The Bruce

by John Barbour

JUNE 23, 1314 The Scots determine to Fight

“For quhen thai of thair host sall heir,
“And knaw suthly on quhat maneir
“Thair avaward, that wes so stout,
“And syne yhon othir joly rout, 180
“That I trow of the best men war
“That thai mycht get emang thame thar,
“War reboytit so suddandly,
“I trow, and knawis it all cleirly,
“That mony ane hert sall waverand be 185
“That semyt ere of gret bounte.
“And fra the hert be discumfite,
“The body is nocht worth a myt.
“Thar-for I trow that gud ending
“Sall follow till our begynnyng. 190
“The-quhethir I say nocht this yhow till,
“For that yhe suld follow my will
“To ficht, for in yhow sall all be.
“For [gif yhe think] spedfull that we
“Fecht, we sall ficht; and gif yhe will, 195
“We leiff, yhour liking to fulfill.
“I shall consent on alkyn wis
“Till do richt as yhe will devis;
“Tharfor sais on yhour will planly.”
Than with ane voce all can thai cry; 200
‘Gud King, forouten mair delay,
‘To-morn als soyn as yhe se day,
‘Ordane yhow haill for the battale,
‘For dout of ded we sall nocht fale;
‘Na nane payn sall refusit be 205
‘Quhill we have maid our cuntre fre!’[†]

JUNE 23, 1314 Bruce’s Address to his Men

Qwhen the King herd thaim so manly
Spek to the ficht and hardely,
In hert gret gladschip can he ta,[†]
And said; “[Lordyngis], sen yhe will sa, 210
“Schapis us tharfor in the mornyng
“Swa that we, be the sonne-rysing, *212
“Haf herd mes, and be buskit weill
“Ilk man in-till his awne yscheill,[†]
“Without the palyhownys arayit 215
“In battales with baneris displayit.[†]
“And luk yhe na way brek aray;
“And, as yhe luf me, I yhow pray
“That ilk man for his awne honour
“Purvay hym a gud baneour. 220
“And quhen it cummys to the ficht,
“Ilk man set his hert and mycht
“To stynt our fais mekill pryd.
“On hors thai sall arayit ryd,
“And cum on yhow in weill gret hy; 225
“Meit thame with speris hardely,
“And wreik on thame the mekill ill
“That thai and tharis has done us till,
“And ar in will yheit for till do,
“Gif thai haf mycht till cum thar-to. 230
“And, certis, me think weill that we,
“Forout abasyng, aucht till be
“Worthy and of gret vassalage;
“For we have thre gret avantage.[†]
“The first is, that we haf the richt; 235
“And for the richt ay God will ficht.
“The tothir is, thai ar cummyn heir
“For lypnyng in thair gret power,
“To seik us in our awne land;
“And has broucht her, richt till our hand, 240
“Riches in-to so gret plentee,
“That the pouerest of yhow sall be
“Bath rych, and mychty thar-with-all,
“Gif that we wyn, as weill may fall.
“The thrid is, that we for our lyvis 245
“And for our childer and our wyvis,[†]
“And for the fredome of our land,
“Ar strenyheit in battale for to stand.
“And thai for thair mycht anerly,
“And for thai leit of us lichtly, 250
“And for thai wald distroy us all,
“Mais thame to ficht: bot yhet ma fall
“That thai sall rew thar barganyng.
“And, certis, I warne yhow of a thing,
“[That happyn thame (as God forbeid)].[†] 255
“Till fynd fantis in-till our deid,[†]
“Swa that thai wyn us opynly,
“Thai sall haf of us no mercy.
“And, sen we knaw thar felloune will,
“Me think it suld accorde till skill 260
“To set stoutnes agane felony,
“And mak swagat ane juperdy.
“Quharfor I yhow requeir and pray,
“That, with all mycht that evir yhe may,
“Yhe pres yhow at the begynnyng, 265
“But cowardis or abaysing,
“To meit thame that first sall assemmyll
“So stoutly that the henmast trymmyll.
“And menys on yhour gret manheid,
“Yhour worschip, and yhour douchty deid, 270
“And of the joy that yhe abyd,
“Giff that us fallis, as weill may tyd,
“Hap to vencus the gret battale.
“In-till yhour handis, forouten faill
“Yhe ber honour, pris, and riches, 275
“Fredome, welth, and gret blithnes,
“Gif yhe conteyn yhow manfully;
“And the contrar all halely
“Sall fall, gif yhe let cowardis
“And wikkidness yhour hertis surpris. 280
“Yhe mycht haf lifit in-to thrildome,
“Bot, for yhe yharnyt till haf fredome,
“Yhe ar assemblit heir with me;
“Tharfor is neidful that yhe be
“Worthy and wicht but abaysing. 285
“I warne yhow weill yheit of a thing,
“That mair myscheif may fall us nane
“Than in thair handis to be tane:
“For thai suld slay us, I wat weill,
“Richt as thai did [my brothir Neill]. 290
“Bot quhen I meyn of yhour stoutnes,
“And on the mony gret prowes
“That yhe have done so worthely,
“I trast and trowis sekirly
“Till have playne victor in this ficht. 295
“For thouch our fayis have mekill mycht,
“Thai haf the wrang, and succudry
“And covatis of senyhory
“Amovis thame forouten mor.
“Na us thar dreid thame bot befor; 300
“For strynth of this place, as yhe se,
“Sall let us [enveronyt] to be.
“And I pray yhow als specialy,
“Both mor and les all comonly,
“That nane of yhow for gredynes 305
“Haf e till tak of thair riches,
“Na presoners yheit for till ta,
“Quhill yhe se thame cumrayit swa,
“That the feld planly ouris be.
“And than, at yhour liking, may yhe 310
“Tak all the riches that thar is.
“Gif yhe will wirk apon this wis,
“Yhe sall haf victor sekirly.
“I wat nocht quhat mar say sall I;
“Yhe wat weill all quhat honour is, 315
“Conteyn yhow tharfor on sic wis
“That yhour honour ay savit be.
“And I hecht heir, in my lawte,
“Gif ony deis in this battaill,
“His air, but ward, releif, or taill, 320
“On the first day his land sall weild,
“All be he nevir so yhoung of eild.
“Now makis yhow reddy till the ficht.
“God help us, that is mast of mycht!
“I red armyt all nycht yhe be, 325
“Purvait in battale, sa that we
“To meit our fais ay be boune.”
Than ansuerd thai all with a sowne,
‘As yhe devis sa sall be done.’
Than till thair innys went thai soyne, 330
And ordanit thame for the fichting;
Syne assemblit in the evynnyng,
And swa-gat all the nycht baid thai
Till on the morn that it wes day.

JUNE 23, 1314 The English are Discouraged

Qwhen the Cliffurd, as I sayd air, 335
And all his rowt reboytit war,
And thar gret vaward alsua
Wes distrenyheit the bak till ta,
And thai haf tald thair reboyting,
Thai of the vaward, how the King 340
Slew at a strak, sa apertly,
A knycht that wycht wes and hardy;[†]
And how all haill the Kyngis battaill
Schupe thame richt stoutly till assaill,
And Schir Edward the Brus alsua, 345
Quhen thai all haill the bak can ta:
And how thai lessit off thair men:
And Cliffurd had tald alsua then,
How Thomas Randall tuk the playne
With few folk, and how he has slayne 350
Schir Wilyhame Dancort the worthy;
And how the Erll faucht manfully,
That, as ane hyrcheoune, all his rout
Gert set out speris all about;
And how at thai war put agane, 355
And part of thair gud men wes slane:
[The Inglis men sic abaysing]
Tuk, and sik dreid of that tithing,
That in fyve hundreth placis and ma
Men mycht thame sammyn se rownand ga, 360
Sayand; “Our lordis, for thar mycht,
“Will all-gat ficht agane the richt.
“Bot quha sa warrayis wrangwisly,
“Thai faynd God all too gretumly,
“And thai may happin to mysfall; 365
“And sa may tyd that her we sall.”
And quhen thir lordis had persaving
Of the discomford, and the rownyng,
That thai held sammyn twa and twa,
Throu-out the hoost soyne gert thai ga 370
Heraldis, for till mak ane crye,[†]
That nane discomford suld it be;
For in punyheis is oft hapnyne
Quhill for to wyne, and quhill to tyne;
And that, in-to the gret battale, 375
That apon na maner may fale;
Bot, gif the Scottis flee away,
Sall all amendit be, perfay.
Tharfor thai monyst thame to be
Of gret worschip and of bounte, 380
And stithly in the battale stand,
And tak amendis at thair hand.
Thai may weill monyss as thai will,
And thai may als hecht till fulfill
With stalwart strakis thair byddingis all; 385
Bot nocht-for-thi I trow thai sall
In-till thair hertis dredande be.
The King, with his consell preve,
Has tane to rede that he wald nocht
Fecht or the morne, [bot he war socht]. 390

JUNE 24, 1314 The English encamp on the Carse

The Battle of Bannockburn.

The Scottis men, [quhen it wes day],
Thair mes devotly herd thai say,
Syne tuk a sop, and maid thame yhar.
And quhen thai all assemblit war, 410
And in thair battalis all purvait,
With thair braid baneris all displayit,
[Thai maid knychtis], as it afferis
To men that oysis thai mysteris.
The Kyng maid Walter Stewart knycht, 415
And James of Douglas, that wes wicht,
And othir als of gret bounte
He maid, ilkane in thair degre.
Quhen this wes done, that I yhou say,
Thai went all furth in gud aray, 420
And [tuk the playne] full apertly.
Mony wicht man, gud and hardy,
That wer fulfillit of gret bounte,
In-till thair rowtis men mycht se.
The Inglis men in othir party, 425
That [richt as angelis schane brichtly],
War nocht arayit on sic maner;
For all thair batalis sammyn wer
In ; bot quhethir it wes
Throu the gret stratnes of the plas 430
That thai war in, till byd fichting,[†]
Or that it wes for abaysing,
I wat nocht; bot in a schiltrum
It semyt thai war all and some,
Outane the vaward anerly, 435
That with ane richt gret cumpany
Be thame-selvin arayit war.
Quha had bene by mycht have sene thar[†]
That folk ourtak ane mekill feld
On breid; quhar mony a schynand scheld, 440
And mony a burnyst bricht armour,
And mony man of gret valour,
And mony a baner bricht and scheyne,
Micht in that gret schiltrum be seyne.

JUNE 24, 1314 The Scots kneel in Prayer