Salisbury Plain

DESCRIPTION: The singer and a handsome young man adjourn to an inn, eat, drink, and proceed to bed. He promises to support her by highway robbery. The next morning he robs the mail coaches. She laments that he now lies in Newgate Gaol, expecting to be hanged.
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1904
LONG DESCRIPTION: While walking on Salisbury Plain, the singer meets a handsome young man. They adjourn to an inn, eat, drink, and proceed to bed. He asks her to undress; she consents, provided he will "keep all those flash-girls away". He consents in turn promising to support her by highway robbery. The next morning, he robs the mail coaches. In the last verse, she laments the fact that he now lies in Newgate Gaol, expecting to be hanged.
KEYWORDS: courting love sex bargaining execution prison robbery lover
FOUND IN: Britain(England(North,South))
REFERENCES (4 citations):
Gardham-EarliestVersions, "SALISBURY PLAIN"
VaughanWilliams/Lloyd-PenguinBookOfEnglishFolkSongs, p. 95, "Salisbury Plain" (1 text, 1 tune)
Reeves/Sharp-TheIdiomOfThePeople 88, "Salisbury Plain" (1 text)
Palmer-EnglishCountrySongbook, #47, "Salisbury Plain" (1 text, 1 tune)
Roud #1487
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "Le petit roysin" (tune; 15th cen.)
cf. "The Wild and Wicked Youth" [Laws L12] (theme)
cf. "It's Down in Old Ireland" (theme)
cf. "Gilderoy" (theme)
NOTES [27 words]: [The Vaughan Williams] version was collected in 1904; however, the singer clearly knew the song in 1893, when an unsuccessful attempt was made to collect it. -PJS
Last updated in version 6.8
File: VEL095

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