Medieval Period

The period known in history as Medieval followed the Dark Ages. The word Medieval itself means middle "med", ages "eval". Therefore, to say Medieval Ages is redundant. This period in history was marked by the power of the Roman Catholic Church. This was the period of the Crusades, a time of pilgrimages to the Holy Land, a time of feudalistic society, a time of two major classes of society in which the majority of the population was poor, landless and worked for the mighty Lord, who owned the land the peasant worked. This was a period of relatively low population, very little movement within society and an extremely low pace of life. Generation followed generation, usually in the same town. This was a time of plagues, of kings, of bishops and clergy. This was the period of history known as the Medieval.

For the aristocratic child, one was given two choices, an arranged marriage or a life in a convent or monastery. Many chose life in a convent or monastery. The way to "drop out" of society during the Medieval period was to join a convent or monastery and many of the royalty of the time chose to do so rather than fulfill their royal obligations. Many kings and queens chose to live out their "retirement" years within the confines of the convent or the monastery.

The Roman Catholic Church touched every person's life in every sphere of society. Every child was baptized and every child then entered a life of service to the church, for every person had a responsibilty to the church and fell beneath church laws. Every person paid taxes to the church, as well as the lord. The church controlled the people and the kings, making political alliances and even controlling the marriages of the nobility. The Pope was the head of the church and was considered to be God's representative on earth. Anyone who defied the church was met with excommunication, a powerful curse upon the receiver. Directly beneath the Pope were the bishops, ruling over the priests of the parishes. Every nation was divided into parishes over which a priest had dominion. Every town had a parish church, generally the largest, most prestigious building in the town. Most of the parisioners were illiterate and depended upon the priest for Biblical instruction. This Biblical instruction consisted of a service, in Latin that the parisioner did not understand and a sermon, which was given in the native language of the parish. Even in death, the church held dominion, for around the church were the consecrated burial grounds for the parish, reserved for those who were in good standing with the church. Those who had been excommunicated or in some other way had offended the church were denied the privilege of burial within the consecrated grounds.

Nearly every individual sought to go on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land but there were also pilgrimages to special sites of some religious significance such as the burial of a saint or the site of a miracle. These pilgrims travelled by food upon roads that were the favorite haunts of bandits and pirates. Pilgrimages were often taken in order to receive God's special favor such as when a loved one fell ill. So strong was the desire to attend a pilgrimage, most especially to the Holy Land itself that when Robert the Bruce died, his dying request was for his heart to be carried to and buried in the Holy Land, as he, himself, had never had the opportunity to go to the Holy Land.

During the period of 1095-1254, there were eight Crusades to the Holy Land. These Crusades were at the request of the church and to be a part of a Crusade was a cherished honor. Many of the heroes of the Medieval period were created during a Crusade, a prime example being Sir James Douglas. The only honor greater than fighting for one's king was to fight for God (remembering that the Pope was God's earthly representative.)

This period in history was a time of great literary achievements such as Dante's Divine Comedy, Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, The Song of Roland and the Tales of King Arthur, just to mention a few.

Kemp Owyne

Her mother died when she was young,
Which gave her cause to make great moan;
Her father married the warst woman
That ever lived in Christendom.

She served her with foot and hand,
In every thing that she could dee,
Till once, in an unlucky time,
She threw her in ower Craigy's sea.

Says, "Lie you there, dove Isabel,
And all my sorrows lie with thee;
Till Kemp Owyne come ower the sea,
And borrow you with kisses three,
Let all the warld do what they will,
Oh borrowed shall you never be!

Her breath grew strang, her hair grew lang,
And twisted thrice about the tree,
And all the people, far and near,
Thought that a savage beast was she.

These news did come to Kemp Owyne,
Where he lived, far beyond the sea;
He hasted him to Craigy's sea,
And on the savage beast lookd he.

Her breath was strang, her hair was lang,
And twisted was about the tree,
And with a swing she came about:
"Come to Craigy's sea, and kiss with me.

"Here is a royal belt," she cried,
"That I have found in the green sea;
And while your body it is on,
Drawn shall your blood never be;
But if you touch me, tail or fin,
I vow my belt your death shall be."

He stepped in, gave her a kiss,
The royal belt he brought him wi;
Her breath was strang, her hair was lang,
And twisted twice about the tree,
And with a swing she came about:
"Come to Craigy's sea, and kiss with me."

"Here is a royal ring," she said,
"That I have found in the green sea;
And while your finger it is on,
Drawn shall your blood never be;
But if you touch me, tail or fin,
I swear my ring your death shall be."

He stepped in, gave her a kiss,
The royal ring he brought him wi;
Her breath was strang, her hair was lang,
And twisted ance about the tree,
And with a swing she came about:
"Come to Craigy's sea, and kiss with me.

"Here is a royal brand," she said,
"That I have found in the green sea;
And while your body it is on,
Drawn shall your blood never be;
But if you touch me, tail or fin,
I swear my brand your death shall be."

He stepped in, gave her a kiss,
The royal brand he brought him wi;
Her breath was sweet, her hair grew short,
And twisted nane about the tree,
And smilingly she came about,
As fair a woman as fair could be.

THE BATTLE OF HARLAW

As I cam in by Dunidier,
An doun by Netherha,
There was fifty thousand Hielanmen
A-marching to Harlaw.

As I cam on, an farther on,
An doun and by Balquhain,
Oh there I met Sir James the Rose,
Wi him Sir John the Gryme.

'O cam ye frae the Hielands, man,
An cam ye a' the wey?
Saw ye Macdonell an his men,
As they cam frae the Skee?'

'Yes, me cam frae ta Hielands, man,
An me cam a' ta wey,
An she saw Macdonnel an his men,
As they cam frae to Skee.'

'Oh was ye near Macdonnel's men?
Did ye their numbers see?
Come, tell to me, John Hielanman,
What micht their numbers be?'

'Yes, me was near, an near eneuch,
An me their numbers saw;
There was fifty thousan Hielanmen
A-marching to Harlaw.'

'Gin that be true,' says James the Rose,
'We'll no come meikle speed;
We'll cry upo our merry men,
And lichtly mount our steed.'

'Oh no, oh no,' says John the Gryme,
'That thing maun never be;
The gallant Grymes were never bate,
We'll try phat we can dee.'

As I cam on, an farther on,
An doun an by Harlaw,
They fell fu close on ilka side;
Sic fun ye never saw.

They fell fu close on ilka side,
Sic fun ye never saw;
For Hielan swords gied clash for clash,
At the battle o' Harlaw.

The Hielanmen, wi their lang swords,
They laid on us fu sair,
An they drave back our merry men
Three acres breadth an mair.

Brave Forbes to his brither did say,
Noo brither, dinna ye see?
They beat us back on ilka side,
An we'se be forced to flee.

'Oh no, oh no, my brither dear,
That thing maun never be;
Tak ye your good sword in your hand,
An come your wa's wi me.'

'Oh no, oh no, my brither dear,
The clans they are ower strang,
An they drive back our merry men,
Wi swords baith sharp an lang.'

Brave Forbes drew his men aside,
Sa,d Tak your rest a while,
Until I to Drumminnor send,
To fess my coat o' mail.

The servan he did ride,
An his horse it did na fail,
For in twa hours an a quarter
He brocht the coat o' mail.

Then back to back the brithers twa
Gaed in amo the thrang,
An they hewed doun the Hielanmen,
Wi swords baith sharp an lang.

Macdonell, he was young an stout,
Had on his coat o' mail,
An he has gane oot throw them a',
To try his han himself.

The first ae straik that Forbes strack,
He garrt Macdonell reel,
An the neist ae straik that Forbes strack
The great Macdonell fell.

An siccan a lierachie
I'm sure ye never saw
As wis amo the Hielanmen,
When they saw Macdonnel fa.

An whan they saw that he was deid,
They turnd an ran awa,
An they buried hin in Leggett's Den,
A large mile frae Harlaw.

They rade, they ran, an some did gang,
They were o' sma record;
But Forbes an his merry men,
They slew them a' the road.

On Monanday, at mornin,
The battle it began,
On Saturday, at gloamin,
Ye'd scarce kent wha had wan.

An sic a weary buryin
I'm sure ye never saw
As wis the Sunday after that,
On the muirs aneath Harlaw.

Gin ony body speer at you
For them ye took awa,
Ye may tell their wives and bairnies
They're sleepin at Harlaw.


The period known in history as Medieval followed the Dark Ages. The word Medieval itself means middle "med", ages "eval". Therefore, to say Medieval Ages is redundant. This period in history was marked by the power of the Roman Catholic Church. This was the period of the Crusades, a time of pilgrimages to the Holy Land, a time of feudalistic society, a time of two major classes of society in which the majority of the population was poor, landless and worked for the mighty Lord, who owned the land the peasant worked. This was a period of relatively low population, very little movement within society and an extremely low pace of life. Generation followed generation, usually in the same town. This was a time of plagues, of kings, of bishops and clergy. This was the period of history known as the Medieval. For the aristocratic child, one was given two choices, an arranged marriage or a life in a convent or monastery. Many chose life in a convent or monastery. The way to "drop out" of society during the Medieval period was to join a convent or monastery and many of the royalty of the time chose to do so rather than fulfill their royal obligations. Many kings and queens chose to live out their "retirement" years within the confines of the convent or the monastery. The Roman Catholic Church touched every person's life in every sphere of society. Every child was baptized and every child then entered a life of service to the church, for every person had a responsibilty to the church and fell beneath church laws. Every person paid taxes to the church, as well as the lord. The church controlled the people and the kings, making political alliances and even controlling the marriages of the nobility. The Pope was the head of the church and was considered to be God's representative on earth. Anyone who defied the church was met with excommunication, a powerful curse upon the receiver. Directly beneath the Pope were the bishops, ruling over the priests of the parishes. Every nation was divided into parishes over which a priest had dominion. Every town had a parish church, generally the largest, most prestigious building in the town. Most of the parisioners were illiterate and depended upon the priest for Biblical instruction. This Biblical instruction consisted of a service, in Latin that the parisioner did not understand and a sermon, which was given in the native language of the parish. Even in death, the church held dominion, for around the church were the consecrated burial grounds for the parish, reserved for those who were in good standing with the church. Those who had been excommunicated or in some other way had offended the church were denied the privilege of burial within the consecrated grounds. Nearly every individual sought to go on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land but there were also pilgrimages to special sites of some religious significance such as the burial of a saint or the site of a miracle. These pilgrims travelled by food upon roads that were the favorite haunts of bandits and pirates. Pilgrimages were often taken in order to receive God's special favor such as when a loved one fell ill. So strong was the desire to attend a pilgrimage, most especially to the Holy Land itself that when Robert the Bruce died, his dying request was for his heart to be carried to and buried in the Holy Land, as he, himself, had never had the opportunity to go to the Holy Land. During the period of 1095-1254, there were eight Crusades to the Holy Land. These Crusades were at the request of the church and to be a part of a Crusade was a cherished honor. Many of the heroes of the Medieval period were created during a Crusade, a prime example being Sir James Douglas. The only honor greater than fighting for one's king was to fight for God (remembering that the Pope was God's earthly representative.) This period in history was a time of great literary achievements such as Dante's Divine Comedy, Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, The Song of Roland and the Tales of King Arthur, just to mention a few. From Dante's Inferno, VII "Maestro," said I to him. "Now tell me also, This Fortune that you have mentioned to me, What is it, that has such control over worldly goods?" And he to me: "Oh misguided creatures, How much ignorance afflicts you. Now I want you to absorb my instruction. He whose intelligence transcends all Made the heavens and gave to them a guide So that every part mirrors every other part Distributing in equal proportion the light. Likewise, over the worldly splendors He ordained general minister and duke One who would change from time to time vain goods From people to people, and from one race to another Beyond the scope of human understanding. So that one people would prevail, another languish According to the judgement of her Who is hidden from view like the serpent in the grass. Your knowledge cannot attain to her: She disposes, judges, and perseveres in Her reign as the other divinities do in theirs. Her mutations are without cease. Necessity makes her move quicky, So that it often happens that fortunes change This is she who is so often criticized Even by those who should praise her, Blaming her wrongly and with an evil voice But she is blessed, and does not hear this. And turns her wheel and enjoys her state. Inf. VII.67-96	Kemp Owyne Her mother died when she was young, Which gave her cause to make great moan; Her father married the warst woman That ever lived in Christendom. She served her with foot and hand, In every thing that she could dee, Till once, in an unlucky time, She threw her in ower Craigy's sea. Says, "Lie you there, dove Isabel, And all my sorrows lie with thee; Till Kemp Owyne come ower the sea, And borrow you with kisses three, Let all the warld do what they will, Oh borrowed shall you never be! Her breath grew strang, her hair grew lang, And twisted thrice about the tree, And all the people, far and near, Thought that a savage beast was she. These news did come to Kemp Owyne, Where he lived, far beyond the sea; He hasted him to Craigy's sea, And on the savage beast lookd he. Her breath was strang, her hair was lang, And twisted was about the tree, And with a swing she came about: "Come to Craigy's sea, and kiss with me. "Here is a royal belt," she cried, "That I have found in the green sea; And while your body it is on, Drawn shall your blood never be; But if you touch me, tail or fin, I vow my belt your death shall be." He stepped in, gave her a kiss, The royal belt he brought him wi; Her breath was strang, her hair was lang, And twisted twice about the tree, And with a swing she came about: "Come to Craigy's sea, and kiss with me." "Here is a royal ring," she said, "That I have found in the green sea; And while your finger it is on, Drawn shall your blood never be; But if you touch me, tail or fin, I swear my ring your death shall be." He stepped in, gave her a kiss, The royal ring he brought him wi; Her breath was strang, her hair was lang, And twisted ance about the tree, And with a swing she came about: "Come to Craigy's sea, and kiss with me. "Here is a royal brand," she said, "That I have found in the green sea; And while your body it is on, Drawn shall your blood never be; But if you touch me, tail or fin, I swear my brand your death shall be." He stepped in, gave her a kiss, The royal brand he brought him wi; Her breath was sweet, her hair grew short, And twisted nane about the tree, And smilingly she came about, As fair a woman as fair could be. THE BATTLE OF HARLAW As I cam in by Dunidier, An doun by Netherha, There was fifty thousand Hielanmen A-marching to Harlaw. As I cam on, an farther on, An doun and by Balquhain, Oh there I met Sir James the Rose, Wi him Sir John the Gryme. 'O cam ye frae the Hielands, man, An cam ye a' the wey? Saw ye Macdonell an his men, As they cam frae the Skee?' 'Yes, me cam frae ta Hielands, man, An me cam a' ta wey, An she saw Macdonnel an his men, As they cam frae to Skee.' 'Oh was ye near Macdonnel's men? Did ye their numbers see? Come, tell to me, John Hielanman, What micht their numbers be?' 'Yes, me was near, an near eneuch, An me their numbers saw; There was fifty thousan Hielanmen A-marching to Harlaw.' 'Gin that be true,' says James the Rose, 'We'll no come meikle speed; We'll cry upo our merry men, And lichtly mount our steed.' 'Oh no, oh no,' says John the Gryme, 'That thing maun never be; The gallant Grymes were never bate, We'll try phat we can dee.' As I cam on, an farther on, An doun an by Harlaw, They fell fu close on ilka side; Sic fun ye never saw. They fell fu close on ilka side, Sic fun ye never saw; For Hielan swords gied clash for clash, At the battle o' Harlaw. The Hielanmen, wi their lang swords, They laid on us fu sair, An they drave back our merry men Three acres breadth an mair. Brave Forbes to his brither did say, Noo brither, dinna ye see? They beat us back on ilka side, An we'se be forced to flee. 'Oh no, oh no, my brither dear, That thing maun never be; Tak ye your good sword in your hand, An come your wa's wi me.' 'Oh no, oh no, my brither dear, The clans they are ower strang, An they drive back our merry men, Wi swords baith sharp an lang.' Brave Forbes drew his men aside, Sa,d Tak your rest a while, Until I to Drumminnor send, To fess my coat o' mail. The servan he did ride, An his horse it did na fail, For in twa hours an a quarter He brocht the coat o' mail. Then back to back the brithers twa Gaed in amo the thrang, An they hewed doun the Hielanmen, Wi swords baith sharp an lang. Macdonell, he was young an stout, Had on his coat o' mail, An he has gane oot throw them a', To try his han himself. The first ae straik that Forbes strack, He garrt Macdonell reel, An the neist ae straik that Forbes strack The great Macdonell fell. An siccan a lierachie I'm sure ye never saw As wis amo the Hielanmen, When they saw Macdonnel fa. An whan they saw that he was deid, They turnd an ran awa, An they buried hin in Leggett's Den, A large mile frae Harlaw. They rade, they ran, an some did gang, They were o' sma record; But Forbes an his merry men, They slew them a' the road. On Monanday, at mornin, The battle it began, On Saturday, at gloamin, Ye'd scarce kent wha had wan. An sic a weary buryin I'm sure ye never saw As wis the Sunday after that, On the muirs aneath Harlaw. Gin ony body speer at you For them ye took awa, Ye may tell their wives and bairnies They're sleepin at Harlaw.