William Dunbar: The Ballade of Barnard Stewart

Pages	Line number	Line
177	1	Renownit, ryall, right reuerend and serene,
	2	Lord hie trywmphing in wirschip and valoure,
	3	For kyngis downe most cristin knight and kene,
	4	Most wyse, most valyand, most laureat hie wictour,
	5	Onto the sterris vpheyt is theyne honour.
	6	In Scotland welcum be thyne excellence
	7	To king, queyne, lord, clerk, kinght and seruatour,
	8	Withe glorie and honour, lawde and reuerence.
	9	Welcum, in stour most strong, incomparable knight,
	10	The fame of armys and floure of vassalage,
	11	Welcum, in were moste worthi, wyse and wight,
	12	Welcum, the soun of Mars of moste curage,
	13	Welcum, moste lusti branche of our linnage,
	14	In euery realme oure scheild and our defence,
	15	Welcum, our tendir blude of hie parage,
	16	With glories and honour, lawde and reuerence.
	17	Welcum, in were the secund Iulius,
	18	The prince of knightheyd and flour of cheualry,
	19	Welcum, most valyeant and victorius, 
	20	Welcum, invincible victour moste wourthy,
	21	Welcum, our Scottis chiftane most dughti,
	22	Wyth sowne of clarioun, organe, song and sence.
	23	To the atonis, lord, ‘Welcum!’, all we cry,
	24	With glorie and honour, lawde and reuerence.
178	25	Welcum, oure indeficient adiutorie,
	26	That evir our neceoun helpit in thare neyd,
	27	That neuer saw Scot yit indigent nor sory
	28	Bot thou did hym suport with thi gud deid.
	29	Welcum, therfor, abufe all livand leyd,
	30	Withe vs to liue and to maik recidence,
	31	Quhilk neuer sall swnye for thi saik to bleid,
	32	To quham be honour, lawde and reuerence.
	33	Is none of Scotland borne fathfull and kynde,
	34	Bot he of naturall inclinacioune
	35	Dois favour the withe all his hert and mynde,
	36	Withe fervent, tendir, trew intencioun
	37	And wald of inwart hie effectioun,
	38	But dreyd of danger, de in thi defence,
	39	Or dethe or schame war done to thi persoun,
	40	To quham be honour, lawde and reuerence.
	41	Welcum, thow kight most fortunable in feild,
	42	Welcum, in armis moste aunterus and able
	43	Wndir the soun that beris helme or scheild,  
	44	Welcum, thow campioun in feght wnourcumable,
	45	Welcum, most dughti, digne and honorable,
	46	And moist of lawde and hie magnificence,
	47	Nixt wndir kingis to stand incomparable,
	48	To quham be honour, lawde and reuerence.
	49	Throw Scotland, Ingland, France and Lumbardy
	50	Fleys on weyng thi fame and thi renoune,
	51	And our all cuntreis wndirnethe the sky,
	52	And our all strandis fro the sterris doune.
	53	In euery province, land and regioun
	54	Proclamit is thi name of excellence,
	55	In euery cete, village and in toune,
	56	Withe gloire and honour, lawd amd reuerence.
	57	O feyrse Achill in furius hie curage,
	58	O strong, invincible Hector vndir scheild,
	59	O vailyeant Arthur in knyghtli vassalage,
	60	Agamenon in gouernance of feild,
179	61	Bold Henniball in batall to do beild,
	62	Iulius in iupert, in wisdom and expence,
	63	Most fortunable chiftane bothe in yhouth and eild,
	64	To the be honour, lawde and reuerence.
	65	At parlament thow suld be hye renownit,
	66	That did so mony victoryse opteyn.
	67	Thi cristall helme withe lawry suld be crownyt,
	68	And in thi hand a branche of olyve greyn.
	69	The sueird of conquis and of knyghtheid keyn
	70	Be borne suld highe before the in presence,
	71	To represent sic man as thou has beyn,
	72	With glorie and honour, lawde and reuerence.
	73	Hie furius Mars, the god armipotent,
	74	Rong in the hevin at thyne natiuite.
	75	Saturnus doune withe fyry eyn did blent
	76	Throw bludy visar men manasing to gar de.
	77	On the fresche Wenus keist hir armourouse e,
	78	On the Marcurius furtheyet his eloquence.
	79	Fortuna maior did turn hir face on the,
	80	Wyth glorie and honour, lawde and reuerence.
	81	Prynce of fredom and flour of gentilnes,
	82	Sweyrd of knyghtheid and choise of cheualry,
	83	This tyme I lefe, for grete prolixitnes,
	84	To tell quhat feildis thow wan in Pikkardy,
	85	In France, in Bertan, in Naplis and Lumbardy,
	86	As I think eftir withe all my diligence,
	87	Or thow departe, at lenthe for to discry,
	88	With glorie and honour, lawd and reuerence.
	89	B in thi name betaknis batalrus,
	90	A able in feild, R right renoune most hie,
	91	N nobilnes and A for aunterus,
	92	R ryall blude, for dughtines is D,
	93	W valyeantnes, S for strenewite:
	94	Quhoise knyghtli name so schynyng in clemence,
	95	For wourthines in gold suld writtin be,
	96	With glorie and honour, lawd and reuerence.


