Rich Nobleman and His Daughter, The

DESCRIPTION: "It's of a rich nobleman lately, we hear." He has a daughter, who inherits when he dies. She falls in love with a (plowboy). She and her maid dress up as soldiers and "press" him with a "warrant of love." She appears in her own clothes. They happily marry
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1892 (Broadwood)
KEYWORDS: love courting disguise soldier cross-dressing trick marriage
FOUND IN: Britain(England(South))
REFERENCES (1 citation):
Broadwood-EnglishTraditionalSongsAndCarols, pp. 68-69, "The Rich Nobleman and His Daughter" (1 text, 1 tune)
Roud #1063
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "Caroline and Her Young Sailor Bold (Young Sailor Bold II)" [Laws N17] (plot, lyrics)
NOTES [79 words]: My first glance at this instantly reminded me of "Caroline and Her Young Sailor Bold (Young Sailor Bold II)" [Laws N17]. They are in fact in many ways distinct: The girl's father is already dead, the boy is not actually impressed, and the cross-dressing is a trick. But I suspect that this song (not very widely known) was inspired by the Laws Ballad. Or, perhaps, the longer ballad wore down to the point that the plot no longer made sense, and was rebuilt to become this. - RBW
Last updated in version 2.8
File: LEBC068

Go to the Ballad Search form
Go to the Ballad Index Song List

Go to the Ballad Index Instructions
Go to the Ballad Index Bibliography or Discography