to be. 
 And the king his ire him forgave: 
 And for to hey= his state him gave 
 Murreff, and erle tharoff him maid, 
 And othyr sundry landis braid 
 He gave him in-till heretage. 
 He knew his worthi wasselage' 
 And his gret wit and his awyss', 
 His traist hart, and his lele seruice. 
 Tharfor in him afFyit he^, 
 And ryche maid him off land and fe. 
 As it wes certis rycht worthi. 
 For, and men spek off him trewly. 
 He wes swa curageous ane knycht, 
 Sa wyss, sa worthy, and sa wycht. 
 And off sa souerane gret bounte', 
 That mekill" off him may spokyn be. 
 And for I think off him to rede", 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 109 
 
 And to schaw part off his gud dede, 
 
 I will discryve now his fassoun' 
 
 And part off his condicioun. 
 
 He wes off mesurabill statur°, 
 
 And weile porturat at mesur^, 
 
 With braid wesage, plesand and fayr, 
 
 Curtaiss at poynt, and debonayr, 
 
 And off rycht sekyr contenyng''. 
 
 Lawte he lowyt atour^ all thing; 
 
 Falset, tresoun, and felony, 
 
 He stud agayne ay encrely''. 
 
 He heyit' honour ay, and larges^. 
 
 And ay mantemyt' rychtwysnes. 
 
 In cumpany solacious'" 
 
 He was, and tharwith amorous. 
 
 And gud knychtis he luffyt ay. 
 
 And, giff I the suth sail say. 
 
 He wes fulfillit off bounty, 
 
 Als off wertuys all maid was he. 
 
 I will commend him her no mar: 
 
 Bot ye sail her weile forthyrmar 
 
 That he for his dedis worthy 
 
 Suld weile be prysyt souerandly" 
 
 I describe the 
 fashion of him. 
 
 2 middle stature. 
 
 3 showed his 
 
 height well. 
 
 firm demean- 
 our. 
 
 5 Truth he 
 
 esteemed 
 above. 
 
 6 in his heart. 
 
 7 exalted. 
 
 8 liberty. 
 
 9 possessed. 
 
 10 cheerful. 
 
 II sovereignly. 
 
 Quhen the king thus was with him saucht", '°^°'^'™^'^- 
 And gret lordschippis had him betaucht'^, 13 bestowed. 
 
 He woux sa wyse and sa awysd 
 That his land fyrst weill stablyst he. 
 And syne he sped him to the wer, 
 Till help his eyme in his myster'". >4need. 
 
JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 1 thus-wise. 
 
 2 governing. 
 
 3 covered. 
 
 4 Rode disposed 
 over the fields. 
 
 5 blaze. 
 
 6 displayed. 
 
 7 streamers 
 
 waving. 
 
 The Battle of Bannockburn. 
 
 [Meanwhile the king has routed the forces of John of Lorn 
 under Ben Cruachan, and has taken Dunstaffnage. WiUiam 
 Bunnock, a doughty farmer, conceahng men under his supplies 
 of hay, has surprised Linlithgow peel. Douglas on St. Fastern's 
 Eve, approaching upon hands and knees in the dusk, has his 
 men mistaken for a herd of wandering cattle, and succeeds in 
 scaling the walls of Roxburgh. And Randolph, after a 
 hopeless siege, gains access to Edinburgh Castle by a perilous 
 lover's path, and wins it for the king. Edward Bruce, having 
 overcome all Galloway and Nithsdale and reduced Rutherglen 
 and Dundee, lays siege to Stirling. The place is impregnable, 
 but at last, provisions running low, the governor offers to make 
 a treaty to deliver the castle provided it be not relieved by 
 midsummer. Edward Bruce agrees. The king at the intel- 
 ligence blames his brother's rashness in allowing so long a grace 
 to so powerful an enemy, but nevertheless makes the best 
 preparation he can. At the same time Edward II. of England, 
 seeing here an opportunity of conquering the whole of the north 
 at one blow, summons all his resources. A hundred thousand 
 men assemble on the east border. Here Edward joins them, 
 and they are arrayed under renowned leaders.] 
 
 Quhen the king apon this kyn wyss' 
 Had ordanyt, as Ik her diuiss, 
 His bataillis and his stering', 
 He raiss arly in a mornyng, 
 And fra Berwik he tuk the way. 
 Bath hillis and walis helyt^ thai, 
 As the bataillis that war braid 
 Departyt our the feldis raid*. 
 The sone wes brycht and schynand cler, 
 And armouris that burnyst wer 
 Swa blomyt with the sonnys heme 
 That all the land wes in a leme^. 
 Baneris rycht fayrly flawmand* 
 And penselys to the wynd wawand' 
 
THE BRUCE. m 
 
 Swa fele thar war of ser quentiss' > fair design. 
 
 That it war gret slycht= to diuise. ^skiii. 
 
 And suld I tell all thar affer^, 3 equipment, 
 
 Thar contenance, and thar maner, 
 
 Thoucht I couth I suld combryt be. 
 
 The king, with all that gret menye, 
 
 Till Edinburgh he raid him rycht. 
 
 Thai war all out to fele"* to fycht 4 too many. 
 
 With few folk of a symple land. 
 
 Bot quhar God helpys quhat ma withstand? 
 
 The king Robert, quhen he hard say 
 That Inglis men in sic aray 
 And in-to sua gret quantite 
 Come in his land, in hy gert he 
 His men be somound generaly. 
 And thai come all, full wilfully, 
 To the Torwood, quhar that the king 
 Had ordanyt to mak thair meting. 
 
 [Edward Bruce, Stewart, Douglas, and Randolph join the 
 king, and the Scottish forces number over thirty thousand. 
 Bruce arranges them in four "battles." On Saturday he hears 
 that the English are in Edinburgh. Accordingly he leads his 
 army to the New Park before Stirling, and to equalize the 
 conflict, honeycombs the ground on his left with foot-pits against 
 cavalry. At sunrise on Sunday the Scots hear mass, and that 
 day keep fast for the Vigil of St. John. Bruce bids all who are 
 faint-hearted leave the field, but all answer with a cry of 
 resolution. That night the English lie at Falkirk, and Murray 
 is set to keep succours out of Stirling. Next day the English 
 appear, covering hill and plain with shining mail and waving 
 banners. They detach eight hundred horse under Clifford to 
 relieve Stirling by making a circuit. The king pointing this out 
 to Murray declares that " a rose of his chaplet is fallen." The 
 latter, stung and mortified, dashes against the succours with five 
 hundred men, and after a terrible conflict puts them to rout. 
 Meanwhile the main body of the English approaches. ] 
 
fOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 I clad (in mail). 
 
 2 a tiara hat 
 
 above every- 
 thing. 
 
 3 in token. 
 
 And quhen the king wist that thai wer, 
 
 In hale bataill, cummand sa ner, 
 
 His bataill gert he weill array. 
 
 He raid apon a litill palfray, 
 
 Laucht', and joly arayand 
 
 His bataill, with an ax in hand. 
 
 And on his bassynet he bar 
 
 An hat of tyre aboune ay quhar'', 
 
 And thar-wpon, in-to taknyng^, 
 
 Ane hey croune, that he wes king. 
 
 4 range in row. 
 
 5 haste. 
 
 6 boldly. 
 
 7 before his com- 
 
 rades. 
 
 8 steers. 
 
 And quhen Glosyster and Herfurd war 
 With thair bataill approchand ner, 
 Befor thaim all thar come rydand. 
 With helm on held and sper in hand, 
 Schyr Henry the Boune, the worthi, 
 That wes a wycht knycht, and a hardy. 
 And to the erle off Herfurd cusyne, 
 Armyt in armys gud and fyne, 
 Come on a sted a bow-schote ner, 
 Befor all othyr that thar wer; 
 And knew the king, for that he saw 
 Him swa rang his men on raw"". 
 And by the croune that wes set 
 Alsua apon his bassynet. 
 And towart him he went in hy^. 
 And [quhen] the king sua apertly^ 
 Saw him cum forouth all his feris'', 
 In hy till him the hors he steris". 
 And quhen Schyr Henry saw the king 
 Cum on, for-owtyn abaysing, 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 113 
 
 Till him he raid in full gret hy. 
 He thoucht that he suld weill lychtly' 
 Wyn= him and haf him at his will, 
 Sen he him horsyt saw sa ill. 
 Sprent thai samyn in-till a ling^ 
 Schyr Henry myssit the noble king; 
 And he, that in his sterapys stud, 
 With the ax that wes hard and gud 
 With sa gret mayne raucht him a dynf 
 That nothyr hat na helm mycht stynt^ 
 The hewy dusche" that he him gave. 
 That ner the heid till the harnys' clave. 
 The hand ax schaft fruschit in twa^, 
 And he doune to the erd gan ga 
 All flatlynys, for him faillyt mycht. 
 This wes the fyrst strak off the fycht. 
 
 [As night falls Bruce addresses his troops, orders their conduct 
 on the morrow, and declares their enemies already morally 
 discomfited. Next morning he makes knights and arrays his 
 battle.] 
 
 1 very easily. 
 
 2 reach. 
 
 3 They sped to- 
 gether in a line. 
 
 4 With so great 
 strength 
 reached him a 
 blow. 
 
 5 stop. 
 
 6 heavy crash. 
 
 7 brain. 
 
 8 shivered in two. 
 
 And quhen the king off Ingland 
 
 Swa the Scottis saw tak on hand, 
 
 Takand the hard feyld sa opynly, 
 
 And apon fute, he had ferly'. 
 
 And said, "Quhatlwill yone Scottis fycht?" 
 
 'Ya sekyrly!' said a knycht, 
 
 Schyr Ingrame the Wmfrawill hat he'"; 
 
 And said, 'Forsuth now, Schyr, I se 
 
 It is the mast ferlyfull sycht 
 
 That euyre I saw, quhen for to fycht 
 
 The Scottis men has tane on hand 
 I 
 
 9 he marvelled. 
 
 10 he was called. 
 
114 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 2 hence. 
 
 3 pavilions. 
 
 4 despite. 
 
 5 scatter. 
 
 6 furnishing. 
 
 7 emhodied. 
 
 8 rabble. 
 
 Agayne the mycht of Ingland 
 In plane hard feild to giff bataile. 
 Bot, and ye will trow' nay consaill, 
 Ye sail discomfyt thaim lychtly. 
 Withdrawys you hyne° sodandly, 
 With bataillis and with penownys, 
 Quhill that we pass our pailyownyis^; 
 And ye sail se alsone that thai, 
 Magre" thair lordys, sail brek aray 
 And scaile^ thaim our harnays" to ta. 
 And quhen we se thaim scalit sua 
 Prik we than on thaim hardely, 
 And we sail haf thaim wele lychtly : 
 For than sail nane be knyt' to fycht 
 That may withstand your mekill mycht.' 
 " I will nocht," said the king, " perfay. 
 Do sa: for thar sail na man say 
 That I sail eschew the bataill, 
 Na withdraw me for sic rangaile^" 
 
 Quhen this wes said, that er said I, 
 The Scottis men comounaly 
 Knelyt all doune, to God to pray. 
 And a schort prayer thar maid thai 
 To God, to help thaim in that fycht. 
 And quhen the Inglis king had sycht 
 Off thaim kneland, he said in hy, 
 " Yone folk knel to ask mercy." 
 Schyr Ingrahame said, 'Ye say suth now. 
 Thai ask mercy ; bot nane at yow. 
 For thair trespas to God thai cry. 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 "S 
 
 I tell yow a thing sekyrly, 
 That yone men will all wyn or de : 
 For doute of dede' thai sail nocht fie.' 
 " Now be it sa than," said the king. 
 And than, but langer delaying. 
 Thai gert trump till the assemble ^ 
 On athir sid men mycht than se 
 Mony a wycht man and worthi 
 Redy to do chewalry. 
 
 I fear of death. 
 
 2 joining of 
 battle. 
 
 [The divisions of Edward Bruce, Murray, and Douglas each 
 are attacked. The king, observing how the English archers 
 gall his troops, despatches Sir Robert Keith with five hundred 
 light horse, who destroys and routs them utterly. Meanwhile 
 the Scottish archers make havoc among the English cavalry.] 
 
 And the gud king Robert, that ay 
 
 Wes fiUyt off full gret bounte, 
 
 Saw how that his bataillis thre 
 
 Sa hardely assemblyt thar 
 
 And sa weill in the fycht thaim bar. 
 
 And swa fast on thair fayis gan ding^ 
 
 That him thoucht nane had abaysing. 
 
 And how the archeris war scalyt then, 
 
 He was all blyth; and till his men 
 
 He said, "Lordingis, now luk that ye 
 
 Worthy and off gud cowyn* be 
 
 At thys assemble, and hardy, 
 
 And assembill sa sturdely 
 
 That na thing may befor yow stand. 
 
 Our men are sa freschly fechtand 
 
 That thai thair fayis has grathyt sua^ 
 
 3 drive. 
 
 4 artifice, con- 
 duct. 
 
 S prepared so. 
 
ii6 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 I undertake. 
 
 That be thai pressyt, Ik wndreta', 
 
 A litill fastyr, ye sal se 
 
 That thai discumfyt sone sail be." 
 
 2 driven (back) i 
 
 great deal. 
 
 3 fiercely. 
 
 4 achievements. 
 
 5 also broke 
 (rank). 
 
 6 weapons strong 
 
 of steel. 
 
 7 engaged in well. 
 
 8 breaking. 
 
 9 rushing to- 
 
 gether. 
 
 10 grinning. 
 " groaning. 
 
 Quhen this wes said thai held thair way, 
 And on ane feld assemblyt thai 
 Sa stoutly, that at thair cummyng 
 Thair fayis war ruschyt a gret thing''. 
 Thar mycht men se men felly ^ fycht. 
 And men that worthi war and wycht 
 Do mony worthi wasselage''. 
 Thai faucht as thai war in a rage; 
 For quhen the Scottis archery 
 Saw thair fayis sa sturdely 
 Stand in-to bataill thaim agayn, 
 With all thair mycht and all thair mayn 
 Thai layid on, as men out of wit. 
 And quhar thai with full strak mycht hyt, 
 Thar mycht na armur stynt thair strak. 
 Thai to fruchyt^ that thai mycht our-tak. 
 And with axys sic duschys gave 
 That thai helmys and hedis clave. 
 And thar fayis rycht hardely 
 Met thaim, and dang on thaim douchtely. 
 With wapnys that war styth of stele"- 
 Thar wes the bataill strekyt wele'. 
 Sa gret dyn thar wes of dyntis. 
 As wapnys apon armur styntis. 
 And off speris sa gret bresting^. 
 And sic thrang', and sic thrysting, 
 Sic gyrnyng'°, granying", and sa gret 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 117 
 
 A noyis, as thai gan othyr beit, 
 And ensenyeys' on ilka sid, 
 Gewand and takand woundis wid, 
 That it wes hydwyss for to her. 
 
 All thair four bataillis with that wer 
 Fechtand in a frount halyly. 
 A mychty God ! how douchtely 
 Schyr Eduuard the Bruce and his men 
 Amang thair fayis contenyt thaim then ! 
 Fechtand in sa gud covyn, 
 Sa hardy, worthy, and sa fyne. 
 That thar waward ruschyt was^, 
 And, maugre tharis, left the place, 
 And till thar gret rout to warand 
 Thai went ; that tane had apon hand 
 Sa gret anoy that thai war effrayit 
 For Scottis that thaim hard assayit^ 
 That than war in a schiltrum* all. 
 Quha hapnyt in-to that fycht to fall 
 I trow agane he suld nocht ryss. 
 Thar mycht men se on mony wyss 
 Hardimentis eschewyt^ douchtely. 
 And mony that wycht war and hardy 
 Sone liand wndre fete all dede, 
 Quhar all the feld off blud wes rede. 
 Armys and quhytyss*" that thai bar 
 With blud war sa defoulyt thar 
 That thai mycht nocht descroyit' be. 
 A mychty God ! quha than mycht se 
 That Stewart, Waltre, and his rout, 
 
 = their vanguard 
 was driven 
 (back). 
 
 3 attacked. 
 
 4 a host in round 
 formation. 
 
 5 daring deedb 
 achieved. 
 
 6 military hats. 
 
 7 described. 
 
ii8 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 I attention. 
 
 2 so great blows 
 gave. 
 
 3 undergoing. 
 
 4 contention. 
 
 S vexmg. 
 
 6 in dire manner. 
 
 7 showed fear 
 somewhat. 
 
 And the gud Douglas that wes sa stout, 
 
 Fechtand in-to that stalwart stour, 
 
 He suld say that till all honour 
 
 Thai war worthi that in that fycht 
 
 Sa fast pressyt thair fayis mycht, 
 
 That thaim ruschyt quhar thai yeid. 
 
 Thar men mycht se mony a steid 
 
 Fleand on stray, that lord had nane. 
 
 A Lord ! quha then gud tent' had tane 
 
 Till the gud erle of Murreff, 
 
 And his, that sa gret rowtis geff', 
 
 And faucht sa fast in that battaill, 
 
 Tholand' sic paynys and trawaill 
 
 That thai and tharis maid sic debaf 
 
 That quhar thai come thai maid thaim gat. 
 
 Than mycht men her enseynyeis cry. 
 
 And Scottis men cry hardely, 
 
 "On thaim! On thaim! On thaim ! Thaifaile!" 
 
 With that sa hard thai gan assaile. 
 
 And slew all that thai mycht our-ta. 
 
 And the Scottis archeris alsua 
 
 Schot amang them sa deliuerly, 
 
 Engrewand^ thaim sa gretumly. 
 
 That quhat for thaim that with thaim faucht 
 
 That swa gret rowtis to thaim raucht 
 
 And pressyt thaim full egrely, 
 
 And quhat for arowis that felly ^ 
 
 Mony gret woundis gan thaim ma 
 
 And slew fast off thair horss alsua, 
 
 That thai wandyst a litill wei'. 
 
 Thai dred sa gretly then to dey 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 119 
 
 That thair cowyn "wes wer and wer'- 
 For thai that fechtand with thaim wer 
 Set hardement and strenth and will 
 And hart and corage als thar-till, 
 And all thair mayne and all thair mycht, 
 To put thaim fully to [the] flycht. 
 
 [At this point the Scottish camp-followers, who had been 
 ordered to the rear by Bruce, desiring to see the battle, mount 
 sheets on poles for banners, and, fifteen thousand strong, are 
 seen coming over the Gillies' Hill. The distant sight utterly 
 disheartens the wearied English, who take it for the approach of 
 fresh Scottish reserves. As Bruce leads a new attack in person 
 they begin to give way, and the rout is soon general.] 
 
 And quhen the king of Ingland 
 Saw his men fley in syndry place, 
 And saw his fayis rout that was 
 Worthyn^ sa wycht and sa hardy — 
 That all his folk war halyly 
 Sa stonayit^ that thai had na mycht 
 To stynf thair fayis in the fycht — 
 He was abaysyt^ sa gretumly 
 That he and his cumpany, 
 Fyve hundre, armyt all at rycht, 
 In-till a frusch^ all tok the flycht, 
 And to the castell held thair way. 
 And yeyt haiff Ik hard som men say 
 That of Walence Schir Aymer, 
 When he the feld saw wencusyt ner, 
 Be the reyngye led away the king, 
 Agayne his will, fra the fechting. 
 
 I their carriage 
 was worse and 
 
 2 become. 
 
 3 dismayed. 
 
 4 stay. 
 
 5 confounded. 
 
 6 broken rout. 
 
 And quhen Schyr Gylis the Argente 
 Saw the king thus and his menye 
 
JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 I thus your way 
 will go. 
 
 3 assuredly. 
 
 3 choose here to 
 abide. 
 
 4 no kind of. 
 
 S many. 
 
 6 knew living. 
 
 7 custom. 
 
 8 by chance. 
 
 9 wandering, lit. 
 
 wavering. 
 
 It- bush. 
 
 Schap thaim to fley sa spedyly, 
 He come rycht to the king in hy 
 And said, "Schyr, sen it is sua 
 That ye thusgat your gat will ga", 
 Hawys gud day ! for agayne will I. 
 Yeyt fled I neuir sekyrly", 
 And I cheyss her to bid^ and day, 
 Than for to lyve schamly, and fley." 
 Hys bridill, but mar abad, 
 He turnyt, and agayne he rade, 
 And on Eduuard the Bruyss rout, 
 That wes sa sturdy and sa stout 
 As drede off nakyn* thing had he. 
 He prikyt, cryand, "The Argent^!" 
 And thai with spuris swa him met, 
 And swa fele^ speris on him set, 
 That he and hors war chargyt swa 
 That bathe till the erd gan ga. 
 And in that place thar slane wes he. 
 Off hys deid wes rycht gret pite; 
 He wes the thrid best knycht, perfay. 
 That men wyst lywand* in his day. 
 
 [Thirty thousand dead and all the English baggage are left on 
 the field. Douglas pursues King Edward to Dunbar, and night 
 falls upon the weary but joyful army of Scotland.] 
 
 And on the morn quhen day wes lycht 
 The king raiss, as his willis' was. 
 Than ane Inglis knycht, throw cass°, 
 Hapnyt that he yeid wawerand', 
 Swa that na man laid on him hand. 
 In a busk"° he hid hys armyng. 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 And waytyt quhill he saw the king 
 
 In the morne cum forth arly : 
 
 Till him than is he went in hy. 
 
 Schyr Marmeduk the Twengue he hycht'. 
 
 He raykyt' till the king all rycht, 
 
 And halyst^ him upon his kne. 
 
 "Welcum, Schyr Marmeduk," said he; 
 
 "To quhat man art thow presoner?" 
 
 'To nane,' he said, 'hot to you her. 
 
 I yeld me at your will to be.' 
 
 " And I ressave the, Schyr," said he. 
 
 Than gerf he tret him curtasly. 
 
 He duelt lang in his cumpany. 
 
 And syne till Ingland him send he, 
 
 Arayit weile, but ransoun fre, 
 
 And geff him gret gyftis tharto. 
 
 A worthi man that sua wald do 
 
 Mycht mak him gretly for to prise =. 
 
 1 was named. 
 
 2 reached, ///. 
 
 ranged. 
 
 3 saluted. 
 
 4 caused. 
 
 5 be praised. 
 
 Quhen Marmeduk apon this wiss 
 Was yoldyn*, as Ik to yow say. 
 Than come Schir Philip the Mowbray 
 And to the king yauld the castell. 
 His cunnand hes he haldyn' well. 
 And with him tretyt sua the king. 
 That he belewyt^ of his duelling, 
 And held him lelely his fay 
 Quhill the last end off his lyf day. 
 
 [Among the results of the battle Bruce receives back his queen 
 and his daughter Marjory in exchange for the Earl of Hereford. 
 Marjory is married to Walter Stewart, and the king sets his 
 realm in order.] 
 
 6 yielded. 
 
 7 his covenant 
 has he kept. 
 
 s delivered up. 
 
JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 1 in haste. 
 
 2 laundress. 
 
 3 travail-pains. 
 
 4 must. 
 
 5 evil. 
 
 6 extremity. 
 
 7 set up. 
 
 8 go. 
 
 9 fared forth. 
 
 10 such. 
 
 The King and the Lavyndar. 
 
 [After the battle of Bannockburn the poem proceeds to recount 
 the enterprises and successes of the king's generals. While 
 Douglas holds the Border, Edward Bruce carries victory into 
 Ireland. King Robert himself during one campaign takes the 
 command there, and during their march then a point of chivalry 
 is noticed.] 
 
 The king has hard a woman cry; 
 He askyt quhat that wes in hy' 
 " It is the layndar'', Schyr," said ane, 
 " That hyr child-ill ^ rycht now has tane, 
 And mon" leve now behind ws her : 
 Tharfor scho makys yone iwilP cher." 
 The king said, ' Certis, it war pite 
 That scho in that poynt^ left suld be; 
 For certis I trow thar is na man 
 That he ne will rew a woman than.' 
 Hiss ost all thar arestyt he, 
 And gert a tent sone stentit' be. 
 And gert hyr gang^ in hastily, 
 And othyr wemen to be hyr by. 
 Quhill scho wes deliuer he bad, 
 And syne furth on his wayis raid. 
 And how scho furth suld caryit be, 
 Or euir he furth fur', ordanyt he. 
 This wes a full gret curtasy, 
 That swilk" a king, and sa mychty, 
 Gert his men duell on this maner, 
 Bot for a pouir lauender. 
 
THE BRUCE. 123 
 
 The Death of Bruce. 
 
 [Berwick, the last stronghold in Scotland held by the English, 
 is taken by Douglas and Randolph, and Walter Stewart installed 
 as governor. Then follows a long, minute, and stirring account 
 of its siege by the English king. Bruce finally relieves the place 
 by making a counter-march into England which draws off the 
 besiegers. In Ireland Edward Bruce is slain at last in a rash 
 attack against hopeless odds, and that country in consequence is 
 presently abandoned to its English holders. Encouraged by this 
 event, Edward II. makes one more attempt upon Scotland with 
 his whole force. But Bruce burns and drives all forage into the 
 north, and the English army, finding neither enemy to fight nor 
 provisions to eat, is compelled to retire. It is followed by 
 Bruce, and finally at Biland, in Yorkshire, is in its famished 
 state put to utter rout. King Robert next devotes himself to the 
 establishment of justice and order in his kingdom, concludes and 
 enforces a peace with England, and after, with the consent of his 
 parliament, settling the succession first on his son, and, failing 
 him, on the children of his daughter Marjory and Walter Stewart, 
 dies in ease and honour at Cardross on the Clyde.] 
 
 Quhen all this thing thus tretit wes 
 
 And affermyt with sekyrnes ', ' confirmed 
 
 securely. 
 
 The king to Cardros went in hy, 
 
 And thar him tuk sa fellely" = severely. 
 
 The seknes, and him trawailit swa, 
 
 That he wyst him behowyt to ma 
 
 Off all his liff the commoun end, 
 
 That is to dede, quhen God will send. 
 
 Tharfor his lettrys sone send he 
 
 For the lordis off his country, 
 
 And thai come as thai biddyng had. 
 
 His testament than has he maid 
 
 Befor bath lordis and prelatis; 
 
 And to religioun of ser statist 3 several esta- 
 
 blishments. 
 
 For hele of his saule gaf he 
 Siluer into gret quantity. 
 
124 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 I every whit. 
 
 2 war-making. 
 
 3 blameless. 
 
 4 fixed. 
 
 S absolved. 
 
 6 takes. 
 
 7 devise. 
 
 s conceived. 
 9 everyone. 
 
 He ordanyt for his saule weill, 
 And quhen this done wes ilkadele' 
 He said, " Lordingis, swa is it gayn 
 With me that thar is nocht hot ane, 
 That is the dede, withowtyn drede, 
 That ilk man mon thole off nede. 
 And I thank God that has me sent 
 Space in this lyve me to repent ; 
 For throwch me and my werraying' 
 Off blud has bene rycht gret spilling, 
 Quhar mony sakles^ men war slayn. 
 Tharfor this seknes and this payn 
 I tak in thank for my trespass. 
 And myn hart fichyt* sekirly was 
 Quhen I wes in prosperite. 
 Off my synnys to sauffyt^ be 
 To trawaill apon Goddis fayis. 
 And sen he now me till him tayis"^, 
 Swa that the body may na-wyss 
 Fullfill that the hart gan dewyss', 
 I wald the hart war thiddyr sent 
 Quhar-in consawyt** wes that entent. 
 Tharfor I pray yew euirilkan^ 
 That ye amang yow chess me ane 
 That be honest, wiss, and wicht, 
 And off his hand a noble knycht, 
 On Goddis fayis my hart to ber 
 Quhen saule and corss disseueryt er. 
 For I wald it war worthily 
 Broucht thar, sen God will nocht that 
 Haifif pouer thiddyrwart to ga.'' 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 12S 
 
 Than war thair hartis all sar wa' i sorely wofui. 
 
 That nayne mycht hald him fra greting''. = weeping. 
 
 He bad thaim leve thair sorowing; 
 
 For it, he said, mycht nocht releve. 
 
 And mycht thaim rycht gretly engreve^; 3 vex. 
 
 And prayit thaim in hy to do 
 
 The thing that thai war chargit to. 
 
 Than went thai furth with drery mode. 
 
 Amang thaim thai thocht it gode 
 
 That the worthi lord of Douglas 
 
 Best schapyn for that trawaill was. 
 
 And quhen the king hard that thai swa 
 
 Had ordanyt him his hart to ta 
 
 That he mast yarnyt suld it haff. 
 
 He said, "Sa God him-self me saiff! 
 
 I hald me rycht weill payit that yhe 
 
 Haff chosyn him ; for his bounte 
 
 And his worschip set my yarnyng 
 
 Ay sen I thoucht to do this thing. 
 
 That he it with him thar suld ber. 
 
 And sen ye all assentit er 
 
 It is the mar likand'' to me. 4 agreeable. 
 
 Lat se now quhat thar-till sayis he." 
 
 And quhen the gud lord of Douglas 
 
 Wist that thing thus spokyn was 
 
 He come and knelit to the king, 
 
 And on this wiss maid him thanking. 
 
 " I thank you gretly, lord," said he, 
 
 " Off mony largess and gret bounty 
 
 That yhe haff done me felsyss^ 5 very often. 
 
 Sen fyrst I come to your seruice. 
 
126 
 
 JOHN BARBOUR. 
 
 2 keeping. 
 
 Bot our all thing I mak thanking 
 That ye sa dyng' and worthi thing 
 As your hart that enlumynyt wes 
 Of all bounte and all prowes 
 Will that I in my yemsalP tak. 
 For yow, Schyr, I will blythly mak 
 This trawaill, gif God will me gif 
 Layser and space swa lang to lyff." 
 The king him thankyt tendrely. 
 Than wes nane in that cumpany 
 That thai na wepyt for pit6. 
 Thar cher anoyus wes to se. 
 
 Quhen the Lord Douglas on this wiss 
 3 enterprise. Had wndretane sa hey empriss^ 
 
 As the gud kyngis hart to ber 
 On Goddis fayis apon wer 
 Prissyt for his empriss wes he. 
 And the kingis iniirmyte 
 Woux mar and mar, quhill at the last 
 The dulfuU dede approchit fast. 
 And quhen he had gert till him do 
 All that gud crystyn man fell to 
 strait (vrai). With werray* repentance he gaf 
 
 The gast, that God till hewyn haiff 
 Amang his chossyn folk to be 
 In joy, solace, and angell gle ! 
 And fra his folk wyst he wes ded 
 s place to place. The sorow raiss fra steid to steid^. 
 
 « tear. Thar mycht men se men ryve* thair har, 
 
 7 weep full sore. And comounly kychtis gret full sar'', 
 
THE BRUCE. 
 
 .127 
 
 And thar newffys' oft samyn° dryve, 
 
 And as woud^ men thair clathis ryve, 
 
 Regratand his worthi bounte, 
 
 His wyt, his strenth, his honest^ ; 
 
 And our all, the gret cumpany 
 
 That he thaim maid oft curtasly. 
 
 " All our defens," thai said, " allace ! 
 
 And he that all our comford was. 
 
 Our wyt and all our gouernyng, 
 
 Allace ! is brought her till ending ! 
 
 His worschip and his mekill'' mycht 
 
 Maid all that war with him sa wycht^ 
 
 That thai mycht neuir abaysit be 
 
 Quhill forouth* thaim thai mycht him se. 
 
 Allace ! quhat sail we do or say ? 
 
 For on lyff quhill he lestyt, ay 
 
 With all our nychtbowris dred war we, 
 
 And in-till mony ser countre 
 
 Off our worschip sprang the renoun; 
 
 And that was all for his persoune.'' 
 
 With swilk' wordis thai maid thair mayn ; 
 
 And sekyrly woundre wes nane''. 
 
 For better gouernour than he 
 
 Mycht in na country fundyn be. 
 
 1 hands. 
 
 2 together. 
 
 3 mad. 
 
 4 great. 
 
 5 able. 
 
 6 in front of. 
 
 7 such. 
 
 8 assuredly it was 
 
 no wonder. 
 
 [The poem ends with the death of Douglas in his attempt to 
 carry the Bruce's heart through Spain to the Holy Land. 
 Successful in a great battle against the Saracens, the Scottish 
 company presses the pursuit too far, and some of the knights 
 are presently surrounded. Perceiving Sir William St. Clair 
 battling against hopeless odds, Douglas exclaims, "Yonder 
 brave knight will be slain if he have not help," and spurring 
 again into the fray he falls there with his friends. The king's 
 heart is brought home again, and buried by Murray in Melrose 
 Abbey.] 
 
ANDROW OF WYNTOUN. 
 
ANDROW OF WYNTOUN. 
 
 There have been chroniclers and there have been 
 historians, and the office of the one is not to be 
 mistaken for the office of the other. The chronicler 
 undertakes to do no more than set down in the order 
 of their happening the events and circumstances of a 
 certain time. The object of the historian, on the 
 other hand, is to sift and and assort facts, to show 
 their relation, and by their proper arrangement and 
 interpretation to reveal the principles of their occur- 
 rence, the tragedy and comedy which everywhere 
 underlie the outer movement of events. Andrew of 
 Wyntoun made no claim to the title of historian. He 
 called his work simply a chronicle of Scotland, and it 
 does not appear that he aimed at greater things than 
 the name suggests. It may be said that the 
 opportunity lay to his hand, as an ecclesiastic familiar 
 with the sources of information, to write a great epic 
 of the Scottish Church, displaying behind the events 
 of history that church's rise to power among the 
 estates of the realm. He did not, however, essay the 
 laurels of the epic poet. Other ideals of poetry, 
 moreover, probably formed as small a part of his 
 
132 AND ROW OF WYNTOVN. 
 
 object. As he did not attempt any masterly grouping 
 of the march of events towards a national purpose, so, 
 it would seem, he had no thought of touching with 
 artistic design the plain circumstances of his narrative. 
 The reader will look through the CronyMl of Scotland 
 almost in vain for the excitement of a dramatic 
 situation, the contrast and climax of human emotion. 
 Hardly at all will he find that focussing of objects to 
 their most interesting point of view which dis- 
 tinguishes a picture from a map, the work of the 
 artist from the work of the artizan. Nowhere, it may 
 safely be said, will he taste the breath of that ethereal 
 wine, strangely stirring the heart, which is the vintage 
 of great poetic genius. 
 
 The chief value of Wyntoun's work must remain its 
 value as a chronicle, its worth as material for history. 
 In this respect its importance has long been 
 recognised, and out of its substance, by craftsmen 
 like Tytler, Scott, and Hill Burton, have been quarried 
 the corner-stones of many a historic edifice. As 
 material for poetry, however, if not always as poetry 
 itself, the CronyMl is deserving of more attention than 
 it has yet received. Many of the circumstances of 
 the remote period set forth in its pages have a quaint 
 picturesqueness peculiar to themselves. Wyntoun 
 had a happy faculty for collecting and incorporating 
 typical facts and stories ; and amid the huge mass of 
 his narrative, neglected mostly because of the labour 
 of finding them, there are discoverable glimpses of 
 scenes and episodes set in a romantic atmosphere 
 without conscious effort of art. For the fair 
 
AND ROW OF IVYNTOUN. 133 
 
 preservation of these, rather than for the poor fact of 
 his work being presented in form of rhythm, the 
 author of the Orygynale Cronykil must maintain a 
 place of respect among the early poets of Scotland. 
 
 Almost all that is known of ^^''yntoun himself has 
 been gathered from the pages of his work. Regarding 
 his origin nothing whatever has been discovered, and 
 even with the aid of his own occasional references his 
 personahty comes but dimly out of the cloister dusk 
 of the past. His chronicle is supposed to have been 
 finished between 1419 and 1424, as it mentions the 
 death of Robert, Duke of Albany, which occurred at 
 the former date, but says nothing of the return of 
 James I. from captivity, which took place in the latter 
 year. Probably he did not long survive the 
 completion of his work. In the prologue to the last 
 book he declares himself an aged man : 
 
 Off this Tretys the last end 
 
 Tyl bettyr than I am I commend ; 
 
 For, as I stabil myne intent, 
 
 Ofift I fynd impediment 
 
 Wyth sudane and fers maladis 
 
 That me cumbris mony wis, 
 
 And elde me mastreis wyth hir brevis, 
 
 like day me sare aggrevis. 
 
 Scho has me maid monitioune 
 
 To se for a conclusioune 
 
 The quhilk behovis to be of det. 
 
 Quhat term of tyme of that be set 
 
 I can wyt it be na way ; 
 
 Bot, well I wate, on schorte delay 
 
 At a court I mon appeire 
 
 Fell accusationis thare til here, 
 
 Quhare na help thare is bot grace. 
 
134 AND ROW OP WYNTOUN. 
 
 In the chartulary of St. Andrew's as early as 1395, 
 at a perambulation held "in presentia serenissimi 
 principis Roberti Ducis Albanie," Wyntoun is men- 
 tioned as Prior of the island in Loch Leven ; and as 
 he must have been of mature years before obtaining 
 this position his birth has been set about the middle 
 of the reign of David II., say about 1350. 
 
 In the prologue to the Cronykil he describes 
 himself : 
 
 And, for I wyll nane bere the blame 
 
 Off my defawte, [this] is my name 
 
 Be baptysyne, Androwe of Wyntoune, 
 
 Off Sanctandrowys a Chanowne 
 
 Regulare, bot noucht-for-thi 
 
 Off thaim all the lest worthy ; 
 
 Bot off thare grace and thaire fawoure 
 
 I wes, but meryt, made Priowre 
 
 Off the Ynche wythin Lochle-ivyne, 
 
 Hawand tharof my tytill ewyne 
 
 Off Sanctandrowys dyocesy, 
 
 Betwene the Lomownde and Bennarty. 
 
 Notwithstanding his modest denial of merit it may be 
 understood that Andrew of Wyntoun, as an 
 ecclesiastic, was likely to be a man of no mean 
 powers. The prior of an ancient monastery, who 
 was also a canon regular of the metropolitan see of 
 St. Andrew's, could hardly be an altogether insignifi- 
 cant person. The Church in Scotland, owning, it is 
 said, from a third to a half of the whole lands of the 
 country, was then approaching the height of her 
 political power, and the dignities of St. Andrew's See 
 were prizes sought after by the best blood and the 
 most ambitious in the realm. Five sub-priories 
 
ANDROW OF WYNTOUN. 135 
 
 belonged to St. Andrew's : Monymusk in Aberdeen- 
 shire, the Isle of May in the Firth of Forth, 
 Pittenweem in Fife, and Portmoak and St. Serf's in 
 Kinross. The last-named religious house, situated on 
 the inch or island in Lochleven, was said to have 
 been a Culdee monastery founded by Brud, king of 
 the Picts, about the year 700. In this still, romantic 
 spot Wyntoun must have spent many of the riper 
 years of his life; and here, with little to break the 
 quiet of the hours but the lapse of waves on the 
 islet beach and the sweet chime at intervals of the 
 monastery bells, it is probable he wrote the pages of 
 his book. 
 
 A few years earlier John of Fordun, a chantry 
 priest of the cathedral of Aberdeen, had written in 
 Latin his chronicle of the Scottish nation, afterwards 
 amplified by Bower, who died abbot of Inch Colme, 
 into the work now known as the Scoti-chronicon. But 
 it is certain that Wyntoun never saw this work, 
 and when the suggestion of writing a narrative of 
 national events was made to him he quietly set about 
 the task of independent research and original 
 composition in the vernacular. 
 
 The inception of the work is owed to an ancestor 
 of the noble family of Wemyss. 
 
 This tretys sympylly 
 I made at the instans of a larde 
 That hade my ser\vys in his warde, 
 Schyr Jhone of the Wemys be rycht name, 
 An honest knycht and of gude fame. 
 
 As it Stands, the Cronykil is the earliest composition 
 of strictly historical purpose extant in the vernacular 
 
136 ANDROW OF WYNTOUN. 
 
 of the north, and, strangely enough, for fully two 
 
 hundred years afterwards, excepting the translations 
 
 of Ballenden and Read, no other history of the 
 
 Scottish people was written in the Scottish tongue. 
 
 A considerable number of manuscripts of the work 
 
 are in existence. The best of them is the Royal MS. 
 
 in the British Museum, a transcript made for George 
 
 Barclay of Achrody probably not later than 1430. 
 
 From this, collated with MSS. of the Cotton, 
 
 Harleian, and Advocates' libraries, the first printed 
 
 edition was made by David Macpherson in 1795. In 
 
 that edition, upon the principle of excluding all that 
 
 did not immediately belong to the history of Scotland, 
 
 nearly the whole of the first five books of the Cronykil 
 
 were omitted. In 1872-79 another ■ excellent edition 
 
 by Mr. David Laing, including these books, was 
 
 printed at Edinburgh in three portly volumes as part 
 
 of a series of the historians of Scotland. Both of 
 
 these editions are now somewhat difficult to procure. 
 
 Wyntoun called his work The Orygynale Cronykil 
 
 of Scotland, that is, as he explained in his prologue, a 
 
 chronicle narrating events from the first beginning of 
 
 things. Accordingly, in the orthodox fashion of his 
 
 time, he begins with the Creation, and the greater 
 
 part of the first five books is occupied with the long 
 
 descent through sacred and profane history. It is 
 
 only at the beginning of the sixth book that the 
 
 author settles down to his more immediate subject. 
 
 The narrative is divided into nine books of very 
 
 unequal length. 
 
 In honowre of the Ordrys nyne 
 Off haly Angelys. 
 
AND ROW OF WYNTOUN. 137 
 
 Each book is introduced by a prologue and a 
 summary of chapters, and each chapter has a rhyming 
 title, as 
 
 This next folowand Chaptere says 
 Quhat done wes in second Robertis days. 
 
 Extraordinary care is taken to mention at least the 
 year of each event. A great part of the Cronykil, 
 indeed, is the merest recording of names and occur- 
 rences and their dates, and in spite of all the ingenious 
 variety of the rhymes the reader is apt to grow weary 
 of bare statements of fact beginning 
 
 A thousand aucht and fourty yhere 
 Fra the byrth of our Lord dere, 
 
 or 
 
 A thousand, a hundyr, thretty and nyne 
 Yheris fra the swete Wyrgyne 
 Had borne hyr Sowne. 
 
 This characteristic, however valuable from the histori- 
 cal point of view, seriously interferes with pretensions 
 to poetic charm. So anxious was Wyntoun to be 
 authentic that he has actually introduced two speeches 
 in plain prose, one of them being the declaration of 
 Henry IV. on assuming the English crown after the 
 deposition of Richard II. On the other hand, he 
 shared the easy habit of the chroniclers of his age, such 
 as Robert of Gloucester and Robert of Brunne, of 
 omitting such portions of history as were already 
 known to be written by other hands. For this reason 
 he omits the history of Alexander the Great, the wars 
 of the Saxons and Britons, the actions of Wallace and 
 Bruce, and the origin of the Stewarts. 
 
13S ANDROW OP WYNTOUN. 
 
 The vanity of poetic authorship seems to have 
 influenced him but little, for, besides alluding to his 
 contemporary Barbour again and again in the most self- 
 deprecatory terms, he has incorporated in his eighth 
 book, without alteration, some three hundred lines of 
 The Bruce. A considerable portion of the Cronykil in- 
 deed was avowedly not written by himself. He informs 
 the reader that while engaged upon the work he was 
 presented with a narrative written by some unknown 
 person, and finding it entirely suitable for his purpose, 
 he simply inserted it in his manuscript. In this way 
 thirty-six clearly defined chapters, from the birth of 
 David II. to the death of Robert II., are accounted for. 
 To the same liberality of quotation is owed the preser- 
 vation of a little elegaic song on the death of Alexander 
 III., which Macpherson considered to be contem- 
 porary with the event, that is nearly ninety years older 
 than Barbour's work. 
 
 For the purposes of the historian, Wyntoun's work 
 has been simply invaluable. For the events of the 
 last fifty years of his narrative, it has to be remembered, 
 he was himself personally an authority; while "it can 
 scarcely be doubted," says Dr. Irving, "that he had 
 access to many important documents which are 
 irretrievably lost." The reliability of the Cronykil is 
 discovered wherever it is possible to compare its 
 account with such unquestioned testimony as the 
 Fosdera Angltce and the remains of the Register of the 
 Priory of St. Andrew's. In the famous case of the 
 Sutherland succession Lord Hailes made large use of 
 Wyntoun for evidence of ancient Scottish laws and 
 
AND ROW OF WYNTOUM. 139 
 
 customs of inheritance ; and Macpherson declared 
 that "the compiler of a Scottish peerage might obtain 
 from Wyntoun more true information concerning the 
 ancient noble families of Scotland than is to be found 
 in any work extant." 
 
 Before most things else, perhaps, Wyntoun was a 
 churchman. Loyal to the uttermost to his order, he 
 takes special delight in recording the acts and deaths 
 of the prelates of St. Andrew's. He carefully notices 
 every founding of an abbey ; and Alexander I. and 
 David I. have the warmest commendation from him 
 for their munificence to the church. Curious glimpses 
 of the theology of that day are to be had here 
 and there in his pages. In the fifth book of the 
 Cronykil, St. Serf, the patron saint of Wyntoun's 
 priory, holds a long and somewhat scornful interview 
 with the Devil, in which the fiend, for the confusion of 
 his interlocutor, propounds questions as to where God 
 existed before the making of heaven and earth, and 
 the Hke. Malcolm IV. also appears after death to a 
 friend and furnishes information regarding a future 
 state. 
 
 Touches of credulity and superstition of this sort, 
 natural to the times, do not, however, affect the truth 
 of the material narrative. Liberal, rather, and open- 
 minded beyond his age, Wyntoun displays little of the 
 rude prejudice which was apt to disfigure the patriotic 
 writing of the time. Only twice does he launch into 
 invective against the national enemy — upon the cruelty 
 of Edward I. to the Scots, and upon the seizure in 
 time of truce of the young Prince James. Perhaps 
 
140 ANDROW OF WYNTOUN. 
 
 the fact most significant of the nationaHty of the 
 chronicler is that amid all his references and 
 quotations he does not once mention the works of 
 Langland, Gower, or Chaucer, all of whom were his 
 contemporaries, and flourished in his time. Frequently 
 indeed the reader is tempted to wish that Wyntoun 
 had indulged a trifle more in the rhetoric of emotional 
 description. It is true that the cruel deaths by 
 starvation of the gallant Sir Alexander Ramsay at 
 Hermitage and of the gay young Duke of Rothesay at 
 Falkland might have been dangerous ground just 
 then to posture upon ; but pictures might have been 
 made of incidents like the tragic death of Thomas a 
 Becket on the Cathedral steps at Canterbury, the 
 momentous fall from the cliff of Alexander III. at 
 Kinghorn, and the vindication of the freedom of the 
 North by her sons at the battle of Stirling Bridge. 
 These afforded room for stirring narrative — for more, 
 at anyrate, than the bare mention accorded by the 
 chronicler. 
 
 Wyntoun, however, went his own way. Other 
 writers, like Boece, have hidden historic truth alto- 
 gether under their garniture of fancy, and by 
 contrast the simple plainness of Wyntoun has value 
 and effect. In these pages one reads with an interest 
 not less striking for their simplicity of statement, 
 passages like those detailing the original story of 
 Macbeth, the granting of the boon of Macduff, or the 
 story of the Lady Devorgille and the founding of 
 Sweetheart Abbey. Many such episodes, other- 
 wise unknown or strangely distorted, are found here 
 
ANDROW OF WYNTOUN. 141 
 
 in their historic form. Authentic insight, too, is 
 frequently afforded into the manners of those times, 
 as in the narrative of the rough jousting at Berwick 
 and in the episode with which the Cronykil concludes, 
 detailing how the Earl of Mar in 14 18 passed over to 
 Paris, and there at the sign of "The Tynnyn Plate" 
 kept open house with regal magnificence for twelve 
 weeks. Stripped of all glamour of sentiment, the 
 rudeness and cruelties of the age appear in realistic 
 strength, as when, rather than yield her trust, the 
 brave Lady of Seton sees her hostage son hanged 
 before her eyes. At the same time the ideals of those 
 centuries are sometimes flashed out in a sentence. 
 It is said of David I. : 
 
 The day he wes bath Kyng and Knycht, 
 A Mwnk devote he wes the nycht. 
 
 The last episode of the Cronykil, detailing the 
 adventures of the Earl of Mar abroad, has no vital 
 connection with the body of the narrative. It was 
 probably an after addition to the volume, and may 
 have been written by way of acknowledgment of 
 some political favour. The work really ends with the 
 capture of James I., an event which happened 
 fourteen years before the date of writing. As 
 Macpherson remarked, at that period " it was rather 
 dangerous for truth to tread too close upon the heels 
 of time." The good prior therefore acted with 
 prudence in bringing his narrative when he did to a 
 close. 
 
 It is nearly five hundred years since Wyntoun laid 
 
142 ANDROW OF WYNTOUN. 
 
 down his pen. During that time, though never 
 popular with the popularity of Barbour and Blind 
 Harry, he has probably never been quite forgotten. 
 His position as a national chronicler accounts to a 
 large extent for this. But the reader who grows 
 familiar with his pages to-day discovers what may 
 perhaps be another reason. He finds himself 
 making the acquaintance, not only of a teller of 
 quaint historic tales, but of a gentle and pious soul. 
 
THE ORYGYNALE CRONYKIL 
 OF SCOTLAND. 
 
 Early Britain. 
 
 [The Cronykil begins with a narrative of the earliest events of 
 sacred history — the state of angels, the creation, the flood, &c. 
 Then follows a geographical description of the three continents, 
 ending with the British Isles.] 
 
 LESSYDE Bretayne beelde' sulde be ' ■"°dei. 
 Off all the ilys in the se, 
 Quhare flowrys are fele" on feldys fayre, = '"='"y- 
 
 Hale^ off hewe, haylsum off ayre. 
 Off all corne thare is copy" gret, 
 Pese and atys, here and qwhet; 
 Bath froyt on tre and fysche in flwde, 
 And tyll all catale pasture gwde. 
 Solynus [sayis] in Bretanny 
 Sum steddys^ growys sa habowndanly 
 Off gyrs^ that sum-tym, bot thair fe' 
 Fra fwlth off mete refrenyht be^ 
 Thair fwde sail turne thame to peryle, 
 To rot, or bryst, or dey sum quhyle. 
 Thare wylde in wode has welth at wylle; 
 Thare hyrdys hydys holme and hille ; 
 Thare bewys bowys all for byrtht'; 
 
 3 Pei-fect. 
 
 4 abundance. 
 
 5 places. 
 
 6 grass, 
 
 7 cattle. 
 
 8 Ee restrained 
 
 from over- 
 feeding. 
 
 9 branches bend 
 >vith burden, 
 
144 
 
 WYNTOUN. 
 
 I blackbird and 
 thrush contest 
 in mirth. 
 
 = all kinds of 
 deer. 
 
 3 iishing. 
 
 Bath merle and maweys mellys off myrtht' 
 
 Thare huntyng is at allkyne dare''. 
 
 And richt gud hawlkyn^ on rywere; 
 
 Off fysche thair is habowndance, 
 
 And nedfulle thyng to mannys substance. 
 
 4 no kind of 
 
 venomous 
 beast. 
 
 5 above. 
 
 s eft or adder, 
 toad, or frog. 
 
 Be west Bretane is lyand 
 All the landys off Irlande, 
 That is ane land off nobyl ayre, 
 Off fyrth and felde and flowrys fayre. 
 Thare nakyn best off wenym* may 
 Lywe or lest atoure^ a day, 
 As ask or eddyre, tade or pade^, 
 Suppos that thai be thiddyr hade. 
 
 s uncle. 
 
 The Rise of Macbeth. 
 
 [The generations of the world, the events of oriental and classic 
 history, and the due succession of potentates, emperors, and popes 
 are narrated. Among other legends the travels are told of the 
 "King's Stone," or "Stone of Destiny," from Spain, first to 
 Ireland, then to Scone in Scotland, with its oracle : 
 
 nl fallat fatum, scoti, quocunqde locatum 
 Invenient lapidem, regnare tenentur ibidem. 
 
 The descent of the Scottish kings is traced to Duncan, a some- 
 what free-living monarch, who is slain by his sister's son at 
 Elgin.] 
 
 In this tyme, as yhe herd me tell 
 Off trewsone' that in Ingland fell, 
 In Scotland nere the lyk cas 
 Be Makbeth-Fynlayk practykyd was, 
 Quhen he mwrthrysyde hys awyne eme^ 
 Be hope that he had in a dreme 
 
ORYGYNALE CRONYKIL. 
 
 145 
 
 That he sawe quhen he was yhyng 
 In hows duelland wyth the king, 
 That fayrly trettyd hym and welle 
 In all that langyd hym ilke delle'. 
 For he wes hys systyr sone 
 Hys yharnyng all he gert be done^ 
 
 I belonged to him 
 every whit. 
 
 2 Caused his 
 desire to be 
 done. 
 
 A nycht he thowcht in hys dreming 
 That sittand he was besyd the king 
 At a sate in hwntyng, swa 
 In-till a leysh had grewhundys twa. 
 He thowcht quhile he was swa sittand 
 He sawe thre wemen by gangand^ 3 going. 
 
 And thai wemen than thowcht he 
 Thre werd systrys mast lyk to be. 
 The fyrst he hard say gangand by, 
 "Lo, yhondyr the Thayne ofif Crwmbawchty''!"'! Cromarty. 
 The tothir woman sayd agayne, 
 "Off Morave yhondyre I se the Thayne." 
 The thryd than sayd, " I se the Kyng." 
 All this he herd in his dremyng. 
 Sone efftyre that in his yhowthad 
 Off thyr thayndomys he thayne was made ; 
 Syne neyst he thowcht to be kyng 
 Fra Duncanys dayis had tane endyng. 
 
 The fantasy thus of his dreme 
 Movyd hym mast to sla hys erne. 
 As he dyd all furth in dede. 
 As befor yhe herd me rede^j 
 And Dame Grwok, hys emys wyff. 
 
146 WYNTOUN. 
 
 Tuk and led wyth hyr hys lyff, 
 And held hyr bathe hys wyff and qweyne, 
 As befor than scho had beyne 
 Till hys eme qwene lyvand 
 Quhen he wes kyng wyth crowne ryngnand. 
 For lytyll in honowre than had he 
 I degrees. fhe greys' off affynyt6. 
 
 All thus quhen his eme wes dede 
 He succedyt in his stede, 
 And sevyntene wyntyr full rignand 
 As kyng he wes than in-till Scotland. 
 All hys tyme wes gret plenty ' 
 Abowndand bath in land and se. 
 He wes in justice rycht lawchfull, 
 And till hys legis all awfull. 
 Quhen Leo the Tend wes Pape off Rome 
 As pylgryne to the curt he come, 
 = strewed silver. ^jjd in hys almus he sew sylver^ 
 
 3 need. Till all puic folk that had myster^; 
 
 < "sed. And all tyme oysyd'' he to wyrk 
 
 Profytably for Haly Kyrke. 
 
ORYGYNALE CRONYKIL. 
 
 147 
 
 The Boon of Macduflf. 
 
 [Macbeth, with all his good works, is a fierce king. Watching 
 the building of his castle of Dunsinane he one day notices a 
 yoke of oxen fail in drawing timber. He asks whose oxen 
 these are, and being informed that they belong to Macduff, 
 the thane of Fife, he threatens to put the thane's own neck 
 into the yoke and make him draw. Macduff flies, first to 
 Kennachy, where his wife keeps the pursuing king in treaty till 
 she sees her husband's boat beyond reach on the firth, then to 
 the English court, where Duncan's sons have found refuge. 
 The eldest two refuse the enterprise, but the third, Malcolm, a 
 natural son, is roused to avenge his father. Blessed by Edward 
 the Confessor, and joined by Siward, Lord of Northumberland, 
 he invades Scotland, reaches Birnam, and vanquishes Macbeth 
 with almost the exact circumstances immortalized by Shakespeare. 
 Macduff, however, is not the slayer of the king, nor have the 
 thane's wife and children been put to death by Macbeth. 
 Afterwards, for his services, Macduff asks of Malcolm three 
 things. ] 
 
 Qwhen Makbeth-Fynlayk thus wes slane 
 
 Off Fyffe Macduff that tyme the Thane 
 
 For his trawaille till his bownt^ 
 
 At Malcolme as Kyng askyd thire thre'. 
 
 Fyrst, till hys sete fra the awtare'' 
 
 [That he sulde be the kyngis] ledare, 
 
 And in that set thare set hym downe 
 
 Till tak his coronatyowne 
 
 For hym and hys posteryte 
 
 Quhen-evyre the kyng suld crownyd be.* 
 
 Efftyre that the secownd thyng 
 
 Wes that he askyd at the kyng 
 
 Till hawe the waward^ off hys bataylle 
 
 *■ A memorable instance of the exercise of this privilege was 
 the crowning of Robert the Bruce at Scone by the Countess of 
 Buchan in default of her brother, the Earl of P'ife. 
 
 I these three 
 
 (things). 
 3 from the altar. 
 
 3 vanguard. 
 
148 
 
 WYNTOUN. 
 
 2 broil. 
 
 3 A mulct paid to 
 kinsmen of 
 slain. 
 
 4 law. 
 
 5 Without part. 
 
 Quhat-evyr thai ware wald it assaylle; 
 
 That he and hys suld hawe always 
 
 Quhen that the kyng suld banare rays. 
 
 Or gyff the Thayne off Fyff in were' 
 
 Or in-till host wyth hys powere 
 
 Ware, the waward suld governyd be 
 
 Be hym and hys posteryt^. 
 
 Efftyre this, the thryd askyng 
 
 That he askyt at the kyng. 
 
 Gyve ony be suddane chawdmell6^ 
 
 Hapnyd swa slayne to be 
 
 Be ony off the Thaynys kyne 
 
 Off Fyff, the kynryk all wyth-in, 
 
 Gyve he swa slayne wer gentill-man 
 
 Foure and twenty markys than ; 
 
 For a yhwman twelf markys ay 
 
 The slaare suld for kynbwt' pay. 
 
 And hawe full remyssyowne 
 
 Fra thine for all that actyowne. 
 
 Gyve ony hapnyd hym to sla 
 
 That to that lawch" ware bwndyn swa. 
 
 Off that priwylage evyrmare 
 
 Parties 5 suld be the slaare. 
 
 Off this lawch are thre capytale; 
 
 That is the Blak Brest off Weddale, 
 
 The Thayne off Fyffe, and the thryd syne 
 
 Quha-e\vyre be Lord off Abbyrnethyne. * 
 
 * So late as 1421 the Stewart in Fife received three gentlemen 
 who had been concerned in the slaughter of Melvil of Glenbervy 
 to the Lach of Clan-Macd-uff, three of their friends being 
 securities for proof of their kindred to Macduff. — Macpherson. 
 
ORYGYNALE CkONYKlL. 
 
 149 
 
 Malcolm and the Traitor. 
 
 [After routing a second usurper, Malcolm (Canmore) is crowned 
 with great solemnity at Scone, and receives the oath of fealty 
 from all who owe homage to the crown.] 
 
 In the crystyndome I trow than 
 Wes noucht in deid a bettyr man, 
 Na lyvand a bettyr knycht 
 Na mare manly, stowt, and wycht'. 
 Amang all othir famows dedis 
 Mony men thus off hym redis'; 
 That in hys court thare was a knycht, 
 A lord off powere and off mycht, 
 That set hym till hawe slayne the kyng, 
 Hys purpos gyve he till end mycht bryng. 
 In-to the kyngys court than 
 Thare wes duelland a lele man 
 That tald the kyngys awyne persowne 
 That that lord set hym be tresowne 
 To sla the kyng, gyve that he 
 Mycht wyt^ hys oportunyte. 
 This lord that tyme wes noucht present 
 In-to the court, bot wes absent, 
 Bot swne agayne he come wyth ma"* 
 Than he wes wont, the kyng to sla. 
 Wyth curtasy yhit nevyretheles 
 Than, as befor, ressayvyd he wes. 
 The kyng than warnyd hys menyhe^ 
 Wyth hym at hwntyng for to be; 
 And to that knycht he sayd alsua 
 That wyth hym-selfif he wald hym ta^ 
 
 1 capable. 
 
 3 perceive. 
 
 5 following. 
 
 i take. 
 
150 
 
 WYNTOUN. 
 
 1 without hin- 
 
 drance. 
 
 2 The points and 
 
 positions being 
 set. 
 
 By hym to syt at that huntyng. 
 
 The knycht consentyd to the kyng. 
 
 Than on the morne, wytht-owtyn let', 
 
 The setys and the stable sete°, 
 
 The kyng and that lord alsua 
 
 Togydder rad, and nane bot tha, 
 
 Fere in the wode; and thare thay fand 
 
 A fayre brade land and a plesand, 
 
 A lytill hill off nobill ayre, 
 
 All wode abowt bathe thyk and fayre. 
 
 3 choose thou. 
 
 4 every whit. 
 
 5 Target. 
 
 6 fate. 
 
 7 Therefore try. 
 
 S Though thou 
 hast failed in 
 loyalty. 
 
 9 Hesitate not. 
 
 Than thus the kyng sayd to the knycht, 
 "On fwte at lykyng thow may lycht, 
 Or on hors gyve thow will be, 
 As the thynk best. Now ches thow the', 
 Horsyd and armyd als welle 
 As I am thow art ilke-dele''. 
 Thi wapnys ar scharpe and mare redy 
 Than ony in-to this sted hawe I — 
 Dergat^, spare, knyff, and swerd. 
 Betwene ws dele we now the werd^ 
 Here is best now to begyn 
 Thi purpos, gyve thow will honowre wyn. 
 Here is nane that may ws se 
 Na help may owthir me or the, 
 For-thi [fande]' now wyth all thi mycht 
 To do thi purpos as a knycht. 
 Set thow hawe fadyt thi lawte^ 
 Do this dede yhit wyth honeste. 
 Gyve othir thow may or dare or wille, 
 Fenyh6 the nowcht' to fulfille 
 
ORYGYNALE CRONYKIL. 
 
 151 
 
 Thi heycht', thi purpos, and thine athe. 
 
 Do fourth thi dedys and be noucht lathe. 
 
 Gyve thow thynkys to sla me 
 
 Quhat tyme na nowe may bettyr be 
 
 Wytht fredome, or wyth mare manhed? 
 
 Or gyve thow wald put me to dede 
 
 Wyth venowme or wytht scharpe poysowne, 
 
 That is a wyfifis condytyown. 
 
 Or gyve thow wald in-to my bede 
 
 Prevaly put me to dede, 
 
 That war as in adultery 
 
 Murthrysyd to be wnhonestly. 
 
 Or a knyff gyve thow wald hyd 
 
 Prewely, and thi tyme abyd 
 
 Quhill thow mycht at ese me sla, 
 
 A murtherere mycht do na war than sua°. 
 
 For-thi do as suld a knycht ; 
 
 Ga we togyddyr, God dele the rycht ! 
 
 Wyth cure foure handys and no ma; 
 
 Thare-on mot all the gamyn ga^" 
 
 Wyth this the knycht all changyd hewe 
 Lyk hys purpos all to rewe. 
 And hys wysage worthyd wan"* 
 As he had bene rycht a mad man. 
 Thare fell he downe and askyd mercy. 
 For all hys purpos wes foly. 
 And sayd his lord mycht wyth the lawe 
 Hym, as he was wald, bath hang and drawe; 
 And swa he yhald hym till hys will 
 On hym hys lust all to fulfill 
 Bwt ony kyn^ condytyowne. 
 
 I promise. 
 
 2 worse than so. 
 
 3 must all the 
 game go. 
 
 4 hecamc pale. 
 
 5 Without any 
 sort of. 
 
152 WYNTOUN. 
 
 The kyiig than all his actyowne 
 Forgawe thi knycht thare qwytly, 
 And tuk hym all till his mercy; 
 And thare he become his man 
 Mare lele than he wes befor than. 
 And the kyng that wes hys lord 
 Let na man wyt off thare discord, 
 Till. Quhill' the knycht hym-selff this cas 
 
 Tald in all as hapnyd was. 
 
 A Wedding Guest's Tale; 
 
 [Edward the Confessor dying childless in England, the throne 
 there is seized first by Harold, then by William of Normandy. 
 Upon this, Edgar Atheling, the lawful heir, being too young for 
 resistance, flies with his sisters Margaret and Christian. Their 
 ship is driven into the Firth of Forth, and they land at St. 
 Margaret's Hope. Christian takes the veil, but Margaret is 
 married by King Malcolm, and on the death of her brother 
 carries to the Scottish royal house the rightful succession to the 
 Saxon throne of England. Twice Malcolm raids the southern 
 kingdom, and once Scotland is wasted by William as far as 
 Abernethy. While invading England for the third time, 
 Malcolm and one of his sons are slain at Alnwick. The 
 crown, upon this, is seized by Malcolm's brother, Donald. 
 Donald is expelled by Duncan H., a natural son of Malcolm, 
 but two years later is reinstated by the Earl of Mearns. 
 Finally, after a reign of three years in all, Donald is over- 
 thrown, mutilated, and his eyes put out, and the kingdom is 
 held in turn by Malcolm's three sons, Edgar, Alexander I., and 
 David I. Edgar weds his sister Maud to Henry I. of England, 
 youngest son of the Conqueror. At the marriage there are 
 great rejoicings.] 
 
 'feast. Thare made wes a gret mawngery^, 
 
 Quhare gaddryd ware the mast worthy, 
 3 degree. And lordys off the grettast gre^ 
 
 ■• known, That kcnd"" ware in that cuntre. 
 
ORYGYNALE CRONYKIL. 
 
 «S3 
 
 Swa thare wes ane awlde knycht sete 
 Amang thame that day at the mete, 
 And thir wordys than said he : 
 " Now in the rwte is set the tre 
 Bathe frwyt and floure all lyk to here." 
 Bot fewe wyst thare-off the manere. 
 Than thai reqwyryd hym that wes by 
 Sittand, to say per cumpany 
 Quhat sygnyfyid that mystyk word 
 That he swa spak than at the horde. 
 The knycht than sayd thame curtasly 
 He wald declere it oppynly. 
 
 " Quhille," he sayd, " I wes steward 
 Till my lord the King Edward, 
 And I before hym wes standand 
 At his mete, and he sittand 
 As he oysyd' wyth gret honowre, 
 Thare wes a suspect traytoure. 
 Set" swa he wes nowcht prowyd in dede, 
 Yhit swilk he provyd or thine he yhed^ 
 By the kyng than at the mete 
 He wes at his tabill sete. 
 In his hand a pes off brede 
 He had, that rycht thare made his dede. 
 For to the kyng this wes hys word 
 That day sittand at the bord, 
 ' My lord, oift yhe have herd off me 
 That yhe suld betresyd be. 
 And that I suld be tresowne 
 Sla and wndo yhoure persowne. 
 
 1 used. 
 
 = Though. 
 
 3 such he proved 
 ere thence he 
 went. 
 
1S4 
 
 WYNTOUN. 
 
 I hence. 
 
 = that this same. 
 
 3 Till I be 
 choked. 
 
 4 without pity. 
 
 5 crag. 
 
 6 wakened. 
 
 Gyve evyr I thowcht for to do sua 
 
 I pra God hyne' I newyre ga, 
 
 Bot at this ilk° pes of bred 
 
 Here at yhoure bord be now my dede, 
 
 And off it nevyr a crote, 
 
 Quhill I be wyrryd^, owre-pas my throt.' 
 
 That brede than he begouth till ete, 
 
 Bot owre hys throt it mycht noucht get. 
 
 Swa, suddanly rycht at the borde 
 
 He wyrryd, and spak newyre a word 
 
 Mare than he spak of that bred 
 
 Before that he deyd in that stede. 
 
 The kyng than gert hym doggydly 
 
 Be drawyn owt, and dyspytwsly'' 
 
 Oure a hewch^ gert cast hym downe, 
 
 Doggys till ete his caryowne. 
 
 My lord," he sayd, yhit sittand 
 
 As in a study [than] musand, 
 
 And efftyr that all this was done 
 
 As yhe have herd, than sayd he sone, 
 
 As vaknyd^ owt oif his study. 
 
 7 Abiding. 
 
 S lamented* 
 
 " I wes," he sayd, " in Normandy 
 Bydand', as yhe wyst, a quhille 
 Owt off this land in gret exyle ; 
 And swa thare wes twa cunnand men 
 That ofift to me repayryd then, 
 My specyall famylyerys. 
 Off plesand and off fayre manerys. 
 The state off Ingland on a day 
 Be thare word sare menyd^ thai. 
 
ORYGYNALE CRONYKIL. 
 
 JSS 
 
 And sayd Ingland wes lyk to be 
 
 Confowndyd for gret inyqwyte 
 
 That wes done in-to that land ; 
 
 For few in it wes than lyvand 
 
 That wes commendyd all wertuws, 
 
 Bot iwill and fals and lycherus, 
 
 [And] nowthir lauch na [yhit] lawte' ■ law nor loyalty. 
 
 Wes oysyd na done in that cuntre, 
 
 And lordys be thare awarys 
 
 The sympill folk wald ay supprys ; 
 
 Byschapys, prestys, and prelatys 
 
 In hawtayne° pryd ay led thare statys ; 
 
 Swa, lyk war^, that inyqwyte 
 
 Suld all wndo this hale* cuntre. 
 
 I askyd," he sayd, " than, qwhat remede 
 
 This mycht helpe or stand in sted. 
 
 Ane off thame than awnsweryd me 
 
 And sayd, ' Swilk^ help may fall to be, 
 
 As be this ryddill I will the say, 
 
 Fra the or [I sail] pas away. 
 
 A grene tre fra the rwte wes sawyn. 
 
 And fra it a space wes drawyn. 
 
 As men for till wndyrstand. 
 
 Large thre akyre leynth off land. 
 
 This tre may happyn for to get 
 
 The kynd rwte, and in it be set, 
 
 And sap to recovyr syne 
 
 Bath [the] leyff and flewowre fyne. 
 
 And the froyte the tre oure-sprede. 
 
 Than is to lyppyn" sum remede.'" « to be expected. 
 
 2 haughty. 
 
 3 likely it was. 
 
 4 whole. 
 
 5 Such. 
 
IS6 
 
 WYNTOUN. 
 
 I owned. 
 
 = Till. 
 
 3 Each one of 
 
 these, 
 
 4 Fetched. 
 
 5 nature (the 
 
 native root), 
 
 6 good. 
 
 7 Since, 
 
 8 noble person. 
 
 Than the knycht sayd, "Now I se 
 In-to the kynd rwte set the tre. 
 This tre yhe may wndyrstand 
 To be the kynryk off Ingland 
 That in honowre and ryches 
 And in gret welth abowndand wes. 
 The rwte, yhe trow, kyngys sede 
 Quhare-off all kyngis come on dede, 
 That awcht' the kynryk off Ingland, 
 Be lyne and lynage discendand, 
 QuhilP Harald, Bastard, and Willame Rede, 
 That now in mwld ar lyand dede, 
 Off that state interruptyowne. 
 Mad be thare intrusyowne. 
 Thir ware the akyr-leynthis thre 
 That before rehersyd we; 
 Ilkane off thir^ wyth thare streynth 
 Fychyd* the tre ane akyr-leynth. 
 Now gottyn has that tre the rwte 
 Off kynd^ oure confort and oure bute*. 
 All lyk to bere bath frwyt and floure 
 In-till oure helpe and oure succoure, 
 Syne' Saxon and the Scottys blude 
 Togyddyr is in yhon frely fwde", 
 Dame Maid, our qwene and oure lady, 
 Now weddyd wyth oure kyng Henry." 
 
 This knycht syttand at the borde 
 All this rehers[it] word be word. 
 
ORYGYNALB CRONYKIL. 157 
 
 The Burial of Henry II. of England. 
 
 [David I. founds no fewer than five bishoprics and nine or ten 
 abbeys, and marries the heiress of the Earl of Huntingdon, through 
 whom that earldom is inherited by the Scottish kings. He 
 makes war upon the usurper Stephen in support of the claims of 
 his niece Maud to the English throne, but is defeated in a great 
 battle (Battle of the Standard). The crown of England, how- 
 ever, is settled on Maud's son, afterwards Henry H., and David 
 obtains Northumberland and Cumberland. In this reign the 
 deposed Donald, though blind and emasculate, accomplishes 
 a terrible revenge. Desponding one day on his hard fate, he 
 hears the king's son, " a gangand bairn," go by. He calls to 
 the child, who comes innocently to be kissed, when Donald so 
 handles him that he screams and dies. At this sight the queen, 
 too, suddenly expires, and the succession itself is only saved by 
 the Csesarean operation. Donald is cast into a dungeon and 
 starved to death. David's remaining son. Prince Henry, Earl of 
 Huntingdon and Northumberland, dying, to the great grief of the 
 kingdom, before his father, that king is succeeded in turn by his 
 grandsons, Malcolm the Maiden and William the Lion. In the 
 reign of the latter monarch Scotland loses all her recent acquisi- 
 tions. Surprised and captured at Alnwick, William is only 
 freed on condition of relinquishing important possessions and 
 paying homage to Henry. These exactions are considered the 
 greater hardship since William's grandfather David himself 
 knighted Henry at Carlisle, and passing to London, set him on 
 the English throne. Scotland, nevertheless, suffers great 
 depression till the death of the English king. His burial is 
 described. ] 
 
 Quhen this Henry thus wes dede, 
 
 For to be borne to the sted 
 
 Ordanyd for hys sepulture, 
 
 As suld a dede kyng wyth honwre, 
 
 Hys body oure wes cled all hale 
 
 In honest kyngys aparale; 
 
 Till hys fete fra hys hewyd" all downe, ■ head. 
 
 Hawand thare-on off gold a crown e, 
 
 And gluwys on his handys twa, 
 
 Beltyd wyth his suerd alsua, 
 
158 
 
 WYNTOUN. 
 
 I Embroidered. 
 
 2 marvel. 
 
 3 each one cast 
 
 (drew conclu- 
 sion). 
 
 4 anger. 
 
 5 weepmg sore. 
 
 Septyr, [and] ryng, and sandallys 
 Browdyn' welle on kyngys wys, 
 Bot hys visage wes all bare. 
 Thus bore wyth lordys that ware thare 
 To the sted off hys sepulture 
 Wyth gret reverens and honwre. 
 Rychard hys swn than and his ayre 
 Wyth hys court plesand and rycht fayre 
 Than mete hys fadyr on the way. 
 Off that dede body, quhare it lay, 
 Owt off the nesthryllys twa 
 The red blud brystyd owt, that sua 
 Fast it bled that all thare-by 
 Gangand had thare-off ferly°. 
 How ilkane kest^ in thaire intent 
 Thare wes na certane jwgement, 
 Bot lyk it wes be that thyng sene 
 That the spyryt wes movyd in tene"* 
 Off the fadyre agayne the swne. 
 Yhit nevyrtheles, all to be dwne, 
 This Rychard passyd on, gretand sare^, 
 Wyth lordys that the body bare 
 To the sted off the sepulture, 
 Quhare it interyd wes wyth honwre. 
 
 Efftyre tha exeqwyis als fast 
 Till Lwndyn this ilk^ Rychard past, 
 And tuk thi crowne in-to the sted 
 Off hys fadyr that thus wes dede. 
 Set he Rychard be name wes cald, 
 For he a stowt knycht and a bald 
 
ORYGYNALE CRONYKIL. 159 
 
 Wes in prys' off hys renowne. i praise. 
 
 Rychard the hart off a lyowne, 
 
 Or Lyownys Hart to say schortly, 
 
 Thai cald this Rychard comownaly. 
 
 Till oure kyng Willame he qwhylum wes'^ ^ sometime was. 
 
 Luwyd falow in dedys off prowes ; 
 
 For-thi thai war ilkane till othir 
 
 Specyalle, as he had bene his brodyr. 
 
 [With a sum of ten thousand marks (;^loo,ooo sterling) 
 William recovers from Richard all his dignities, estates, and 
 homages, and he renders important assistance to the English 
 king both in setting out for and in returning from his Crusade. 
 For a few chapters further the events of the two countries are 
 narrated together. On the southern side are related the quarrels 
 of King John with church and barons, and the consequent 
 invasion of England and capture of London by Louis, the 
 Dauphin of France. In the north, for his share in these troubles, 
 Alexander II. , William the Lion's son, suffers excommunication, 
 and among other matters an account is given of a clan feud 
 between the Besats of Oban and the men of Athole. In 1242 
 the king and queen with their court are entertained for a night by 
 Sir William Besat at Oban. Next morning the king hastens 
 away to Edinburgh, leaving the queen behind. Four days later 
 she rides to Forfar, attended by Sir William. That night, after 
 attending a tournament at Haddington, Patrick, Earl of Athole, 
 and his company are burnt "to coals" in their lodging. For 
 this deed Besat and his two brothers are blamed. In vain it 
 is shown that on the fatal night Sir William sat late at supper 
 with the queen in Forfar, and led her to her chamber before 
 retiring himself. In vain the queen offers to swear in person to 
 his innocence. In vain Besat himself has the misdoers cursed 
 " wyth buk and bell " in all the kirks of the diocese of Aberdeen, 
 and offers to prove his innocence upon the bodies of his accusers. 
 It is asserted that, wherever he himself might be that night, his 
 arms and men were seen in Haddington, and that the deed was 
 done by the Besats for an ancient feud. Their lands are harried 
 utterly of goods and cattle, and before the fury of the powerful 
 kinsmen of Athole, they are finally banished the kingdom.] 
 
i6o 
 
 WYNTOUN. 
 
 r afterwards. 
 
 Lament for Alexander III. 
 
 [On the death of Alexander II. in 1249, his son Alexander III., 
 eight years of age, is crowned at Scone. A year later he is 
 married to Margaret, daughter of Henry III. of England. 
 Henry intrigues to the prejudice of Scotland, and, at home, 
 struggles occur between the barons of English and Scottish 
 interest for possession of the king. In 1263, however, Alex- 
 ander has asserted himself, and fights the battle of Largs, where, 
 amid a tempest of "gret weddrys scharpe and snell," the Norse 
 ascendancy over the Western Isles is finally broken. Among 
 further particulars detailed of the time of Alexander III. the 
 right of coining money is confirmed to the Church ; Edward I. 
 conquers Wales ; and in Dunfermline at the translation of St. 
 Margaret, a miracle happens, her body refusing to be lifted till 
 that of her husband Malcolm has first been removed. Upon 
 the king's death his wise government receives justice at the 
 hands of the poet.] 
 
 A thowsand twa hundyr foure score off yhere 
 The fyft, fra that the Madyn clere 
 Jhesu Cryst cure Lord had borne, 
 Alysandyr oure kyng deyd at Kyngorne. 
 Fra that place he wes had syne' 
 And enteryd in Dwnfermlyne. 
 In that collegyd kyrk he lyis 
 Hys spyryt in-till paradys. 
 
 3 lamented him 
 sore. 
 
 3 preserved. 
 
 Scotland menyd hym than full sare', 
 For wndyr hym all his legis ware 
 In honoure, qwyete, and in pes, 
 For-thi cald Pessybill Kyng he wes. 
 He honoryd God and Haly Kyrk, 
 And medfull dedys he oysyd to wyrk. 
 Till all prestys he dyd reverens, 
 And sawffyd^ thare statys wyth diligens. 
 He [was] stedfast in crystyn fay; 
 
ORYGYNALE CRONYKIL. 
 
 i6i 
 
 Relygyows men he honoryde ay. 
 
 He lu\vyd all men that [war] wertuows; 
 
 He lathyd and chastyd [all] vytyows. 
 
 Be justys he gave and eqwyte 
 
 Till ilke man that his suld be. 
 
 That he mycht noucht till wertu drawe 
 
 He held ay wndyr dowt' and awe. 
 
 He gert chasty' mysdoarys 
 
 As lauch wald be thare manerys. 
 
 The lawch he gert be kepyd welle 
 
 In all his kynryk ilka delle. 
 
 He led his lyff in honest^, 
 
 Devotyown, and chastyt6. 
 
 Till lordys, knychtys, and sqwyerys 
 
 That ware plesand off manerys 
 
 He wes lele, luwand, and liberale, 
 
 And all wertuows in governale. 
 
 He wes gret off almows dede^ 
 
 Till all that he couth wyt had nede. 
 
 Yhwmen, powere karl, or knawe, 
 
 That wes ofif mycht an ox til hawe 
 
 He gert that man hawe part in pluche*. 
 
 Swa wes corne in [his] land enwche. 
 
 Swa than begowth=, and efiftyr lang 
 
 Off land wes mesure, ane ox-gang. 
 
 Mychty men, that had ma 
 
 Oxyn, he gert in pluchys ga. 
 
 A pluch of land efftyr that 
 
 To nowmyr^ off oxyn mesuryd gat. 
 
 Be that vertu all hys land 
 
 Off corn he gert be abowndand. 
 
 M 
 
 I fear. 
 
 = caused chastise. 
 
 3 deeds of alms. 
 
 4 ploughing. 
 
 5 began. 
 
 (J number. 
 
i62 WYNTOUN. 
 
 ' "'^'^- A bolle off atys' pennys foure 
 
 = did not exceed. Off Scottys mone past noucht oure°; 
 
 A boll off here for awcht or ten 
 In comowne prys sawld wes then ; 
 For sextene a boll of qwhete, 
 Or for twenty, the derth wes grete. 
 This falyhyd fra he deyd suddanly ; 
 3 therefore, lit. This sang wes made off hym for-thi^. 
 
 [Cantus.] 
 
 Quhen Alysandyr owre Kyng wes dede, 
 <'»*• That Scotland led in luwe and le", 
 
 ^p'™^- Away wes sons^ off ale and brede, 
 
 Off wyne and wax, off gamyn and gle. 
 Oure gold wes changyd in-to lede. — 
 
 Cryst, borne in-to Vyrgynyt6, 
 Succoure Scotland and remede, 
 That stad [is in] perplexyte. 
 
 The Lady Devorgil. 
 
 [David and Alexander, the sons of Alexander III., having 
 died childless before their father, and his daughter, married to 
 Eric of Norway, having left only the young Margaret, "the 
 Maid of Norway," Edward I. asks this princess in marriage for 
 his son. She dies, however, before reaching Scotland. The 
 case of the Scottish succession is then stated at great length, 
 John Balliol claiming the throne as grandson of the eldest 
 daughter, and Robert Bruce as son of the youngest daughter of 
 David, brother of William the Lion. The lineal descent of the 
 Comyns is also traced from the dethroned King Donald. A 
 legend like that of the Lady Godiva is related of Maud, queen 
 of Henry I., and a quaint story is told of the mother of Balliol.] 
 
ORYGYNALE CRONY KIL. 
 
 163 
 
 Now to rehers it is my will 
 Sum wertws dedis off Derworgill. 
 That lady wes, as I herd say, 
 Alanys [douchtyr] off Gallway. 
 Jhon eldare Ballyoll in his lyffe 
 That lady weddyt till his wyff, 
 And on hyr syne efftyr that 
 Jhon the Ballyoll the kyng he gat. 
 Quhen the Ballyoll [at]' wes hyr lord 
 Spowsyd, as yhe herd record, 
 Hys sawle send till his Creature, 
 Or he wes layd in sepulture 
 Scho gert oppyn his body tyte'', 
 And gert his hart be tane owt qwyte^ 
 Wyth spycery welle savorand, 
 And off kynd welle flevorand, 
 That ilke hart than, as men sayd, 
 Scho bawmyd, and gert it be layd 
 In-till a cophyn off evore'' 
 That scho gert be made tharefore, 
 Annamalyd and perfytly dycht^, 
 Lokyt, and bwndyn wyth sylver brycht. 
 And alway quhen scho yhed till mete^ 
 That [cophyne scho gert by hir] sett. 
 And till hyr lord, as in presens. 
 Ay to that scho dyd reverens. 
 And thare scho gert set ilka day, 
 [As] wont before hyr lord wes ay, 
 All the cowrssys coweryd welle 
 In-to sylver brycht weschelle 
 Browcht fra the kychyn and thare set. 
 
 I that. 
 
 2 quickly. 
 
 3 had his heart 
 
 taken out 
 whole. 
 
 4 ivory. 
 
 5 Enamelled and 
 
 perfectly 
 polished. 
 
 6 went to meat. 
 
1 64 
 
 WYNTOUN. 
 
 I chose. 
 
 J bound in duty. 
 
 Quhen scho mad hyr to rys fra met 
 
 All thai courssys scho gert then 
 
 Be tane wp and delt til pure men ; 
 
 Scho send all thai courssys gud, 
 
 As scho thame chesyt', to ta thare fude. 
 
 This scho cessyt nevyr to do 
 
 Quhill lyvand in this warld was scho. 
 
 Scho ordanyt in hyre testament 
 
 And gave byddyng wyth hale intent 
 
 That that hart thai suld than ta 
 
 And lay it betwene hyr pappys twa, 
 
 As detyt" thai war than wyth honowre 
 
 To lay hyr wyth that in sepulture. 
 
 3 enlargement. 
 
 Scho fowndyt in-to Gallway 
 Off Cystews ordyre ane abbay. 
 Duke- Cor scho gert thaim all, 
 That is Swet-Hart, that abbay call ; 
 And now the men off Gallway 
 Callys that sted the New Abbay. 
 Howssys off freris scho fwndyt tway; 
 Wygtowne and Dunde [war] thai. 
 In ekyng' als off Goddis serwyce 
 Scho fowndyt in Glasgow twa chapellanyis, 
 And in the Universyt6 
 Off Oxynfurde scho gert be 
 A collage fowndyt.* This lady 
 Dyd all thir dedis devotly. 
 
 *Balliol College. 
 
ORYGYNALE CRONYKIL. 
 
 i6s 
 
 A bettyr lady than scho wes nane 
 In all the yle off Mare Bretane. 
 Scho wes rycht plesand off bewte; 
 Here wes gret taknys off bownte'. 
 
 I token of worth. 
 
 The Sack of Berwick. 
 
 [Balliol accepts the crown as a vassal of Edward, but presently, 
 resisting the indignities put upon him, is deprived of his honours 
 by the English king. In support of the falling monarch three 
 hundred gentlemen of Fife attack Berwick and carry it at the 
 point of the sword.] 
 
 Quhen the Kyng Edward off Ingland 
 
 Had herd off this deid full tythand= 
 
 All breme he belyd in-to berth 3, 
 
 And wrythyd all in wedand werth*, 
 
 Alsa kobbyd in his crope^ 
 
 As he had ettyn ane attyrcope*; 
 
 And als fast assemblyd hys ost, 
 
 And come to Berwyk wyth gret bost, 
 
 And layd a sege to the town, 
 
 Assawtis makand rycht fellown'. 
 
 The stwff^ wythin resystens 
 
 Agayne hym made, and gret deffens. 
 
 Sa qwhene he saw that he mycht noucht 
 
 The town off were' wyn as he thoucht, 
 
 Wndyr dissymbelatyown 
 
 Bath tent thai tuk wp and pawillown, 
 
 All lyk as to gere cese that were; 
 
 Than he removyd wyth his powere, 
 
 2 tidings. 
 
 3 furious he 
 blazed into 
 wrath. 
 
 4 in raging state. 
 
 5 choked in his 
 gullet. 
 
 6 eaten a spider. 
 
 7 Making right 
 
 fierce assaults. 
 S garrison. 
 
 9 by war. 
 
i66 
 
 WYNTOUN. 
 
 I scattered in 
 ambush. 
 
 ' Letting pass. 
 
 3 knew. 
 
 And scalyd in buschementis' nere thareby 
 
 His ostys, bydand prewally 
 
 Owrdrywand' a day or twa. 
 
 And qwhill that thai war bydand swa 
 
 Thai fenyhyd armys off Scotland 
 
 As thai kend^ lordis thai berand; 
 
 And ayrly on the Gud Fryday 
 
 To the town agayne come thai, 
 
 The lordis armys off Scotland 
 
 At the sown ryssyng apperand 
 
 On bayneris payntyd and penownys. 
 
 4 gates. 
 
 5 Cleric and lay 
 
 Wythin the town the Scottis wes 
 Rejosyd in-till gret blythnes 
 Off that sychtj for thai wyst noucht 
 Off the desayt agayne thame wroucht, 
 Bot thai trowyd that thaire kyng 
 That ost hade sende in thare helpyng. 
 For-thi the yhettis-t alsa fast 
 All off the towne thai gert wp cast. 
 And at thai yhettis oppyn then 
 Fast thrang [in] the Inglys men, 
 And wmbeset the Scottis thare 
 Or thai wyst welle quhat thai ware. 
 The Inglis [men] thare slwe downe 
 [All] hale the Scottis natyowne 
 That wyth-in that towne thai fand. 
 Off all condytyowne nane sparand ; 
 Leryd and lawde^, nwne and frere. 
 All wes slayne wyth that powere ; 
 
ORYGYNALE CRONYKIL. 167 
 
 Off allkyn state, off allkyn age, 
 
 [Thai] sparyd nothir carl na page; 
 
 Bath awld and yhowng, men and wywys. 
 
 And sowkand barnys thar tynt' thare lyvys ; ' unweaned 
 
 ■' ■' 11' infants there 
 
 Yhwmen and gentilmen alsa, lost. 
 
 The lyvys all thai tuk [thaim] fra. 
 
 Thare slayne wes downe the floure of Fyffe; 
 
 Thare sawlys to sawff thai spendyt the lyffe, 
 
 And in the sawfte off the town 
 
 Before, thai had the mast renown. 
 
 Thus thai slayand ware sa fast 
 All the day, qwhill'' at the last »tiii. 
 
 This Kyng Edward saw in that tyde 
 A woman slayne, and off hyr syde 
 A barne he saw fall owt, sprewland 
 Besyd that woman slayne lyand. 
 " Lasses, Lasses," than cry id he ; 
 "Leve off, leve off," that word suld be. 
 
 Sevyn thowsand and fyve hundyr ware 
 Bodyis reknyd that slayne ware thare. 
 This dwne wes on the Gud Fryday. 
 Off elde na kynd nane sparyd thai. 
 Twa dayis owt, as a depe flwde. 
 Throw all the town thare ran rede blude. 
 Thus that Kyng of Ingland, 
 Noucht kyng, bot a fell tyrand, 
 Led that day his devotyown. 
 
1 68 WYNTOUN. 
 
 He gert thare thole the passyown 
 '"^"ofSh. Off dede' mony a creature 
 
 In-till gratyous state and pure, 
 Clene schrewyn, in gud entent 
 Redy to tak thare sacrament. 
 Hys offyce was that Gud Fryday 
 Till here innocentis de, and say 
 "Allace! allace ! now, Lord, we cry, 
 For hym that deyd that day, mercy ! " 
 Nane othir serwys that day herd he, 
 2 without pity. Bot gcrt thame slay on, but pete." 
 
 The sawlys that he gert slay down thare 
 He send quhare his sawle nevyrmare 
 Was lyk to come, that is the blys, 
 Quhare alkyn joy ay lestand is. 
 
 A Border Tournament.* 
 
 [The rise of Sir William Wallace, his victory over the English 
 Treasurer at Stirling Bridge, and his defeat at Falkirk, follow. 
 Edward subdues all south of the Forth, and harries his opponents 
 as far as Perth, "noucht levand behynd bot wattyr and stane. 
 The three great battles at Roslyn are described, in which in one 
 day twenty thousand English are defeated by Sir John Comyn 
 and Sir Simon Fraser; and Edward's capture of Stirling is 
 narrated. But for the rest of the Wars of Succession the reader 
 of the Cronykil is referred to Barbour. On the death of Bruce 
 the regency of Randolph and his shrewd administration of justice 
 are detailed, his policy being to make the sheriff personally 
 responsible for gear stolen in each district. The regent, however, 
 is poisoned at a feast at Wemyss; whereupon Edward Balliol 
 lands at Kinghorn, wins the great battle of Dupplin near Perth, 
 and is crowned at Scone. The wars of the Wardens of Scotland 
 
 *The description of this tournament forms part of the MS. 
 interpolated in his narrative by Wyntoun. 
 
ORYGYNALE CRONYKIL. 
 
 169 
 
 against Balliol and Edward III. ensue at great length, the most 
 outstanding episodes of the narrative being the hanging of 
 Sir Alexander Seton's son before the eyes of his father and 
 mother because Seton will not deliver Berwick to the English 
 king earlier than the time agreed, the slaughter of 10,000 Scots 
 at the great battle of Halidon Hill, and the spirited and success- 
 ful defence of Dunbar by its countess. In this defence it is 
 narrated how, when a boulder from one of Montague's catapults 
 would strike the ramparts, 
 
 Wyth a towalle a damyselle 
 Arayid jolyly and welle 
 Wipyt the walle, that thai mycht se. 
 To gere thaim mare anoyid be. 
 
 In particular, an illustration of the chivalry of that day is 
 afforded by a description of a great jousting at Berwick in 1338.] 
 
 Off Lancastyr Schyr Henry, 
 That callyd than wes Erie of Derby, 
 Than wyth the kyng wes rycht prewe. 
 On Scotlandis marchis trawelyd he 
 And had gret yharnyng to wyn prys'. 
 He wes ay worthy, wycht, and wys, 
 And mast renownyd off bownte. 
 Off gentrys', and off honest^, 
 That in-till Ingland lywand was. 
 He has herd spek how the Dowglas 
 Throw wyt and wyrschipe apertly^ 
 Dyd mony dowchty jwperty. 
 He send and askyd thre cours off were 
 At hym, and he grawntyt it there. 
 Thai come samyn^ at a certane plas. 
 Alysawndyre the Ramsay thare was 
 Serwand Dowglas at that justyng, 
 For he expart wes in-tyll swilk thyng°. 
 The nobill Erie off Derby 
 Come wyth a joly cumpany. 
 
 1 yearning to 
 earn praise. 
 
 3 gentlehood. 
 
 3 boldly. 
 
 4 many doughty 
 
 enterprises. 
 
 S together. 
 
 6 such things. 
 
170 
 
 WYNTOUN. 
 
 I second, lit, the 
 other. 
 
 2 severely. 
 
 3 suffer. 
 
 4 ere. 
 
 5 began. 
 
 6 With this 
 (provision). 
 
 Sone fra thai hade thair salus made, 
 Thai tuk thare rynkis, and samyn rade. 
 And at the tothir' cours off were 
 The Dowglas hit and brak his spere, 
 And a sclys off the schafft that brak 
 In-till his hand a wounde can mak. 
 Tharefore the gud Erie off Derby, 
 That saw hym hurt sa fellownly^, 
 Wald thole' hym than to just no mare. 
 Bot, or* he tuk his leve to fare, 
 He spak till Alysawndyr Ramsay, 
 And specyally kan^ hym pray 
 For to purchas a cumpany, 
 That at the lest thai war twenty, 
 Off gentill-men wyth scheld and spere. 
 To just ilk man thre cowrs off were ; 
 And gyve he na had all gentillmen. 
 He bad tak knawyn yhwmen then. 
 To cum to Berwyk a set day. 
 Thare-till grawntyd the Ramsay, 
 And sayd that he suld welle purchas 
 Cumpany, and cum to that plas, 
 Wytht thi"^ [that] thai all assuryd ware, 
 Quhat-evyr than fell at that justyng thare. 
 
 7 quarters. 
 
 The Erie tharne assuryd willfully, 
 Ande the Ramsay in well gret hy 
 Gat hym falowys, and at the day 
 To Berwyk come, bathe he and thai. 
 The Erie ressaywyd thame curtasly, 
 And gert delywere thame herbry'. 
 
ORYGYNALE CRONYKIL. 
 
 171 
 
 Apon the morne, qwhen that thai ware 
 Makand thame bowne', hym-selff come thare, 
 And fand all oppyn the entre ; 
 And noucht-for-thi' thare knokide he 
 Wyth-owte the dure all prewally, 
 Quhill Ramsay til hym [coym] in hy 
 [And] gert hym entre sone. Than he 
 Sayd, " God mot at yhoure laykyng be !■''" 
 Syne said he, " Lordis, on qwhat manere 
 Will yhe ryn at this justyng here?" 
 " Wyth plate scheldis,'' sayd Ramsay, 
 " As it afferis'' to this play." 
 " A ! syrrys, be oure Lord," sayd he, 
 " So suld no man here prysyt be=, 
 For none till othir mycht do iwill. 
 Bot and it likand* ware yhow till 
 As men hostayis for to ryn' 
 So mycht men prys off wyrschype wyne." 
 Quod Alysawndyre the Ramsay, 
 " It sail lik til ws all, perfay. 
 That ilk man ryn his falow till 
 In kyrtill allane, gyve that yhe will." 
 The Erie sayd than debonarly, 
 " Nay, that is all to hard trewly." 
 Quod Willame off the Towris than, 
 " Schyre, gyve yhe na will, lat ilke man 
 Ryn all bare wysage, and yhe 
 Qwha [eschewis] fyrst rycht swne sail se." 
 The Erie sayde mekilly, " Schyris, nay, 
 Yhit that is all to hard, perfay^; 
 Bot as I said yhowe will ye do. 
 
 ! ready. 
 
 2 notwithstand- 
 ing. 
 
 3 God help your 
 desire. 
 
 4 IS proper. 
 
 5 be praised. 
 
 6 agreeable. 
 
 7 to run in fashion 
 
 of war. 
 
 '• i' faith. 
 
172 
 
 WYNTOVN. 
 
 Than suld sum prys folow ws to." 
 Thaire-to thai gave all thare consent, 
 And he furth till his falowys went. 
 
 ■ bold. 
 
 = Till the shaft 
 stayed sticking 
 there. 
 
 3 quickly. 
 
 i surely. 
 
 5 in this fashion. 
 
 6 without delay. 
 
 7 wrench. 
 
 The justyng lestyd dayis thre, 
 Qwhare men apert' cowrsis niycht se. 
 Twa Inglis knychtis thare ware slayne ; 
 Off Scottis men there deyde nane; 
 Bot turnand hamwart be the way 
 Off ane hurt endyt Jhone the Hay; 
 And Willame the Ramsay wes there 
 Borne throw the hewyd wyth a spere, 
 And throw the helme wyth strynth off hand, 
 Qwhill the trwnsowne [bad] thare stekand°. 
 Thai browcht a preste till hym belywe^ 
 And in his helme he can hym schrywe. 
 Than sayd the gud Erie of Derby, 
 " Lo ! hey re a fay re sycht sykkyrlyl 
 A fayrere sycht how ma man se 
 Than knycht or sqwyere, quhethir-evyr he be, 
 In-till his helme hym thus-gat^ schrywe? 
 Qwhen I sail pas owt off this lyve 
 I wald God off his grace wald send 
 To me on swylk manere till end." 
 Qwhen he had schrywyn hym, as I say, 
 Alysawndyr than the Ramsay 
 Gert lay hym down forowtyn lete*, 
 And on his helme his fute he sate. 
 And wyth gret strynth owt can aras' 
 The trownsown that thare stekand was. 
 He rase allane fra it wes owte, 
 
ORYGYNALE CRONYKIL. 
 
 173 
 
 And wyth a gud will and a stowte 
 He sayd that he wald [ayl] na-thyng. 
 Tharoff the Erie had wonderyng, 
 And gretly hym commendit then, 
 And sayd, " Lw ! stowt hartis off men." 
 
 Thus hapnyd till hym off this lame'. 
 And a gud knycht, Patrik the Grame, 
 That had trawellyd beyhond the se 
 Till eyk his prys^ throw gret bownt^, 
 He herd spek off this justyng gretly, 
 And sped hym thiddyr in all hy. 
 He come thiddyr on the tothir day 3; 
 Than Richard Talbot can hym pray 
 To serwe hym off thre cours off were, 
 And he thaim grawntyt but dawngere. 
 Sone efftyr samyn can thai ryne'*. 
 The Talbot on had platis twyne', 
 And throw thame bath his spere he bare, 
 And in the brest ane inch or mare. 
 Had he jwstyd as conand was'' 
 He had bene dede in-to that plas. 
 Thare coursis haly can thai ma, 
 Bot nane had mare harme off thai twa. 
 
 I on this ground. 
 
 = To add to his 
 praise. 
 
 3 second day. 
 
 4 began to run 
 together. 
 
 6 as was agreed. 
 
 The Talbot syne can hym requere 
 To be wyth hym at the supere. 
 He assentyt, and qwhen thai were 
 Syttand best at the supere 
 Thar salute thaim a cumly knycht, 
 
174 
 
 WYNTOUN. 
 
 I as was meet, 
 said smoothly. 
 
 3 no mocking. 
 
 4 died of the blow 
 very soon. 
 
 That semyt stowt, bath bald and wycht, 
 
 And amang thare gud wordis there 
 
 At Schyr Patryk three courss off were 
 
 He askyd in-to gud cumpany; 
 
 And he, as burdand, sayd smethely' 
 
 "Man, will thow have off me justyng? 
 
 Rys up to-morn in the mornyng, 
 
 And here thi mes° welle, and schrywe the; 
 
 And thow sail sone delyveryt be." 
 
 He made tharoff na gabby ng 3, 
 
 For on the morn at the justyng 
 
 He bare hym throw the body qwhit 
 
 And he deyt off the dynt welle tyte''. 
 
 5 their common 
 
 consent. 
 
 6 appraise. 
 
 This was upon the thryde day, 
 And quhen justyt ilkane had thai 
 The haraldis sayd than on this wys, 
 That gud ware to gyff the prys. 
 On athyre halff to mak thaim mede, 
 That bare thame best, for thare gud dede. 
 The lordis gawe assent thare-till, 
 And ordanyt wyth thaire allaris will^ 
 That Inglis suld the Scottis prys^ 
 And thai thaim on the samyn wys. 
 
 7 entire. 
 
 8 without hurt. 
 
 9 Consulted to- 
 
 gether then. 
 
 The Inglis men the prys gaffe than 
 Till ane that thre halle' courssis ran 
 And forowtyn hytl Bot Scottis men 
 Awysit thaim alsamyn then'. 
 And till the knycht the prys gawe thai 
 That smate Wilyame the Ramsay 
 
ORYGYNALE CRONYKIL. 
 
 175 
 
 Throw-owte the hede; and a skyll" 
 Thai schawyt till enfors thare-till", 
 And sayd it wes justyng off were, 
 And [he] that mast engrewyt' there 
 Suld have the gretast prys, wyth thi* 
 That he engrewyt honestly. 
 The haraldis than can say haly 
 The dome wes suthfast and worthy^; 
 Tharfor sayd ane, "Me-thynk, perfay, 
 That he that a knycht yhistyrday 
 Slwe, and ane othir to-day, the prys 
 Suld have, Patrik the Grame that is. 
 For hade the Talbot as taylyd was* 
 Justyd, he had swelt' in-to that plas. 
 As to this prys-gywyng, for-thi, 
 I hald hym dede all wtraly." 
 On this wys spak the haraldis thare, 
 Bot, for the prys wes gywyn are^. 
 Thai wald repelle it be na way. 
 
 1 reason. 
 
 2 showed to 
 
 clinch (their 
 decision). 
 
 3 did most vex- 
 
 ing. 
 
 4 with this (con- 
 
 dition). 
 
 S true and 
 gallant. 
 
 6 as was cove- 
 nanted. 
 1 died. 
 
 8 before. 
 
 And than the gud Erie can say, 
 " I trow it has bene seldyn sene 
 That off were justyng thus has bene 
 Contenyt' thre day is, and the prys 
 Gywyn as at this jwstyng is." 
 He festaid the jwstarys that day. 
 That on the morne syne held thaire way. 
 
 9 Conducted. 
 
 [By the efforts of Douglas, Ramsay, and the Warden, Robert 
 Stewart, the Enghsh ascendency is gradually overcome, and 
 David II. is brought home from France, whither he had been 
 sent. Presently, however, at the request of the French king, he 
 invades England, and with several of his nobles is taken prisoner 
 
176 WYNTOUN. 
 
 at the battle of Durham. In 1349 the "first pestilence" 
 destroys a third of the population of Scotland. On the death of 
 David II. the crown passes to the Stewarts in the person of 
 Robert II. The growth of friendly relations with France is 
 narrated, the bond of union being the common hostility to 
 England. In a long narrative of Border warfare the most 
 conspicuous event is the defeat and capture of Percy at Otter- 
 bourne. Several tournaments in France and England are 
 described, as well as the fight between Clan Chattan and Clan 
 Quhele ("the thretty for thretty") in barriers before the king at 
 Perth. Then follow the dethronement of Richard of England 
 by Henry IV., and the cruel death at Falkland of the son of 
 Robert III., David, Duke of Rothesay, 
 
 Cunnand in-to litterature 
 A seymly persona in stature. 
 
 At Homildon in 1402, Murdoch Stewart and the Earl of 
 Douglas are defeated by Percy with great loss. Douglas, taken 
 prisoner, is made to join Percy in the battle against Henry IV. 
 at Shrewsbury. The circumstances are detailed of the seizure 
 at sea by the English of Robert's remaining son. Prince James. 
 Robert III. dies at Dundonald, and during the ensuing regency 
 of the Duke of Albany the chronicle ends with the expedition 
 into Flanders of Scottish knights errant under the Earl of Mar.] 
 
HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 Although a new fashion had been set for the more 
 pohte poetry of Scotland by the example of King 
 James I. in the early part of the fifteenth century, 
 much of the popular verse of the country continued 
 to flow in the older channels. Of this there exist 
 several specimens. Besides popular ballads like The 
 Battle of Harlaw,^ which was probably composed 
 soon after the event which it celebrates, in 141 1, there 
 remain such compositions as The Howlat, or The 
 Danger of Pride," a long moral fable in the obscure 
 style of Gawen and Gologras, supposed to have been 
 written about 1450 by Sir Richard Holland, a partizan 
 of the house of Douglas; and a curious rugged 
 performance in various measures, called Cockelbie^s 
 Sow,^ conveying in a vein of quaint rustic humour a 
 recommendation of such virtues as almsgiving and 
 economy. 
 
 But by far the best and most important of all these 
 compositions is the great popular epic of the people's 
 
 ' Printed in Ramsay's "Evergreen." 
 = Pinkerton's " Ancient Scottish Poems.'' 
 3 Laing's " Select Remains of the Ancient Popular Poetry of 
 Scotland." 
 
i8o HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 hero, The Actis andDeidis of the Bluster e and Vailyeand 
 
 Campioun, Schir William Wallace, Knicht of Ellerslie. 
 
 Here, in flowing minstrel verse, not without fire and 
 
 a certain heroic ring, is preserved an example, perhaps 
 
 the last, of the bardic narratives which, chanted in 
 
 hall and hostelrie, stirred the blood and regaled the 
 
 time in Scotland in the long rush-lit evenings of the 
 
 fifteenth century. And here, coloured somewhat 
 
 perhaps by the two hundred years of interval between 
 
 subject and singer, but not the less interesting on that 
 
 account, remains the great store of fact and legend 
 
 concerning the knight who, short as was his career 
 
 and cruel as was his fate, struck the blow which 
 
 wakened Scotland to life. 
 
 Of the author of the poem, Henry the Minstrel, or 
 
 " Blind Harry," as from his infirmity he used to be 
 
 popularly called, very little has been recorded. John 
 
 Mair, who was born about 1454, mentions him in his 
 
 history. "In the time of my infancy," he says, 
 
 " Henry, a man blind from his birth, composed the 
 
 whole Book of William Wallace, and committed to 
 
 writing in vernacular poetry, in which he was skilled, 
 
 the things which were commonly related. I, however, 
 
 give only partial credit to such writings. By the 
 
 recitation of these stories in the presence of men of 
 
 foremost rank he procured food and clothing, of which 
 
 he was worthy.'' Of himself the poet says, "It is weill 
 
 knawin I am a bural (rustic) man;" and more than 
 
 once he deprecates criticism on account of his 
 
 situation. Near the end of the last book he says : 
 
 All worthi men at redys this rurall dyt 
 Blaym nocht the buk, set I be wnpetfyt. 
 
HENRY THE MINSTREL. i8i 
 
 I suld hawe thank sen I nocht trawaill spard ; 
 For my laubour na man hecht me reward ; 
 Na charge I had off king nor othir lord ; 
 Gret harm I thocht his gud deid suld be smord. 
 I haiff said her ner as the process gais, 
 And fenyeid nocht for frendschip nor for fais. 
 Costis herfor was no man bond to me ; 
 In this sentence I had na will to be. 
 
 Further, in the Treasury accounts of James IV. there 
 appear several entries of gratuities to Henry. The 
 last of these entries occurs in January, 1492, and it is 
 supposed, therefore, that he died before the end of 
 the century. 
 
 Nothing more is known of the poet's life. Of his 
 character it is only possible to read something between 
 the lines of his work. There a rough, uncom- 
 promising patriot is seen, honestly anxious to exalt the 
 national hero, and bitter as a man of limited 
 knowledge, circumscribed by his blindness and the 
 spirit of his time, was likely to be against his country's 
 enemies. 
 
 As with the King's Quatr, a single manuscript has 
 transmitted the Minstrel's work to modern times. 
 It is bound up with the MS. of Barbour's Bruce, 
 written by the same scribe, John Ramsay, in 1488, 
 and preserved in the Advocates' Library. Set down 
 during the poet's lifetime, this copy is likely to be 
 fairly correct, though there are some ten or twelve 
 hnes throughout the work which are hardly intel- 
 ligible. The Minstrel's inability to put his own 
 composition on paper would sufficiently account for 
 more than these. Of printed editions the earliest 
 
l83 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 known is that of 1570 by "Robert Lekprevik at the 
 Expensis of Henrie Charteris," of which only one 
 copy is known to exist (in the British Museum). 
 There have been many later editions, but the best 
 are one of Perth in 1790, Dr. Jamieson's in 1820, 
 and one for the Scottish Text Society by Mr. James 
 Moir in 1885. 
 
 The poem is divided into eleven books, and is 
 written in the ten-syllable line rhyming in couplets, 
 which had been wrought to great perfection by 
 Chaucer, and has since been accorded the title of 
 heroic verse. 
 
 Beyond an allusion or two to " Ector of Troy" and 
 the like, which were probably the common stock of 
 minstrels of his time, the poet does not display an 
 acquaintance with the ancient classics. On the other 
 hand he seems to have studied not only the style, but 
 the sentiment and even the structure of the romances 
 of chivalry which still at that period formed a large 
 part of minstrel entertainment. Many of the expres- 
 sions which he uses appear to be borrowed directly 
 from these models. Phrases like " Wapynnys stiff of 
 steill," and " In armys sone he coucht that queyn 
 with croun," strike as a direct echo from poems like 
 Sir Tristrem. The ellipses, too, which are his 
 constant habit, find a parallel in such work as the 
 Rhymer's. It need not be marvelled at, therefore, if 
 the influence of these romance models made itself 
 further felt, and if the Minstrel sought to run the half- 
 legendary incidents of his hero's life themselves into 
 the conventional mould. The historical credit due 
 
HENRY THE MINSTREL. 183 
 
 to Henry's Wallace has been debated by nearly every 
 editor who has undertaken the reproduction of the 
 poem, but by none does this romance influence 
 appear to have been taken into sufficient consideration. 
 Henry declares in his work that he got his materials 
 from a Latin history of the hero written by John Blair, 
 Wallace's own schoolfellow and chaplain; and from 
 frequent references throughout the poem the existence 
 of such a work seems beyond doubt. In the tenth 
 book, after recording a fight with the pirate, John of 
 Lynn, in which Blair acted a valiant part, the Minstrel 
 adds : 
 
 Bot maister Blayr spak nothing off himsell 
 In deid off armes quhat awentur he fell ; 
 Schir Thomas Gray, was than preyst to Wallace, 
 Put in the buk how than hapnyt this cace. 
 
 The character of Blair's history itself cannot now be 
 judged. Sir Robert Sibbald, indeed, published a 
 work, Relationes Arnaldi Blair; but this has been 
 shown to be a jnere series of extracts from the 
 Scotichronicon. In any case, however, it is reasonable 
 to believe that with the materials of Blair's history 
 Henry inwove the legends of Wallace current in his 
 own time. The knight of EUerslie, to be a leader at 
 all in those days, must have been a man of immense 
 physical strength ; but the superhuman feats occasion- 
 ally attributed to him by the poet are beyond 
 reasonable belief, and can only be accounted for by 
 the understanding that they were owed to popular 
 tradition, which in two hundred years had had time 
 to magnify the hero's deeds. It is not probable and 
 
1 84 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 hardly possible that some of these stories — episodes 
 in which whole troops are mowed down by the single 
 arm of Wallace — could be derived as they stand from 
 the sober contemporary record of an eye-witness like 
 the chaplain. Henry on his last page confesses re- 
 garding at least one episode : 
 
 Thir twa gert me say that ane othir wyss ; 
 Till Maister Blayr we did sumpart off dispyss. 
 
 The fact appears to be that in the Minstrel's time 
 
 Wallace had already become a half-mythical figure 
 
 round whose deeds the national imagination had 
 
 gathered a literature of legend. Wyntoun said of 
 
 him half a century before the Minstrel sang : 
 
 Off his gud dedis and manhad 
 Gret gestis I hard say ar made, 
 Bot sa mony, I trow noucht, 
 As he in-till hys dayis wroucht. 
 Quha all hys dedis of prys wald dyte 
 Hym worthyt a gret buk to wryte. 
 
 It may therefore be supposed that Henry had suffi- 
 cient latitude for additional episodes in the popular 
 legends and " gret gestis" extant regarding the hero. 
 Such a character was in much the same position to his 
 chronicler as King Arthur and Charlemagne had been 
 to the minstrels of the twelfth and thirteenth cen- 
 turies, and was likely to find something of the same 
 treatment. Thus it is found that Henry's poem, 
 besides much which was probable enough, and much 
 which is proved to be historical by contemporary 
 records, contains certain elements which could have 
 no foundation in fact, but which were deemed indis- 
 pensable to a hero of romance. 
 
HENRY THE MINSTREL. 185 
 
 Of this sort is the episode ofWallace's interview with 
 the English queen. Love as well as war was a neces- 
 sary element of a minstrel's tale. It was not enough 
 that the forces of the enemy should be defeated 
 at Stirling Bridge and the great national purpose of 
 the Liberator accomplished; it was necessary that 
 that enemy should be personally humbled, and that 
 even his wife's allegiance should become part of the 
 spoils of the victor. Henry accordingly marches his 
 hero south to the gates of London, where King 
 Edward, driven to his last stronghold, and reduced to 
 abject despair, is only saved at last by the intercession 
 of his queen in the conqueror's camp. All this is 
 romantic enough, and, like many other episodes 
 throughout the poem, affords a sufficiently dramatic 
 situation. But it is not to be read as history. Edward 
 was at that particular time engaged in the French wars 
 in Flanders, and though the Scottish forces, after 
 clearing their enemies out of the northern kingdom, 
 proceeded to lay utterly waste the provinces of 
 Northumberland and Cumberland, it is not known 
 that they passed further south. Other episodes of the 
 poem as well, such as the opening battle of Biggar in 
 which the hero is made to defeat Edward in person, 
 are also obviously apocryphal ; and the conclusion to 
 which these compel the reader is that the composition 
 as a whole must be regarded simply as a national 
 romance founded upon popular tradition. 
 
 At the same time it may be as well to remember 
 that within the last few decades several of Henry's 
 episodes, such as the expedition of Wallace to France, 
 
1 86 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 formerly supposed to be fictitious, have been confirmed 
 by discovery of authentic evidence. 
 
 For the actually ascertained facts of the hero's life 
 the reader may be referred to the volume of " Docu- 
 ments Illustrative of Sir William Wallace, his Life and 
 Times," edited for the Maitland Club by Mr. Robert 
 Roger ; and also to the admirable article on Wallace 
 in the "Encyclopaedia Britannica." From these it will 
 be seen that though the Scottish Warden did not carry 
 out all the enterprises attributed to him by Henry the 
 Minstrel, he was by no means the mere robber and 
 brigand which he was painted by Hemingford and the 
 other English chroniclers of his time. It is significant 
 of his enduring greatness that everywhere throughout 
 Scotland to the present day there are places honoured 
 for his memory. His name is, as Wordsworth says. 
 
 To be found, like a wild flower, 
 All over his dear Country. 
 
 In one respect at least the Minstrel's poem remains 
 historically valuable. It affords an illustration of the 
 state of national feeling in Henry's own time. 
 
 If from no more than a poetical point of view, 
 however, the composition must continue to be re- 
 garded as a monumental work. There cannot 
 but be something intrinsically worth study in a 
 poem which, notwithstanding the disadvantage of 
 its author's blindness from his birth, has remained 
 uninterruptedly popular for centuries. Debarred 
 by his infirmity from a field in which the Scottish 
 poets especially excelled — the description of colour 
 and natural scenery — the Minstrel displays a rude 
 
HENRY THE MINSTREL. 187 
 
 fire and energy and a power of realizing the 
 telling points of action and situation beyond any 
 of his predecessors. In a word, he possessed to 
 a greater degree the modern spirit of romantic art. 
 His hero, it is true, appears to lack the high-bred 
 chivalry and polity of the Bruce as pourtrayed by 
 Barbour, and displays at times an implacable ferocity 
 which it is to be hoped did not belong to the actual 
 character of the Liberator; while the Englishmen of 
 the poem too commonly justify the description of 
 Dr. Merry Ross — "mere poltroons or braggarts or 
 felons.'' The temper of the Minstrel's work alto- 
 gether is on a level with the temper of the common 
 people of his time, from whom he sprang. But not 
 the less is the Wallace equal to its great poetic pur- 
 pose, bodying forth with broad master-strokes the 
 tyranny which had burned its way to the passionate 
 heart of the nation, and picturing the uprising of 
 that national heart in the person of its early hero, 
 uncertain in action at first, and with human desires 
 and failings, till, stung by a crowning wrong, he grasps 
 the weapons to his hands, hurls forth his defiance, 
 and begins the struggle for liberty or death. 
 
 It is not impossible to understand the effect of 
 these verses chanted to a warlike audience by the 
 blind old Scottish Homer of the 'fifteenth century, 
 recalling with vivid force, as they must have done, the 
 heroic movement of the past, and awakening for a 
 time again perhaps the embers of an ancient patriotism 
 amid the miserable intestine bickerings of the reign of 
 James the Third. The effect of the poem on a 
 
i88 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 Scottish mind, even in a later day, may be judged 
 from the words of Robert Burns, who only knew the 
 Minstrel's work through the paraphrase into modern 
 Scottish by William Hamilton of Gilbertfield. " The 
 story of Wallace," he says in his letter to Dr. Moore, 
 " poured a tide of Scottish prejudice into my veins 
 which will boil along there till the flood-gates of life 
 shut in eternal rest." 
 
SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 
 
 [The poem opens with a complaint that the Scots forget their 
 noble ancestors, and do honour only to their enemies. The 
 descent of Wallace is traced and Edward's oppression briefly 
 recounted. As a youth visiting Dundee, Wallace is insulted by 
 the son of Selby the governor, and slays him in the street. The 
 house in which he takes refuge is searched, but, dressed as a 
 maid at the spinning-wheel, the hero is overlooked. Flying 
 home to EUerslie he finds his father and elder brother slain ; and 
 his mother, fearful for the safety of her remaining son, sends 
 him to his uncle. Sir Richard Wallace of Ricardton. But 
 presently, fishing one day in Irvine Water, he is attacked by 
 some English men-at-arms, who attempt to carry off his fish, 
 and he slays three of them. Visiting Ayr, and venturing to 
 defend his uncle's servant, he is overpowered and cast into 
 prison, but soon, taken for dead, is thrown over the castle wall. 
 His nurse begs his body and carries him to her house, where he 
 is revived with milk from her daughter's breast. Thomas the 
 Rhymer, staying at hand with the minister, on hearing this news, 
 prophesies the great future of Wallace. Gathering some friends, 
 the hero waylays Lord Percy's succours at Loudon Hill, routs 
 them, and slays their leader Fenwick, who had been the elder 
 Wallace's murderer. Known presently as a champion of the 
 Scottish cause, Wallace finds himself at the head of a considerable 
 band of followers, and makes his way northwards, taking 
 Gargunnock Peel and the castle of Kincleven. At Perth, in an 
 amorous adventure, he narrowly escapes capture.] 
 
 A Love Adventure. 
 HAN Wallace said he wald go to the toun, 
 Arayit him weill in-till a preistlik goun; 
 In Sanct Jhonstoun* disgysyt can he fair, 
 Till this woman the quhilk I spak of ayr'. ' whom i spake 
 
 of formerly. 
 
 * The ancient name of Perth. 
 
I go 
 
 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 1 afraid. 
 
 2 made appoint- 
 ment with. 
 
 4 been revenged, 
 
 5 beautiful. 
 
 6 Many times. 
 
 7 Icnow. 
 
 8 without. 
 
 9 made ready. 
 
 10 gates. 
 
 " Icnowing. 
 
 12 without more 
 
 delay. 
 
 13 readily. 
 
 Off his presence scho rycht reiosit was ; 
 
 And sor adred' how he away suld pass. 
 
 He soiornyt thar fra nowne was of the day 
 
 Quhill ner the nycht, or that he went away. 
 
 He trystyt° hyr quhen he wald cum agayne, 
 
 On the thrid day ; than was scho wondyr fayne. 
 
 Yhett he was seyn with enemyss as he yeid^; 
 
 To Schyr Garraid thai tald oif all his deid, 
 
 And to Butler, that wald haiff wrokyn beyne*. 
 
 Than thai gart tak that woman brycht and scheyne^, 
 
 Accusyt hir sar of resset in that cas. 
 
 Feyll syis* scho suour that scho knew nocht Wallas. 
 
 Than Butler said, " We wait' weyle it was he ; 
 
 And bot thou tell, in bayle fyre sail thou de. 
 
 Giff thou will help to bryng yon rebell doune 
 
 We sail the mak a lady off renoun." 
 
 Thai gaiff till hyr baith gold and siluer brycht; 
 
 And said scho suld be weddyt with ane knycht 
 
 Quham scho desirit, that was but^ mariage. 
 
 Thus tempt thai hir, throu consaill and gret wage, 
 
 That scho thaim tald quhat tyme he wald be thar. 
 
 Than war thai glad; for thai desirit no mar 
 
 Off all Scotland, bot Wallace at thair will. 
 
 Thus ordaynyt thai this poyntment to fuUfill. 
 
 Feyle men off armes thai graithit' hastelye 
 
 To kepe the yettis", wicht Wallas till aspye. 
 
 At the set trist he entrit in the toune, 
 
 Wittand" no-thing of all this falss tresoune. 
 
 Till hir chawmer he went but mair abaid'° 
 
 Scho welcummyt him, and full gret plesance maid. 
 
 Quhat at thai wrocht I can nocht graithly'^ say; 
 
S/J! WILLIAM WALLACE. 
 
 191 
 
 Rycht wnperfyt I am of Venus play : 
 
 Bot hastelye he graithit him to gang. 
 
 Than scho him tuk, and speryt gifif he thocht lang"; 
 
 Scho askit him that nycht with hir to bid. 
 
 Sone he said, " Nay, for chance that may betide ; 
 
 My men ar left all at mysrewill for me. 
 
 I may nocht sleipe this nycht quhill I thaim se." 
 
 Than wepyt scho, and said full oft, " AUace 
 
 That I was maide, wa worthe the coursit cas°! 
 
 Now haifiF I lost the best man leiffand is. 
 
 O feble mynd, to do so fouU a myss^! 
 
 waryit witt, wykkyt and wariance*. 
 
 That me has brocht in-to this myschefulP chance ! 
 AUace," scho said, " in warld that I was wrocht, 
 Gifif all this payne on my-self mycht be brocht ! 
 
 1 haifif seruit to be brynt in a gleid^" 
 
 Quhen Wallace saw scho ner of witt couth weid'. 
 In his armes he caucht hir sobrely, 
 And said, " Der hart, quha has mysdoyne ocht, I?" 
 " Nay, I," quoth scho, " has falslye wrocht this trayn. 
 I haiff you said; rycht now yhe will be slayn." 
 Scho tauld [to] him hir tresoun till ane end. 
 As I haiff said; quhat nedis mair legend? 
 At hir he speryt gifif scho forthocht it sar". 
 "Wa, ya," scho said, "and sail do euirmar. 
 My waryed werd' in warld I mon fuUfill; 
 To mend this myss I wald byrne on a hill." 
 He comfort hir, and baide hir haifif no dreide, 
 " I will," he said, " haiff sumpart ofif thi weid." 
 Hir gowne he tuk on hym, and courches als". 
 "Will God, I sail eschape this tresoune fals. 
 
 1 asked if he felt 
 weary. 
 
 z woe befall the 
 accursed 
 chance. 
 
 3 fault. 
 
 4 O cursed craft 
 
 and unjust 
 adjuring. 
 
 5 unhappy. 
 
 6 a bright fire. 
 
 7 with thought 
 
 would fever. 
 
 8 repented it sore. 
 
 9 accursed fate. 
 
 10 kerchief also. 
 
192 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 I the forgyff." With-outyn wordis mair 
 He kissyt hyr, syne tuk his leiff to fayr. 
 Hys burly brand that helpyt him ofift in neid, 
 Rycht priwalye he hid it wndyr that weid. 
 
 ■ nearest. To the south yett the gaynest' way he drew; 
 
 Quhar that he fand off armyt men enew. 
 To thaim he tald, dissemblyt [in] contenance; 
 " To the chawmer, quhar he was vpon chance, 
 Speid fast," he said, "Wallace is lokit in." 
 Fra him thai socht with-outyn noyis or dyn 
 To that sammyn houss ; about thai can thaim cast. 
 Out at the yett [than] Wallas gat full fast, 
 Rycht glaid in hart; quhen that he was with-out 
 
 = swift. Rycht fast he yeide, a stour^ pais and a stout. 
 
 Twa him beheld, and said, " We will go se ; 
 A stalwart queyne, forsuth, yon semyss to be." 
 Him thai folowit throwe the South Ynche thai twa. 
 Quhen Wallace saw with thaim thar come na ma 
 Agayne he turnede, and has the formast slayn. 
 The tothir fled; than 'Wallas, with gret mayn, 
 Vpon the hed with his suerd has him tayne; 
 Left thaim bathe dede, syne to the strenth is gayne. 
 His men he gat, rycht glaid quhen thai him saw; 
 
 3 caused. Till thair defens in haist he gart^ thaim draw ; 
 
 Deuoydyde him sone of the womannys weid : 
 
 4 extremedanger. Thus chapyt he out of that felloun dreid"*. 
 
S/J? WILLIAM WALLACE. 
 
 193 
 
 An Apparition in Gask Hall. 
 
 [As the little Scottish company, pursued by the English 
 garrison of Perth with a bloodhound, are making for the Forest 
 of Gask, Fawdoun, a suspected traitor, declares he can go no 
 further. Wallace, to prevent treachery, strikes oif his head. 
 The hound stops at the blood, and while the stars are shining the 
 fugitives reach their retreat. ] 
 
 As Wallace thus in the thik forrest socht, 
 Threttene war left with him, no ma had he. 
 In the Gask hall thair lugyng half thai tayne; 
 Fyr gat thai sone, bot meyt than had thai nane. 
 Twa scheipe thai tuk besid thaim of a fauld, 
 Ordanyt to soupe in-to that sembly hauld. 
 Graithit in haist sum fude for thaim to dycht', 
 So hard thai blaw rude hornys wpon hycht°. 
 Twa sende he furth to luk quhat it mycht be. 
 Thai baid rycht lang, and no tithingis herd he, 
 Bot boustous^ noyis so brymly'' blowand fast. 
 So othir twa in-to the woode furth past. 
 Nane come agayne, bot boustously can blaw. 
 In-to gret ire he send thaim furth on raw=. 
 Quhen he allayne Wallace was lewyt thar 
 The awfull blast aboundyt mekill mayr°. 
 Than trowit he weill thai had his lugyng seyne; 
 His suerd he drew of nobill mettall keyne, 
 Syn furth he went quhar at he hard the home. 
 With-out the dur Fawdoun was him beforn, 
 As till his sycht, his awne hed in his hand. 
 A croys he maid quhen he saw him so stand. 
 At Wallace in the hed he swaket' thar; 
 And he in haist sone hynt* [it] by the hair, 
 
 
 1 prepare. 
 
 2 on high. 
 
 3 tremendous. 
 
 4 fiercely. 
 
 5 in rank. 
 
 fi much more. 
 
 7 hurled. 
 
 8 laid hold of. 
 
194 
 
 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 1 that such. 
 
 2 advantage. 
 
 3 rent in twain. 
 
 4 dwelling. 
 
 5 glanced. 
 
 6 lost. 
 
 7 strong. 
 8;true. 
 
 9 Although. 
 
 Syne out agayne at him he couth it cast. 
 In-till his hart he was gretlye agast. 
 Rycht Weill he trowit that was no spreit of man ; 
 It was sum dewill at sic' malice began. 
 He wyst no wailP thar langar for to bide; 
 Vp throuch the hall thus wicht Wallace can glid, 
 Till a closs stair; the burdis raiif in twyne^, 
 Fyftene fute large he lap out of that in''. 
 Wp the wattir sodeynlye he couth fair. 
 Agayne he blent = quhat perance he saw thair. 
 Him thocht he saw Faudoun, that hugly syr; 
 That haill hall he had set in a fyr; 
 A gret raftre he had in-till his hand. 
 Wallace as than no langar walde he stand. 
 Off his gud men full gret meruaill had he, 
 How thai war tynt* throuch his feyle' fantasd. 
 Traistis rycht weill all this was suth^ in deide, 
 Supposs' that it no poynt be of the creide. 
 
 lo Many. 
 " at point of 
 death. 
 
 12 stirred. 
 
 [He escapes through his enemies with great difficulty, fighting 
 nearly all the way, and, swimming the Forth at Cambuskenneth, 
 finds refiige in the Torwood. He sends back a woman to survey 
 the scene of the previous night, and he is joined by his uncle.] 
 
 In the Torwode thai lugyt all that nycht, 
 Quhill the woman that Wallace north had send 
 Retornd agayne, and tald him till ane end 
 Quhat Inglissmen in the way scho fand dede. 
 Fey 11" was fallyn fey" in mony syndry stede; 
 The hors scho saw that Wallace had berefft. 
 And the Gask hall standand as it was left, 
 With-out harme, nocht sterd" off it a stane; 
 Bot off his men gud tithingis scho gat nane. 
 
S/J? WILLIAM WALLACE. 195 
 
 [Visiting Lanark, Wallace becomes enamoured of a young 
 lady, the orphan daughter of Hew Braidfute of Lamington, but 
 defers marriage till Scotland shall be free. Shortly afterwards, 
 while the hero and his men are attending mass at Lochmaben, the 
 English cut the tails from their horses. In the fight that ensues 
 the English are defeated, and, Wallace being joined by Sir John the 
 Graham, Lochmaben and Crawford castles are taken. A little 
 later, seized with resistless love-longing, Wallace weds Marion 
 Braidfute, and they live together until a daughter is born. But 
 in 1297, for aiding her husband's escape from a street brawl in 
 Lanark, the lady is put to death. At the news, Wallace is 
 overwhelmed with grief, but presently vows implacable vengeance. 
 He storms Lanark at midnight ; puts his enemies to the sword, 
 and shortly finds himself at the head of an army. So serious 
 appears the rising that King Edward himself with a great force 
 comes to Scotland. He is defeated, however, in two great 
 battles at Biggar, and in consequence at " Forest Kyrk" Wallace 
 is chosen Warden of the country. Edward seeks peace, and a 
 truce of a year is agreed on. In two months this truce is broken 
 by English treachery at the terrible "Barns of Ayr," where 
 eighteen score Scottish gentlemen, invited to a justice ayre, and 
 admitted two by two, are hanged to the rafters. Wallace, who 
 meanwhile has seen a vision of his future in a dream in Monkton 
 Kirk, is only saved by a chance delay and the warning of a woman. 
 He avenges the treachery by burning five thousand English in their 
 inns at Ayr on the same night. This was at ten at night. By 
 nine next morning he is in Glasgow, where a similar justice ayre 
 is appointed to be held, and routs Earl Percy and Bishop Beck. 
 Called then to the help of Campbell of Lochow, he defeats and 
 slays Macfadyen, Edward's creature in the west, in a pass under 
 Ben More. Meanwhile Malcolm, Earl of Lennox, has taken 
 Stirling for Wallace, and the latter, after holding a counsel at 
 Ardchattan, captures Perth and Dunottar.] 
 
 The Battle of Stirling Bridge. 
 
 [Wallace bums a hundred English ships at Aberdeen, and all 
 the north falls to his hand. He is besieging Dundee when, 
 alarmed at the news. King Edward sends a large force into 
 Scotland under Warenne and Cressingham with orders to wait 
 his own coming at Stirling.] 
 
 Thar mustir than was awfull for to se. 
 Off fechtand men thousandis thai war sext6 
 To Stirlyng past, or thai likit to bid. 
 
196 
 
 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 I capable. 
 
 « Too much. 
 3 advantage. 
 
 To erll Malcome a sege thai laid that tid, 
 
 And thocht to kep the commaund off thar king. 
 
 Bot gud Wallace wrocht for ane-othir thing. 
 
 Dunde he left, and maid a gud chyftane, 
 
 With twa thousand, to kepe that hous off stayne. 
 
 Off Angwis men and duellaris off Dund6 ; 
 
 The samyn nycht till Sanct Jhonstoun went he. 
 
 Apon the morn till Schirreff-mur he raid ; 
 
 And thar a quhill in gud aray thai baid. 
 
 Schir Jhon the Grayme, and Ramsay that was wicht', 
 
 He said to thaim, " This is my purpos rycht ; 
 
 Our mekilP it is to proffer thaim battaill 
 
 Apon a playne feild; bot we haiff sum awailP." 
 
 Schir Jhon the Grayme said, ' We haiff wndirtayn. 
 
 With less power, sic thing that weill is gayn.' 
 
 Than Wallace said, " Quhar sic thing cummys off 
 
 neid, 
 We suld thank God that makis ws for to speid. 
 Bot ner the bryg my purpos is to be, 
 And wyrk for thaim sum suttell jeperte." 
 Ramsay ansuerd, 'The brig we may kepe weill; 
 Off way about Sotheroun has litill feill*.' 
 Wallace sent Jop the battaill for to set. 
 The Twysday next to fecht with-outyn let^. 
 On Setterday on to the bryg thai raid. 
 Off gud playne burd was weill and junctly^ maid ; 
 
 ' '^to leetoit*" *^^'^'- wachis wait? that nane suld fra thaim pass. 
 A wricht he tuk, the suttellast at thar was. 
 And ordand him to saw the burd in twa 
 Be the myd streit, that nane mycht our it ga; 
 
 '^°-"!itrong'' On charnaill bandis^ nald it full fast and sone, 
 
 hinges. 
 
 4 knowledge. 
 
 S without fail. 
 
 6 compactly. 
 
SJJ! WILLIAM WALLACE. 
 
 197 
 
 Syne fyld" with clay as na-thing had beyne done. 
 The tothir end he ordand for to be, 
 How it suld stand on thre rowaris' off tre, 
 Quhen ane war out, that the laiff doun suld fall. 
 Him-selff wndyr he ordand thar with-all, 
 Bownd on the trest^ in a creddill to sit. 
 To lous the pyne quhen Wallace leit him witt. 
 Bot with a horn, quhen it was tyme to be. 
 In all the ost suld no man blaw bot he. 
 
 : Afterwards 
 soiled. 
 
 = bolts. 
 
 3 beam, trestle. 
 
 The day approchit off the gret battaill; 
 The Inglismen for power wald nocht faill. 
 Ay sex thai war agayne ane off Wallace; 
 Fyfty thousand maid thaim to battaill place. 
 The ramaynand baid at the castell still ; 
 Baithe feild and hous thai thocht to tak at will. 
 The worthi Scottis, apon the tothir side. 
 The playne feild tuk, on fute maid thaim to bid. 
 Hew Kertyngayme the wantgard ledis he, 
 With twenty thousand off likly men to se. 
 Thretty thousand the erll off Waran had ; 
 Bot he did than as the wysman him bad; 
 All the fyrst ost befor him our was send*. 
 Sum Scottis men that weill the maner kend^ 
 Bade Wallace blaw, and said thai war enew. 
 He haistyt nocht, bot sadly* couth persew, 
 Quhill Warans ost thik on the bryg he saw. 
 Fra Jop the horn he hyntyt and couth blaw 
 Sa asprely', and warned gud Jhon Wricht. 
 The rowar out he straik with gret slycht; 
 The laiff ^ yeid doun, quhen the pynnys out gais. 
 
 4 was sent over. 
 
 5 knew. 
 
 6 wisely, firmly. 
 
 7 shrilly. 
 
 8 The remainder. 
 
igS HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 A hidwys cry amang the peple rais; 
 Bathe hors and men in-to the wattir fell. 
 The hardy Scottis, that wald na langar duell, 
 Set on the laiff with strakis sad and sar, 
 - Assuredofthem QiF thaim thar our as than souerit' thai war. 
 
 that were over. 
 
 => At the forefront At the forbrcist thai prewit" hardely, 
 
 they essayed. 
 
 Wallace and Grayme, Boid, Ramsay, and Lundy, 
 
 3 struggle. All in the stour^ fast fechtand face to face. 
 
 The Sotheron ost bak rerit off that place 
 
 4 That. Af thai fyrst tuk, fyve akyr breid and mar. 
 
 Wallace on fute a gret scharp sper he bar; 
 Amang the thikest off the press he gais. 
 On Kertyngaym a straik chosyn he hais 
 
 5 corselet. In the bymcs^, that polyst was full brycht. 
 
 6 sharp, penetra- The punyeand^ hed the plattis persyt rycht, 
 
 ting. 
 
 Throuch the body stekit him but reskew; 
 
 8 done'''' Derffly' to dede that chyftane was adewl 
 
 Baithe man and hors at that strak he bar doun. 
 
 9 prepared. The Inghs ost quhilk war in battaill boun', 
 
 Comfort thai lost quhen thair chyftayne was slayn ; 
 
 And mony ane to fie began in playne. 
 
 Yeit worthi men baid still in-to the sted, 
 
 Quhill ten thousand was brocht on-to thair dede. 
 
 Than fled the laiff, and mycht no langar bidj 
 
 Succour thai socht on mony diuers sid, 
 
 Sum est, sum west, and sum fled to the north. 
 
 10 Over seven Sewvn thousand large at anys flottryt" in Forth, 
 
 thousand at "' ail 
 
 once splashed. Plungyt the depe, and drownd with-out mercye ; 
 
 11 immense foi- Navne left On lyff off all that feill menyhe"- 
 
 lowmg. ' ■' ■' 
 
 " avail, conse- Off Wallace ost na man was slayne off waill", 
 
 quence. 
 
 Bot Androw Murray, in-to that Strang battaill. 
 
SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 
 
 199 
 
 The south part than, saw at thar men was tynt", 
 Als fersly fled as fyr dois off the flynt. 
 The place thai left, castell, and Stirlyng toune; 
 Towart Dunbar in gret haist maid thaim boune. 
 
 I lost. 
 
 Quhen Wallace ost had won that feild throuch mycht, 
 Tuk wp the bryg, and loussit gud Jhone Wricht; 
 On the flearis syne folowed wondyr fast. 
 Erll Malcom als out off the castell past. 
 With Lennox men, to stu£f° the chace gud speid. 
 Ay be the way thai gert feilP Sotheroun bleid; 
 In the Torwod thai gert full mony de. 
 The erll off Waran, that can full fersly fie. 
 With Corspatrik, that graithly was his gyd, 
 On changit hors throuch-out the land thai rid, 
 Strawcht to Dunbar; bot few with thaim thai led. 
 Mony was slayne our sleuthfully at fled. 
 The Scottis hors that had rown wondyr lang, 
 Mony gaiff our, that mycht no forthyr gang. 
 Wallace and Grayme euir to-giddyr baid; 
 At Hathyntoun full gret slauchtir thai maid 
 Off Inglismen, quhen thair hors tyryt had. 
 Quhen Ramsay come gud Wallace was full glad; 
 With him was Bold, and Richard off Lundy, 
 Thre thousand hailP was off gud chewalry; 
 And Adam als Wallace off Ricardtoune, 
 With erll Malcome, thai fand at Hathyntoune. 
 The Scottis men on slauchtir taryt was^, 
 Quhill to Dunbar the twa chyftanys couth pass, 
 Full sitfully'', for thar gret contrar cas*. 
 Wallace folowed till thai gat in that place. 
 
 2 supply. 
 
 3 caused many. 
 
 4 readily. 
 
 5 whole, quite. 
 
 6 wererestrained. 
 
 7 sorrowfully. 
 
 8 hap. 
 
200 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 Off thair best men, and Kertyngaym off renoune, 
 Twenty thousand was dede but redemptioune. 
 Besyd Beltoun Wallace raturnd agayn; 
 To folow mar as than was bot in wayn. 
 
 Wallace and the Queen of England. 
 
 [Wallace summons a parliament at Perth, but Corspatrick, 
 Earl of March, refuses to attend, flouting the Warden as a " king 
 of Kyle. " In consequence Wallace at Dunbar attacks and routs 
 the haughty noble. The latter is reinforced by a large army from 
 England under Bruce and Bishop Beck, but this also is discom- 
 fited by the enterprise of the Scots, though it grieves the leader 
 to find his king fighting among the national enemies. To recoup 
 the nation's losses Wallace next determines on an invasion of 
 England, and the poet makes him march south, burning and 
 slaying, and continually evaded by the English king, as far as 
 St. Albans. The English barons determine to sue for peace, 
 but, mindful of the ruthlessness of the Warden, no herald will 
 venture to his camp. At last the queen offers to go. The 
 Scottish leader wakens early in his tent. ] 
 
 The mery day sprang fra the oryent, 
 With bemys brycht enlumynyt the Occident. 
 Eftir Titan, Phebus wp rysyt fayr, 
 Heich in the sper the signes maid declayr. 
 Zepherus began his morow cours, 
 I rises again. The swcte wapour thus fra the ground resours'- 
 3 d"Ssf ""'■ "T^^ humyll' breyth doun fra the hewyn awaill', 
 In euery meide, bathe fyrth, forrest, and daill; 
 ■f note. The cler rede* amang the rochis rang 
 
 Throuch greyn branchis quhar byrdis blythly sang 
 With joyus woice in hewynly armony. 
 Than Wallace thocht it was no tyme to ly; 
 He croyssit him, syne sodeynli wp rais; 
 
SIi: WILLIAM WALLACE. 
 
 To tak the ayr out off his palyon' gais. 
 
 Maister Jhon Blar was redy to rawess; 
 
 In gud entent syne bownyt to the mess^ 
 
 Quhen it was done Wallace can him aray^ 
 
 In his armour quhilk gudly was and gay. 
 
 His schenand schoys'' that burnyst was full beyn^, 
 
 His leg harnes he clappyt on so clene; 
 
 PuUane greis^ he braissit on full fast; 
 
 A closs byrny with mony sekyr' clasp; 
 
 Breyst-plait, brasaris^, that worthy was in wer. 
 
 Besid him furth Jop couth his basnet ber. 
 
 His glytterand glowis graSvin on athir sid, 
 
 He semyt weill in battaill till abid. 
 
 His gud gyrdyll, and syne his burly brand, 
 
 A staff off steyll he gryppyt in his hand. 
 
 The ost him blyst, and prayit God off his grace 
 
 Him to conwoy fra all mystymyt cace'. 
 
 Adam Wallace and Bold furth with him yeid 
 
 By a reuir, throu-out a floryst meid. 
 
 And as thai walk atour" the feyldis greyn, 
 
 Out off the south thai saw quhar at the queyn 
 
 Towart the ost come ridand sobyrly, 
 
 And fyfty ladyis was in hyr cumpany, 
 
 Wallyt" off wit and demyt" off renoun, 
 
 Sum wedowis war, and sum off religioun ; 
 
 And sewyn preistis that entrit war in age. 
 
 Wallace to sic'^ did neuir gret owtrage, 
 
 Bot gyff till him thai maid a gret offens. 
 
 Thus prochyt thai on towart thar presens. 
 
 At the palyoun quhar thai the lyoun saw 
 
 To ground thai lycht, and syne on kneis can faw; 
 
 I pavilion. 
 
 2 make ready for 
 
 the mass. 
 
 3 began to array 
 
 himself. 
 
 4 shining shoon. 
 
 5 richly. 
 
 6 Battle greaves. 
 
 7 sure. 
 
 8 vambraces. 
 
 9 untimely hap. 
 
 11 Chosen. 
 
 12 judged. 
 
 *3 such. 
 
202 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 Prayand for pece thai cry with petous cher. 
 
 Erll Malcom said, " Our chyftayn is nocht her." 
 
 He bad hyr rys, and said it was nocht rycht, 
 ■ serving wight. A queyn on kneis till ony lavar wycht'. 
 
 Wp by the hand the gud erll has hyr tayn; 
 
 Atour the bent to Wallace ar thai gayn. 
 
 Quhen scho him saw scho wald haiff knelyt doune; 
 
 In armys sone he caucht this queyn with croun, 
 
 And kyssyt hyr with-outyn wordis mor; 
 
 Sa dyd he neuir to na Sotheron befor. 
 'may. " Madem,'' he said, "rycht welcum mot° ye be; 
 
 How plessis yow our ostyng for to se?" 
 
 [The Scots lords and English ladies dine together, and after- 
 wards the queen sues for peace. All her arguments, however, 
 are in vain, and when Wallace recounts at length the woes of . 
 Scotland and his own wrongs the queen herself weeps for pity.] 
 
 ^ "^her nothin'^'^ '^^^ queyn fand weyll langage no-thing hyr bet^j 
 
 4 overcome. Scho trowit with gold that he mycht be our-sef. 
 
 Thre thousand pound off fynest gold so red 
 Scho gert be brocht to Wallace in that sted. 
 " Madeym," he said, " na sic tribut we craiff. 
 A-nothir mendis we wald off Ingland haiff, 
 Or we raturn fra this regioun agayn. 
 Off your fals blud that has our elderis slayn. 
 
 5 realm. For all the gold and ryches ye in ryng^, 
 
 Ye get no pess, but desir off your king." 
 
 Quhen scho saw weill, gold mycht hyr nocht releiff. 
 
 Sum part in sport scho thoucht him for to preiff. 
 
 6 called. 'Wallace,' scho said, ' yhe war clepyt^ my luff. 
 
 7 courageously. Mor baundounly' I maid me for to pruff, 
 
 Traistand tharfor your rancour for to slak. 
 
SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 
 
 203 
 
 3 reproach. 
 
 Me-think ye suld do sum-thing for my saik.' 
 
 Rycht wysly he maid ansuer to the queyn. 
 
 " Madem," he said, " and verite war seyn 
 
 That ye me luffyt, I awcht' yow lufif agayn. 
 
 Thir wordis all ar no-thing hot in wayn. 
 
 Sic luff as that is nothing till awance, 
 
 To tak a lak', and syne get no plesance. 
 
 In spech off luff suttell ye Sotheroun ar ; 
 
 Ye can ws mok, suppos ye se no mar.'' 
 
 'In London,' scho said, 'for yow I sufferyt blaym; 
 
 Our consall als will lauch quhen we cum haym. 
 
 So may thai say, wemen ar fers' off thocht 
 
 To sek frendschip, and syne can get rycht nocht !' 
 
 " Madem," he said, " we wait* how ye ar send ; * understand. 
 
 Yhe trow we haiif hot litill for to spend. 
 
 Fyrst with your gold, for ye ar rych and wys^, 
 
 Yhe wald ws blynd, sen Scottis ar so nys': 
 
 Syn plesand wordis off yow and ladyis fayr. 
 
 As quha suld dryff the byrdis till a swar'' 
 
 With the small pype, for it most fresche will call. 
 
 Madem, as yit ye ma nocht tempt ws all. 
 
 Gret part off gud is left amang our kyn ; 
 
 In Ingland als we fynd enewch to wyn." 
 
 Abayssyt^ scho was to mak ansuer him till. 
 
 ' Der schyr,' scho said, ' sen this is at your will ; 
 
 Wer or pass, quhat-so yow likis best, 
 
 Lat your hye witt and gud consaill degest'.' 
 
 " Madem," he said, " now sail ye wndirstand 
 
 The resoune quhy that I will mak na band. 
 
 With yow, ladyis, I can na trewis bynd; 
 
 For your fals king her-eftir sone wald fynd. 
 
 3 quick, eager. 
 
 5 crafty. 
 
 6 uncrafty. 
 
 8 At a loss. 
 
 9 deliberate. 
 
204 
 
 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 Quhen he saw tyme, to brek it at his will, 
 And playnly say he grantyt nocht thartill. 
 Than had we nayn hot ladyis to repruff. 
 That sail he nocht, be God that is abuff. 
 Vpon wemen I will na wer begyn ; 
 On you in faith no worschip is to wyn. 
 All the haill pass apon him-selff he sail talc, 
 Off pees or wer quhat hapnyt we to mak." 
 The queyn grantyt his ansuer sufficient; 
 
 • the remainder, go dyd the layff' in placc that was present. 
 His delyuerance thai held off gret awaill, 
 
 = potent. And stark" enewch to schaw to thair consaill. 
 
 Wa was the qweyn hyr trawaill helpyt nocht. 
 The gold scho tuk, that thai had with hyr brocht; 
 On-to the ost rycht frely scho it gayff 
 Till euirylk man that likyt for till haiff. 
 Till menstraillis, harroldis, scho delt haboundanle, 
 Besekand thaim hyr frend at thai wald be. 
 Quhen Wallace saw the fredom off the queyn, 
 Sadly he said, " The suth weyll has beyn seyn, 
 Wemen may tempt the wysest at is wrocht. 
 
 3 gentlehood. Your grct gcutricc^ it sail neuir be for nocht. 
 
 We [yow] assure our ost sail mwff na-thing 
 Quhyll tym ye may send message fra your king. 
 Gyff it be sa at he accord and we, 
 Than for your saik it sail the bettir be. 
 Your harroldys als sail saiffly cum and ga; 
 
 4 no more. For your frcdom we sail trowbill na ma''." 
 
 5 times. Scho thankit him off his grant mony sys^. 
 
 And all the ladyis apon a gudly wys. 
 
 Glaidly thai drank, the queyn and gud Wallace, 
 
S/J? WILLIAM WALLACE. 205 
 
 Thir ladyis als and lordis in that place. 
 Hyr leyff scho tuk with-out langar abaid ; 
 Fyve myile that nycht south till a nonry raid. 
 Apon the morn till London passit thai, 
 In Westmenster, quhar at the consaill lay. 
 
 The Red Reiver. 
 
 [Peace is presently arranged, Edward giving up all Scottish 
 fortresses and prisoners. Three years later, the affairs of all 
 Scotland having been set in order, Wallace is invited by the 
 French king to visit France, and leaving Sir James Stewart at 
 the head of the government, he sets sail. At sea his vessel is 
 attacked by Longueville, the Red Reiver, with sixteen ships ; 
 but by his personal address and strength, seizing the pirate 
 captain as he leaps on board, Wallace captures the whole fleet.] 
 
 Wallace desyryt to talk mor with this man. 
 Sadly he sperd', "Off quhat land was thou born?" "Seriously he 
 ' Off France,' quoth he, ' and my eldris beforn ; 
 And thar we had sumpart off heretage : 
 Yet fers fortoun thus brocht me in a rage.' 
 Wallace sperd, " How com thow to this lyff ?" 
 ' Forsuth,' he said, ' bot throw a sudan stryff. 
 So hapn5rt me in-to the kingis presens 
 Our raklesly to do our gret offens. 
 A nobill man off gud fame and renoun 
 That throw my deid was put to confusioun 
 Dede off a straik ; quhat nedis wordis mor ? 
 All helpyt nocht, thocht I repentyt full sor. 
 Throw freyndys off the court I chapyt' off that place, = escaped. 
 And neuir sen syn' couth get the kingis grace. 3 since then. 
 For my saik mony off my kyn gert thai de. 
 
206 
 
 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 I to Bordeaux I 
 went. 
 
 2 expeditiously 
 
 was prepared. 
 
 3 gathered. 
 
 ■4 reigned long. 
 
 5 called. 
 
 6 scorn. 
 
 7 overwhelmed. 
 
 8 use, manner. 
 
 9 show. 
 
 10 ahated, re- 
 duced. 
 
 And quhen I saw it mycht no bettir be, 
 
 Bot leyff the land that me behuffyt o neid, 
 
 Apon a day to Burdeous I yeid". 
 
 Ane Inghs schip so gat I on a nycht, 
 
 For sey lawbour that ernystfully was dycht^ 
 
 To me thar semblyt^ misdoaris, and weill mo ; 
 
 And in schort tym we multiplyit so 
 
 That thar wes few our power mycht withstand. 
 
 In tyranry thus haifif we rongyn lang*. 
 
 This sexten yer I haiif beyn on the se, 
 
 And doyn gret harm ; tharfor full wa is me. 
 
 I savit nayn, for gold nor gret ransoun, 
 
 Bot slew and drownyt in-to the se adoun. 
 
 Fawour I did till folk off syndry land; 
 
 Bot Franchmen no frendschip with me fand, 
 
 Thai gat no grace als fer as I mycht ryng. 
 
 Als on the se I clypyt^ was a king. 
 
 Now se I weyll that my fortoun is went, 
 
 Vincust with ane ; that gerris me sair rapent. 
 
 Quha wald haiff said, this sammyn day at morn, 
 
 I suld with ane thus lychtly doun be born. 
 
 In gret hething* my men it wald haiff tayne. 
 
 My-selff trowit till [haiff] machit' mony ane, 
 
 Bot I haifif found the werray playn contrar. 
 
 Her I gyfif our roubry for euirmar ; 
 
 In sic mysrewll I sail neuir armes ber, 
 
 Bot gyfif it be in honest oys^ to wer. 
 
 Now haifif I told part off my blyss and payn; 
 
 For Goddis saik sum kyndnes kyth' agayn. 
 
 My hart will brek bot I wyt quhat thou be 
 
 Thus outrageously that has rabutyt" me. 
 
Sm WILLIAM WALLACE. 
 
 207 
 
 For Weill I wend' that leyffand had beyn non • deemed. 
 
 Be fors off strenth mycht me as presoner ton 
 
 Except Wallace, that has rademyt Scotland, 
 
 The best is callyt this day beltyt with brand. 
 
 In-till his wer war worschip for to wak°, = travel. 
 
 As now in warld I trow he has no mak^.' 'peer. 
 
 Tharat he smylit, and said ; " Frend, weill may be, 
 
 Scotland had mystir'' off mony sic as he. * °"<'- 
 
 Quhat is thi naym? tell me; so haiff thow seillM" s happiness. 
 
 ' Forsuth,' he said, ' Thomas of Longaweill.' 
 
 "Weyll bruk^ thow it! all thus stentis' our stryfif: J™J°J- 
 
 Schaip^ to pleyss God in mendyng off thi lyff. ^ Endeavour. 
 
 Thi faithfull freynd my-selff thinkis to be ; 
 
 And als my nayme I sail sone tell to the. 
 
 For chans off wer thou suld no murnyng mak ; 
 
 As werd' will wyrk thi fortoun mon" thou tak. 'f="«- 
 
 ^ 10 must. 
 
 I am that man that you awanss so hie, 
 
 And bot schort tym sen I come to the se. 
 
 Off Scotland born, my rycht name is Wallace." 
 
 On kneis he fell, and thankit God of grace; 
 
 ' I dar awow that yoldyn is my hand 
 
 To the best man that beltis him with brand. 
 
 Forsuth,' he said, ' this blythis me mekill mor 
 
 Than off floryng ye gaiff me sexty scor.' 
 
 Wallace ansuerd ; " Sen thou art her throw chance, 
 
 My purpos is, be this wiage, in France ; 
 
 And to the king sen I am boun to pass. 
 
 To my reward thi pees I think to as." 
 
 ' Pes I wald haiff [fane] off my rychtwis king ; 
 
 And no langar in-to that realm to ryng", "reign. 
 
 Than to tak leyff, and cum off it agayn. 
 
2o8 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 In thi seruice I think for to ramayn.' 
 " Seruice,'' he said, " Thomas, that may nocht be, 
 Bot gud frendschip, as I desir off the." 
 I Caused. Gart" draw the wyn, and ilk man mery maid ; 
 
 Be this the schippis was in the Rochell raid. 
 
 The rede blasonys thai had born in-to wer ; 
 The toun was sone in-till a sudane fer. 
 The Rede ReiiTar thai saw was at thair hand, 
 The quhilk throu strenth mycht nayn agayne him 
 
 stand. 
 Sum schippis fled, and sum the land has tayn, 
 Clariownys blew, and trumpattis mony ane. 
 
 = in commotion. Quhcn Wallace saw the pepill was on ster'' 
 He gaiff commaund na schip suld ner apper, 
 Bot his awin barge in-to the hawyn gart draw. 
 
 3 ensign. The folk was fayn quhen thai that senye^ saw ; 
 
 Rycht weyll thai knew in gold the rede lioun, 
 Leit wp the port rasauit him in the toun, 
 And sufferyt thaim, for all that he had brocht. 
 The rede nawyn in-to the hawyn thai socht ; 
 On land thai went, quhar thai likit to pass. 
 Rycht few thar ^vyst quhat Scottisman Wallace was; 
 Bot weyll thai thocht he was a gudly man, 
 And honouryt him in all the craft thai can. 
 
 [Wallace carries Longueville in his suite to the French court.] 
 
 Sone eftir meit the king to parlour went, 
 With gudly lordis; thar Wallace was present. 
 Than commound thai off mony syndry thing; 
 To spek with him gret desyr had the king. 
 
S/J? WILLIAM WALLACE. 
 
 209 
 
 At him he speryt off wer the gouernance. 
 
 He ansuerd him with manly contenance 
 
 Till euery poynt, als fer as he had feill', 
 
 In Latyn tong rycht naturaly and weill. 
 
 The king consauit sone throu his hie knawlage 
 
 Quhat wermen oysyt be reyfP in thar passage. 
 
 In-till his mynd the Rede Reiffar than was; 
 
 Merwell he had how he leit Wallace pass. 
 
 Till him he said, "Ye war sum-thing to blaym; 
 
 Ye mycht haiff send, be our harrold fra haym, 
 
 Eftir power to bryng yow throu the se." 
 
 ' God thank yow, schyr, tharoff ynewch had we. 
 
 Feill 3 men may pass quhar thai fynd na perell; 
 
 Rycht few may kep quhar nayn is to assail.' 
 
 " Wallace," he said, " tharoff merwell haiff I ; 
 
 A tyran ryngis in ire full cruelly 
 
 Apon the se, that gret sorow has wrocht; 
 
 Mycht we him get, it suld not be for nocht. 
 
 Born off this land, a natyff man to me ; 
 
 Tharfor on ws the grettar harme dois he." 
 
 Than Thomas quok, and changyt contenans ; 
 
 He hard the king his ewill deidis awans. 
 
 Wallace beheld, and fenyeit in a parf; 
 
 ' Forsuth,' he said, ' we fand nane in that art 
 
 That proffryt ws sic wnkyndlynes. 
 
 Bot with your leifif I spek in haymlynes. 
 
 Trow ye be sycht ye couth that squier knaw?' 
 
 " Full lang it war sen tym that I him saw. 
 
 Bot thir wordis off him ar bot in wayn ; 
 
 Or he com her rycht gud men will be slayn." 
 
 Than Wallace said, ' Her I haiff brocht with me, 
 
 * knowledge. 
 
 2 What men of 
 war were wont 
 by robbery (to 
 do). 
 
 3 Many. 
 
 4 feigned a part. 
 
HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 t glanced, 
 s potent. 
 ^ Examined. 
 
 bairnhood. 
 injury. 
 
 ' way of life. 
 ' acquiring. 
 
 8 guerdon. 
 
 Off likly men that was in our countre : 
 
 Quhilk off all thir wald ye call him most lik?' 
 
 Amang thaim blent' that ryoU roy most ryk°, 
 
 Wesyit^ thaim weill, bathe statur and curage, 
 
 Maner, makdome, thar fassoun and thar wesage. 
 
 Sadly he said, awysit sobyrly, 
 
 " That largest man, quhilk standis next yow by, 
 
 Wald I call him, be makdome to dewice. 
 
 Thir ar no thing bot wordis off office." 
 
 Befor the king on kneis fell gud Wallace : 
 
 ' O ryoU roy, off hie honour and grace. 
 
 With waist wordis I will nocht yow trawaill- 
 
 Now I will spek sum-thing for myn awaill. 
 
 Our barnaf land has beyn our-set with wer, 
 
 With Saxonis blud that dois ws mekill der^, 
 
 Slayn our eldris, distroyit our rychtwys blud, 
 
 Waistyt our realm off gold and othir gud. 
 
 And ye ar her, in mycht and ryolte, 
 
 Yow suld haiff ey till our aduersite, 
 
 And ws support, throu kyndnes off the band 
 
 Quhilk is conserwyt betuix yow and Scotland. 
 
 As I am her, at your charge, for plesance, 
 
 My lyflat^ is bot honest chewysance'. 
 
 Flour off realmys forsuth is this regioun ; 
 
 To my reward I wald haiff gret gardoun^' 
 
 " Wallace,'' he said, " now ask what ye wald haiff. 
 
 Gud gold or land sail nocht be lang to craifif." 
 
 Wallace ansuerd, ' So ye it grant to me, 
 
 Quhat I wald haiff it sail sone chosyn be.' 
 
 " Quhat-euir yhe ask that is in this regioun, 
 
 Ye sail it haiff, except my wyff and croun." 
 
S/Ji WILLIAM WALLACE. 211 
 
 He thankit hym off his gret kyndlynes. 
 
 ' My reward all sail be askyng off grace, 
 
 Pees to this man I broucht with me throu chans. 
 
 Her I quytcleym" all othir gyfftis in Frans. > quit cidm of. 
 
 This samyn is he, gyff ye knaw him weill, 
 
 That we off spak, Thomas off Longaweill. 
 
 Be rygour ye desyryt he suld be slayn; 
 
 I him restor in-to your grace agayn. 
 
 Rasaiff him fayr, as liege man off your land.' 
 
 The king marweld, and couth in study stand ; 
 
 Perfytly knew that it was Longaweill ; 
 
 He him forgaiff his trespas euirilkdeilP, 
 
 Bot for his saik that had him hydder brocht; 
 
 For gold or land ellis he gat it nocht. 
 
 " Wallace," he said, " I had leuir^ off gud land 
 
 Thre hundreth pund haiff sesyf in thi hand. 
 
 That I haiff said sail be grantyt in plain; 
 
 Her I restor Thomas to pes agayn, 
 
 Derer to me than euir he was befor. 
 
 All for your saik, thocht it war mekill mor." 
 
 3 every whit. 
 
 3 leifer, rather. 
 
 4 paid. 
 
 Quhen Thomas was restoryt to his rycht 
 
 Off hys awin hand the king has maid him knycht. 
 
 Eftir he gaiff stayt to his nerrest ayr. 
 
 And maid him-selff with Wallace for to fayr. 
 
 Thus he was brocht fra naym off reyff, throu cace. 
 
 Be sudand chans off him and wicht Wallace. 
 
HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 1 island. 
 
 2 lay armed. 
 
 3 strong. 
 
 4 assembled. 
 
 5 named. 
 
 6 manner. 
 
 7 Rather. 
 
 « without re- 
 pining. 
 9 armed. 
 
 i> hurt. 
 
 The Taking of Lochleven. 
 
 [While Wallace assists the French in their wars in Guyenne, 
 news of his deeds reaches the English court. Advantage is taken 
 of his absence to invade Scotland, 'and soon the patriotic party 
 there is driven to extremity. The Warden is invited to return, 
 lands at Montrose, retakes Perth, and fights the battle of Black 
 Irnside. Presently the only stronghold in that part of Scotland 
 remaining in English hands is the fortalice of Lochleven. ] 
 
 Bot in Lochlewyn thair lay a cumpan^, 
 Apon that inch" in a small hous thai dycht'; 
 Castell was nayn, bot wallyt vifith virater wicht^. 
 Besyd Carraill thai semblyt" Wallace beforn; 
 His purpos was for till assay Kyngorn. 
 A knycht hecht^ Gray than captane in it was; 
 Be schort awys^ purpos he tuk to pas. 
 Erar' he wald bid chalans off his king 
 Than with Wallace to rakyn for sic a thing. 
 That hous thai tuk, and litill tary maid. 
 Vpon the morn, with-outyn mar abaid, 
 Atour the mur, quhar thai a tryst had set, 
 Ner Scotlandis Well thair lugyng tuk but let. 
 Eftir souper Wallace bad thaim ga rest : 
 " My-selff will walk, me-think it may be best." 
 As he commaundyt, but gruching" thai haifif don. 
 In-to thar slep Wallace him graithit' son. 
 Past to Lochlewyn as it was ner mydnycht, 
 Auchtene with him, at he hed warnyt rycht. 
 Thir men wend weill he come to wesy'" it. 
 " Falows," he said, " I do yow weill to wyt \ 
 Considyr weill this place, and wndirstand 
 That it may do full gret scaith" to Scotland. 
 
S/J? WILLIAM WALLACE. 
 
 213 
 
 Out off the south and power cum thaim till, 
 
 Thai may tak in, and kep it at thair awn will. 
 
 Apon yon inche rycht mony men may be, 
 
 And syn wsche out, thair tym quhen at thai se. 
 
 To bid lang her we may nocht wpon chans, 
 
 Yon folk has fud, trast weill, at suflficians. 
 
 Wattir fra thaim forsuth can nocht be set ; 
 
 Sum wthyr wyill ws worthis' for to get. ' tehoves. 
 
 Yhe sail remayn her at this port all still, 
 
 And I my-selff the boit sail bryng yow till." 
 
 Thair-with in haist his weid off castis he : 
 
 "Apon yon sid na wachman can I se;" 
 
 Held on his sark, and tuk his suerd so gud 
 
 Band on his nek, and syn lap in the flud. 
 
 And our he swam, for lattyng' fand he nocht. = hindrance. 
 
 The boit he tuk and till hys men it brocht, 
 
 Arayit him weill, and wald no langar bid, 
 
 Bot passyt in, rowit to the tothir sid. 
 
 The inch thai tuk with suerdis drawyn in hand. 
 
 And sparyt nayn that thai befor thaim fand; 
 
 Strak duris wp, stekyt men quhar thai lay; 
 
 Apon the Sothroun thus sadly semblyt thai. 
 
 Thretty thai slew that was in that samyn place ; 
 
 To mak defens the Inglismen had no space. 
 
 Thar women fyve Wallace send off that sted ; 
 
 Woman nor barne he gart neuir put to dede. 
 
 The gud thai tuk, as it had beyn thair awyn. 
 
 Than Wallace said, " Falowis, I mak yow knawin. 
 
 The purwyance that is with-in this wanys^ 3 habitation. 
 
 We will nocht tyne". Ger sembyll all at anys, niose. 
 
 Gar warn Ramsay and our gud men ilkane=; s each one. 
 
214 
 
 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 ■ provender. I will rcmayn quhill this warnstor' be gane;" 
 » put in guard. Send furth a man, thair horsis put to kep^ 
 Drew wp the boit, syne beddys tuk to sleip. 
 
 3 lament. 
 
 4 verity. 
 
 5 pledge. 
 
 Wallace power, quhilk Scotland Well ner lay, 
 
 Befor the son thai myssyt him away. 
 
 Sum menyng^ maid, and merweillyt off that cace. 
 
 Ramsay bad, ' Ces, and mum nocht for Wallace. 
 
 It is for gud at he is fra us went; 
 
 It sail ye se, trast weill, in werramenf. 
 
 My hed to wed 5, Lochlewyn he past to se : 
 
 Bot that is thar, no Inglisman knaw we 
 
 In all this land, betwix thir waiters left. 
 
 Tithandis off hym ye sail se son hereft.' 
 
 As thai about was talkand on this wys 
 A message com and chargyt thaim to rys. 
 " My lord," he said, " to dyner has yow cald 
 In-till Lochlewyn, quhilk is a ryoll hald. 
 Ye sail fair weyll, tharfor put off all sorow.'' 
 
 Description of Wallace. 
 
 [Wallace surprises Dumbarton and Rosneath, and Douglas 
 rises in the south and takes Sanquhar. Dundee is the last 
 strength remaining in English hands in Scotland, and to it the 
 Warden lays siege. News at this point is carried to King 
 Edward, then in France. He hastens home and prepares to 
 invade Scotland with a hundred thousand men. At the same 
 time the French send a herald to ask if Wallace wishes succour. 
 With him the herald brings a French description of the hero. ] 
 
S/J? WILLIAM WALLACE. 215 
 
 The wyt off Frans thocht Wallace to commend ; 
 In-to Scotland, with this harrold thai send 
 Part off his deid, and als the discriptioune 
 Off him tane thar be men off discretioun, 
 Clerkis, knychtis, and harroldys, that him saw ; 
 Bot I hereoff can nocht rehers thaim aw. 
 Wallace statur, off gretnes, and off hycht, 
 Was jugyt thus, be discretioun off rycht, 
 That saw him bath dissembill and in weid'; ■ unclad and in 
 
 armour. 
 
 Nyne quartaris large he was in lenth indeid; 
 
 Thryd part lenth in schuldrys braid was he, 
 
 Rycht sembly, Strang, and lusty for to se; 
 
 Hys lymmys gret, with stalwart pais and sound, 
 
 Hys browys hard, his armes gret and round ; 
 
 His handis maid rycht lik till a pawmer", « paim-ieaf. 
 
 Off manlik mak, with naless gret and cler- 
 
 Proportionyt lang and fayr was his wesage; 
 
 Rycht sad off spech, and abill in curage; 
 
 Braid breyst and heych^, with sturdy crag" and gret ; 4 Jj^l^'. 
 
 His lyppys round, his noys was squar and tret=; ^ ^"propOTtioned. 
 
 Bowand^ bron haryt, on browis and breis' lycht, «Wavy. 
 
 Cler aspre" eyn, lik dyamondis brycht. » sharp. 
 
 Wndyr the chyn, on the left syd, was seyn. 
 
 Be hurt, a wain; his colour was sangweyn. 
 
 Woundis he had in mony diuers place, 
 
 Bot fair and weill kepyt was his face. 
 
 Off ryches he kepyt no propyr thing ; 
 
 Gaiff as he wan, lik Alexander the king. 
 
 In tym off pes mek as a maid was he ; 
 
 Quhar wer approchyt the rycht Ector was he. 
 
 To Scottis men a gret credens he gaiff; 
 
2l6 
 
 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 Bot knawin enemys thai couth him nocht disayff. 
 
 Thir properteys was knawin in-to Frans, 
 
 Off him to be in gud remembrans. 
 
 Maistir Jhon Blayr that patron couth rasaiff, 
 
 In Wallace buk brewyt' it with the layff. 
 
 Wallace's Meeting with Bruce. 
 
 [Wallace defeats the English advance guard of ten thousand 
 under Woodstock on Sheriffmuir, but, on the eve of encountering 
 Edward himself, Comyn, brother of the Countess of March, sows 
 dissension between the Warden and the Stewart. Stewart claims 
 by virtue of his office to lead the vanguard ; Wallace refuses, and 
 withdraws from action. In consequence, in the great battle of 
 Falkirk, Stewart is defeated and slain, chiefly by the valour of 
 Bruce, who fights on the English side. In defending the Scottish 
 retreat Wallace is wounded by Bruce, and Sir John the Graham 
 is killed.] 
 
 Quhen Wallace saw this knycht to dede was wrocht 
 The pytuous payn so sor thyrllyt'' his thocht 
 All out off kynd^ it alteryt his curage; 
 Hys wyt in wer was than bot a wod* rage. 
 Hys hors him bur in feild quhar-so him lyst; 
 For off him-selff as than litill he wyst. 
 Lik a wyld best that war fra reson rent, 
 As wytlace wy in-to the ost he went, 
 Dingands on hard; quhat Sotheroun he rycht hyt, 
 Straucht apon hors agayn mycht neuir syt. 
 In-to that rage full feilP folk he dang doun; 
 7 was cleared a All hym about was reddvt a eret rowm'. 
 
 great space. ■' y o 
 
 [With difficulty the Scottish troops pass Carron Water, the 
 tide being in ; and Wallace's own horse, having been wounded 
 falls dead on gaining the further bank.] 
 
 2 mastered. 
 
 3 nature. 
 
 4 mad. 
 
 S driving. 
 
 6 many. 
 
SIJi WILLIAM WALLACE. 217 
 
 To the Torwod he bad the ost suld ryd. 
 Kerl^ and he past wpon Caroun syd, 
 Behaldand our' wpon the south party. lover. 
 
 Bruce formast com and can° on Wallace cry, = begin. 
 
 "Quhat art thow thar?" 'A man,' Wallace can say. 
 The Bruce ansuerd, "That has thow prewyt to-day. 
 Abyd," he said, " thow nedis nocht now to fle." 
 Wallace ansuerd ; ' I eschew nocht for the. 
 Bot that power has thi awn ner fordon ; 
 Amendis off this, will God, we sail haiff son.' 
 " Langage off the," the Bruce said, " I desyr." 
 'Say furth,' quoth he; 'thow may for litill hyr^ 3cost(?) 
 Ryd fra that ost, and gar thaim bid with Beik. 
 I wald fayn her quhat thow likis to speik.' 
 The ost baid styll, the Bruce passyt thaim fra; 
 He tuk wyth him bot a Scot that hecht Ra. 
 Quhen that the Bruce out off thair heryng wer 
 He turned in, and this question can sper : 
 " Quhy wyrkis thow thus, and mycht in gud pess be?" 
 Than Wallace said, 'Bot in defawt off the. 
 Throuch thi falsheid thfti awn wyt has myskend". 4 mistaken. 
 I cleym no rycht, bot wald this land defend 
 At thow wndoys throu thi fals cruell deid. 
 Thow hast tynt twa had beyn worth fer mair meid, 
 On this ilk day, with a gud king to founds stogo. 
 
 Na"^ fyve mylyon off fynest gold so round 'Than. 
 
 That euir was wrocht in werk or ymage brycht. 
 I trow in warld was nocht a bettir knycht 
 Than was the gud Graym off trewth and hardement.' 
 Teris tharwith fra Wallace eyn doun went. 
 
2i8 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 [After further bitterly reproaching Bruce for fighting against 
 his own kingdom Wallace retires to his men.] 
 
 ■ separated. Thus thai depcrtyt'. The Bruce past his way, 
 Till Lithqwo raid, quhar that king Eduuard lay. 
 The feild had left, and lugyt a south the toun, 
 To souper set. As Bruce at the palyoun 
 So entryt in, and saw wacand his seit, 
 No wattir he tuk, hot maid him to the meit. 
 Fastand he was, and had beyn in gret dreid; 
 Bludyt was all his wapynnys and his weid. 
 Sotheroun lordys scornyt him in termys rud, 
 And said, " Behald, yon Scot ettis his awn blud." 
 The king thocht ill thai maid sic derisioun; 
 He bad haifif watter to Bruce off Huntyntoun. 
 Thai bad him wesche; he said that wald he nocht: 
 " This blud is myn, that hurtis most my thocht.'' 
 
 = had remorse for. Sadly the Bruce than in his mynd remordyt'' 
 
 Thai wordis suth that Wallace had him recordyt. 
 Than rewyt he sar, fra resoun had him knawin, 
 At blud and land suld all lik beyn his awin. 
 With thaim he was lang or he couth get away; 
 Bot contrar Scottis he faucht nocht fra that day. 
 
 Wallace's Lament for the Graham. 
 
 Wallace slepyt bot a schort quhill and raiss. 
 To rewU the ost on a gud mak^ he gais 
 Till erll Malcom, Ramsay, and Lundy wicht; 
 With fyve thousand in a battaill thaim dycht. 
 Wallace, Lawder, and Crystell off Cetoun, 
 
SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 
 
 219 
 
 Fyve thousand led, and Wallace off Ricardtoun, 
 
 Full weyll arayit in-till thair armour clen, 
 
 Past to the feild quhar that the chas had ben; 
 
 Amang the dad men sekand the worthiast, 
 
 The corss off Graym, for quham he murned mast. 
 
 Quhen thai him fand, and gud Wallace him saw, 
 He lychtyt doun, and hynt' him fra thaim aw 
 In armys vp. Behaldand his paill face, 
 He kyssyt him, and cryt full oft, " Allace ! 
 My best brothir in warld that euir I had ! 
 My afald° freynd quhen I was hardest stad ! 
 My hop, my heilP, thow was in maist honour ! 
 My faith, my help, my strenthiast in stour"*! 
 In the was wyt, fredom, and hardines^; 
 In the was treuth, manheid, and nobilnes; 
 In the was rewU, in the was gouernans; 
 In the was wertu with-outyn Svarians ; 
 In the lawt^^, in the was gret largnas'; 
 In the gentrice^, in the was stedfastnas. 
 Thow was gret cans off wynnyng off Scotland, 
 Thocht I began and tuk the wer on hand. 
 I wow to God that has the warld in wauld' 
 Thi dede sail be to Sotheroun full der sauld. 
 Martyr thow art for Scotlandis rycht and me; 
 I sail the wenge, or ellis tharfor de." 
 
 I took. 
 
 2 honest. 
 
 3 covering, de- 
 
 fence. 
 
 S sense, generosi- 
 ty, and bold- 
 ness. 
 
 6 loyalty. 
 
 7 liberality. 
 
 8 gentlehood. 
 
 9 under sway. 
 
 Was na man thar fra wepyng mycht hym rafreyn 
 For loss off him, quhen thai hard Wallace pleyn. 
 
220 HENRY THE MINSTREL. 
 
 Thai caryit him with worschip and dolour ; 
 I buried. In the Fawkyrk graithit' him in sepultour. 
 
 [Presently the Scots fall upon the English quarters in Linlith- 
 gow, put Edward to utter rout, and drive him from the country. 
 Wallace then assembles the lords at Perth, resigns the Warden- 
 ship, and retires to France. He is made lord of Guyenne, which 
 he wins for the French king. But while the envy of the French 
 leaders is excited by his prowess, Scotland is again over-run by 
 her enemies. Wallace is implored to come back. Once more he 
 returns, once more passes through a series of adventures, and 
 once more sets Scotland free. Then it is that King Edward, 
 despairing of force, determines upon craft. Sir John Menteith, 
 Wallace's "gossip," is bribed with gold and promises, and 
 undertakes the capture. Wallace has invited Bruce to take the 
 crown, and has been asked to meet the latter privately on 
 Glasgow moor. He is lying accordingly with a single com- 
 panion at Robroyston in that neighbourhood when the house is 
 surrounded at dead of night by Menteith, and through the 
 treachery of a servant the hero is taken weaponless in his sleep. 
 He is carried to London, arraigned at Westminster Hall as a 
 traitor, and executed with all the barbarity of the time.] 
 
 Willium Hodge &= Co., Printers, Glasgtyiv. 
 
ABBOTSFORD SERIES OF THE 
 SCOTTISH POETS. 
 
 Edited by GEORGE EYRE-TODD. 
 
 Bound in cloth^ crown Zvo,^ 3J. (id. each volume. 
 
 A limited number of copies printed on large antique paper, 
 Roxburgh binding, price 5s. nett. 
 
 The Works of many of the Scottish Poets, especially of the 
 earlier ones, have hitherto been not only expensive but extremely 
 difficult to procure. To this fact is mainly attributable the com- 
 parative neglect of the finest part of the national literature. 
 
 In the present series it is intended to reproduce in popular 
 form the best Works of these Scottish Poets, from the earliest 
 times onwards ; and it is hoped within a very moderate number 
 of volumes to furnish, what has not before been attempted, a 
 comprehensive library of the Poetry of Scotland. 
 
 No liberties whatever will be taken with the texts, which will 
 be edited from the best editions, and furnished with necessary 
 introductions and glossaries. 
 
 The first four volumes of the series will be as follows :■ — 
 
 EARLY SCOTTISH POETRY: Thomas the Rhymer, John 
 Barbour, Androw of Wyntoun, and Henry the Minstrel. 
 
 MEDIEVAL SCOTTISH POETRY: James I., Robert 
 Henryson, William Dunbar, Gavin Douglas, John Bel- 
 lenden, &c. 
 
 SCOTTISH POETRY of the SIXTEENTH CENTURY : 
 
 Sir David I^yndsay, Sir Richard Maitland, Alexander 
 Scott, Alexander Montgomery, William Drummond of 
 Hawthornden, &c. 
 
 SCOTTISH BALLAD POETRY: The best historical, 
 legendary, and imaginative ballads of Scotland. 
 
 The particulars of succeeding volumes will be afterwards 
 announced. 
 
WORKS BY GEORGE EYRE-TODD. 
 
 PRICE ONE SHILLING. 
 
 SKETCH-BOOK OF THE NORTH. 
 
 PRESS OPINIONS. 
 
 They contain some of the most beautiful prose writing, of the idyllic kind, 
 that has lately been applied to the description of Scottish rural scenery. 
 . . . This charming little book of Scottish sketches ought to be in the 
 pocket of every passenger travelling north from King's-Cross or Euston. — 
 Illustrated London News. 
 
 Our author possesses in quite an exceptional degree the rare art of con- 
 veying on the printed page his own impressions of the beauties of nature. 
 . . . His volume will continually and pleasantljr revive the recollection of 
 past experiences in readers who have rambled amid our straths, moors, and 
 mountains, while to people who have yet to make acquaintance with Scotland 
 it should give an almost irresistible impulse to cross the Border with the least 
 possible delay. — Glasgow Herald. 
 
 They will be read with pleasure by every one who knows Scotland. 
 One describes a loch side and a day's fishing ; another meditates on the 
 traditions that cling around St. Giles' Cathedral ; a third sketches a weaving 
 village ; but most are pictures of open air scenery in forest, glen, and firth. 
 The book will serve a traveller or a holiday-maker to his contentment. — 
 The Scotsvzan. 
 
 Scotland supplies the themes for the Sketch-book, and the short papers 
 are all charmingly and gracefully written. — The Graphic. 
 
 There is an open-air feeling about these papers, with a fund of pawky 
 remark, and a power of observation which go to make up a very attractive 
 volume, and one eminently suited for the holiday season. — Dundee Courier. 
 
 Mr. George Eyre-Todd has done much to awaken a genuine interest in 
 certain phases of Scottish life which could only have become known to one 
 who has watched them with a loving eye. — Dundee Advertiser. 
 
 If you want a pleasant book, let me recommend to you Mr. George 
 Eyre-Todd's ''Sketch Book of the North." It is written with real power, 
 and a fine appreciation of nature. It is just the book for the passing tourist 
 to buy at a bookstall as he travels by rail or river. It will send the reader to 
 many a part of Scotland, and help him to love the whole country the better. 
 — Weekly Citizen. 
 
 They are crisp and readable, and treat of a great variety of topics, . . 
 and just the thing to pick up in an odd hour of a holiday. — Evening Times. 
 
 An exceedingly readable and engaging book. . . . He portrays to us 
 the picturesque, suggests the wonderful, and touches upon the pathetic in a 
 sympathetic strain, and his descriptions of Scottish scenery and Scottish rural 
 life can be read with pleasure and profit. — Evening News. 
 
 Many a bright picture of Scotch life is presented, and many a happy 
 description of scenes characteristic of the land and people of the North. — 
 Literary World. 
 
 Charmingly appreciative essays. — Manchester Guardian. 
 
 PRICE SIXPENCE. 
 
 FOUR MONTHS OF BOHEMIA 
 
 BEING THE ACTUAL EXPERIENCE OF A TYRO IN THE 
 PROFESSION OF LITERATURE. 
 
 GLASGOW: WILLIAM HODGE & CO. 
 
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