| Lyrics: | QUEEN ELEANOR'S CONFESSION
Queen Eleanor was a sick woman and sick just like to
die
And she has sent for two friars of France to come to her speedily
The King
called down his nobles all, by one, by two, by three
Earl Marshall, I'll go shrive the Queen
and thou shalt wend with me
A boon, a boon, quoth Earl Marshall, and fell on his bended
knee
That whatsoever the Queen may say, no harm thereof may be
Oh, you put on a grey
friar's gown and I'll put on another
And we will away to fair London town like friars both
together
Oh no, oh no, my Liege, my King, Such things can never be
For if the Queen
hears word of this hanged she'll cause me to be
I swear by the sun, I swear by the moon,
and by the stars so high
And by my scepter and my crown, the Earl Marshall shall not
die
The King's put on a grey friar's gown; the Earl Marshall's put on
another
And
they were away to fair London town like friar's both together
When that they came to fair
London town and came into Whitehall
The bells did ring, the choirs sing, and the torches did
light them all
And when they came before the Queen, they knelt down on
their
knee
What matter, what matter, our gracious Queen, you've sent so
speedily
Oh, if you are two friars of France, it's you that I wished to see
But if
you are two English lords, you shall hang on the gallows tree
Oh we are not two English
lords, but two friars of France we be
And we sang the Song of Solomon as we came o'er the
sea
Oh, the first vile sin I did commit, tell it I will to thee
I fell in love with
the Earl Marshall, as he brought me o'er the sea
Oh, that was a great sin, quoth the King, but
pardoned it must be
Amen, amen, said the Earl Marshall, with a heavy heart spake
he
Oh the next sin that I did commit, I will to you unfold
Earl Marshall had my
virgin dower beneath his cloth of gold
Oh that was a vile sin, quoth the king, May God
forgive it thee
Amen, amen, groaned the Earl Marshall, and a very frightened man was
he
Oh the next sin that I did commit, tell it I will to thee
I poisoned a lady of
noble blood for the sake of King Henry
Oh that was a great sin, said the King, but
pardoned it shall be
Amen, amen, said the Earl Marshall, and still a frightened man was
he
Oh the next sin that I ever did, tell it I will to thee
I have kept strong poison
these seven long years to poison King Henry
Oh that was a great sin, said the King, but
pardoned it must be
Amen, amen, said the Earl Marshall, and still a frightened man was
he
Oh don't you see two little boys playing at the football
Oh yonder is the Earl
Marshall's son and I like him best of all
Oh don't you see yon other little boy playing
at the football
Oh that one is King Henry's son and I like him worst of all
His head
is like black bull's head, his feet are like a bear
What matter, what matter, cried the King,
He's my son and my only heir
The King plucked off his friar's gown and stood in his
scarlet so red
The queen, she turned herself in bed and cried that she was
betrayed
The King looked over his left shoulder and a grim look looked he
Earl
Marshall, he said, but for my oath, thou hadst swung on a gallows
tree
____________
Child
Collected by Motherwell in 1827.
Eleanor of
Aquitaine was a colorful character, but these accusations are
unlikely to be true. She was not
a virgin when she came to Henry: she
was the mother of a daughter by her first husband, the
King of France.
The "noble lady" would be Rosamund Clifford, a long time mistress
of
Henry.
Child #156
@ballad @history @royalty @bastard
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