Derwentwater

DESCRIPTION: "Oh! Derwentwater's a bonny lord, And golden is his hair." He travels the land calling for people to support "good King James." The lord of the castle he visits will have nothing to do with him, but the lady sighs for the handsome young man.
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1810 (Cromek)
KEYWORDS: Jacobites love
HISTORICAL REFERENCES:
1715 - the 1715 Jacobite rebellion
Sept. 1715 - Warrant issued for Derwentwater's arrest. He responds by openly going into revolt
Nov. 14, 1715 - Derwentwater and his comrades forced to surrender
Feb 24, 1716 - Execution of Derwentwater at the age of (probably) 26
FOUND IN: Britain(England(North),Scotland)
REFERENCES (3 citations):
Hogg-JacobiteRelicsOfScotlandVol2 10, "Derwentwater" (1 text, 1 tune)
Stokoe/Reay-SongsAndBalladsOfNorthernEngland, pp. 128-129, "Derwentwater" (1 text, 1 tune)
ADDITIONAL: R. H. Cromek, Remains of Nithsdale and Galloway Song, (London, 1810), pp. 127-131, "Derwentwater"
ST StoR128 (Partial)
Roud #3158
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "Lord Derwentwater" [Child 208] (subject)
cf. "Derwentwater's Farewell" (subject)
NOTES [228 words]: The text of this ballad is not really sufficient to establish that the Derwentwater mentioned is "the" Derwentwater; it's at least theoretically possible that "good King James" was someone other than the Old Pretender. But a young, handsome Derwentwater campaigning for King James certainly sounds like the hero of "Lord Derwentwater" [Child 208]. See that song for background. - RBW
Hogg-JacobiteRelicsOfScotlandVol2: "James Radcliff, Earl of Derwentwater, was among those who met in Northumberland, and rose in arms for King James about the beginning of October.... The editor cannot find any tradition on which this ballad is founded; it is taken from the recitation of a young girl, in the parish of Kirkbean, in Galloway. He has searched for it carefully through all the collections he could meet with; but it is not to be found.... This song, and part of the above note, are copied from Cromek's Remains of Nithsdale and Galloway song. The air is exceedingly simple and beautiful, and very ancient."
"Cromek died [1812] shortly after the issue [1810] of Remains of Nithsdale and Galloway Song, which was mostly written by Cunningham, though palmed upon Cromek as recovered antiques." (source: J. Ross, The Book of Scottish Poems: Ancient and Modern, (Edinburgh, Edinburgh Publishing Co, 1878), "Allan Cunningham 1784-1842," p. 738; other sources agree) - BS
Last updated in version 2.5
File: StoR128

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