The Bruce
[Sidenote: 1315] _Thomas of Dun rescues the Scots_]
This fals tratour his men had maid,
A litell owth quhar he herbryit hade
Schir Edward and the Scottis men,
The ysche of a louch to den;
And leit it out in-to the nycht. 355
The wattir than, with sic a mycht,
On Schir Edwardis men come doune,
That thai in perell war till droune;
For, or thai wist, on flot war thai;
With mekill payne thai gat away, 360
And held thar livis, as God gaf gras,
Bot of thair harnes tynt ther was.
He maid thame na gud fest, perfay,
And nocht-for-thi yneuch had thai.
For thouch thame failit of the met, 365
I warne yhow weill thai war weill wet.
In gret distres thair war thai stad,
For gret defalt of mete thai had;
For thai betuix thai riveris tway
War set, and mycht pas nane of thai. 370
The Bane, that is ane arme of se,
That with hors may nocht passit be,
Wes betuix thame and Ullister.
Thai had beyn in grett perell ther,
Ne war ane scummar of the se, 375
Thomas of Dun hattyn wes he,
Herd that the host so stratly than
Wes stad, and salyt up the Ban,
Quhill he com weill neir quhar thai lay.
Thai knew him weill, and blith war thai. 380
Than, with four schippes that he had tane,
He set thame our the Ban ilkane.
And quhen thai come in biggit land,
Vittale and mete yneuch thai fand:
And in a wode thame herbryit thai. 385
Nane of the land wist quhar thai lay;
Thai esyt thame and maid gud cher.
[354: H _to dem_.]
[376: E _Downe_. H _Dun_.]
In-till that tyme, besyde thame ner,
With a gret host, Richarde of Clar,
And othir gret of Irlande, war 390
Herbryit in-till a forest syde.
And ilke day thai gert men ryde
To bring vittalis, on ser maneris,
Till thame fra the toune of Coigneris,
That weill ten gret myle wes thaim fra. 395
Ilk day, as thai wald cum and ga,
Thai come the Scottis host so ner,
That bot twa myle betuix thaim wer.
How Sir Thomas of Randell
Won from the Irish their Vittell.
And quhen Erll Thomas had persaving
Of thair come and thair gaderyng, 400
He gat him a gud cumpany,
Thre hundreth on hors, wycht and hardy.
Thar wes Schir Philip the Mowbray,
And Sir Johne Stewart als, perfay,
With Schir Alane Stewart alsua, 405
Schir Robert Boyde, and other ma.
Thai raid till meit the vittelleris,
That with ther vittale fra Coigneris
Com, haldand to the host the way.
So suddanly on thame schot thai, 410
That thai war sa abaysit all,
That thai leit all thair wapnys fall,
And mercy pitwysly can cry.
And thai tuk thame in thair mercy,
And has thame up so clenly tane, 415
That of thame all eschapit nane.
[406: E H _Robert_. C _Gilbert_.]
The Erll of thame gat wittering
That of thair host, in the evynnyng,
Wald cum out at the woddis syde
And aganis thair vittale ryde. 420
He thoucht than on a juperdy,
And gert his menyhe halely
Dicht thame in the presoners aray;
Thair pennownys als with thame tuk thai.
And quhill the nycht wes neir thai baid, 425
And syne toward the host thai raid.
Sum of thair mekill host has seyne
Thair come, and wende weill thai had beyne
Thair vittelouris; tharfor thai raid
Agane thame scalit, for thai hade 430
Na dreid that thai thair fayis wer;
And thame hungerit alsua weill sair;
Tharfor thai come abandonly.
And quhen thai neir war, in gret hy
The Erll, and all that with him war, 435
Ruschit on thame with wapnys bar,
And thair ensenyheis hye can cry;
Than thai, that saw so sudandly
Thair fayis dyng on thame, wes rad,
That thai no hert till help thame had; 440
Bot to thar host the way can ta;
And thai chasit, and feill can sla,
That all the feldis strowit war;
Ma than ane thowsand ded wes thar.
Rycht to thar hoost thai can thame chass, 445
And syne agane thair wayis tais.
[Sidenote: 1315] _Irish Spies are captured_]
On this wiss wes the vittal tane,
And of the Erysche men mony slane.
The Erll syne, with his cumpany,
Presoners and vittalis halely 450
Has brocht till Schir Edward als swith;
And he wes of thair cummyng blith.
That nycht thai maid thame merye cher;
Richt all than at thair eis thai wer.
Thai war all wachit sekyrly, 455
And thair fais, on the tothir party,
Quhen thai herd how thar men was slane,
And how thar vittal all wes tane,
Thai tuk to consell at thai wald
Thair wayis towart Coigneris hald, 460
And herbry in the cite ta.
And in gret hye thai have done swa;
And raid on nycht to the cite.
Thai fand thair vittale of gret plente,
And maid thame merely gud cher; 465
For all trast in the toune thai wer.
Apon the morn thai send to spy
Quhar Scottis men had tane herbery.
Bot thai war met with all, and tane,
And brocht richt till the hoost agane. 470
The Erll of Murreff richt mekly
Sperit at ane of thar cumpany,
Quhar thar host wes, and quhat thai thoucht
Till do; and said him, gif he moucht
Fynd that till hym the suth said he, 475
He suld gang hame but ransoune fre.
“Forsuth,” he said, “I sall yhow say,
“Thai thynk, the morn, quhen it is day,
“To seik yhow with all thair menyhe,
“Giff thai may get wit quhar yhe be. 480
“Thai haf gert throu the cuntre cry,
“On payne of liff, full felounly,
“That all the men of this cuntre
“This nycht in-to the cite be.
“And trewly thai sall be so feill, 485
“That yhe sall no wis with thame deill.”
‘De pardew,’ said he, ‘weill may be!’
To Schir Edward with that yheid he,
And tald hym utrely this taill.
Than haf thai tane for consell haill, 490
That thai wald ryde to the cite
That ilk nycht, swa that thai mycht be
Betuix the toune, with all thar rout,
And thame that war the toune without.
[478: E _to-morn_.]
[Sidenote: 1315] _A Great Gathering against the Scots_]
As thai devisit swa have thai done; 495
Befor the toune thai come alsoyne:
And bot half deill a myle of way
Fra the cite, thar rest tuk thai.
And quhen the day wes dawin licht,
Fifty on hobynis, that war wicht, 500
Com till a litill hill, that was
Bot fra the toune a litill spas,
And saw Schir Edwardis herbery,
And of the sicht had gret ferly,
That sa quheyn durst on ony wis 505
Undertak sa hye empris,
As for till cum sa hardely
Apon all the gret chevelry
Of Irland, for till byde battale.
And swa it wes, forouten fale; 510
For agane thame war gaderit thair,
With the wardane Richard of Clar,
The Butler, with the Erllis twa,
Of Desmund and Kildar war tha,
Bruman, Wardun, and Fiz-Waryn; 515
And Schir Pascalle a Florentyn,
That wes ane knycht of Lumbardy,
And wes full of gret chevelry.
The Maundvilis war thar alsua,
Besatis, Loganys, and othir ma; 520
Savagis als; and yheit wes ane,
Hat Schir Nycholl of Kylkenane.
And with thir lordis so feill wes then,
That, for ane of the Scottis men,
I trow that thai war fiff or ma. 525
Quhen thair discurrowris seyne has swa
The Scottis host, thai went in hy
And tald thair lordis all opynly,
How thai till thaim wer cummand ner;
To seik thame fer wes na myster. 530
And quhen the Erll Thomas had seyne
That thai men at the hill had beyne,
He tuk with him a gude menyhe,
On hors ane hundreth thai mycht be,
And till the hill thai tuk the way. 535
In a slak thame enbuschit thai:
And, in schort tyme, fra the cite
Thai saw cum rydand a menyhe,
For till discovir, to the hill.
Than war thai blith, and held thame still 540
Quhill thai war cummyn to thame ner;
Than in a frusche, all that thar wer,
Thai schot apon thame hardely.
And thai that saw so suddandly
That folk cum on, abaysit war. 545
And nocht-for-thi sum of thame thar
Abaid stoutly to mak debat;
And othir sum ar fled thar gat.
And in-to weill schort tyme war thai,
That maid arest, cumrayit swa, 550
That thai fled halely thair gat;
And thai thame chassit richt to the yhate,
And a gret part of thame has slane,
And syne went till thar host agane.
[501: C _that wes_ (S).]
[515: C _Syr Waryn_; but _cf._ xv., 75.]
[522: C _Kyllvanane_ (S); but see note.]
BOOK XV.
The fourth battle in Ireland
That Sir Edward won with strong hand.
Qwhen thai within has seyn swa slane
Thair men, and chassit hame agane,
Thai war all wa, and in gret hy
“Till armys!” hely can thai cry.
Than armyt thame all at thar war, 5
And for the battale maid thame yhar.
Thai yschit out, all weill arayit,
In battale with baneris displayit;
Bowne on thar best wis till assale
Thair fayis in-to fell battale. 10
And quhen Schir Philip the Mowbray
Saw thame ysche in sa gud aray,
Till Schir Edward the Brus went he
And said, “Schir, it is gude that we
“Schape for sum slicht that may availl 15
“Till help us in this gret battaill.
“Our men ar quheyn, bot thai haf will
“Till do mair than thai may fullfill.
“Tharfor I rede, our caryage,
“Forouten ony man or page, 20
“By thame-selvyne arayit be;
“And thai sall seyme fer ma than we.
“Set we before thame our baneris;
“Yhon folk that cummys out of Coigneris,
“Quhen thai our baneris thair may se, 25
“Sall trow trastly that thair ar we,
“And thidder in gret hy sall ryde.
“Cum we than on thame at a syde,
“And we sall be at avantage;
“For, fra thai in our caryage 30
“Be enterit, thai sall cummyrrit be;
“And than with all our mycht may we
“Lay on, and do all that we may.”
All as he ordanit done haf thai.
And thai that com out of Coigneris 35
Adressit thame to the baneris;
And smat with spures the hors in hy,
Ruschand emang thame sodanly.
The barell-ferraris that war thar
Cumrayd thame fast that rydand war. 40
[34: C _And_ (S).]
[Sidenote: SEPT. 1315] _Battle of Connor_]
And than the Erll, with his battale,
Com on, and sadly can assale.
And Schir Edward, a litill by,
Assemblit swa richt hardely,
That mony fey fell under feit; 45
The felde wox soyne of blud all weit.
With so gret felony thar thai faucht,
And sic rowtis till othir raucht,
With stok, with stane, and with retrete,
As athir part can othir bet, 50
That it wes hidwys for to se
How thai mantemyt that gret melle
So knychtlik apon athir syde,
Giffand and takand woundis wyde,
That pryme wes passit, or men mycht se 55
Quha mast at thair abovin mycht be.
Bot soyne eftir that pryme wes past,
The Scottis men dang on so fast,
And schot on thame at abandoune,