The Bruce
term--_shuddered_.]
BOOK XVI.
Here passed in Ireland the noble King
To his brother with great gathering.
Quhen Schir Edward, as I tald air,
Had discumfit Richard of Clair,
And of Irland all the barnage
Thris, throu his worthy vassalage,
And syne with all his men of mayne 5
Till Cragfergus wes cummyn agayn,
The gud Erll of Murreff, Thomas,
Tuk leiff in Scotland for till pas.
And he hym levit with a gruching,
And syne him chargit to the King, 10
Till pray him specialy that he
Suld cum in Irland him to se.
For, war thai bath in-to that land,
Thai suld fynd nane suld thaim withstand.
The Erll furth than his way has tane, 15
And till his schippes is he gane,
And salit out weill our the se,
In Scotland soyne arivit he.
Syne to the king he went in hy:
And he resavit hym gladsumly; 20
And sperit of his brotheris fair,
And of journeis that he had thair;
And he him tald all but lesyng.
Quhen the King had left spering,
His charge to the gud king tald he. 25
And he said, he wald blithly se
His brothir, and als all the effeire
Of that cuntre and of thar were.
A gret menyhe than gaderit he:
And twa lordis of gret bounte, 30
The tane the Steward Walter was,
The tothir, James of Dowglas,
Wardanis in his absens maid he,
For till manteym weill the cuntre.
Syne to the se he tuk his way; 35
And at Lowchryan in Galloway
He schippit, with all his menyhe;
Till Cragfergus soyne cummyn is he.
Schir Edward of his com wes blith,
And went down for to meit him swith, 40
And welcummyt him with gladsum cher:
Sa did he all that with him wer;
And specialy the Erll Thomas
Of Murreff, that his nevo was.
Syne to the castell went thai thar, 45
And maid thame mekill fest and far.
Thai sojournyt thair dayis thre
In gret myrth and in rialte.
[16: E _shipping_.]
[46: C _He maid_ (S). E H _And maid_.]
[47, 52: C _sudjornyt_ (S).]
[48: E _And that in myrth and jolyte_. H _royaltie_.]
How King Robert the Bruce passed in Ireland with his
brother Edward.
[Sidenote: 1316] _The Month of May_]
King Robert, apon thiskyn wis,
In-till Irland arivit is: 50
And quhen in Cragfergus had he
With his men sojournyt dais thre,
Thai tuk to consell that thai wald,
With all thar folk, thar wayis hald
Throu all Irland, fra end to othir. 55
Schir Edward than, the Kingis brothir,
Befor in the avaward raid;
The Kyng him-self the reirward maid,
That had in-till his cumpany
The Erll Thomas, that wes worthy. 60
Thair wayis furthwarde haf thai tane,
And soyne are passit Inderwillane.
This wes in the moneth of May,
Quhen byrdis syngis on the spray;
Melland thair notys with sydry sowne, 65
For softnes of that sweit sesoune;
And levis on the branchis spredis,
And blomys bricht besyd thame bredis
And feldis florist ar with flowris
Well savourit, of seir colowris; 70
And all thing worthis blith and gay;
Quhen that this gud king tuk his way
To ryd furthward, as I said are.
The wardane than, Richard of Clare,
Wist the Kyng wes arivit swa, 75
And wist that he schupe for till ta
His way toward the south cuntre.
Of all Irland assemblit he
Bath burges and chevalry
And hobilleris and yhumanry; 80
Quhill he had neir fourty thousand.
Both he wald nocht yheit tak on hand
With all his fayis in field to ficht,
But umbethoucht him of a slicht;
That he with all that gret menyhe 85
Wald in a wode enbuschit be,
And prevely besyde the way,
Quhar at thar fayis suld pas away,
And let the vaward pas fer by,
And syne assemmyll hardely 90
On the reirward, with all thar men.
Thai did as thai devisit then.
In a wode thai enbuschit wer:
The Scottis hoost raid by thame nere;
For thai na schawing of thame maid. 95
Schir Edward weill fer forrouth raid
With thame that war of his menyhe;
To the reirward na tent tuk he.
[61: E _southwart_. H _fordward_.]
[64: E _in ilk spray_. H _on ilk_.]
[65: E H _seymly_.]
[69: E _ar strowyt_. H _strowed ar_.]
[70: E _saverand_. H _savouring_.]
[73: E _southwart_. H _southward_.]
[79, 80: C gives--
_Till him a full gret chevelry
Of squyaris, burges and yhemanry_ (S).
But burgesses and yeomanry would not be _chevelry_, and H agrees
with E.]
And Schir Richard of Clare in hy,
Quhen Schir Edward wes passit by, 100
Send wicht yhomen, that weill couth schut,
To bikkir the reirward apon fut.
Than twa of thame that send furth war
At the wode-syde thame bykkirrit thar,
And schot emang the Scottis men. 105
The King, that had thar with him then
Five thousand wicht and ek hardy,
Saw thai twa sa abaundonly
Schut emang thaim, and cum so neir;
He wist richt weill, withouten weir, 110
That thai weill neir suppowal had.
Tharfor a bydding has he mad,
That no man suld be so hardy
Till prik till thame, but sarraly
Ryde reddy ay in-till battale, 115
Till defend gif men wald assale.
“For we sall soyne, I undirta,”
He said, “haf for till do with ma.”
[Sidenote: 1317] _Bruce strikes Sir Colin Campbell_]
Bot Schir Colyne Cammell, that ner
Wes by quhar thai twa yhomen wer, 120
Schutand emang thame hardely,
Prikit on thame in full gret hy,
And soyne the tane he has our-tane,
And with his sper him soyne has slayne.
The tothir turnyt and schot agayne, 125
And at a schot his hors has slayne.
With that the King come hastely,
And, in his gret malancoly,
With ane trunsione in-till his nave
To Schir Colyne sic dusche he gave, 130
That he dynnyt on his arsoune.
The King bad smertly tyt hym doune,
Bot othir lordis, that war him by,
Ameyssyt the King in sum party.
He said, “The breking of bydding 135
“Micht caus be of discomfiting.
“Weyn yhe yhon rebaldis durst assale
“Us so neir, in-till our battale,
“Bot gif thai had suppowale neir?
“I wat richt weill, forouten weir, 140
“That we sall have till do in hy;
“Tharfor luk ilk man be reddy.”
With that weill neir thretty and ma
Of bowmen com, and bykkyrrit swa
That thai hurt of the Kyngis men. 145
The King has gert his archeris then
Schute for till put thaim than agayne.
With that thai enterit in ane playne,
And saw arayit agane thame stand,
In four battellis, fourty thousand. 150
[134: C _Avisit_ (S). H _Hes meased_.]
[Sidenote: 1317] _Success of the Scots_]
The king said, “Now, lordingis, lat se
“Quha worthy in this ficht sall be.
“On thame forouten mair abaid!”
So stoutly than on thame thai raid,
And assemblit so hardely 155
That of thair fayis a gret party
War laid at erd at thar meting.
Thar wes of speris sic bristing,
As athir apon othir raid,
That it a weill gret frusche has maid. 160
Hors com thair fruschand, hed for hed,
Swa that feill on the grund fell ded.
Mony a wycht and worthy man,
As athir apon othir ran,
War duschit ded doune to the ground; 165
The rede blude out of mony a wound
Ruschit in sa gret fusioune than,
That of the blude the stremes ran.
And thai, that wrath war and angry,
Dang on othir so hardely, 170
With wapnys that war bricht and bar,
That mony a wicht man ded wes thar.
For thai that hardy war and wicht,
And frontly with thar fayis can ficht,
Pressit thame formast for till be. 175
Thair mycht men cruell bargane se,
And hard battall, I tak on hand.
In all the weir of Irland
So hard ane fichting wes nocht seyne:
The-quhethir of gret victoris nynteyne 180
Schir Edward had, withouten wer,
In-till les than in-to thre yheir;
And in syndry battelis off thai
He vencust twenty thousand and ma,
With trappit hors richt to the feit. 185
Bot in all tymis he wes yheit
Ay ane for fyve, quhen lest wes he,
Bot the Kyng, in-to this melle,
Had allwayis aucht of his famen
For ane, bot he swa bar him then, 190
That his gud deid and his bounte
Confortit swa all his menyhe,
That the mast coward hardy wes.
For, quhar he saw the thykkest pres,
So hardely on thame he raid, 195
That ay about hym rowme he maid.
And Erll Thomas, the worthy,
Wes in all tymis neir hym by,
And faucht as he war in a rage;
Swa that, throu thar gret vassalage, 200
Thar men sic hardyment can tak,
That thai no perell wald forsak;
Bot thame abaundonyt so stoutly,
And dang on thame so hardely,
That all thair fayis afrayit war. 205
And thai, that saw weill, be thair fair,
That thai eschewit sumdeill the ficht,
Thai dang on thame with all thar mycht,
And pressit thame dyngand so fast, *209
*That thai the bak gaf at the last,
*And thai, that saw thaim tak the flicht,
Pressit thame than with all thar mycht, *212
And in thair fleying feill can sla.
The Kingis men has chasit swa, 210
That thai war scalit evirilkane.
Richard of Clare the way has tane
To Devillyng, in full gret hy,
With othir lordis that fled him by,
And warnyst bath castell and townys 215
That war in thair possessiownis.
[177: C _I undirstand_ (S). E H _tak on hand_.]
[178: C _In-til_ (S). S also inserts _all_, which C omits here, but
inserts before _Irland_, which it gives as _Ingland_. C is clearly
defective.]
[*197, *198:
_That he slew all he might ourtak
And rudely rushed them abak._--In H only.]
[184: E _xxx_. H _twentie_.]
[206: C _by thair_ (S).]
[*209-*212: In C H, not in E; owing to occurrence of two _mychts_.]
Thai war so felly fleyit thar,
That, as I trow, Richard of Clar
Sall haf no will to faynd hys mycht
In battell, na in fors of fycht, 220
Quhill King Robert and his menyhe
Is duelland in-to that cuntre.
Thai stuffit strynthis on this wis;
And the King, that wes sa till pris,
Saw in the feild richt mony slayn. 225
And ane of thame that thar wes tane,
That wes arayit jolely,
He saw greit wondir tendirly,
And askit him quhy he maid sic cher:
He said him, “Schir, forouten wer, 230
“It is no wonder thouch I grete,
“I se feill heir fellit to fete,
“The flour of all north Irland,
“That hardyest wes of hert and hand,
“And mast doutit in hard assay.” 235
The King said, ‘Thou has wrang, perfay;
‘Thou has mair caus myrthis till ma,
‘For thou the ded eschapit swa.’
[229: C _He askit_ (S).]
[232: E _lossyt the suet_. H _slain at my feete_.]
[Sidenote: 1317] _The King and the Laundress_]
Rychard of Clare on this maner,
And all his folk, discumfit wer, 240