The Bruce (Illustrated)
Book Details
Author(s)John Barbour
PublisherBrigihid's Hands Media
ISBN / ASINB00E4ACZOQ
ISBN-13978B00E4ACZO0
Sales Rank117,611
MarketplaceUnited States 🇺🇸
Description
Included in this edition of The Bruce (Illustrated):
 A history of the Scottish War for Independence and the role of William Wallace.
 A prose translation of The Bruce with maps and illustrations.
 The original text of “The Brus†in Old Scots
 An English translation of the poem
The Bruce (Illustrated) brings together three versions of John Barbour’s epic poem of the fight for Scottish independence together with a comprehensive collection of authoritative commentary, maps of the travels of Robert the Bruce and his companions, and classical illustrations of the tale. The collection is introduced with a history of the First War of Scottish Independence and then starts with the most accessible version of the story of Robert the Bruce which is a prose translation of Barbour’s Old Scots poem. The prose version is very readable and will give someone new to the material a good introduction to the story of Robert the Bruce’s rise to be the King of Scotland.
This is followed by the original text of Barbour’s poem, most all of which can be attributed to Archdeacon Barbour. Historians have used it as the authoritative account of the events during the later years of what is referred to as The War for Scottish Independence. Bruce’s story picks up after the deaths of William Wallace, Andrew Moray, and William “le Hardi†Douglas; the heroes of the first part of the war that started in 1296 when King Edward the First of England attempted to take the Scottish crown for himself.
Finally the third version is a very pleasant and easy to read English language version in rhyming couplets that will give a modern reader who might be attempting to decipher the old text a way to better grasp the content of the old poem.
What makes “The Brus†even more important than an authoritative account of a historic period is the use of the Old Scots dialect which was taking hold as a national language at almost exactly the same time as Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales†were chronicling the coalescence of the English language as a national tongue. What is hoped here is to spur a greater attention to the preservation of the old dialect which started it’s literary heyday with Barbour and climaxed in its Golden Age with Robert Burns.
Down through the ages “The Brus†has inspired many adaptations and original works based on the events told here. From Sir Walter Scott to Nigel Trantor and even Mel Gibson; many authors, film makers, and historians owe their inspiration to this text. I believe many more will and this collection will be a solid place to start and refer back to as a new crop of young artists seek to shape modern interpretations of this timeless story.
 A history of the Scottish War for Independence and the role of William Wallace.
 A prose translation of The Bruce with maps and illustrations.
 The original text of “The Brus†in Old Scots
 An English translation of the poem
The Bruce (Illustrated) brings together three versions of John Barbour’s epic poem of the fight for Scottish independence together with a comprehensive collection of authoritative commentary, maps of the travels of Robert the Bruce and his companions, and classical illustrations of the tale. The collection is introduced with a history of the First War of Scottish Independence and then starts with the most accessible version of the story of Robert the Bruce which is a prose translation of Barbour’s Old Scots poem. The prose version is very readable and will give someone new to the material a good introduction to the story of Robert the Bruce’s rise to be the King of Scotland.
This is followed by the original text of Barbour’s poem, most all of which can be attributed to Archdeacon Barbour. Historians have used it as the authoritative account of the events during the later years of what is referred to as The War for Scottish Independence. Bruce’s story picks up after the deaths of William Wallace, Andrew Moray, and William “le Hardi†Douglas; the heroes of the first part of the war that started in 1296 when King Edward the First of England attempted to take the Scottish crown for himself.
Finally the third version is a very pleasant and easy to read English language version in rhyming couplets that will give a modern reader who might be attempting to decipher the old text a way to better grasp the content of the old poem.
What makes “The Brus†even more important than an authoritative account of a historic period is the use of the Old Scots dialect which was taking hold as a national language at almost exactly the same time as Chaucer’s “Canterbury Tales†were chronicling the coalescence of the English language as a national tongue. What is hoped here is to spur a greater attention to the preservation of the old dialect which started it’s literary heyday with Barbour and climaxed in its Golden Age with Robert Burns.
Down through the ages “The Brus†has inspired many adaptations and original works based on the events told here. From Sir Walter Scott to Nigel Trantor and even Mel Gibson; many authors, film makers, and historians owe their inspiration to this text. I believe many more will and this collection will be a solid place to start and refer back to as a new crop of young artists seek to shape modern interpretations of this timeless story.
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