The Bruce

by John Barbour

The worthy Kyng, quhen he has seyn
His host assemblit all bedeyn, 265
And saw thame wilfull to fulfill
His liking, with gud hert and will;
And to maynteym weill thair franchis,
He wes rejosit on mony wis;
And callit all his consell preve, 270
And said thame; “Lordingis, now yhe se
“That Inglis men with mekill mycht
“Has all disponit thame for the ficht;
“For thai yhon castell wald reskew.
“Tharfor is gud we ordane now 275
“How we may let thame of purpos,
“And swa to thame [the wayis] clos
“That thai pas nocht but gret lettyng.
“We haf heir with us at byddyng
“Weill thretty thousand men and ma. 280
“Mak we four battalis of all thai;
“And ordane us on sic maner,
“That, quhen our fayis cummys neir,
“We till the New Park hald our way;
“For thair behufis thaim pas, perfay,[†] 285
“Bot gif that thai beneth us ga
“And our the marras pas, and swa[†]
“We sall be at avantage thair.
“For me think that richt speidfull war
“To gang on fut to this fechting, 290
“Armyt bot in-to [licht armyng];
“For schupe we us on hors to ficht,
“Syn our fayis ar mar of mycht,
“And bettir horsit than ar we,
“We suld in-to gret perell be. 295
“And gif we [fecht on fut], perfay,
“At avantage we sall be ay;
“For in the park emang the treis,
“The hors men alwais cummerit beis.
“And [the sykis] alswa thair doune, 300
“Sall put thame to confusioune.”

All thai consentit to that saw,
And than, in-till ane litill thraw,
Thair four battalis ordanit thai.
And to the Erll Thomas, perfay, 305
He gaf the vaward in leding;
For in his nobill governyng
And in his hye chevelry
Thai assoueryt rycht soveranly.[†]
And, for to maynteym his baner, 310
Lordis, that of gret worschip wer,
War assignit with thair menyhe,
In-till his battale for till be.
The tothir battale wes gevin to lede
Till hym that douchty wes of dede, 315
And prisit of gret chevelry,
That wes Schir Edward the worthy;
I trow he sall manteyme him swa
That, how sa evir the gammyn ga,
His fayis to plenyhe sall mater haf. 320
And syne the thrid battale he gaf
To Waltir Stewart for to leid,
And till Dowglas douchty of deid.
Thai war cosyngis in neir degre,
Tharfor till hym betaucht wes he, 325
For he wes yhoung; but nocht-for-thi[†]
I trow he sall sa manfully
Do his devour, and wirk so weill,
That hym sall neyd no mar yheymseill.
The ferd battalle the nobill Kyng 330
Tuk till hym-self in governyng,
And had in-till his cumpany
[The men of Carryk all halely],
And of Argile and of Kentyre,
And of the Ilis, quhar-off wes syre 335
Angus of Ile, and But, all tha.[†]
He of the playne-land had alsua
Of armyt men ane mekill rout;
His battale stalward wes and stout.
He said the rerward he wald ma, 340
And evyn forrouth hym suld ga
The vaward, and on athir hand
The tothir battalis suld be gangand
Behynd, on syde a litell space:
And the Kyng, that behynd thaim was, 345
Suld se quhar thair war mast mystir,
And relief thaim with his baneir.

How King Robert gart pots make
And cover them well, I undertake.

JUNE 21, 1314 The Scots march to the New Park

The King thus, that wes wicht and wis,
And richt worthy at all devis,
And hardy als atour all thing,[†] 350
Ordanit his men for the fechting.
And on the morn, on Settirday,
The King herd his discurrouris say
That Inglis men with mekill mycht
Had lyin at Edinburgh that nycht. 355
Tharfor, forouten mair delay,
He to the New Park held his way
With all that in his leding war,
And in the Park thame herbryit thar.
And in [ane playne feld, by the way], 360
Quhar he thoucht neid behufit away
The Inglis men, gif that thai wald
Throw the Park to the castell hald,
He gert men mony pottis ma,
Of a fut breid round, and all tha 365
War deip up till ane manis kne,
Swa thik, that thai mycht liknyt be
Till ane wax-cayme that beis mais.
All that nycht travaland he was;
Swa that, or day wes, he had maid 370
Thai pottis, and thame helit had
With stikis and with gyrs al greyne,
Swa that thai mycht nocht weill be seyne.

On Sonday than in the mornyng,
Weill soyn eftir the sonne-rising, 375
Thai herd the mes full reverently.[†]
And mony shraf thame devotly,
That thoucht till de in that melle,
Or than to mak thar cuntre fre.
To God for thair richt prayit thai. 380
Thair dynit nane of thame that day,
Bot, for the vigill of Sanct Johne,
Thai fastit bred and wattir ilkone.
The King, quhen that the mes wes done,
Went for to se the pottys soyne; 385
And at his liking saw thaim maid.
On athir syde the way weill braid
It wes pottit, as I haf tald.
Gif that thair fais on hors will hald
Furth in that way, I trow thai sall 390
Nocht weill eschew foroutyn fall.
Throu-out the host syne gert he cry
That all suld arme thame hastely,
And busk thame on thar best maner.
And quhen thai all essemblit wer, 395
He gert aray thame for the ficht,
And syne our all gert cry on hicht,
That quhat sa evir he war that fand
His hert nocht sekir for till stand
To wyn all or de with honour, 400
For to maynteyme that stalward stour,
That he be tyme suld tak his way;
And nane suld duell with him bot thai
That wald stand with him to the end,
And tak the ure that God wald send. 405
Then all ansuerd with a cry,
And with a voce said generaly;
That nane for dout of dede suld fale,
Quhill discumfit war the battale.

JUNE 23, 1314 The Camp-followers in a Valley

Qwhen the gud King had herd his men 410
Sa hardely him ansuer then,
Sayand that nouthir ded no dreid
Till sic discomfort suld thame leid,
That thai suld eschew the fechting,
In hert he had gret rejosyng. 415
For him thoucht men of sic covyne,
So gud so hardy and so fyne,
Suld weill in battall hald thair rycht
Agane men of full mekill mycht.
Syne all the small folk and pouerale 420
He send with harnase and vittale
In-till the Park, weill fer him fra,
And fra the battall gert thame ga;
And as he bad, thai went thair way;
Twenty thousand weill neir war thai. 425
Thair way thai held [till ane vale],
The King left with ane clene menyhe;
The-quhethir thai war thretty thowsand.
I trow they stalwardly sall stand,
And do thair devour as thai aw. 430
Thai stude than rangit all on raw,
Reddy for till byde battale,
Gif ony folk wald thame assale.

How the King bad the Earl Murray
To keep beside the Kirk the way.

The King gert thame all buskit be,
For he wist in-to certante 435
That his fayis all nycht lay
At [the Fawkirk], and syne at thai
Held toward him the way all straucht,
With mony men of mekill mawcht.
[Tharfor till his nevo bad he],[†] 440
The Erll of Murreff, with his menyhe,
Besyd the kirk till kepe the way,
That na man pass that gat away,[†]
For-out debat, to the castele.
And he said, that him-self suld wele 445
Kepe the entre with his battale,
Gif that ony wald thair assale.
And syne his brothir, Schir Edward,
And yhoung Waltir, the gud Steward,
And the lord Dowglas alsua, 450
With thair menyhe, gud tent suld ta,
Quhilk of thaim had of help mister,
And help with thame that with him weir.[†]