Ye Highlands, and ye Lowlands, Oh where have you been? They have slain the Earl of Murray, And they layd him on the green. “Now wae be to thee, Huntly! And wherefore did you sae? I bade you bring him wi’ you, But forbade you him to slay.” He was a braw gallant, And he rid at the ring; And the bonny Earl of Murray, Oh he might have been a king! He was a braw gallant, And he play’d at the ba’; And the bonny Earl of Murray Was the flower amang them a’. He was a braw gallant, And he play’d at the glove; And the bonny Earl of Murray, Oh he was the Queen’s love! Oh lang will his lady Look o’er the Castle Down, E’er she see the Earl of Murray Come sounding thro the town!
Confirmed with The Library of the World’s Best Literature. An Anthology in Thirty Volumes, New York: Warner Library Co., 1917.
Authorship:
- from Volkslieder (Folksongs) , "The Bonny Earl of Murray" [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- [ None yet in the database ]
Settings in other languages, adaptations, or excerpts:
- Also set in English, [adaptation] ; composed by Benjamin Britten.
- Also set in English, [adaptation] ; composed by Ivor Gurney.
- Also set in German (Deutsch), a translation by Johann Gottfried Herder (1744 - 1803) , "Murray's Ermordung", subtitle: "Schottisch", first published 1778-79 ; composed by Johannes Brahms.
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2021-04-04
Line count: 24
Word count: 140
O Hochland und o Südland! Was ist auf euch geschehn! Erschlagen der edle Murray, Werd' nie ihn wiedersehn. O weh dir! weh dir, Huntley! So untreu, falsch und kühn, Sollst ihn zurück uns bringen, Ermordet hast du ihn. Ein schöner Ritter war er, In Wett- und Ringelauf; Allzeit war unsres Murray Die Krone obendrauf. Ein schöner Ritter war er Bei Waffenspiel und Ball. Es war der edle Murray Die Blume überall. Ein schöner Ritter war er, In Tanz und Saitenspiel; Ach, daß der edle Murray Der Königin gefiel. O, Königin, wirst lange Sehn über Schlosses Wall; Eh du den schönen Murray Siehst reiten in dem Tal.
Confirmed with Johann Gottfried von Herder's Sämmtliche Werke. Zur schönen Literatur und Kunst, Achter Theil, Tübingen, in der J. G. Cotta'schen Buchhandlung, 1807, pages 272-273.
Note for stanza 5, line 4: the queen referred to here ("Königin") is Maria Stuart.
Authorship:
- by Johann Gottfried Herder (1744 - 1803), "Murray's Ermordung", subtitle: "Schottisch", first published 1778-79 [author's text checked 1 time against a primary source]
Based on:
- a text in English from Volkslieder (Folksongs) , "The Bonny Earl of Murray"
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897), "Murrays Ermordung", op. 14 (Acht Lieder und Romanzen) no. 3 (1858), published 1861 [ voice and piano ], Winterthur, Rieter-Biedermann [sung text checked 1 time]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- CAT Catalan (Català) (Salvador Pila) , "L’assassinat de Murray", copyright © 2022, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- DUT Dutch (Nederlands) [singable] (Lau Kanen) , "De moord op Murray", copyright © 2015, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- ENG English (Emily Ezust) , "Murray's Murder", copyright ©
- FRE French (Français) (Guy Laffaille) , "L'assassinat de Murray", copyright © 2013, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
- SPA Spanish (Español) (Alfonso Sebastián) , "El asesinato de Murray", copyright © 2021, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]
This text was added to the website: 2003-11-04
Line count: 24
Word count: 106