The Bruce
And als Schir David of Brechyne, 120
With fele folk in thair leding.
And quhan thai all assemblit war,
In hy thai tuk thair way till fair
To the Slevach, with all thar men, 124
For till assaill the King, that then
Wes liand in-till his seiknes.
This was eftir the Martymes,
Quhen snaw had helit all the land. 128
To the Slevach thai com neirhand,
Arayit on thair best maneir.
And than the Kingis men, that wer
War of thair com, thame apparalit 132
Till defend, gif thai thame assalit.
And nocht-for-thi thair fayis war
Ay twa for ane that thai war thair.
The Erlis men neir cumande war, 136
Trumpand and makand mekill fair,
And maid knychtis quhen thai war neir.
And thai, that in the wodsyde weir,
Stude in aray richt sarraly, 140
And thoucht to byde thair hardely
The cummyng of thair enymys.
Bot thai wald apon nakyn wis
Ysche till assale thame in fichting, 144
Till coverit war the nobill Kyng.
Bot gif othir wald thame assalyhe,
Thai wald defend, avalyhe que valyhe.
[147: E _vailyhe quod vailyhe_.]
And quhen the Erlis cumpany 148
Saw that thai wroucht so besaly,
That thai that strinth schup to defend,
Thair archaris furth to thame thai send
To bykkir thame, as men of mayn. 152
And thai send archaris thame agayn,
That bykkirrit thame so sturdely,
Till thai of the Erlis party
In-to thair battale withdrawin war. 156
Thre dayis on this wis lay thai thar,
And bikkirrit thame evirilke day:
Bot thar bowmen the wer had ay.
And quhen the Kingis cumpany 160
Saw thair fayis befor thame ly,
That ilka day wox ma and ma,
And thai war quhoyn, and stad war swa
That thai had no-thing for to et, 164
Bot gif thai travalit it to get,
Tharfor thai tuk consale in hy
That thai wald thar no langer ly,
Bot hald thair way quhar thai mycht get, 168
Till thaim and thairis vittale and met.
In a littar the Kyng thai lay,
And redyit thame and held thar way,
That all thair fayis mycht thame se; 172
Ilk man buskit in his degre,
To ficht gif thai assalyheit war.
In myddis thame the King thai bair,
And yheid about hym sarraly, 176
And nocht full gretly can thame hy.
The Erll, and thai that with him war,
Saw that thai buskit thame to fair;
And saw how with so litill affray 180
Thai held furth with the King thar way,
Reddy to ficht quha walde assale,
Thair hertis all begouth to fale,
And in pes let thame pas thar way, 184
And till thair hous hame went thai.
How the King discomfited at Inverury
The Earl of Buchan shamefully.
[Sidenote: DEC. 23, 1307] _Brechin attacks at Inverury_]
The Erll his way tuk to Bouchane;
And Schir Edward the Broys is gane
Richt to Strabogy, with the Kyng; 188
And swa lang thair maid sojornyng,
Till he begouth to cover and ga,
And syne thair wayis can thai ta
Till Enverrowry straucht agane; 192
For thai wald ly in-till the plane,
The wyntir sesoune; for vittale
In-to the playn mycht nocht thame fale.
The Erll wist that thai war thar, 196
And gaderit his menyhe heir and thar,
Brechyne, Mowbra, and thair men,
All to the Erll assemblit then,
And war a full gret cumpany 200
Of men arayit jolely.
Till Ald Meldrom thai held the way,
And thar with thair men lugit thai,
Before Yhoill-evyn ane nycht bot mair; 204
And thousand, trow I weill, thai war.
Thai lugit thame all thair that nycht;
And on the morn, quhen day wes licht,
The lord of Brechine, Schir Davy, 208
Is went towart Inverrowry,
To luk gyff he on ony wys
Mycht do skaith till his ennemys.
In-to the end of Enverrowry 212
He com ridand so suddandly,
That of the Kingis men he slew
A part, and othir-sum thaim withdrew,
And fled thair way toward the King, 216
That, with the mast of his gaderyng,
On yhond half doun wes than lyand.
And quhen men tald him the tithand,
How Schir David had slayn his men, 220
His hors in hy he askit then,
And bad his men all mak thame yhare
In-to gret hy, for he wald fare
To bargane with his enymys. 224
With that he buskit for to ris,
That wes nocht all weill coverit then.
Then said sum of his preve men;
“Quhat think yhe, Schir, thusgat to fair 228
“To ficht, and yheit nocht coverit ar?”
‘Yhis,’ said the Kyng, ‘forouten wer;
‘Thair bost has maid me haill and fer.
‘For suld no medicine so soyne 232
‘Haff coverit me, as thai haf done.
‘Tharfor, sa God him-self me se!
‘I sall outhir haf thaim, or thai me.’
And quhen his men has herd the King 236
Set him so haill for the fechting,
Of his covering all blith thai war,
And maid thame for the battale yhar.
[210, 211: C omits; in E and H.]
Here the Earl of Buchan flies, and Sir David Brechin yields himself to
the King.
The nobill King ande his menyhe, 240
That mycht weill neir sevin hundreth be,
Toward Ald Meldrome tuk the way,
Quhar the Erll and his menyhe lay.
The discurrouris saw thame comande 244
With baneris to the wynd wafand;
And tald it to thar lord in hy,
That gert arm his men hastely,
And thame arayit for battale. 248
Behynd thame set thai thar merdale,
And maid gude sembland for the ficht.
The King com on with mekill mycht;
And thai abaid, makand gret fair, 252
Till thai neir at assemble war.
Bot quhen thai saw the nobill King
Cum stoutly on without stinting,
A litill on bridill thai thaim with-drew; 256
And the King, that rycht weill knew
That thai war all discumfit neir,
Pressit on thame with his baneir;
And thai with-drew thaim mair and mair. 260
And quhen the small folk thai had thar,
Saw thair lordis with-draw thame swa,
Thai turnit thar bak all, and to-ga;
And fled all scalit heir and thair. 264
The lordis, that yheit to-giddir war,
Saw that thair small folk war fleand,
And saw the Kyng stoutly cumand,
Thai war ilkane abasit swa, 268
That thai the bakkis gaf, and to-ga.
A litill stound sammyn held thai,
And syne ilk man has tane his way.
[257: E gives _rycht_ (S). C has _thame_.]
[Sidenote: DEC. 23, 1307] _Buchan is Defeated_]
Fell nevir men so foull myschans 272
Eftir so sturdy cuntyrnans.
For quhen the Kyngis cumpany
Saw at thai fled so fowlely,
Thai chasyt thame with all thar mayn, 276
And sum thai tuk, and sum war slayn.
The remanand war fleand ay;
Quha had gud hors gat best away!
Till Ingland fled the Erll of Bouchane, 280
Schir Johne Mowbray is with him gane,
And war resettit with the King.
Bot thai had bath bot schort lesting,
For thai deit soyn eftir syne. 284
And Schir David of Brechyne
Fled to Brechine, his awn castele,
And warnyst it bath fair and wele.
Bot the Erll of Adell Davy, 288
His sone that wes in Kyldromy,
Com syne, and him assegit thar.
And he, that wald hald weyr no mair,
Nor bargane with the nobill Kyng, 292
Com syne his man with gud treting.
Here the King burns all Buchan, and gets the Castle of Forfar
and destroys it.
Now ga we to the King agane,
That of his victor wes richt fane,
And gert his men burn all Bouchane 296
Fra end till end, and sparit nane;
And heryit thame on sic maneir,
That eftir that, weile fifty yheir,
Men menyt “the heirschip of Bouchane.” 300
The King than till his pes has tane
The north cuntre, that humylly
Obeysit till his senyhory.
Swa that be north the Month war nane 304
That thai ne war his men ilkane.
His lordschip wox ay mair and mair.
Toward Angus than couth he fair,
And thoucht soyn to mak all fre 308
Apon north half the Scottis Se.
The castell of Forfer wes then
Stuffit all with Inglis men.
Bot Philip the Forster of Platan 312
Has of his frendis with him tane,
And with ledderis all prevely
To the castell he can hym hy,
And clam out-our the wall of stane, 316
And swagat has the castell tan,
Throu falt of wach, with litill payn.
And syn all that he fand has slayn:
Syne yhald the castell to the King, 320
That maid hym richt gud rewarding,
And syne gert brek doune the wall,
And fordid well and castell all.
[299: C _neir fifty_ (S). E _weile_.]
[309: Skeat reads _Apon_ from _All on_ in C; _cf._ lines 329, 460. E
has _That wes on the_: H similarly.]
How Good King Robert the Bruce besieged the Town of Perth.
[Sidenote: JAN. 1313] _Perth is too Strong for Assault_]
Qwhen that the castell of Forfar, 324
And all the towris tumlit war
Doun to the erd, as I haf tald,
The wis king, that wes wicht and bauld,
That thoucht that he wald mak all fre 328
Apon north half the Scottis Se,
Till Perth is went with all his rout,
And umbeset the toune about,
And till it has ane sege soyn set. 332
Bot quhill it mycht haf men and met,
It mycht nocht, but gret payn, be tane
For the wallis war all of stane,
With thik towris and hye standand. 336
And that tym war thar-in duelland
Moffat, and als Olyfard;
Thai twa the toun had all in ward.
Of Strathern als the Erll wes thar; 340
Bot his sone and of his men war
Without, in-to the Kingis rout.
Thar wes oft bikkyrring stith and stout,
And men slayn apon ilk party. 344
Bot the gud King, that all vitty
We in his dedis evirilkane,
Saw the wall so stith of stane,
And saw defens at thai can ma, 348
And how the toun wes hard to ta
With oppyn assale, be strinth or mycht,
Tharfor he thoucht to wirk with slicht.
And all the tym that he thair lay 352
He spyit, and slely gert assay
Quhar of the dik the schawdest was;
Till at the last he fand a place
That men mycht to thair schulderis waid. 356
And quhen he that place fundyn had,
He gert his menyhe busk ilkane,
Quhen sex woukis of the sege wes gane.
Thai tursit thair harnas halely, 360
And left the sege all oppinly,
And furth with all his folk can fair,
As he wald do thar-to no mair.
[338: C has _Olifert_ (S), but _Olifard_ on record as in E.]
[359: C gives _owkis_ (S).]
Here he gets it with Jeopardy.
And thai that war within the toune, 364
Quhen thai to fair so saw him boune,
Thai schowtit hym and scornyng maid;