# Fight at Bothwel-Bridge

THE
FIGHT
AT
BOTHWEL-BRIDGE.
Composed, into
METRE,
EDINBURGH.
Printed, and Sold by William Forrest, at the Head of the Cow-gate and at his Shop South-side of the Corn-market. 1766.
THE
FIGHT
AT Bothwel Bridge.
O Wo be unto Prelacie that ever it did stand and wo be to your new made laws but and your cursed band And wo be to you Prelates all, if ye do not repent for ye have banish'd Christ away and broken his covenant. You Prelates ay when that you look you do mistake the figure you think it service good enough to press the poor with rigour Our whorish Council apostates hath made a foul Defection for they have shed the righteous blood since Prelates their election: Our Teachers they have banished from city and from town; and raised up a perjured pack to trade the Gosple down, When they appear at the letter day their tales will have no bearing I hope it’s be there hinder end; their covenant men swearing. When we drew up into the well against these insurrections, at Pentland hills there we did fight to witness, against defections, They buried Christ at pentland hills that day at Rullein green, but yet the LORD will rise again, and reign in Zion King. For there a King in Zion was, when man that there was none ​and there shall be a king in it, when this king shall be gone. When this was done they did us turn back into Edinburgh town, our cursed council did command to put the prisoners down. Both heads and hands they did stick up in every publick town. the reason was we would not yeild to every Bishop lown. But evermore the martyrs blood, the churches feed doth prove, but and the church found on a rock nothing shall her remove, For in that time the seed was sown, that ever since have grown, that all the powers of prelacie shall never get o’erthrown. Our whorish council did devise, another evil design: an hellish-band they did contrive, which was a devilish thing,
And for to bring this thing about, some Lords out of the North, come with adrift of Amorites cut o’er the watter of forth. And for this end they did draw up their whole mischievous troops, and brought them in by Lemerick town to search the land throughout And killed all that they did find the Gospel that did preach and made a final end of all that would not serve the beast. And then they came to such a hight to prosecute the band, and never to hear the Gospel preached almost into this land, ​And now they are not settled yet for all the wrongs they did. they think for to disthrone our king, the crown take of his head It would take up now too much time to set down all things here. how prelates have us persecute this more than twenty years, But now to crown all their mischief which they have further done they think to make an end and lay on him a Burial stone, They did discharge us for to hear his honest servants preach and threatened death unto all those the Gospel that did teach. They were so mad against the truth that they would give no bield to Christ: nor to his followers, in city, nor in field. These perjured troops did still go on in bloody cruelty; and took our friends at Glasgow town to send beyond the sea, Then we drew up into the west. our dearest Blood to spil and for our covenants we fought, that day at Lowdon hill, Although that Calvers should go mad, and all his men had sworn, the LORD did order us and he our (illegible text) then back did turn, We were assembled for to hear the joyful sound I say, but we were ne’er amind to fight upon a sabbath day, This Clavers now of whom I speak a Tyrant stout was he, ​a sudden death him overtake, for he began the plea. He came full far to seek a plea, he met with one that day: his men were kill’d in open field, himself wan ill away He ran a long way on his scot, his horse did him forlorn dismounted was his trumpeter that blew the brazen horn. And when they fled to Glasgow town with many wounds and pricks they made a trench about the cross with many boards and slicks When we had gath’red our prisoners was left in Evendail, then we pursu’d to Glasgow town the morn yea without fail. We entred into Glasgow town at all the entries four the timber trenches were so high that we could not win o’re But then we put them in a fear and then return’d again, unto the Chiming streams of Clyde and camped on the plain. Upon the blooming braes of Clyde we laid our ligour down, our friends reported unto us from city and from town. For to defend in our God’s name the Gospel in our land, that which we solemnly had sworn yea with uplifted hands, We were engag’d in covenant, Christ and his cause to win, and for to bring the banish'd home and drag the prelates down, ​For we had rather loss our selves, and die in open field, before we would perjure our selves, to prelacie to yeild For they did lie at Glasgow town, and we in open field untill the time they fled away to Stirling to get beild They marched east throuh Lithgow for to enlarge their forces and sent for the north country to come both foot and horses Montrose did come and Athol both, and with them many more, and all the Highland Amorites that had been here before, The Lowdian mallishia they, came with their coats of blew, five hundred men from London came claid in a ridish hue, When they were assembled one and all a full bragade were they like to a pack of hellish hounds, roring for their prey When they were all provided well in armour and amunition, then thither wester did they come, most cruel of intention, When they came in by Blackburn town and there lay down to rest them, and then to plunder they began, of all they had they rest them, When they came in by the whitburn, and the peckemes town, upon the hight of the muirhead, they laid their ligour down. And their they lay untill the ⟨time⟩ that ordinance was ready; ​both knight and knave, an musquitier must have a ligour lady. Then munmouth down from London came for to govern the battle, on saturday late they took the gate, with many droves of cattle. They marched closly in the night, and had their soldiers ranked, I trow their tails were right braid with bulls and open flanked. They marched closs by tuck of drum in that most worldy guise, and then drew near to Bothwel town while as the sun did rise When as we saw them first appear and for the battle drest, to keep the entries of the bridge, we thought it was the best. Some men were set to keep the bridge who plaid their part full well; while amunition did remain they made their foes to reel. When the en'mies came near the bridge into their full bragades Stileing their cannons on us before, discharging at our lads And then the battle it did joyn, each one did charge the other the longest gun a volly gave, al'oud like muskets mother, It would have made a coward fear’d to hear such cracks of war; for many sadles wer made toom, the shooting was so sore And many groom were in aghast, that were stout men before, this was a day of sad reproch and of great lamentation. ​The laws god were broken down the glory of our nation, then Mr. Hamilton did command, some says he was to blame, Because he was not valiant in battle for Gods name, but whither guilt or ignorance, God knoweth and himself; For whither of the two it was, my author doth not tell The men who at the bridge did stand did amunition lake and no relief at all they got, and so they did draw hack The horsemen they did flee away and left the foot behind; the enemy did seize on them for all the rest were gone, When the enemy had won the bridge the Westlandmen did flee the Englishmen and Clavers both did kill them grievouslie And all along through Hamilton town they did kill and did wound Untill the streets with bodies dead was cover’d in the town. Some were dead and some were sick and some were sorely wounded they drove them east like unto sheep before the dogs were hunted, Then some were dead and some were sick and some for quarters cryed and many brave gallants blood, upon the ground there lyed, They took twelve hundred prisoners, when fighting it was done: and on the morn when it was day, they gathered all right soon ​They drove them to the gray frier’s yeard and there they were inclosed It would have made a whole heart sore to see them so abused, And there they lay for many a day, starving for hunger and cold: our cursed council did command, they o’er the seas were sold. Then Arazon did undertake to go to new plantations, and to remove them far away, out of their native nations. But Judgment shall him overtake, either here or hereafter? when Lords of council shall not then be able him to shelter They did not send them to the sea not only for their lives for two they hang’d in Edinburgh town, and five of them in Fife, For such a hellish pack as they I think shall ne’er renown, then sent the wounded prisoners into the sea to drown. For of two hundred prisoners that to the sea did go, was never more returned at all but only fifty two. And now they are not settled yet tho’ they be imbrew’d in blood; they are begun anew again, to persecute most rude, with fineing and with roberie, the poor they do oppress; And all that on God's name do call, either in more or less, when they send out their hellish hounds an ioventer to take ​Altho' the man he ne’er so poor the sine they will not take, they call us rebels to the King and treators to the Crown, Because we'll not menswear ourselvs for every bishop lown, but we will not acknowledge them nor own them as our head, Nor will imbrace on mortal man into our matters stead, we will prove royal to the King; through city and through town. If they will place our ministers and ding the Bishops down the Bishops they are high in power, and sets themselves as lords; But when the wheel of fortune turns beware of sharp rewards, the Bishops they betrayed the church of God within this land; But yet I hope to see the day; when he will it recall, and bring us back from Babylon in spite of prelates all, The Prelates they are but bastards weeds, and wounded at the root;
there's nothing grows on them but leaves or then some withered fruit,
But when the master gardner comes, and sees how blait they'r like; he‘l neither dig nor delve no more, but cast them o'er the dike.
FINIS.
This work was published before January 1, 1929, and is in the public domain worldwide because the author died at least 100 years ago.
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