The Bruce
The way richt till his host in hy,
And left Schir Thomas manfully
Defendand with gret mycht the plas, 425
Quhill that he swa supprisit was,
That he wes tane throu herd fechting.
And tharfor syne, quhill his ending,
He wes renownyt for best of hand
Of a knycht wes in all Ingland. 430
For this ilk Schyr Raulf of Cobhame,
In all Ingland he had the name
For the best knycht of all the land;
And for Schir Thomas duelt fechtand
Quhar Schir Raulf, as befor saide we, 435
With-drew him, prisit our hym wes he.
[Linenote: 377, 393, 398, etc., E _the pass_.]
[391: E _mast hardy_.]
[396: E _four_. H _few_.]
[404: E _hamlyly_.]
[409: C _Arthyn_ (S), but see note.]
[399, 405, 425: E _the pass_. H as C.]
[410, 422: C _Coubane_: H _Cowbane_.]
The discomfiting of Englishmen
At Bylands Path into the glen.
Thus war thai fechtande in the plas;
And quhen the King Robert, that was
Wis in his deid and averty,
Saw his men ay swa douchtely 440
The peth apon thair fayis ta;
And saw his fais defend thame swa,
Than gert he all the Erischry
That war in-till his cumpany,
Of Argyle and the Ilis alsua, 445
Spede tham in hy on-to the bra:
He bad thame leiff the peth haly
And clym up in the craggis by,
And speid thame fast the hicht to ta.
And thai in gret hy has done swa, 450
And clymb allgait up to the hycht,
And leve nocht for thair fayis mycht.
Magre thair fayis, thai bar thaim swa,
That thai ar gottyn aboun the bra.
Than mycht men se thame ficht felly, 455
And rusche thair fais sturdely.
And thai that till the pass war gane,
Magre thair fais, the hycht has tane.
Than layd thai on with all thar mycht:
Thair mycht men se men felly ficht. 460
Ther wes ane perelus bargane:
For a knycht, hat Schir Johne Bretane,
That lichtit wes abovyn the bra,
With his men gret defens can ma.
And Scottis men sa can assaill, 465
That gaf thame so felloune battale,
That thai war set in sic affray
That thai, that fle mycht, fled away.
Schir Johne of Bretane thar wes tane,
And richt feill of his folk war slane. 470
Of Frans thar tane wes knychtis twa;
The lord of Souly wes ane of tha,
The tothir wes the marschall Bretane,
That wes a weill gret lord at hame.
The laiff sum deid and sum war tane, 475
The remanand thai fled ilkane.
[439: C _ek verty_ (S).]
[450: E _Than mycht men see thaim stoutly ga_. H like C.]
[451-454: not in C but in E H.]
[451: H _clamb_ (S).]
[452: H _left_ (S).]
[Sidenote: OCT. 21, 1322] _The King of England flies_]
And quhen the King of Ingland,
That yheit at Biland wes liand,
Saw his men discumfyt planly,
He tuk his way in full gret hy, 480
And southwardis fled with all his mycht.
The Scottis men chast hym herd, I hycht,
And in the chas has mony tane.
The king quytly away is gane,
And the mast part of his menyhe. 485
Walter Stewart, that gret bounte
Set ay on hye chevelry,
With fyve hundreth in cumpany,
Till Yorkis yhettis chas can ma,
And thair sum of thair men can sla, 490
And abaid thair quhill neir the nycht,
To se gif ony wald ysche to ficht.
And quhen he saw nane wald cum out,
He turnyt agane with all his rout,
And till the host is went in hy, 495
That than tane had thair herbery
In-till the abbay of Biland
And Riveus that wes by neir hand.
Thai delt emang thame that war ther
The King of Inglandis ger, 500
That he had levit in-to Biland;
All gert thai lepe out our thar hand,
And maid thame all glaid and ek mery.
And quhen the King had tane herbery,
That broucht till him the presoneris 505
All unarmyt, as it efferis;
And quhen he saw Johne of Bretane
He had at hym richt gret disdeyne;
For he wount wes to spek hely
At hayme, and our dispitfully; 510
And bad haf him away in hy,
And luk he kepit war stratly,
And said, “War it nocht that he war
“Sic a catiff, he sulde by sair
“His wourdis that war sa angry;” 515
And mekly he hym cryit mercy.
Thai led him furth, forouten mair,
And kepit hym weill ay quhill thai war
Cummyn hame to their awne cuntre.
Lang eftir syne ransonyt wes he 520
For tuenty thousand pund to pay,
As I haf herd mony men say.
[498: E _Ryfuowis_.]
[Sidenote: OCT., 1322] _The Scots return with much Plunder_]
Qwhen that the King this spek had maid,
The Franche knychtis, that tane men had,
Wes broucht richt thar byfor the King; 525
And he maid thame fair welcummyng,
And said; “I wat richt weill that yhe,
“For yhour gret worschip and bounte
“Com for till se the fichting heir.
“For sen yhe in the cuntre war, 530
“Yhour strinth, yhour worschip, and yhour mycht
“Wald nocht thoill yhow escheve the ficht.
“And sen that caus yhow led thar-till,
“And nouthir wreth na evil will,
“As frendis yhe sall resavit be, 535
“Quhar welcum heir all tym be yhe.”
Thai knelit, and thankit him gretly,
And he gert tret thame curtasly;
And lang quhill with him thaim had he,
And did thaim honour and bounte. 540
And quhen thai yharnyt to thair land,
To the King of Fraunce in presand
He sent thaim quit, but ransoun fre,
And gret gyftis to thaim gaff he.
His frendis thusgat curtasly 545
He couth ressave, and hamely,
And his fais stoutly to-stonay.
At Biland all that nycht he lay.
For thair victor all blith thai war.
And on the morn, forouten mair, 550
Thai haff furthwarde tane thair way.
So fer at that tyme travalit thai,
Byrnand, slayand, and distroyand,
Thair fayis with thair mycht noyand,
Quhill to the Wald cummyn war thai. 555
Syne northwarde tuk thai hame thar way;
And distroyit, in thair repair,
The vale haly of Beauvare.
And syne with presoners and catele,
Riches, and mony fair jowele, 560
Till Scotland tuk thai hame thar way,
Blith and glad, joyfull and gay.
And ilk-man went to thair repair,
And lovit God thame fell so fair,
That thai the King of Ingland, 565
Throu worschip and throu strinth of hand,
And throu thair lordis gret bounte,
Discumfit in his awne cuntre.
[536: C _yhe be_ (S). Buss considers E better here (_Anglia_ ix. 511).]
[537: For next line C has--_Of the grace he thame did suthly_ (S). But
this gives a triple rhyme, which is not Barbour-like; and C, in any
case, is defective here, giving but one line between 538 and 547 for
the eight found in E and H.]
BOOK XIX.
How the Lord Soulis thought through Treason with his Accomplices to
have put down Good King Robert the Bruce, and how he was warned by a
Lady.
[Sidenote: AUG., 1320] _The Conspiracy against King Robert_]
Than wes the land a quhile in pes;
Bot covatis, that can nocht ces
Till set men apon felony,
Till ger thame cum till senyhory,
Gert lordis of full gret renoune 5
Mak a fell conjuracioune
Agane Robert, the douchty King;
Thai thoucht till bring him till ending,
And for till bruke, eftir his dede,
The kynrik, and ryng in his sted. 10
The lord of Sowlis, Schir Wilyhame,
Of that purchas had mast defame;
For principall tharoff wes he,
Bath of assent and cruelte.
He had gert be with him syndri: 15
Gilbert Male-herbe, Johne of Logy,
Thir war the knychtis I tell of heir,
And Richard Broune als, a squyeir;
And gud Schir David the Brechyne
Wes of this deid arettit syne, 20
As I sall tell yhow forthirmair.
Bot thai ilkane discoverit war
Throu ane lady, as I herd say,
Or till thair purpos cum mycht thai.
For scho tald haly to the King 25
Thair purpos and thair ordanyng,
And how that he suld haf beyn ded,
And Sowlis ryng in-till his sted;
And tald him werray takynnyng
That this purches wes suthfast thing. 30
And quhen the King wist it wes swa,
Sa sutell purchas can he ma,
That he gert tak thame evirilkane.
And quhar the lord Sowlis wes tane,
Thre hundreth and sexte had he 35
Of squyeris, cled in his liverye,
At that tyme in his cumpany,
Outane knychtis that war joly.
In-to Berwik than takyn wes he;
Than mycht men all his menyhe se 40
Sary and wa; for, suth to say,
The king leit thame all pass thar way;
And held thame that he takyn had.
The lord Sowlis syne eftir maid
Playn granting of all that purchas. 45
A parliament tharfor set thar was,
And thiddir broucht thir menyhe war.
The lord Sowlis has grantit thar
The deid in-to plane parliament.
Thar soyn eftir he wes sent 50
Till his penans till Dumbertane,
And deit in that tour of stane.
[1: C _Thus_ (S).]
[16: C _Mayle-Erle_ (S), but see note.]
[Sidenote: 1320] _Umfraville returns to England_]
Schir Gilbert Maleherbe, and Logy,
And Richard Broune, thir thre planly
War with ane assis than ourtane. 55
Tharfor thai drawin war ilkane,
And hyngit and hedit als thar-to,
As men had demyt thame till do.
And gud Schir David the Brechyne
Thai gert challans richt stratly syne; 60
And he grantit that of that thing
Wes maid till hym discoveryng,
Bot he thar-till gaf na consent.
And for he helit thair entent
And discoverit it nocht to the King, 65
That he held of all his halding,
And had maid till him his fewte,
Jugit to hang and draw wes he.
And as thai drew him for to hyng,
The pepill ferly fast gan thring, 70
Him and his myscheiff for to se,
That to behald wes gret pite.
Schir Ingerame Umphravell, that than
Wes with the King as Scottis man,
Quhen he that gret mischeif can se, 75
“Lordis,” he said, “quhar-to press yhe?
“To se at myscheiff sic a knycht,
“That wes so worthy and so wicht,
“That I haf seyn ma pres to se
“Him for his richt soverane bounte, 80
“Than now dois for till se him heir!”
And quhen thir wordis spoken weir,
With sary cher he held him still
Quhill men had done of him thar will.
Syne, with the leiff of the King, 85
He broucht him menskfully till erding.
And syne to the King thus said he;
“A thing, pray I yhow, grant to me;
“That is, that yhe of all my land,
“That in-to Scotland is lyand, 90
“Wald gif me leiff till do my will.”
The King than soyne has said him till,
‘I will weill graunt that it swa be;
‘Bot tell me quhat anoyis the?’
He said agane, “Grant me mercy, 95
“And I sall tell yhow it planly.
“Myne hert giffis me no mor to be
“With yhow duelland in this cuntre.
“Tharfor, bot at it nocht yhow greiff,
“I pray yhow hertly of yhour leiff. 100
“For quhar sa richt worthy a knycht,
“And sa chevelrus and sa wicht,