The Bruce

by John Barbour

And quhen the Kyng of Ingland 445
Saw Scottis men saw tak on hand
To tak the hard feild sa opynly,[†]
And [apon fut], he had ferly,
And said, “Quhat! will yhon Scottis ficht?”
‘Yhaa sekirly, Schir!’ than said a knycht, 450
Schir Ingerame the Umphrevell hat he,
And said, ‘Forsuth, Schir, now I se
‘All the mast ferlifull sycht
‘That evir I saw, quhen for to ficht
‘The Scottis men has tane on hand, 455
‘Agane the gret mycht of Ingland,
‘In plane hard feild to gif battale.
‘Bot and yhe will trow my consale,
‘Yhe sall discomfit thame lichtly.
‘Withdraws yhow hyne suddanly,[†] 460
‘With battalis, baneris and pennownys,
‘Quhill that we pas our palyheownys;
‘And yhe sall se als soyne at thai,
‘Magre thair lordis, sall brek aray,
‘And scale thame our harnes to ta. 465
‘And, quhen we se thame scalit swa,
‘Prik we than on thame hardely,
‘And we sall haf thame weill lichtly.
‘For than sall nane be knyt to ficht,
‘That may withstand our mekill mycht.’ 470
“I will nocht,” said the King, “perfay,
“Do sa: for ther sall no man say,
“That I suld eschewe the battale,[†]
“Na withdraw me for sic rangale.”
Quhen this wes said that er said I, 475
The Scottis men full devotly
[Knelyt all doune], till God to pray,
And a schort prayer thair maid thai
Till God, till help thame in that ficht.
And quhen the Inglis King had sicht 480
Of thame kneland, he said in hy—
“Yhon folk knelis till ask mercy.”
Schir Ingerame said; ‘Yhe say suth now;
‘Thai ask mercy, bot nocht at yhow:
‘For thair trespas to God thai cry. 485
‘I tell yhow a thing sekirly,
‘That yhon men will wyn all or de,
‘For [dout of ded] thar sall nane fle.’
“Now be it swa,” than said the Kyng.
And than, but langar delaying,[†] 490
Thai gert trump up to the assemble.
On athir syd than men mycht se
Full mony wycht men and worthy,
All ready till do chevelry.

Thus war thai boune on athir syde; 495
And Inglis men, with mekill prid,
That war in-till thar avaward,
Till the battall that [Schir Edward]
Governyt and led, held straucht thair way.
The hors with spuris hardnyt thai, 500
And prikit apon thame sturdely;
And thai met thame richt hardely:
Swa that, at the assemble thair,
Sic a [frusching of speris] wair
That fer away men mycht it her. 505
At thar metyng, for outen wer,
Wer stedis stekit mony ane;
Mony gud man borne doune and slane,
And mony ane hardyment douchtely
Wes thair eschevit full hardely. 510
Thai dang on othir with wapnys ser;
Sum of the hors, that stekit wer,
Ruschit and relit rycht roydly.
Bot the remanant, nocht-for-thi,
That mycht cum to the assembling, 515
For that lat maid rycht no stynting,
Bot assemblit full hardely.
And thai met thame full sturdely,
[With speris that wer scharp to scher],
And axis that weill grundyn wer, 520
Quhar-with wes roucht full mony rout.
The ficht wes thair so fell and stout,
That mony worthy men and wicht
Throu fors wes fellit in that ficht,
That had no mycht to rys agane. 525
The Scottis men fast can thame payne
Thair fais mekill mycht to rus.[†]
I trow thai sall no payne refus,
Na perell, quhill thar fais be
Set in-till herd proplexite. 530

JUNE 24, 1314 The Earl of Murray attacks

And quhen the Erll of Murref sa
Thair avaward saw stoutly ta
The way to Schir Edward all straucht,
That met thame with full mekill maucht.
[He held his way] with his baner 535
Till the gret rout, quhar sammyn wer
[The nyne battales] that wes so braid,
That so feill baneris with thame had,
And of men sa gret quantite,
That it war wonder for to se. 540
The gud Erll thiddir tuk the way
With his battale in gud aray,
And assemblit so hardely,
That men mycht her, that had beyn by,[†]
A gret frusche of the speres that brast. 545
For thair fais assalyheit fast,
That on stedis, with mekill prid,
Com prikand as thai wald our-ryd
The Erll and all his cumpany.
Bot thai met thame so sturdely, 550
That mony of thame till erd thai bar.
For mony a steid wes stekit thar,
And mony gud man fellit undir feit
That had no power to ris yheit.
Ther men mycht se ane hard battale, 555
And sum defend and sum assale,
And mony a riall rymmyll ryde
Be roucht thair, apon athir syde,
Quhill throu the byrneis brist the blud,
That till the erd doune stremand yhud. 560
The Erll of Murreff and his men
So stoutly thame contenit then,
That thai wan plas ay mair and mair
On thair fais; the-quhethir thai war
Ay ten for ane, or ma, perfay; 565
Swa that it semyt weill that thai
War tynt emang so gret menyhe,
As thai war plungit in the se.
And quhen the Inglis men has seyne
The Erll and all his men be-deyne 570
Fecht sa stoutly, but effraying,
Rycht as thai had nane abaysing,
Thai pressit thame with all thar mycht.
And thai, with speris and suerdis brycht,
And axis that rycht scharply schar, 575
In-myd the visage met thame thar.
Thar men mycht se a stalwart stour,
And mony men of gret valour
With speris, macys, and with knyvis,
And othyr wapnys, vissill thair lyvis, 580
Swa that mony fell doune all ded;
The gyrs wox with the blude all red.
The Erll, that wicht wes and worthy,
And his men faucht so manfully,
That quha sa had seyne thaim that day, 585
I trow forsuth that thai suld say
That thai suld do thair devour wele,
Swa that thair fayis suld it feill.

BOOK XIII.

How Walter Stewart and Douglas
Came with their battle that worthy was.

Qwhen that thir twa first batellis wer
Assemblit, as I said yhow er,
The Steward, Walter that than was,[†]
And the gud lord als of Douglas,
In a battale quhen that thai saw 5
The Erll, for outen dreid or aw,
Assemmyll with his cumpany
On all the folk so sturdely,
For till help him thai held thar way
With thar battale in gud aray, 10
And assemmyllit so hardely
Besyd the Erll a litill by,
Thair fais feld thair cummyng weill;
For with wapnys stalwart of steill
Thai dang on thame with all thar mycht. 15
Thar fayis resavit them weill, I hycht,
With swerdis, speris, and with macys.
The battale thair so felloune was,
And sua richt gret spilling of blud,
That on the erd the flus it stud. 20
The Scottis men so weill thame bar,
And sua gret slauchtir maid thai thar,
And fra so feill the livis revit,
That all the feild wes bludy levit.
That tym thir three battalis wer 25
All syde be syde fechtand weill neir.
Thar mycht man her richt mony dynt,
And wapnys apon armour stynt,
And see tummyll knychtis and stedis,
With mony rich and ryoll wedis 30
Defoulit roydly under feit.
Sum held on loft, sum [tynt the suet].
A long quhill thus fechtand thai wer,
That men no noyis na cry mycht her;
Men hard nocht ellis bot granys and dyntis 35
That [slew fire], as men dois on flyntis.
Sa faucht thai ilkane egirly,
That thai maid nouthir noyis no cry,
Bot dang on othir at thar mycht,
With wapnys that war burnyst brycht. 40
The arrows als so thik thai flaw,
That thai mycht say weill, at thaim saw,
That thai ane hydwis schour can ma:
For quhar thai fell, I undirta,
Thai left eftir thame taknyng 45
That sall neid, as I trow, lechyng.

JUNE 24, 1314 The English Archers dispersed

The Inglis archeris schot so fast,
That, mycht thar schot haf had last,
It had beyne hard to Scottis men.
Bot King Robert, that weill can ken 50
That [the archeris war perelous],
And thar schot hard and richt grevous,
Ordanit forrouth the assemble
His Marschall with a gret menyhe,
Fiff hundreth armyt weill in steill 55
That on licht hors war horsyt weill,
For to prik emang the archeris,
And sua assailyhe thame with speris
That thai no laser haf to schute.
This Marschall that I of mut, 60
That Schir [Robert of Keth] wes cald,
As I befor has to yhow tald,
Quhen that he saw the battalis swa
Assemmyll and to-giddir ga,
And saw the archeris schut stoutly, 65
With all thame of his cumpany
In hy apon thame can he ryde,
And our-tuk thame [at a syde],
And rushit emang thame sa roydly,
Strikand thame sua dispitfully, 70
And in sic fusioune berand doune,
And slayand thame without ransoune,
That thai thame scalit evirilkane;
And fra that time furth ther wes nane
That assemlit sic schot till ma. 75
Quhen Scottis archeris saw at swa
Thai war rebutit, thai wox hardy,
With all thar mycht schot egirly
Emang the hors-men that thar raid,
And woundis wyde to thame thai maid, 80
And slew of thame a wele gret dele;
Thai bar thame hardely and weill.
For fra thair fais archeris were
Scalit, as I have said yhow ere,
That ma than thai war be gret thing, 85
Swa that thai dred nocht thar schuting,
Thai wox so hardy that thame thoucht
Thai suld set all thair fais at noucht.

JUNE 24, 1314 Bruce brings up his Reserve