Saw 'twas in vain to fight,
Hung up their flags of truce, 85
Yielding the town;
We march'd in presently,
Decking the walls on high
With our English colours,
Which purchas'd renown. 90
Dub a-dub, &c.
Ent'ring the houses then,
And of the richest men,
For gold and treasure
We searchèd each day;
In some places we did find 95
Pye baking in the oven,
Meat at the fire roasting,
And men run away.
Dub a-dub, &c.
Full of rich merchandise,
Every shop we did see, 100
Damask and sattins
And velvet full fair;
Which soldiers measure out
By the length of their swords;
Of all commodities, 105
Each one hath share.
Dub a-dub, &c.
Thus Cales was taken,
And our brave general
March'd to the market-place,
There he did stand; 110
There many prisoners
Of good account were took;
Many crav'd mercy,
And mercy they found.
Dub a-dub, &c.
When as our general 115
Saw they delayèd time,
And would not ransom
The town as they said,
With their fair wainscots,
Their presses and bedsteads, 120
Their joint-stools and tables,
A fire we made:
And when the town burnt in a flame,
With tan-ta-ra, tan-ta-ra-ra,
From thence we came. 125
SIR JOHN SUCKLING'S CAMPAIGN.
"When the Scottish Covenanters rose up in arms, and advanced to the
English borders in 1639, many of the courtiers complimented the king
by raising forces at their own expense. Among these none were more
distinguished than the gallant Sir John Suckling, who raised a troop
of horse, so richly accoutred, that it cost him 12,000_l._ The like
expensive equipment of other parts of the army made the king remark,
that "the Scots would fight stoutly, if it were but for the
Englishmen's fine cloaths." When they came to action, the rugged Scots
proved more than a match for the fine showy English: many of whom
behaved remarkably ill, and among the rest this splendid troop of Sir
John Suckling's." PERCY.
This scoffing ballad, sometimes attributed to Suckling himself, is
taken from the _Musarum Deliciæ_ of Sir John Mennis and Dr. James
Smith (p. 81 of the reprint, _Upon Sir John Sucklings most warlike
preparations for the Scotish warre_). The former is said by Wood to
have been the author. Percy's copy (_Reliques_, ii. 341) has one or
two different readings.--The first stanza is a parody on _John Dory_.
Sir John got him an ambling nag,
To Scotland for to ride-a,
With a hundred horse more, all his own he swore,
To guard him on every side-a.
No errant-knight ever went to fight 5
With halfe so gay a bravado,
Had you seen but his look, you'ld have sworn on a book,
Hee'ld have conquer'd a whole armado.
The ladies ran all to the windowes to see
So gallant and warlike a sight-a, 10
And as he pass'd by, they began to cry,
"Sir John, why will you go fight-a?"
But he, like a cruel knight, spurr'd on,
His heart did not relent-a;
For, till he came there, he shew'd no fear;[L15] 15
Till then why should he repent-a?
The king (God bless him!) had singular hopes
Of him and all his troop-a:
The borderers they, as they met him on the way,
For joy did hollow and whoop-a. 20
None lik'd him so well as his own colonel,
Who took him for John de Weart-a;[L22]
But when there were shows of gunning and blows,
My gallant was nothing so peart-a.
For when the Scots army came within sight, 25
And all men prepared to fight-a,
He ran to his tent; they ask'd what he meant;
He swore he must needs goe s----- a.
The colonel sent for him back agen,
To quarter him in the van-a, 30
But Sir John did swear, he came not there
To be kill'd the very first man-a.
To cure his fear, he was sent to the rere,
Some ten miles back, and more-a;
Where he did play at tre trip for hay, 35
And ne'er saw the enemy more-a.
But now there is peace, he's returned to increase
His money, which lately he spent-a;
But his lost honor must still lye in the dust;
At Barwick away it went-a. 40
15.
For till he came there, what had he to fear;
Or why should he repent-a?
PERCY.
22. John de Wert was a German general of reputation, and
the terror of the French in the reign of Louis XIII. Hence his name
became proverbial in France, where he was called De Vert. PERCY.
THE BATTLE OF PHILIPHAUGH.
From _Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border_, ii. 177.
By a rapid series of extraordinary victories, (see _The Haws of
Cromdale_, and _The Battle of Alford_ in the Appendix,) Montrose had
subdued Scotland to the royal arms, from the Grampians to Edinburgh.
After taking possession of the capital, he marched forward to the
frontiers, with the intention of completing the subjugation of the
southern provinces, and even of leading his wild array into England to
the support of King Charles. Having traversed the Border, and
strengthened his army (greatly diminished by the departure of the
Irish and many of the Highlanders) with some small reinforcements,
Montrose encamped on the 12th of September, 1645, at Philiphaugh, a
large plain, separated by the river Ettrick from the town of Selkirk,
and extending in an easterly direction from a wooded hill, called the
Harehead-wood, to a high ground which forms the banks of the river
Tweed. Here the infantry were very conveniently disposed, while the
general took up his quarters with all his cavalry at Selkirk, thus
interposing a river between his horse and foot. This extraordinary
error, whether rashness or oversight, was destined to be severely
expiated. The very next morning, the Covenanters, under General David
Lesly, recalled from England by the danger threatened their cause by
the victories of Montrose, crossed the Ettrick and fell on the
encampment of the infantry, unperceived by a single scout. A hopeless
discomfiture was the natural consequence. Montrose, roused by the
firing, arrived with a few of his cavalry too late to redeem the day,
and beheld his army slaughtered, or scattered in a retreat in which he
was himself fain to join. The fruit of all his victories was lost in
this defeat, and he was never again able to make head in Scotland
against the Covenanters.
The following ballad was first printed by Sir Walter Scott, with
prefatory remarks which we have here abridged. It is preserved by
tradition in Selkirkshire, and coincides closely with historical fact.
On Philiphaugh a fray began,
At Hairhead-wood it ended;
The Scots out o'er the Græmes they ran,
Sae merrily they bended.
Sir David frae the Border came, 5
Wi' heart an' hand came he;
Wi' him three thousand bonny Scots,
To bear him company.
Wi' him three thousand valiant men,
A noble sight to see! 10
A cloud o' mist them weel conceal'd,
As close as e'er might be.
When they came to the Shaw burn,[L13]
Said he, "Sae weel we frame,
I think it is convenient 15
That we should sing a psalm."[L16]
When they came to the Lingly burn,[L17]
As daylight did appear,
They spy'd an aged father,
And he did draw them near. 20
"Come hither, aged father!"
Sir David he did cry,
"And tell me where Montrose lies,
With all his great army."
"But first you must come tell to me, 25
If friends or foes you be;
I fear you are Montrose's men,
Come frae the north country."
"No, we are nane o' Montrose's men,
Nor e'er intend to be; 30
I am Sir David Lesly,
That's speaking unto thee."
"If you're Sir David Lesly,
As I think weel ye be,
I am sorry ye hae brought so few 35
Into your company.
"There's fifteen thousand armed men[L37]
Encamped on yon lee;
Ye'll never be a bite to them,
For aught that I can see. 40
"But halve your men in equal parts,
Your purpose to fulfill;
Let ae half keep the water side,
The rest gae round the hill.
"Your nether party fire must, 45
Then beat a flying drum;
And then they'll think the day's their ain,
And frae the trench they'll come.
"Then, those that are behind them, maun
Gie shot, baith grit and sma'; 50
And so, between your armies twa,
Ye may make them to fa'."
"O were ye ever a soldier?"
Sir David Lesly said;
"O yes; I was at Solway Flow,[L55] 55
Where we were all betray'd.
"Again I was at curst Dunbar,
And was a pris'ner ta'en;
And many weary night and day
In prison I hae lien." 60
"If ye will lead these men aright,
Rewarded shall ye be;
But, if that ye a traitor prove,
I'll hang thee on a tree."
"Sir, I will not a traitor prove; 65
Montrose has plunder'd me;
I'll do my best to banish him
Away frae this country."
He halved his men in equal parts,
His purpose to fulfill; 70
The one part kept the water side,
The other gaed round the hill.
The nether party fired brisk,
Then turn'd and seem'd to rin;
And then they a' came frae the trench, 75
And cry'd, "The day's our ain!"
The rest then ran into the trench,
And loosed their cannons a':
And thus, between his armies twa,
He made them fast to fa'. 80
Now let us a' for Lesly pray,
And his brave company,
For they hae vanquish'd great Montrose,
Our cruel enemy.
13. A small stream that joins the Ettrick near Selkirk, on the south
side of the river. S.
16. Various reading: "That we should take a dram." S.
17. A brook which falls into the Ettrick, from the north, a little above
the Shaw burn. S.
37. Montrose's forces amounted to twelve or fifteen hundred foot, and
about a thousand cavalry. Lesly had five or six thousand men, mostly
horse.
55. It is a strange anachronism, to make this aged father state himself
to have been at the battle of Solway Flow, which was fought a hundred
years before Philiphaugh; and a still stranger, to mention that of
Dunbar, which did not take place till five years after Montrose's
defeat. S.
THE GALLANT GRAHAMS.
From _Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border_, ii. 187
In this lament for the melancholy fate of Montrose and his heroic
companions, it was clearly the humble minstrel's aim to sketch the
chief incidents in the great Marquis's career as the champion and the
martyr of Royalty. The derangements and omissions which may be found
in the verses as they now stand are but the natural effects of time.
The ballad was first published in Scott's _Minstrelsy_, as obtained
from tradition, with enlargements and corrections from an old printed
copy (entitled _The Gallant Grahams of Scotland_) furnished by Ritson.
The summer following the rout at Philiphaugh, King Charles committed
himself to the treacherous protection of the Presbyterians. They
required of him that his faithful lieutenant should at once disband
his forces and leave the country. During three years of exile,
Montrose resided at various foreign courts, either quite inactive, or
cultivating the friendship of the continental sovereigns, by whom he
was overwhelmed with attentions and honors. The execution of the King
drew from him a solemn oath "before God, angels, and men," that he
would devote the rest of his life to the avenging the death of his
master and reëstablishing his son on the throne. He received from
Charles II. a renewal of his commission as Captain-General in
Scotland, and while Charles was treating with the Commissioners of the
Estates concerning his restoration (negotiations which Montrose
regarded with no favor), set out for the Orkneys with a few hundred
men, mostly Germans. His coming, even with this feeble band, struck a
great terror into the Estates, and Lesly was ordered to march against
him with four thousand men. Destitute of horse to bring him
intelligence, Montrose was surprised at Corbiesdale, on the confines
of Ross-shire, by a body of Covenanting cavalry under Colonel
Strachan, which had been sent forward to check his progress. The whole
of his little army was destroyed or made prisoners. Montrose escaped
from the field after a desperate resistance, and finally gave himself
up to Macleod of Assaint, who sold him to his enemies for four hundred
bolls of meal!
"He was tried," says Scott, "for what was termed treason against the
Estates of the Kingdom; and, despite the commission of Charles for his
proceedings, he was condemned to die by a Parliament who acknowledged
Charles to be their king, and whom, on that account only, Montrose
acknowledged to be a Parliament."
(See SCOTT'S _Minstrelsy_, HUME, ch. lx., and NAPIER'S _Montrose and
the Covenanters_.)
Now, fare thee well, sweet Ennerdale[L1]
Baith kith and countrie I bid adieu;
For I maun away, and I may not stay,
To some uncouth land which I never knew.
To wear the blue I think it best,[L5] 5
Of all the colours that I see;
And I'll wear it for the gallant Grahams,
That are banished from their countrie.
I have no gold, I have no land,
I have no pearl nor precious stane; 10
But I wald sell my silken snood,
To see the gallant Grahams come hame.
In Wallace days, when they began,
Sir John the Graham did bear the gree[L14]
Through all the lands of Scotland wide: 15
He was a lord of the south countrie.
And so was seen full many a time;
For the summer flowers did never spring,
But every Graham, in armour bright,
Would then appear before the king. 20
They were all drest in armour sheen,
Upon the pleasant banks of Tay;
Before a king they might be seen,
These gallant Grahams in their array.
At the Goukhead our camp we set, 25
Our leaguer down there for to lay;
And, in the bonny summer light,
We rode our white horse and our gray.
* * * * *
Our false commander sold our king
Unto his deadly enemie, 30
Who was the traitor, Cromwell, then;
So I care not what they do with me.
They have betray'd our noble prince,
And banish'd him from his royal crown;
But the gallant Grahams have ta'en in hand 35
For to command those traitors down.
* * * * *
In Glen-Prosen we rendezvous'd,[L37]
March'd to Glenshie by night and day,
And took the town of Aberdeen,
And met the Campbells in their array. 40
Five thousand men, in armour strong,
Did meet the gallant Grahams that day
At Inverlochie, where war began,
And scarce two thousand men were they.
Gallant Montrose, that chieftain bold, 45
Courageous in the best degree,
Did for the king fight well that day;
The Lord preserve his majestie!
Nathaniel Gordon, stout and bold,[L49]
Did for King Charles wear the blue; 50
But the cavaliers they all were sold,
And brave Harthill, a cavalier too.[L52]
And Newton-Gordon, burd-alone,[L53]
And Dalgatie, both stout and keen,[L54]
And gallant Veitch upon the field,[L55] 55
A braver face was never seen.
Now, fare ye weel, Sweet Ennerdale!
Countrie and kin I quit ye free;
Cheer up your hearts, brave cavaliers,
For the Grahams are gone to High Germany.
* * * * *
Now brave Montrose he went to France, 61
And to Germany, to gather fame;
And bold Aboyne is to the sea,
Young Huntly is his noble name.[L64]
Montrose again, that chieftain bold, 65
Back unto Scotland fair he came,
For to redeem fair Scotland's land,
The pleasant, gallant, worthy Graham!
At the water of Carron he did begin,
And fought the battle to the end; 70
Where there were kill'd, for our noble king,
Two thousand of our Danish men.[L72]
Gilbert Menzies, of high degree,[L73]
By whom the king's banner was borne;
For a brave cavalier was he, 75
But now to glory he is gone.
Then woe to Strachan, and Hacket baith![L77]
And, Leslie, ill death may thou die!
For ye have betray'd the gallant Grahams,
Who aye were true to majestie. 80
And the Laird of Assaint has seized Montrose,
And had him into Edinburgh town;
And frae his body taken the head,
And quarter'd him upon a trone.
And Huntly's gone the self-same way,[L85] 85
And our noble king is also gone;
He suffer'd death for our nation,
Our mourning tears can ne'er be done.
But our brave young king is now come home,
King Charles the Second in degree; 90
The Lord send peace into his time,
And God preserve his majestie!
1. A corruption of Endrickdale. The principal and most ancient
possessions of the Montrose family lie along the water of Endrick, in
Dumbartonshire. S.
5. About the time when Montrose first occupied Aberdeen (1639) the
Covenanters began to wear a blue ribbon, first as a scarf, afterwards in
bunches in their caps. Hence the phrase of a true blue Whig. The blue
ribbon was one of "Montrose's whimsies," and seems to have been retained
by his followers (see v. 50) after he had left the Covenanters for the
king.
14. The faithful friend and adherent of the immortal Wallace, slain at
the battle of Falkirk. S.
37. Glen-Prosen is in Angus-shire. S.
49. Of the family of Gicht in Aberdeenshire. He was taken at
Philiphaugh, and executed the 6th of January, 1646.
52. Leith, of Harthill, was a determined loyalist, and hated the
Covenanters, by whom he had been severely treated. S.
53. Newton, for obvious reasons, was a common appellation of an estate,
or barony, where a new edifice had been erected. Hence, for
distinction's sake, it was anciently compounded with the name of the
proprietor; as, Newton-Edmonstone, Newton-Don, Newton-Gordon, &c. Of
Newtown, I only observe, that he was, like all his clan, a steady
loyalist, and a follower of Montrose. S.
54. Sir Francis Hay, of Dalgatie, a steady cavalier, and a gentleman of
great gallantry and accomplishments. He was a faithful follower of
Montrose, and was taken prisoner with him at his last fatal battle. He
was condemned to death with his illustrious general. S.
55. I presume this gentleman to have been David Veitch, brother to
Veitch of Dawick, who, with many other of the Peebles-shire gentry, was
taken at Philiphaugh. S.
64. James, Earl of Aboyne, who fled to France, and there died
heart-broken. It is said his death was accelerated by the news of King
Charles's execution. He became representative of the Gordon family (or
Young Huntly, as the ballad expresses it) in consequence of the death of
his elder brother, George, who fell in the battle of Alford. S.
72. Montrose's foreign auxiliaries, who, by the way, did not exceed 600
in all. S.
73. Gilbert Menzies, younger of Pitfoddells, carried the royal banner in
Montrose's last battle. It bore the headless corpse of Charles I., with
this motto, "_Judge and revenge my cause, O Lord!_" Menzies proved
himself worthy of this noble trust, and, obstinately refusing quarter,
died in defence of his charge. MONTROSE's _Memoirs_. S.
77. Sir Charles Hacket, an officer in the service of the Estates. S.
85. George Gordon, second Marquis of Huntly, one of the very few nobles
in Scotland who had uniformly adhered to the King from the very
beginning of the troubles, was beheaded by the sentence of the
Parliament of Scotland (so calling themselves) upon the 22d March, 1649,
one month and twenty-two days after the martyrdom of his master. S.
THE BATTLE OF LOUDON HILL.
Graham of Claverhouse and Balfour of Kinloch, commonly called Burly,
the principal persons mentioned in this ballad, are characters well
known to the readers of _Old Mortality_, in the earlier chapters of
which the skirmish at Loudon Hill is described.
A few weeks after the memorable assassination of Archbishop Sharpe,
Robert Hamilton, a fierce Cameronian, Burly, and a few others of the
proscribed "Westlan' men" resolved to take up arms against the
government. They began their demonstrations by entering the royal
burgh of Rutherglen, on the 29th of May, 1679 (which, as the
anniversary of the Restoration, was appointed by Parliament to be kept
as a holyday) extinguishing the bonfires made in honor of the
occasion, and burning at the cross certain acts in favor of Prelacy
and for the suppression of Conventicles. After this exploit, and
affixing to the cross a solemn protest against the obnoxious acts,
they encamped at Loudon Hill, being by this time increased to the
number of five or six hundred men. Claverhouse was in garrison at
Glasgow, and immediately marched against the insurgents, with about a
hundred and fifty cavalry. Hamilton, the commander of the Whigs, had
skilfully posted his men in a boggy strait with a broad ditch in
front, and the dragoons in attempting to charge were thrown into utter
disorder. At this critical moment they were vigorously attacked by the
rebels and easily routed. Claverhouse barely escaped being taken
prisoner, and lost some twenty of his troopers, among them his cornet,
Robert Graham, whose fate is alluded to in the ballad. Burly, though
not the captain, was a prominent leader in this action. See SCOTT's
_Minstrelsy_, vol. ii. 206, _et seq._
You'l marvel when I tell ye o'
Our noble Burly and his train,
When last he march'd up through the land,
Wi' sax-and-twenty Westland men.
Than they I ne'er o' braver heard, 5
For they had a' baith wit and skill;
They proved right well, as I heard tell,
As they cam up o'er Loudon Hill.
Weel prosper a' the gospel lads,
That are into the west countrie, 10
Aye wicked Claver'se to demean,
And aye an ill deid may he die!
For he's drawn up i' battle rank,
An' that baith soon an' hastilie;
But they wha live till simmer come, 15
Some bludie days for this will see.
But up spak cruel Claver'se, then,
Wi' hastie wit, an' wicked skill;
"Gae fire on yon Westlan' men;
I think it is my sov'reign's will." 20
But up bespake his Cornet, then,
"It's be wi' nae consent o' me!
I ken I'll ne'er come back again,
An' mony mae as weel as me.
"There is not ane of a' yon men, 25
But wha is worthy other three;
There is na ane amang them a',
That in his cause will stap to die.
"An' as for Burly, him I knaw;
He's a man of honour, birth, and fame; 30
Gie him a sword into his hand,
He'll fight thysell an' other ten."
But up spake wicked Claver'se, then,
I wat his heart it raise fu' hie!
And he has cried that a' might hear, 35
"Man, ye hae sair deceived me.
"I never ken'd the like afore,
Na, never since I came frae hame,
That you sae cowardly here suld prove,
An' yet come of a noble Græme." 40
But up bespake his Cornet then,
"Since that it is your honour's will,
Mysell shall be the foremost man
That shall gie fire on Loudon Hill.
"At your command I'll lead them on, 45
But yet wi' nae consent o' me;
For weel I ken I'll ne'er return,
And mony mae as weel as me."
Then up he drew in battle rank;
I wat he had a bonny train! 50
But the first time that bullets flew,
Aye he lost twenty o' his men.
Then back he came the way he gaed,
I wat right soon and suddenly!
He gave command amang his men, 55
And sent them back, and bade them flee.
Then up came Burly, bauld an' stout,
Wi's little train o' Westland men,
Wha mair than either aince or twice
In Edinburgh confined had been. 60
They hae been up to London sent,
An' yet they're a' come safely down;
Sax troop o' horsemen they hae beat,
And chased them into Glasgow town.
THE BATTLE OE BOTHWELL BRIDGE.
From _Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border_, ii. 237.
The success of the Cameronians at Loudon Hill induced a considerable
number of the moderate Presbyterians to join the army of the
insurgents. But though increased numbers gave the revolt a more
formidable appearance, they cannot be said to have added much to the
strength of the rebels, since there was no concert between the two
factions, each having its own set of officers, and issuing contrary
orders at the same time. An army of ten thousand men under the Duke of
Monmouth advanced from Edinburgh against these distracted allies, who,
in all not more than four thousand, were encamped near Hamilton, on
the western side of the Clyde, and had possession of the bridge
between that point and the village of Bothwell. While the Duke was
preparing to force a passage, the more moderate of the Whigs offered
terms, and while they were debating the Duke's reply, the Cameronians,
who bravely defended the bridge, were compelled to abandon their
post. The Duke's army then crossed the river without opposition,
because the rebels were at that juncture occupied with cashiering
their officers and electing new ones. The first discharge of
Monmouth's cannon caused the cavalry of the Covenanters to wheel
about, and their flight threw the foot into irrecoverable disorder.
Four hundred of the rebels were killed, and a body of twelve hundred
surrendered at discretion, and were preserved from death by the
clemency of the Duke. This action took place on the 22d of June, 1679.
Scott informs us that there were two Gordons of Earlstoun engaged in
the rebellion, a father and son. The former was not in the battle, but
was met hastening to it by English dragoons, and was killed on his
refusing to surrender. The son, who is supposed to be the person
mentioned in the ballad, was of the milder Presbyterians, and fought
only for freedom of conscience and relief from the tyrannical laws
against non-conformists. He escaped from the battle, and after being
several times condemned to die, was finally set at liberty, and
restored to his forfeited estates.