Virgil's Aeneid translated into Scottish verse :: :: University of Virginia Library

The batalis and the man I wil discrive
Fra Troyis boundis first that fugitive
By fait to Ytail come and cost Lavyne,
Our land and sey katchit with mekil pyne
By forss of goddis abufe, from euery steid,
Of cruell Iuno throu ald remembrit fede.
Gret pane in batail sufferit he alsso
Or he his goddis brocht in Latio
And belt the cite fra quham, of nobill fame,
The Latyne pepill takyn heth thar name,
And eik the faderis, princis of Alba,
Cam, and the wallaris of gret Rome alswa.
O thou my muse, declare the causis quhy,
Quhat maieste offendit schaw quham by,
Or ȝit quharfor of goddis the drery queyn
Sa feil dangeris, sik travell maid susteyn

A worthy man fulfillit of piete:
Is thare sik greif in hevynly myndis on hie?
Thare was ane ancyant cite hecht Cartage,
Quham hynys of Tyre held intill heritage,
Ennymy to Itail, standand fair and plane
The mouth of lang Tibir our forgane,
Myghty of moblys, full of sculys seyr,
And maist expert in crafty fait of weir,
Of quhilk a land Iuno, as it is said,
As to hir special abuf al otheris maid;
Hir native land for it postponyt sche
Callit Same—in Cartage sett hir see;
Thar war hir armys and here stude eik hir chair.
This goddes ettillit, gif werdis war nocht contrar,
This realme tobe superior and mastress
To all landis, bot certis netheless
The fatale sisteris reuolue and schaw, scho kend,
Of Troiane blude a pepill suld discend,
Wailliant in weir, to ryng wydquhar, and syne
Cartage suld bryng ontill finale rewyne,
And clene distroy the realme of Lybia.
This dredand Iuno, and forthirmor alswa
Remembring on the ancyant mortell weir
That for the Grekis, to hir leif and deir,
At Troy lang tyme scho led befor that day
(For ȝit the causys of wreth war nocht away
Nor cruell harm forȝet ne out of mynd—
Ful deip engravyn in hir breist onkynd
The iugement of Parys, quhou that he
Preferrit Venus, dispisyng hir bewte;
Als Troiane blude till hir was odyus,
For Iupiter engenderit Dardanus

Fra quham the Troianys cam in adultry,
And Ganymedes revist abuf the sky,
Maid him his butler, quhilk was hir douchteris office),
Iuno inflambit, musyng on thir casis nyce
The quhile our sey that salit the Troianys
Quhilkis had the ded eschapit and remanys
Onslane of Grekis or of the ferss Achill,
Scho thame fordryvis and causys oft ga will
Frawart Latium, quhilk now is Italy,
By fremmyt werd ful mony ȝeris tharby
Catchit and blaw wydquhar all seys about.
Lo quhou gret cure, quhat travell, pane and dowt
Was to begyn the worthy Romanys blude!
And as the Troianys frakkis our the flude,
Skarss from the sycht of Sysilly the land,
With bent sail full, rycht merely saland,
Thar stevynnys scowrand fast throu the salt fame,
Quhen that Iuno, till hir euerlestand schame,
The etern wound hyd in hir breist ay greyn,
Ontill hir self thus spak in propir teyn:
“Is this ganand that I my purposs faill
As clene ourcum, and may nocht from Itaill
Withhald this kyng of Troy and hys navy?
Am I abandonyt with sa hard destany

Sen Pallas mocht on Grekis tak sik wraik
To byrn thar schippis and all for anys saik
Drowne in the sey, for Aiax Oilus wrang?
From Iupiter the wild fyre down scho slang
Furth of the clowdis, distroyt thar schippis all,
Ourquhelmyt the sey with mony wyndy wall,
Aiax breist persit, gaspand furth flawmand smoke,
Sche with a thud stikkit on a scharp roke.
Bot I, the quhilk am clepit of goddis queyn
And onto Iove baith spouss and sistir scheyn,
With a pepill sa feill ȝheris weir sall lede,
Quha sal from thens adorn in ony stede
The power of Iuno, or altaris sacryfy,
Gif I ourcummyn be thus schamefully?”

Virgille reherssis not Eneas naim, bot callis him “the man” be excellens, as thocht he said “the mast soueran man.”

Lavyn, Lavinium, Lawrentum stud viii mylis fra the mowth of Tibyr, and was cyte of the king Latynus, of quham eftyr in the vii buyk, quhill the end of this volume.

Quhat is Latium, or Latio, luyk eftyr in the vi c. of the viii buyk. The cite of quham heir is mention was New Troy, quham Eneas biggit at the mouth of Tibir; and fra Ene bein namyt the Latynis, and nowdir fra the cyte nor the land.

Of Alba cyte luyk eftyr in the fyfte c. of this buyk and in the fyrst c. of the viij buyk.

Musa in Grew signifeis an inuentryce or inuention in our langgage, and of the ix Musis sum thing in my Palyce of Honour and be Mastir Robert Hendirson in New Orpheus.

The poet inqueris quhat maieste or power offendyt of Iuno, quhilk is fenyeit to haf many poweris. She is clepit queyn of goddis, mastres and lady of realmys, precident of byrthis, spouss and sistir to Iupiter &c.

Samo is an ile in Trace quhar Iuno was weddit and born, as sais Seruius, and ther, as vitnessyth Sanct Ierom, stud the farest tempil of Grece, dedicat to Iuno.

C L marginal note hir see, hir seit; B marginal note or hir sett.

Lybia or Liby is the thrid part of the warld, callit Affryk, quham now we call the land or cost of Barbary.

The iugement of Paris is common to all knawis the sege of Troy.

Hebe, douchter of Iuno and goddes of Ȝouth, seruyit Iupiter of his covp; quhilk at a fest amang the goddis makand hir seruice, slaid and schew hir schame in al thar presens, for the quhilk lak Iupiter gaif to this Ganymedes, son to Kyng Troyus, hir office. Of the ravisyng of this Ganymede, ȝe haf benayth, in the v c. of the v buyk, and of this Hebe sum thyng in the prolog of the vij buyk.

“And as the Troianys, &c.” First abuyf the poete proponis his entent, sayand, “The batellis and the man, &c.”; nyxt makis he inoucation, calland on his muse to tech hym thar, “O thou my Muse, &c.”; and ther, lyke as his muse spak to hym, declaris the caussis of the feid of Iuno, sayand, “Ther was ane anchient cyte hecht Cartage.” Now heir thridly proceidis he furth on his narration and history, and beginnys at the sevint ȝeir of Eneas departyng of Troy, as ȝe may se in the end of this first buyk, and efter the decess of his fadir Anchises, quham he erdit in Sycill at Drepanon, as ȝe haf in the end of the thrid buyk. The remanent of his auenturis beyn reseruyt, be craft of poetry, to the banket of Queyn Dido, quhar thai be then lenth rehersit by Eneas in the secund and thryd.

This offence was the ravising of Cassandra furth of the tempill of Pallas, as ȝe haue in the vij cheptour of the secund buke following. And sum says this Aiax oppressit hir in the tempill; quhilk Aiax was son to Kyng Oylus, prince of Locria, or Locrida, and his pepyll beyn nammyt Locri or Locranys.

Thoght in verite Iuno was bot ane woman, dochter of Saturn, sistir and spows to Iupiter, King of Crete, ȝit quhen poetis namys hir swa, thai ondirstand sum tyme by Iuno the erth and the watir, and by Iupiter the ayr and the fyr; and for alss mekyll as the ayr and the fyr is actyve, and the watyr and the erth patient, and that all corporall thyngis beyn engendrit therof, heirfoir bein thai clepit “spowsis.” Bot for that sum tym Iuno betakinys alanerly the ayr and Iove the fyre, than, be raison of ther contegwyte and quantite convenient, bein thai clepit sistyr and brothir; and for that all thyngis, by the influens of the planetis, starnys and hevinnis abufe, be maid of thir elymentis, therfor bein thai clepit kyng and queyn, fadir and mother to goddis and men. And ferther as twychyng this Iuno, hir other namys and proprieteis, I refer to Iohn Bocass in the Genealogy of gentille Goddis, onto the nynt buyk thereof, and first c. of the sammyn.