The Bruce

by John Barbour

1314 The English King escapes

On this wis thame convoyit he, 585
Quhill at the Kyng and his menyhe
To [Wynchburch] all cummyne ar.
Than lichtit thai, all that war thar,
Till bayt thar hors that war wery;
Then Douglas and his cumpany 590
Baytit alsua besyde thame neir.
Thai war [so feill], withouten weir,
And in armys so clenly dicht,
And swa arayit ay to ficht,
And he so quheyne and but gadering;[†] 595
That he wald nocht in playne fichting,
Assaill thaim; bot ay raid thame by,
Waytand his poynt ay ythandly.
A litill quhile thai baitit thar,
And syne lap on, and furth thai fair; 600
And he wes alwais by thame neir;
He leit thame nocht haf sic laseir
As anys wattir for to ma;
And gif ony stad war swa,
That behynd war left ony space, 605
Sesit all soyne in hand he was.
Thai convoit thame apon this wis,
Quhill that the King and his rout is
Cummyn to the castell of Dunbar,
Quhar he and sum of his men war 610
Resavit richt weill; for yheit than
The [Erll Patrik] wes Inglis man,
That gert with met and drink alsua
Refresche thame weill, and syne gert ta
[A bate], and send the King by se, 615
Till Balmeburch in his awne cuntre.[†]
Thair hors thar left thai all on stray,
Bot sesit wele soyne I trow war thai:
[The laiff], that levit war without,
Adressit thame in-till ane rout, 620
And till Berwik helde straucht the way
In rout; bot, and we suth sall say,
Thai levit of thair rout party,[†]
Or thai come thar; bot nocht for-thi,
Thai come till Berwik weill; and thar 625
In-till the toune resavit war;
Ellis at gret myscheiff had thai beyne.
And quhen the lord Douglas has seyne
That he had lesit thar his payne,
Toward the King he went agane. 630

[The Kyng eschapit] on this wis.
Lo! quhat falding in fortoune is!
That quhile apon a man will smyle,
And prik him syne ane othir quhile.
In na tyme stabilly can sche stande. 635
This mychty Kyng of Ingland
Scho had set on her quheill on hicht,
Quhen, with so ferlifull a mycht,
Of men of armys and archeris,
And of fute men and hobleris, 640
He com rydand out of his land,
As I befor has borne on hand.
And in a nycht syne and a day,[†]
Scho set hym in so hard assay,
That he, with sevintene, in a bat,[†] 645
Wes fayne for to hald hame his gat!
Bot of this ilk quhelis turnyng
Kyng Robert suld mak no murnyng;
For on his syd the quheyle on hycht[†]
Raiss, quhen the tothyr doun gan lycht. 650
For twa contraris yhe may wit wele,[†] *651
*Set agane othir on a quhele;
*Quhen ane is hye, the tothir is law,
*And gif it fall that fortoune thraw
*The quheill about, it that on hicht
Was ere, on force it most doune lycht; *656
And it, that wondir lawch were ere,
Mon lowp on loft in the contrere.
So fure it of thir Kyngis twa;
Quhen that King Robert stad wes sua,[†]
That in his gret myscheiff wes he, 655
The tothir wes in his majeste.
And quhen the Kyng Edwardis mycht
Wes lawit, Kyng Robert lap on hicht:
And now sic fortoune fell hym till,
That he wes hye and at his will. 660

1314 The Exchange of Prisoners

At Strevilling wes he yheit lyand;
And the gret lordis that he fand
Ded in the felde, he gert berye
In haly placis honorabilly;
And the laiff syne that dede war thar 665
In-to gret pittes erdit war.
[The castell and the towrys syne]
Richt to the grund doune gert he myne,
And syne to Bothwell send has he
Schyr Edward with a gret menyhe; 670
For thar wes fra thine send him worde
That the riche Erll of Herfurde,
And othir mychty als, wes thar.
Soyne tretit he with Schir Waltar,
That Erle and castell and the laiff 675
In-to Schir Edwardis hand [he gaf].
And to the King the Erll send he,
That gert him richt weill yhemyt be,
Quhill at the last thai tretit swa
That he till Ingland hame suld ga 680
Without paying of ransoune, fre;
And that for hym suld changit be
Bischop Robert, that blynd wes maid,
With the queyne, that thai takin had
In presoune, as befor said I, 685
And hyr douchtir dame Marjory.
[The Erll wes changit] for thir thre;
And, quhen they cummyn hame war fre,
The Kyngis douchter, that wes fair,
And wes als his apperand air, 690
With Walter Stewart can he wed;
And thai weill soyne gat of thar bed
Ane knaiff child, throu our Lordis grace,
That eftir his gude eld-fadir was
Callit Robert, and syne [wes King], 695
And had the land in governyng,
Eftir his worthy eyme, [Davy],
That regnyt twa yher and fourty;
And in tyme of the compyling
Of this buk, this Robert wes Kyng. 700
And of his kynrik passit was
[Fif yheir]; and wes the yher of grace
Ane thousand thre hundreth and sevinty
And fif, and of his elde sexty.
And that wes aftir that [the gud King], 705
Robert, wes brocht till his ending,
Sex and fourty wyntir but mar.[†]
God grant that thai, that cummyne ar,
Of his ofspring, maynteyme the land,
And hald the folk weill to warrand; 710
And manteyme rycht and ek laute,
As weill as in his tyme did he!

1314-15 The Scots abound in Riches

Kyng Robert now wes weill at hycht,
For ilk day than grew mair his mycht.
His men war rich, and his cuntre 715
Aboundanit weill of corne and fee,
And of alkynd othir riches:
Myrth, solas and ek blithnes
Wes in the land all comonly,
For ilk man blith wes and joly. 720
The King, eftir the gret journee,
Throu consell of his folk preve,
In seir townys gert cry on hicht,
That quha so clamyt to haf richt
To hald in Scotland land or fe, 725
That in that tuelf moneth suld he
Cum and clayme it; and tharfor do
To the King that pertenyt thar-to.
And gif thai come nocht in that yher,
Than suld thai wit, withouten weir, 730
That herd thar-eftir nane suld be.
The King, that wes of gret bounte
And besynes, quhen this wes done,
Ane hoost gert summond eftir sone,
And went syne soyne in-till Ingland, 735
And [our-raid all Northumbirland],
And brynt hous, and tuk the pray,
And syne went hame agane thar way.
I let it shortly pass for-by;
For thair wes done na chevelry 740
Provit, that is till spek of heir.
The King went oft on this maneir
In Ingland, for till riche his men,
That in riches aboundanit then.

BOOK XIV.

How the Earl of Carrick passed into Ireland to win it, and with him Earl Thomas Randolph and Sir Philip the Mowbray, Sir John Stewart, Sir John Soulis, and Ramsay of Ochterhouse.

The Erll of Carrik, Schir Edward,
That stowtar wes than ane libbard,
And had no will till be in pes,
Thoucht that [Scotland to litill wes]
Till his brothir and him alsua; 5
Tharfor till purpos can he ta,
That he of Irland wald be kyng.
Tharfor he send and [had treting]
With the Erischry of Irland,
That in thar lawte tuk on hand 10
Of Irland for to mak hym king,
With-thi that he with hard fechting
Micht our-cum the Inglis men,
That in the land war wonnand then;
And thai suld help with all thair mycht. 15
And he, that hard thame mak sic hicht,
In-till his hert had gret liking:
And, with the consent of the King,
Gaderit hym men of gret bounte,
And at Air syne schippit he, 20
In-till the next moneth of [Maii];
Till Irland held he straucht his way.
He had thair in his cumpany
The Erll Thomas that wes worthy,
And good Schir [Philip the Mowbray], 25
That sekir wes in herd assay;
Schir Johne the Sowlis, a gude knycht,
And [Schir Johne Steward] that wes wicht;
The Ramsay als of [Ouchtirhous],
That wes richt wicht and chevelrous; 30
And Schir [Fergus de Ardrossane],
And othir knychtis mony ane.