Talking in English

I love Scottish songs, above all those written by bonnie Rabbie Burns...

... and tis one is my favourite:



A Red, Red Rose

O, my luve's like a red, red rose,
That's newly sprung in June.
O, my luve's like the melodie,
That's sweetly play'd in tune.

As fair art thou, my bonie lass,
So deep in luve am I,
And I will luve thee still, my Dear,
Till a' the seas gang dry.

Till a' the seas gang dry, my Dear,
And the rocks melt wi' the sun!
O I will luve thee still, my Dear,
While the sands o' life shall run.

And fare thee weel, my only Luve,
And fare thee weel a while!
And I will come again, my Luve,
Tho' it were ten thousand mile!

Robert Burns (1759-1796)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBCQM...rom=PL&index=7

[Nevis]

Zitat von Seeräuber-Jenny

I love Scottish songs ...

So do I!



Towering in gallant fame,
Scotland my mountain hame,
High may your proud standards
Gloriously wave,
Land of my high endeavour,
Land of the shining river,
Land of my heart for ever,
Scotland the brave.

I do love this song either. Nevis knows it, he put it in his signature.

Skye Boat Song

Speed bonnie boat, like a bird on the wing,
Onward, the sailors cry
Carry the lad that's born to be king
Over the sea to Skye

Loud the winds howl, loud the waves roar,
Thunder clouds rend the air;
Baffled our foe's stand on the shore
Follow they will not dare

Though the waves leap, soft shall ye sleep
Ocean's a royal bed
Rocked in the deep, Flora will keep
Watch by your weary head

Many's the lad fought on that day
Well the claymore could wield
When the night came, silently lay
Dead on Culloden's field

Burned are our homes, exile and death
Scatter the loyal men
Yet, e'er the sword cool in the sheath,
Charlie will come again.


Prince Charles Edward Stuart (1720-1788)

There are many things to tell about Scottish history.

I. Early history

Many foreigners came to conquer Caledonia, as Scotland was named by the Romans. After the Roman occupation Germanic tribes, Vikings and Britons complied the native peoples: the Celts and the Picts.

Later, there were four kingdoms which fought for hegemony over Scotland. In 1034 the Kingdom of Scotland was founded by Malcolm II. Nevertheless there was still struggle as between Malcom's son Duncan I. and Macbeth. During the reign of Malcom III. and his wife Margareta, Normannic influence over Scotland raised. Instead of the former Celtic Church of St. Columba the Roman-Catholic Church became important.

Henceforward England exerted power on Scotland.

[Nevis]

Talking about Scotland, one has to keep this in mind - always:

Scotland is not an English province - it is a nation in its own right!

And as it was a Scottish king who inherited the throne of England, one could say with a certain bit of truth, thar England belonged to Scotland.

Anyhow.in 1320 Scotland confirmed its independence from England, and sent a message to the Pope.

This "Declaration of Arbroath" has become quite famous.

And it is also dear to my heart, as I have lived in Dundee in my Scottisch time - not not far from Arbroath.

May I quote a part of this declaration:

...for, as long as but a hundred of us remain alive, never will we on any conditions be brought under English rule.

It is in truth not for glory, nor riches, nor honours that we are fighting, but for freedom – for that alone, which no honest man gives up but with life itself.

And right they are ......

Not to forget "Braveheart" William Wallace (born circa 1270, executed in 1305):

This Scottish freedom fighter called for resistance against King Edward I. of England who had claimed sovereignty over Scotland and had forced the Scottish King John de Balliol to abdiction.

In the Battle of Stirling Bridge Wallace and his men inflicted a crushing defeat to the English combatants, chased them away from Scotland and haunted them as far as Northern England.

But later on Edward defeated William Wallace in the Battle of Falkirk.

William fled, but betrayed by Scottish noblemen, he was captured, brought to London and sentenced to death, after he had refused to swear devotedness to Edward.

Immediately after the "trial," Wallace was taken to the place of execution. He was stripped naked, bound and dragged face down four miles, under the tails of two horses. As he was led to the scaffold, William asked for his psalter to be held open where he could see it.

To ensure Wallace felt the most extreme effects of the sentence, officials made sure William hanged but did not die. While he was still alive, his genitals were cut off with a dull blade. His intestines were cut out and burned in his presence. Only after he had endured torture, beyond human comprehension, he was beheaded. After he died, his body was quartered. The body parts were sent to Newcastle, Stirling, Berwick and Perth, as specified in the sentence.

Stirling received one of his arms. Legend has it that once the flesh deteriorated, monks at Cambuskenneth Abbey buried Williams's arm somewhere on the Abbey's grounds. As one last stroke of defiance, the buried arm was outstretched toward Abbey Craig, the scene of William's great victory against the English at Stirling Bridge.


Stirling, Wallace Monument

BANNOCKBURN

High over Bannockburn, battle of no return.
Bruce ranked his Scottishmen all in good order.
Down on the other side - fifty divisions wide.
Edward had brought his men over the border.
Armoured from head to fist, glimpsed through the morning mist
Soldiers of Robert Bruce awaiting the order.
Down on the lower ground, trumpets and bugles sound
Edward of England had crossed over the border.

Proud was the English king, loud did his harpists sing.
Scatter the Scottishmen all in disorder,
'Death' shouted Robert Bruce, 'Death ere we sign a truce.
Chase the sassenach* back o'er the border'.
'Now' shouted Bruce the king 'We'll either die or win.
Into the enemy all in good order.
Freedom for Scotland and death to King Edward's men.
Chase the sassenach back o'er the border'.

Face to face across the Bannockburn ;
Spears and swords are held in good order.
Lines of steel in waves begin to move,
Grim and steady to die for the border.
'On them! On them!' hear the Douglas shout.
'Smash their ranks in utter disorder'.
Shields and spears and swords together clash.
Screams of death are heard o'er the border.

Slashing and clashing the Bannockburn flows with blood.
Horses and soldiers in mangled disorder.
Yelling and felling the grass is a gory red.
Out with the sassenach. Out o'er the border.
Freedom and right was the slogan of Robert Bruce.
Chains for the slaves shouted Edward of England.
Death to the sassenach, we'll be free at last.
Chase the sassenach back o'er the border.
Chase the sassenach back o'er the border.

Jim McLean
_____
*Sassenach is a word used chiefly by the Scots to designate an Englishman.
It derives from the Scottish Gaelic Sasunnach meaning, originally, "Saxon".

[Justin]

Dear Friends,

As you know watching TV is many people's only entertainment. In such an expectation I switched on the TV, but soon I realized it was all rubbish on the screen. The channels have programmes that show you how to have the right sort of decor in your home, wear the right clothes, cook the right food, meet the right people and say the right things when you meet them. This is what makes people tick nowadays. Some programmes make it seem a sweet and sickly place where people are nice. Their message is: We are here to help you. Others have a darker message: We are here to make fun of you because you are very stupid. And at midnight they show naked women, although you don't want to see them.

At the end of the day I was tired of watching TV and switched off the set. Now I am sitting in front of this telly and look at the Ratzeburg site. It happened quite by chance that I´ve spotted the site a few weeks ago. If I had not been there I would not have been able to enjoy all the poems from the poets I got to know at this place. Let me say thank you for a warm welcome you have given to me soon. I don´t want to overdo it and I do not explicitly mention anyone, but many poems are small masterpieces. Dana and Faldi were in the vanguard in creating this site. They have proven the sceptics wrong. Poems never won´t get out of fashion. Despite films, television and video games people generally still have a positive feeling about reading. The Ratzeburg site can be one of the best examples. We take satisfaction that a lot of poems get under your fingernails and into your souls.

We are living in an increasingly integrated world. Evidence is mounting that also English poems are getting more and more popular. Of course they can´t displace German poems on a German-speaking site like this. But we can love them as well.

What would be such a column without a poem. One of my favourite English poems is "I left my heart in San Francisco". In better words it´s in fact a song. But poems and songs have a lot in common. I am convinced you might like the lines too.

I left my heart in San Francisco

I left my heart in San Francisco.
High on a hill, it calls to me
To be were little cable cars
Climb halfway to the stars.
The morning fog may chill the air.
I don´t care.
My love waits there in San Francisco,
Above the blue and windy sea.
When I come home to you, San Francisco,
Your golden sun will shine for me.

It has been a pretty happy time lately and I hope it could be continued in the future. I am looking forward to read new poems sooner or later.

All the best

Justin