The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #159243 Message #3773822
Posted By: Steve Gardham
19-Feb-16 - 02:57 PM
Thread Name: The trees they do grow high: medieval?
Subject: RE: The trees they do grow high: medieval?
Guest, Child Maurice, not really. It does have the commonplace looking over the castle wall but depending on which version you look at she either sees Child Maurice's severed head or has it thrown into her lap and Steward tells her she can use it as a ball. Not quite the same thing though as 4 and 20 ladies playing at the ball, indeed somewhat opposite. As this cruel taunt is not in the 17th century English version some Scottish poetaster was possibly influenced by one or other of our 2 ballads under discussion.