Ballads, English -- England -- Texts; Ballads, Scots -- Scotland -- Texts
And then the bloody enemy 25
They fiercely did assail,
And fought it out most furiously,
Not doubting to prevail.
The wounded men on both sides fell,
Most pitious for to see, 30
Yet nothing could the courage quell
Of brave Lord Willoughbèy.
For seven hours, to all mens view,
This fight endured sore,
Until our men so feeble grew 35
That they could fight no more;
And then upon dead horses,
Full savourly they eat,
And drank the puddle water,
They could no better get. 40
When they had fed so freely,
They kneeled on the ground,
And praised God devoutly
For the favour they had found;
And beating up their colours, 45
The fight they did renew,
And turning tow'rds the Spaniard,
A thousand more they slew.
The sharp steel-pointed arrows,
And bullets thick did fly; 50
Then did our valiant soldiers
Charge on most furiously:
Which made the Spaniards waver;
They thought it best to flee;
They fear'd the stout behaviour 55
Of brave Lord Willoughbèy.
Then quoth the Spanish general,
"Come, let us march away;
I fear we shall be spoiled all
If here we longer stay; 60
For yonder comes Lord Willoughbey,
With courage fierce and fell;
He will not give one inch of way
For all the devils in hell."
And then the fearful enemy 65
Was quickly put to flight,
Our men persued couragiously,
And caught their forces quite;
But at [the] last they gave a shout,
Which ecchoed through the sky; 70
"God and St. George for England!"
The conquerers did cry.
This news was brought to England
With all the speed might be,
And soon our gracious queen was told 75
Of this same victory.
"O this is brave Lord Willoughbey,
My love that ever won;
Of all the lords of honour,
'Tis he great deeds hath done." 80
To the souldiers that were maimed
And wounded in the fray,
The queen allowed a pension
Of fifteen pence a day;
And from all costs and charges 85
She quit and set them free:
And this she did all for the sake
Of brave Lord Willoughbèy.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account