"Edward" | Traditional Ballad

“Why dois your brand sae drap wi bluid,
        Edward, Edward,
Why dois your brand sae drap wi bluid,
And why sae sad gang yee O?”
“O I hae killed my hauke sae guid,
        Mither, mither,
O I hae killed my hauke sae guid,
And I had nae mair bot hee O.”

“Your haukis bluid was nevir sae reid,
        Edward, Edward,
Your haukis bluid was nevir sae reid,
My deir son I tell thee O.”
“O I hae killed my reid-roan steid,
        Mither, mither,
O I hae killed my reid-roan steid,
That erst was sae fair and frie O.”

“Your steid was auld, and ye hae gat mair,
        Edward, Edward,
Your steid was auld, and ye hae gat mair,
Sum other dule ye drie O.”
“O I hae killed my fadir deir,
        Mither, mither,
O I hae killed my fadir deir,
Alas, and wae is mee O!”

“And whatten penance wul ye drie for that,
        Edward, Edward,
And whatten penance will ye drie for that?
My deir son, now tell me O.”
“Ile set my feit in yonder boat,
        Mither, mither,
Ile set my feit in yonder boat,
And Ile fare ovir the sea O.”

“And what wul ye doe wi your towirs and your ha,
        Edward, Edward?
And what wul you doe wi your towirs and your ha,
That were sae fair to see O?”
“Ile let thame stand tul they doun fa,
        Mither, mither,
Ile let thame stand till they down fa,
For here nevir mair maun I bee O.”

“And what wul ye leive to your bairns and your wife,
        Edward, Edward?
And what wul ye leive to your bairns and your wife,
Whan ye gang ovir the sea O?”
“The warldis room, late them beg thrae life,
        Mither, mither,
The warldis room, late them beg thrae life,
For thame nevir mair wul I see O.”

“And what wul ye leive to your ain mither deir,
        Edward, Edward?
And what wul ye leive to your ain mither deir?
My deir son, now tell me O.”
“The curse of hell frae me sall ye beir,
        Mither, mither,
The curse of hell frae me sall ye beir,
Sic counseils ye gave to me O.”

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16

17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24

25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32

33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40

41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48

49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56

“Why does your sword so drip with blood,
        Edward, Edward,
Why does your sword so drip with blood,
And why so sad go you O?”
“O I have killed my hawk so good,
        Mother, mother,
O I have killed my hawk so good,
And I had no more but he O.”

“Your hawk's blood was never so red,
        Edward, Edward,
Your hawk's blood was never so red,
My dear son I tell you O.”
“O I have killed my red-roan steed,
        Mother, mother,
O I have killed my red-roan steed,
That had been so fair and free O.”

“Your steed was old, and you have got more,
        Edward, Edward,
Your steed was old, and you have got more,
Some other grief you suffer O.”
“O I have killed my father dear,
        Mother, mother,
O I have killed my father dear,
Alas, and woe is me O!”

“And what penance will you suffer for that,
        Edward, Edward,
And what penance will you suffer for that?
My dear son, now tell me O.”
“I'll set my feet in that boat,
        Mother, mother,
I'll set my feet in that boat,
And I'll go over the sea O.”

“And what will you do with your towers and your hall,
        Edward, Edward?
And what will you do with your towers and your hall,
That were so fair to see O?”
“I'll let them stand till they down fall,
        Mother, mother,
I'll let them stand till they down fall,
For here never more must I be O.”

“And what will you leave to your childrenand your wife,
        Edward, Edward?
And what will you leave to your children and your wife,
When you go over the sea O?”
“The world's room, let them beg through life,
        Mother, mother,
The world's room, let them beg through life,
For them never more will I see O.”

“And what will you leave to your own mother dear,
        Edward, Edward?
And what will you leave to your own mother dear?
My dear son, now tell me O.”
“The curse of hell from me shall you bear,
        Mother, mother,
The curse of hell from me shall you bear,
Such counsels you gave to me O.”

20 dule: sorrow, grief, dolor, misery, anguish, mourning, pain; like the archaic meaning of dole, "grief, sorrow"

24 wae is mee: woe is me; an expression of lament, unhappiness; I am distressed, aggrieved

25 penance: payment for a bad thing done; an act done to show repentance for some wrong that you committed; something that you do to show how sorry you are

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16

17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24

25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32

33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40

41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48

49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56

“Why does your sword so drip with blood,
        Edward, Edward,
Why does your sword so drip with blood,
And why so sad go you O?”
“O I have killed my hawk so good,
        Mother, mother,
O I have killed my hawk so good,
And I had no more but he O.”

“Your hawk's blood was never so red,
        Edward, Edward,
Your hawk's blood was never so red,
My dear son I tell you O.”
“O I have killed my red-roan steed,
        Mother, mother,
O I have killed my red-roan steed,
That had been so fair and free O.”

“Your steed was old, and you have got more,
        Edward, Edward,
Your steed was old, and you have got more,
Some other grief you suffer O.”
“O I have killed my father dear,
        Mother, mother,
O I have killed my father dear,
Alas, and woe is me O!”

“And what penance will you suffer for that,
        Edward, Edward,
And what penance will you suffer for that?
My dear son, now tell me O.”
“I'll set my feet in that boat,
        Mother, mother,
I'll set my feet in that boat,
And I'll go over the sea O.”

“And what will you do with your towers and your hall,
        Edward, Edward?
And what will you do with your towers and your hall,
That were so fair to see O?”
“I'll let them stand till they down fall,
        Mother, mother,
I'll let them stand till they down fall,
For here never more must I be O.”

“And what will you leave to your children and your wife,
        Edward, Edward?
And what will you leave to your children and your wife,
When you go over the sea O?”
“The world's room, let them beg through life,
        Mother, mother,
The world's room, let them beg through life,
For them never more will I see O.”

“And what will you leave to your own mother dear,
        Edward, Edward?
And what will you leave to your own mother dear?
My dear son, now tell me O.”
“The curse of hell from me shall you bear,
        Mother, mother,
The curse of hell from me shall you bear,
Such counsels you gave to me O.”

“Why does your sword drip with so much blood / Why does your sword drip with blood like this, Edward;
why does your sword drip so with blood;
oh why are you going about so sorrowfully?”
“Oh god / Oh no, I have killed my good hawk,
Mother,
oh I have killed my hawk which is so good,
and I had none else except him, oh!”

“Your hawk's blood was never so red,
Edward; [that is, your hawk's blood has never been so true? strong? bright? alarming? faithful? pure?]
I tell you, my dear son.”
“Oh I have killed my red-roan horse,
Mother;

the horse used to be so beautiful and free.”

“It was an old horse, and you have other horses,
Edward;

something else is bothering you.”
“I have killed my dear father,
Mother;

this is terrible and regrettable, and I am in distress!”

“And what will you do to pay for that,
Edward,
how will you pay/suffer for what you have done?
Oh tell me, my dear son.”
“I'll get into that boat over there,
Mother,

and I'll roam the seas / spend my life at sea.”

“And what will you do with your estate: your towers and hall, Edward?

Oh what'll you do with your beautiful house/buildings?”
“I'll let them stand until they fall down,
Mother;
I'll leave them to crumble and fall where they stand
because I cannot be here any longer / I cannot stay.”

“And what will you leave your children and wife,
Edward?
What will you give them / what resources will you provide for them when you go out to sea?”
“Let them beg throughout the rest of their lives all over this world, Mother;
let them beg through life in the world,
because I will never see them again.”

“And what will you leave to your own dear mother,
Edward?
What are you going to leave me with?
Oh tell me, my dear son.”
“You shall bear the curse of hell from me,
Mother; I curse you with hell / I give you hell / you will be tormented because of the advice you've given me / for the kind of advice you have given me.”

Media		607. Edward, Edward (Child 13) - (Traditional) (video clip, 3:36 min.)