The Bruce

The Bruce 1306

BOOK 4

[24th June 1314] Lines 4.39-58:

The Queyn, and als dame Marjory,	The Queen (age 30)¹, and also Lady Marjory (age 18),
Hyr dochtyr that syne worthily	Her daughter who later worthily
Wes coupillyt in-to Goddis band	Was joined into God's bond
With Walter, Stewart off Scotland;	With Walter (age 18), Stewart of Scotland;
That wald on na wys langar ly	Who would not in any way longer stay
In the castell off Kyldromy,	In the castle of Kildrummy,
To byd a sege, ar ridin raith	To await a siege, but riding quickly
With knychtis and with squyeris bath,	With knights and with squires both,
Throw Ros, rycht to the gyrth off Tayne.	Through Ross, right to the girth of Tayne².
Bot that travaill thai maid in vayne;	But their efforts were in vain;
For thai off Ros, that wald nocht ber	For the men of Ross³, who would not bear
For thaim na blayme, na yheit danger,	Any blame or even danger for them,
Owt off the gyrth thame all has tayne;	Out of the girth, they all have been taken;
And syne has send thaim evirilkane	And then they have sent them all
Rycht in-till Ingland, to the King,	Right into England, to the King,
That gert draw all the men, and hing;	Who ordered all the men to be drawn and hanged;
And put the ladyis in presoune,	And put the ladies in prison⁴,
Sum in-till castell, sum in dongeoun.	Some in a castle, some in a dungeon.
It wes gret pite for till heir	It was a great pity to hear
Folk till be troublyt on this maneir.	People being troubled in this manner.

Note 1. dame Marjory. Bruce's daughter by his first wife, Isabel, daughter of Donald Earl of Mar. She afterwards married Walter, the High Steward (see Bk. XIII. 689).

Note 2. the gyrth of Tayne. The enclosure or "sanctuary" attached to the chapel of St. Duthac, at Tain, Ross-shire, a favourite place of pilgrimage with the Scottish kings, especially James IV. There was, however, no privilege of sanctuary for treason. William Earl of Ross was in the English interest, and on May 20, 1308, is the recipient of thanks from Edward II. "for faithful service to his father and himself" (Bain, iii., No. 43). Hemingburgh says "the new Queen" was taken in Kildrummy (ii. 249); Gray that Cristina Bruce was captured there, and the Queen and Nigel Bruce in Dunaverty (Scala., p. 131); Trivet agrees with the second statement, but obviously confuses (p. 410); according to Fordun the Queen was taken at Tain, and many ladies at "Kyndrumy" (Gesta Ann., cxx.).

Note 3. thai of Ros. Fordun says the Queen was seized at St. Duthac's by the Earl of Ross (Gesta Ann., cxx.).

Note 4. put the ladyis in presoune. On November 7, 1306, there are "further orders for the custody of the Countesses of Carrick (the Queen) and Buchan, Marie, and Christine, the sisters, and Margerie the daughter, of Robert de Bruce ... three of the ladies to be in 'kages.'" (Bain, ii., No. 1851). The Countess of Buchan, who had crowned Bruce, was to be placed in a cage of wooden bars and lattice in one of the turrets of Berwick Castle (Palgrave, p. 358; Scala., p. 131); Marie Bruce in a "kage" in Roxburgh (Palgrave, 359); Marjory in a "kage" in the Tower of London (359); Cristina (age 41) in ward in England (Palgrave, 359). The Queen was to be in custody at "Brustewik" (Palgrave p. 357); was removed thence by an order of June 22, 1308 (Bain, iii., No. 48). Marjory was in ward at Wattone in March, 1307 (Bain, ii., 1910). By 1311-1312 Maria de Brus is a prisoner in Newcastle (Bain, iii., 227, 340).

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BOOK 12

Lines 12.25-:

And quhen Glowcister and Herfurd wer,	And when Gloucester and Hereford were	25
With thair battalis, approchand ner,	With their battles, approached near,
Befor thame all thar com rydand,	Before them all there come riding
With helme on hed and sper in hand,	With helmet on head and spear in hand
Schir Henry of Boune, the worthy,	Sir Henry de Bohun, the worthy
That wes ane gud knycht and hardy,	That was a good knight and hardy,	30
And to the Erll of Herfurd cosyne,	And to the Earl of Hereford cousin,
Armyt in armys gude and fyne;	Armed in armies good and fine,
Com on a steid, a merk-schote neir	He came on a steed, a bowshot’s distance nearer
Before all othir that thair wer,	Than all the others who were there,
And knew the King, for that he saw	And recognized the King, because he saw	35
Hym swa araynge his men on raw,	Him so arranging his men in ranks.
And be the croun that wes set	And the crown that was set
Abovin his hed on the basnet;	Above his head upon the bascinet;
And toward him he went in hy.	And toward him he went in haste.
And quhen the Kyng so apertly40	And when the King so plainly	40
Saw hym cum forrouth all his feris,	Saw him come forward with all his strength,
In hy till hym his hors he steris;	In haste he turned his horse toward him;
And quhen Schir Henry saw the Kyng	And when Sir Henry saw the King
Cum on for-outen abaysyng,	Come on without any sign of fear,
Till him he raid in full gret hy.	He rode toward him at full speed.	45
He thoucht that he suld weill lichtly	He thought that he would very easily
Wyn him, and haf hym at his will,	Overcome him and have him at his will,
Sen he hym horsit saw so ill.	Since he saw him so poorly mounted.
Than sprent thai sammyn in-till a lyng;	Then they charged together into the field;
Schir Henry myssit the nobill Kyng;	Sir Henry missed the noble King;	50
And he, that in his sterapis stude,	And he, who stood firm in his stirrups,
With ax that wes bath hard and gude	With an axe that was both hard and good,
With so gret mayn roucht hym ane dynt,	With such great force struck him a blow
That nouthir hat no helm mycht stynt	That neither hat nor helmet could stop
The hevy dusche that he him gaf,	The heavy stroke that he gave him,	55
That he the hed till harnys claf.	So that he split his head down to the brains.
The hand-ax-schaft frushcit in twa,	The handle of the axe shattered in two,
The hand-ax-schaft frushcit in twa,	And he went down to the ground at once,
And he doune till the erd can ga	Falling flat, for his strength failed him;
All flatlyngis, for hym falyheit mycht;	This was the first blow of the fight,	60
This wes the first strak of the ficht	And it was carried out with great prowess.
That wes perfornyst douchtely.	And when the King’s men so boldly
And quhen the Kingis men so stoutly	Saw him, right at the first encounter,
Saw him, richt at the first metyng,	Without doubt or hesitation,
For-outen dout or abaysing,	Slay a knight with a single stroke,	65
Have slayn ane knycht swa at ane strak,	Such courage did they then take
Sic hardyment than can thai tak,	That they advanced straight on fiercely.
That thai com on richt hardely.	When the English men saw them boldly
Quhen Inglis men saw thame stoutly	Come on, they were greatly dismayed;
Cum on, thai had gret abaysyng;	And especially because the King	70
And specialy, for that the Kyng	Had so swiftly slain that good knight.
So smertly that gud knycht had slayne;	Then each and every one of them drew back,
Than thai with-drew thaim evir-ilkane,	And did not dare then to stand and fight,
And durst nocht than abyde to ficht,	So greatly did they fear the King’s might.

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