The Book of Scottish Song/The bonnie House o' Airly
The bonnie House o’ Airly.
[The House of Airly is thus described in the old Statistical Account of Scotland: "Airly castle, which gave title to Ogilvy, Earl of Airly, is situated on the north-west corner of this parish (Airly in Forfarshire), at the conflux of the Melgin and Isla. It is built on a promontory formed by these two rivers, and elevated above their bed more than one hundred feet. It has been a very large and strong fortress, seemingly inaccessible on every side but the south, on which it has been secured by a ditch and a draw-bridge, perhaps thirty feet wide, and a wall (the front of the castle) ten feet thick and thirty-five feet high."—During the great civil war of the seventeenth century, the house of Ogilvie adhered firmly to the royal cause; and in July 1640, the castles of the Earl of Airly were plundered and burnt by the Covenanting party (then dominant,) while the Earl himself was absent in England. Montrose, who did not desert the party of the Covenanters till the year 1641, was first sent to attack the house of Airly, and afterwards Argyle was sent. Spalding gives the following account of the occurrences upon which this song is founded.—"The Earl of Airly went from home to England, fearing the troubles of the land, and that he should be pressed to subscribe the Covenant, whether he would or not, whilk by fleeing the land he resolved to eschew as well as he could, and left his eldest son, the Lord Ogilvie, a brave young nobleman, behind him at home. The estates or tables hearing of his departure, directed the Earls of Montrose and Kinghorn to go to the place of Airly, and to take in the same, and for that effect to carry cartows [cannon] with them; who went and summoned the Lord Ogilvie to render the house, (being an impregnable strength by nature, well manned with all sort of munition and provision necessary,) who answered, his father was absent, and he left no such commission with him as to render his house to any subjects, and that he would defend the samen to his power, till his father returned from England. There were some shots shot the house, and same from the house; but the assailants finding the place unwinnable, by nature of great strength, without great skaith, left the place without meikle loss on either side; then departed therefrae in June. Now the committee of estates finding no contentment in this expedition, and hearing how their friends of the name of Forbes, and others in the country, were daily injured and opprest by Highland lymmers, broken out of Lochaber, Clangregor out of Brae of Athol, Brae of Mar, and divers other places, therefore they gave order to the Earl of Argyle to raise men out of his own country, and first to go to Airly and Furtour, two of the Earl of Airly's principal houses, and to take in and destroy the same, and next to go upon thin lymmers and punish them, likeas, conform to his order, he raises an army of about five thousand men, and marches towards Airly; but the Lord Ogilvie hearing of his coming with such irresistible force, resolves to flee and leave the house manless; and so for their own safety they wisely fled; but Argyle most cruelly and inhumanely enters the house of Airly, and beats the same to the ground, and right sua he does to Furtour, syne spoiled all within both houses, and such as could not be carried (away,) they masterfully brake down and destroyed."—There are different readings of this old song. John Finlay was the first to rescue it from oral tradition, and we here follow his version.]
It fell on a day, and a bonnie summer day,
When the corn grew green and yellow,
That there fell out a great dispute
Between Argyle and Airly.
The Duke o' Montrose has written to Argyle
To come in the morning early,
An' lead in his men, by the back o' Dunkeld,
To plunder the bonnie house o' Airly.
The lady look'd o'er her window sae hie,
And oh! but she look'd weary,
And there she espied the great Argyle
Come to plunder the bonnie house o' Airly.
"Come down, come down, Lady Margaret," he says,
"Come down and kiss me fairly,
Or before the morning clear day light,
I'll no leave a standing stane in Airly."
"I wadna kiss thee, great Argyle,
I wadna kiss thee fairly,
I wadna kiss thee, great Argyle,
Gin you shouldna leave a standing stane in Airly."
He has ta'en her by the middle sae sma',
Says, "Lady, where is your drury?"
"It's up and down the bonnie burn side,
Amang the planting of Airly."
They sought it up, they sought it down,
They sought it late and early,
And found it in the bonnie balm-tree,
That shines on the bowling-green o' Airly.
He has ta'en her by the left shoulder,
And oh! but she grat sairly,
And led her down'to yon green bank
Till he plundered the bonnie house o' Airly.
"O! its I ha'e seven braw'sons," she says,
"And the youngest ne'er saw his daddie,
And although I had as mony mae,
I wad gi'e them a' to Charlie.
"But gin my good lord had been at hame,
As this night he is wi' Charlie,
There durst na a Campbell in a' the west
Ha'e plunder'd the bonnie house o' Airly."
S