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Gowden graith'd his horse before

And siller shod behind,

The horse zong Waters rade upon Was fleeter than the wind.

But than spake a wylie lord,

Unto the queen said he,

O tell me qhua's the fairest face
Rides in the company.

I've sene lord, and I've sene laird,

And knights of high degree;
Bot a fairer face than zoung Waters

Mine eyne did never see.

Out then spack the jealous king

(And an angry man was he), O, if he had been twice as fair,

Zou micht have excepted me.

Zou're neither laird nor lord, she says,
Bot the king that wears the crown ;
Ther is not a knight in fair Scotland
Bot to thee maun bow down.

For a' that she could do or say,
Appeasd he wad nae bee;

Bot for the words which she had said
Zoung Waters he maun dee.

They hae taen zoung Waters, and
Put fetters to his feet;
They hae taen zoung Waters, and
Thrown him in dungeon deep.

Aft I have ridden thro' Stirling town
In the wind both and the weit ;
Bot I neir rade thro' Stirling town
Wi fetters at my feet.

Aft have I ridden thro' Stirling town
In the wind both and the rain;
Bot I neir rade thro' Stirling town
Neir to return again.

They hae taen to the heiding-hill,*
His zoung son in his craddle,
And they hae taen to the heiding-hill,
His horse both and his saddle.

They hae taen to the heiding-hill

His lady fair to see.

And for the words the Queen had spoke Zoung Waters he did dee.

XIX.-MARY AMBREE.

IN the year 1584, the Spaniards, under the command of Alexander Farnese, Prince of Parma, began to gain great advantages in Flanders and Brabant, by recovering many strongholds and cities from the Hollanders, as Ghent, Antwerp, Mechlin, etc. Some attempt made with the assistance of English volunteers to retrieve the former of those places probably gave occasion to this ballad. I can find no mention of our heroine in history, but the following rhymes rendered her famous among our poets. Ben Jonson often mentions her, and calls any remarkable virago by her name, and in the Fortunate Isles he quotes the words of the ballad itself:

"Mary Ambree
(Who marched so free
To the siege of Gaunt,
And death could not daunt,
As the ballad doth vaunt)
Were a braver wight," etc.

* i.e. heading (beheading) hill. The place of execution was anciently an artificial hillock.

It is likewise evident that she is the virago intended by Butler in Hudibras:

"A bold virago, stout and tall

As Joan of France or English Mall."

This ballad is printed from a black-letter copy in the Pepys Collection, improved from the Editor's folio MS. and by conjecture. The full title is: The valorous acts performed at Gaunt by the brave bonnie lass Mary Ambree, who in revenge of her lovers death did play her part most gallantly. The tune is "The blind beggar," etc.

WHEN captaines couragious, whom death cold not daunte,

Then tooke shee her sworde and her targett in hand,

Did march to the siege of the citty of Bidding all such, as wold, bee of her band;
Gaunt,
To wayte on her person came thousand

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On her hand a goodly faire gauntlett put With brave clanging trumpetts, that shee;

sounded so free;

Was not this a brave bonny lass, Mary Was not this a brave bonny lasse, Mary Ambree?

So MS., sergeant-major in PC.

† A peculiar kind of armour, composed of small rings of iron, and worn under the clothes. It is mentioned by Spencer, who speaks of the Irish gallowglass or foot-soldier as "armed in a long shirt of mayl."-View of the State of Ireland.

Ambree?

Before I will see the worst of you all

To come into danger of death, or of thrall,
This hand and this life I will venture so

free:

Was not this a brave bonny lasse, Mary
Ambree?

Shee led upp her souldiers in battaile array,

Now saye, English captaine, what woldest thou give

Gainst three times theyr number by breake To ransome thy selfe, which else must not

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But art thou a woman, as thou dost declare, Whose valor hath proved so undaunted in warre?

If England doth yield such brave lasses as thee,

Was not this a brave bonny lasse, Mary Full well may they conquer, faire Mary Ambree?

Her foes they besett her on everye side, As thinking close siege shee cold never abide;

To beate down the walles they all did decree :

But stoutlye deffyd them brave Mary Ambree.

Ambree.

The prince of Great Parma heard of her

renowne

Who long had advanced for Englands faire crowne;

Hee wooed her and sued her his mistress

to bee,

And offerd rich presents to Mary Ambree.

Then tooke shee her sword and her targett But this virtuous mayden despised them

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Therfore English captaines of every degree

Then to her owne country shee backe did returne, Still holding the foes of faire England in | Sing forth the brave valours of Mary

scorne:

Ambree.

XX.-BRAVE LORD WILLOUGHBY.

Peregrine BerTIE, Lord Willoughby of Eresby, had, in the year 1586, distinguished himself at the siege of Zutphen, in the Low Countries. He was the year after made general of the English forces in the United Provinces, in the room of the Earl of Leicester, who was recalled. This gave him an opportunity for signalizing his courage and military skill in several actions against the Spaniards. One of these, greatly exaggerated by popular report, is probably the subject of this old ballad, which, on account of its flattering encomiums on English valour, hath always been a favourite with the people.

Lord Willoughby died in 1601. Both Norris and Turner were famous among the military men of that age.

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The sharp steel-pointed arrows,
And bullets thick did fly;
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
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;
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
Was quickly put to flight,
Our men persued couragiously,
And caught their forces quite ;
But at last they gave a shout,

Which ecchoed through the sky, 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
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.

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

She quit and set them free:
And this she did all for the sake
Of brave lord Willoughbèy.

Then courage, noble Englishmen,
And never be dismaid;

If that we be but one to ten,
We will not be afraid
To fight with foraign enemies,
And set our nation free.
And thus I end the bloody bout
Of brave lord Willoughbèy.

XXI.-VICTORIOUS MEN OF EARTH

THIS little moral sonnet hath such a pointed application to the heroes of the foregoing and following ballads, that I cannot help placing it here, though the date of its composition is of a much later period. It is extracted from Cupid and Death, a masque, by J. S. [James Shirley], presented March 26, 1653. London, printed 1653, 4to.

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