US & Canada Versions: 74. Fair Margaret & Sweet William
[This ballad is well known in North America but not nearly as popular as it's predecessor, Lord Thomas. I have over 140 traditional versions in my collection; one is of "Mallet's "William and Margaret."
Of the traditional versions about 10 versions attribute Marg'ret's death to falling out of her window or jumping from her window. In most versions she dies mysteriously; presumably from a broken-heart. Less than half have the important opening stanza:
Sweet William he rose one morning in May,
Himself he dresses in blue.
His mother asked him about that long, long love
[That] Lies between Lady Margaret and you. [Sweet William- Nora Hicks]
which is found in Child B but not in the broadside. Sometimes it's his mother(above) or father that asks him about his "long love" usually the the question is asked but not attributed.
Betty Smith (see her version titled Little Margaret) has commented that William died from kissing the corpse of Margaret, the revenant kiss, as found in other ballads (see Child 49):
In "Little Margaret" it says he kissed her lily white hand, her cheek, and then he kissed her clay, cold lips. If you kiss a dead person, you die; and he falls in her arms asleep. It means he died when he actually kissed her. (From Southern Appalachian Storytellers; Page 195- Betty Smith interview)
A summary of the usual plot in North American (Virginia) is given by Kyle Davis Jr. in Traditional Ballads of Virginia; 1929:
Sweet William arises one morning end dresses himself in blue. He denies that there is anything of moment between Lady Margaret and himself, and says that on the following day Lady Margaret will see his bride. Lady Margaret stands at her window as he and his bride pass by; she throws down her ivory comb in her emotion, and is never more seen there. That night Lady Margaret's ghost appears at the foot of Sweet William's bridal bed and inquires how he likes his bride. He replies that best of all he likes the lady that stands at his bed's feet. He wakes, hints to his wife of his ominous dream, and gets her permission to go and see Lady Margaret. Her brother lets him in and informs him that Lady Margaret is in her coffin. After taking farewell kisses of her, he dies of sorrow. The two lovers are buried nearby, and sympathetic plants grow from their graves and entwine to symbolize their love transcending death.
Some of the titles of Child No. 7 Earl Brand (Sweet William) are identical or similar to the titles of Child No. 74. Usually in Child 7, it's "Fair Ellen" who is the lady. There are also versions of Child Ballad No. 77 (Sweet William's Ghost) titled, "Lady Margaret." Again there are some identical and similar titles. In child 74 it's Lady Margaret's ghost, who visits Sweet William's bed-feet in a dream (or its it real?).
Lydia is a variant of the word, "lady" as many versions are Lady Margaret and pronounced "Liddy" (Dew Hanson) or "Lydia." The name Margaret is not sung "Mar-ga-ret" in three syllables but is sung "Mar-gret" in two syllables. Titles or names spelled "Margret" or "Marg'ret" are simple reflection of the way the name is really sung. In some renditions the two syllable name has further deteriorated into "Margot" or "Marget."
Beside the exchange with stanzas from Child No. 73 Lord Thomas, there is also a stanza (or stanzas) similar to Child No. 85 George Collins (Lady Alice) where the coffin is viewed and he kisses "her cold clay lips" that will never kiss his.
Many of the West Virginia versions and some other versions including Scarborough's have "Lady Margaret my bride shall be" which should be, "Lady Margaret my bride shall see" or more correctly, "Lady Margaret shall see my bride," which doesn't rhyme and isn't used. Sweet William is not marrying Lady Margaret. It's Lady Margaret's viewing of the other woman that causes her death, either from a broken-heart or a presumed (the dream with blood) and sometimes literal suicide.
In recent years a version of the ballad titled Little Margaret (Little Margret; Little Marget) has become popular due in part to two recordings/Youtude videos. The first by Sheila Kay Adams is also found in Digital Appalachia would be the Madison County version as also sung by Obray Ramsey and his sister-in-law Evelyn Ramsey. These versions as well as the distinct title (Little=Liddy=Lady) seem to be traced to Bascom Lamar Lunsford's version which he recorded in 1953. Lunsford learned it from a nine-year old girl in Madison County, NC and published the version in 1929 in his 30 & 1 Folk Songs. The version by Obray Ramsey recorded in 1957 is similar to Lunsford's and Betty Smith's version may be also based on Lunsford's. The version may also be a local NC version from that region although its likely that Obray picked his version up from Lunsford. A key identifying line is 4th stanza 1st line: "How do you like that snow-white pillow?" and also 6th stanza 2nd line "And saddle the dapple roan."
The other influential recording is more recent-- it's "Little Margaret" by the Carolina Chocolate Drops. I have not heard any attributions of two most influential "Little Margaret" recordings/videos. Sheila Kay Adams usually learned from her family- and since Dillard Chandler also sang this title, it could point to a regional version stemming from Dellie Mae Chandler Norton.
* * * *
An excellent version and one of the earliest collected (c.1820) is printed by Child (See: King William & Lady Margaret- Burleigh (MA) c.1820 Child D) in volume ten in the extended Additions and Corrections section. Communicated by Miss Mary E. Burleigh, of Worcester, Massachusetts, and derived, through a relative, from her great-grandmother, who had heard the ballad sung at gatherings of young people in Webster, Massachusetts, not long after 1820.
Lady Margret, a common US title of Child No. 74, shares common textual elements with Child 73 (Lord Thomas) and also Child 75 (Lord Lovel). Some of the versions of Lady Margret have taken the musical form of Lord Lovel as well.
* * * *
John Ylvisaker: "Auction Block," or "No more auction block for me" is a spiritual based on a shape-note tune called "Give me Jesus." It was rejected by the editors of Slave Songs (Hillman) because of its close association with the English folk song Sweet William and lady Margaret.
* * * *
The age of the ballad in the North America is hard to determine conclusively. Early versions date back to the 1700s and further through family lines but are only authenticated to the early 1800s. As with Lord Thomas, the Virginia colony was the main location of transmission of this ballad. From Virginia the ballad spread into the Southern Appalachian region (VA, NC, WV, TN, KY) and westward.
Collections Included: Cox; Davis; Brown; SharpK 1932 (versions with text); Belden (Missouri) Randolph (Ozark); Niles; Max Hunter; Wolfe Folklore; Brewster; Eddy; Flanders; Ozark Collection;
R. Matteson 2012, 2014]
CONTENTS: (Individual texts may be accessed by clicking on the highlighted blue title below or on the title attached to this page on the left hand column)
1) King William & Lady Margaret- Burleigh (MA) c.1820 -- My title. From English and Scottish Popular Ballads; Child, Vol. 10, 1889. Communicated by Miss Mary E. Burleigh, of Worcester, Massachusetts, and derived, through a relative, from her great-grandmother, who had heard the ballad sung at gatherings of young people in Webster, Massachusetts, not long after 1820.
2) King William & Lady Margaret- French (VT) c1846 -- My date. From Ancient Ballads; Flanders , 1966. Sung by Miss Maude Horton in Poultney, Vermont, as known to her mother, of English forebears. A native of Mt. Holly, Vermont, she was born Ellen French, in 1836.
3) Lady Maggie- Womble (MS) pre1850 Hudson A -- From Hudson; Folksongs of Mississippi, 1936. Text recovered by Miss Lois Womble, Water Valley, from Mrs. C. O. Womble, who sings it and knows it as "Lady Maggie." Mrs. Womble learned it from her mother, Mrs. I. A. Goodwin, who learned it from her mother, Mrs. A. E. Harris.
4) Sweet William- Jones (WV) c.1871 Cox C -- From Folk-Songs of the South- 1925 by John Harrington Cox. Contributed by Miss Sallie D. Jones, Hillsboro, Pocahontas County, January, 1917; learned about forty-six years ago from Miss M. E. Harper, Pendleton County.
5) Lady Margaret and Sweet William- Goon (OH) c.1874 -- From: Ballads and Songs from Ohio; Eddy, 1939. Miss Goon was assisted in recalling the words of this song by Mrs. Eliza Bowerman, of Loudonville, Ohio, from whose mother Miss Goon learned the song. In a letter of March 23, 1926, Miss Goon writes: "I learned this song from Mrs. Mary Butler by her singing it over and over to me, more than fifty years ago."
6) Lady Margaret- Brown (WV) c.1875 Cox B -- From Folk-Songs of the South- 1925 by John Harrington Cox. Communicated by Mr. J. R. Waters, Morgantown, Monongalia County; obtained from Mrs. W. F. Brown, Belington, Barbour County, who learned it more than fifty years ago in Delaware County, Ohio.
7) Lady Margarette- Strickland (MO) 1877 Belden C -- From Ballads and Songs; Belden 1940 collected by the Missouri Folk-Lore Society. Communicated to Miss Hamilton by Nora Strickland of the West Plains High School in 1908 as 'found among the papers of an aunt, who took it down in 1877.'
8) Lady Margaret & Sweet William- Smith (VT) c.1882 -- Fragment from Flanders' Ancient ballads, 1966; version H. A fragment of Child 74 was sent in a letter by Mrs. Florence Hartwell. Her husband, F. E. Hartwell, heard his uncle, Franklin Smith, play and, sing this some 75 years ago.
9) Prince William & Lady Margret- Haskins (MA) 1885 -- From Ancient Ballads; Flanders , 1966, Flanders C. As sung by Miss Winifred Haskins of Savoy, Massachusetts. This ballad, was taught to her when she was a small child by her father's eldest sister, Eliza Ann (Haskins) Maynard.
10) Lady Margaret- Dowell (AR) 1893 Parler B -- From Ozark Folksong Collection Reel 418, Item 4. Collected by Carolyn Cearley and Louise Guisinger. Transcribed by M. C. Parler. Sung by Mrs. Joy Dowell And Mrs. Pederson; Fayetteville, Ark December 25, 1961. "Learned when I was a little girl from my mother. . . 68 years ago."
11) King William- Blanding (ME) c1898 Barry A --
12) Lady Marget- Short (MO) c.1900 Randolph D
Sweet William & Lady Margaret- (MO) 1903 Belden A
Lady Margaret- (MO) pre1906 Belden B
Sweet William- Akers (VA) 1907 Davis CC REC
Sweet William- (KY) 1910 Combs JOAFL
Lady Margret- Hensley (KY) 1910 Sharp B
Sweet William - Bevier (MO) 1910 Belden D
Lady Marget- Fish (NC) pre1913 Brown/Perrow
Lady Marget- Keister (VA) 1913 Davis F
Sweet William- (KY) c.1914 McGill
Lydia Margaret- Neff (Mo.) 1914 Kittredge JOAFL
Lady Margret- Hogan (VA) 1914 Davis M
Lydia Marget- Dove (VA) 1914 Davis B
Lady Margret & Sweet William- Maxie (VA) 1914
Fair Margaret- Seoane (VA) 1914 Davis L
Sweet William- Bucher (VA) 1914 Davis D
Lady Margret- Armistead (VA) 1915 Davis G
Sweet William- (NC) c.1915 Greer Collection
Sweet William and Lady Margery- (KY) 1916 Wyman
Sweet William- Stockton (TN) 1916 Sharp A
Lady Marget- Sands (NC) 1916 Sharp C
Lady Margret- Hensley (NC) 1916 Sharp D
Lady Margret- Shelton (NC) 1916 Sharp E
Lady Margret- Keeton (VA) 1916 Sharp F
Sweet William- Chilsohm (VA) 1916 Sharp G
Lady Margaret's Ghost- Johnson (WV) 1916 Cox D
Lady Margaret- Lynch (VA) 1916 Davis H
Sweet William- Herskille (WV) pre1917 Cox A
Lady Margaret- McAtee (WV) 1917 Cox E
Sweet William- Martin (VA) 1917 Davis A
Sweet William's Bride- Rodes (VA) 1917 Davis N
Sweet William- Ray (TN) 1917 Sharp H
Sweet William- Powell (KY) 1917 Sharp J
Sweet William- Broghton (KY) 1917 Sharp I
Sweet William & Lady Margaret- Smith (NM) 1917
Lady Margaret- S. Hensley (KY) 1917 Sharp MS
Sweet William - Patrick (KY) 1917 Sharp MS
Sweet William - Pace (KY) 1917 Sharp MS
Lady Margret- Bagley (KY) 1917 Sharp MS
Sweet William - Haskins (KY) 1917 Sharp MS
Sweet William - Walker (KY) 1917 Sharp MS
Sweet William - Carter (KY) 1917 Sharp MS
Sweet William - Connor (NC) 1917 Sharp MS
Sweet William - Williams (KY) 1917 Sharp MS
Sweet William- Ayers (WV) pre1918 Cox G
Lady Margret- Gibson (VA) 1918 Sharp K
Sweet William- Dodd (VA) 1918 Sharp L
Sweet Willie- Donald (VA) 1918 Sharp M
Lady Margret- Bradley (VA) 1918 Sharp N
Sweet William- Richards (VA) 1918 Sharp O
Sweet William- Bennett (NC) 1918 Sharp P
Lady Margret- Boone (NC) 1918 Sharp Q
William and Margaret- Waugh (ON) 1918 Barbeau
Lady Marget- Cannady (VA) 1918 Sharp MS
Lady Margret- Gray (VA) 1918 Sharp MS
Sweet William - Henry (VA) 1918 Sharp MS
Lady Margaret- McKinney (WV) 1919 Cox F
William and Margaret- Forbes (NS) 1919 Mackenzie
Sweet William & Lady Margaret- Dickson (VA) 1920
Sweet Willie- Brown (NC) c.1920 Brown C
Sweet William & Lady Margaret- Clark (VA) 1920
Lady Margaret- Riddle (AR) c1920 Wolf Collection
Lady Marg'ret- Sutton (NC) c.1920s Brown D
Lady Margaret & Sweet William- Armstrong (VA) 1922
Lady Marg'ret- Baber (Mo.) 1922 Randolph A
False William- Gibbs (NC) 1924 Chappell
Lady Margaret- Lowe (WV) pre1925 Cox I music
Fair Margaret- Drake (ME) 1928 Barry B
Lady Margaret- McCabe (NL) 1929 Karpeles A
Lady Marg'ret- Cox (NL) 1929 Karpeles B
Lady Margaret- Quilter (NL) 1929 Karpeles C
Lady Margaret & Sweet William- Kennison (VT) 1930
Sir William & Lady Margret- Wells (CA) 1930s
Lydia Margaret- Lane (Mo.) 1930 Randolph B
Sweet William- Gibson (VA) 1931 Davis AA
Lady Margot- Holcolm (KY) 1932 Niles A
Lady Margot- Mullens (KY) 1933 Niles B
Prince William & Lady Margaret- Haskins (MA) 1934
Pretty Polly- Kinnaird (Mo.) 1934 Randolph C
Sweet William- Evilsizer (MI) 1934 Gardner
Sweet William- Smith (IN) 1935 Brewster A
Lady Margaret & Sweet William- Johnson (IN) 1935
Lady Margaret & Sweet William- Bryant (IN) 1935
Lady Margaret- Lasher (IN) 1935 Brewster D
Sweet William- Shriver (IL) 1935 Brewster E
Sweet William - Bruce (VA) 1935 Wilkinson A
Sweet William - McAllister (VA) 1935 Wilkinson B
Lady Margaret- Morris (VA) pre1936 Scarborough
Sweet William- Nora Hicks (NC) 1936 Brown G
Lyddy Margot- Swetnam (MS-KY) pre1936 Hudson B
Fair Margaret- Ashford (VT) 1937 Flanders I
Lady Margaret & Sweet William- Henson (KY) 1938
William and Margaret- Zehner (IL) pre1939 Neely
Lady Margaret & King William- Davis (VT) 1939
Pretty Polly & Sweet William- Topper (OH) pre1939
King William & Lady Margaret.- Erskine (CT) 1939
Lady Margaret- Perry (NC) c.1940 Brown B
King William & Lady Margaret- Greene (VT) 1941
Sweet William - (NY) 1942 Frank Luther Songbook
Lady Margaret & Sweet William- Roberts (NC) 1943
Fair Margaret & King William- Drake (NY) 1944
Lady Margaret- (VA) c.1947 Leach; 1950 JOAFL
Lady Margaret- Sutton (AR) 1952 Wolf Collection
Little Margaret- Lunsford (NC) 1953 Recording
Sweet William & Lady Margret- Dunn(KY) 1955 Wilgus
Sweet William- Mitchell (KY) 1956 Roberts
Lady Margaret- Jefferies (VA) 1957 Rec. Clayton
Lady Margaret- Glasscock (WV) pre1957 Musick A
Lady Margaret- Cunningham (WV) pre1957 Musick B
Little Margaret- Ramsey (NC) 1957 Recording
Lady Margret- Brewer- (Ark.) 1958 Max Hunter
Sweet William- Martin (KS-AR) 1958 O'Bryant
Fair Marjorie's Ghost- Stevens (NL) 1959 Peacock
Lady Margaret- Dillingham (AR) 1959 Parler A
Sweet William- Cross (AR) 1960 Parler C
Sweet William & Lady Margaret- Ritchie (KY) 1961
Lady Margret- Hawkins (AR) 1962 Wolf Collection
Lady Margret- Morris (Mo.) 1962 Max Hunter
Sweet William- Boelyn (KY) 1962 Foss/McNeil
Lady Margret- Majors (KS) c.1963 Max Hunter
Lady Margaret- Couch (TX-OK) pre1964 Moores A
Sweet William - Whisenhunt (AR-OK) 1964 Moores B
Lady Marget- Gilbert (Ark.) 1965 Max Hunter
Lady Marg'ret- Duff (KY) 1968 DA REC
Lady Margret- Martin (KS) c.1970 Max Hunter
Lady Margaret- Huddleston (AR) c.1972 Wolf Coll
Fair Margaret- Long (WV) 1975 Gainer
Little Margaret- Betty Smith (NC) 1977 REC
Fair Margaret- Vergie Wallin (NC) 1979 DA REC
Little Margaret- E. Ramsey (NC) 1980 Yates REC
Little Margaret- Lofgren/Lunsford 1997
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This is one of the earliest texts from North America, published in ESPB Additions and Corrections, vol. 10 in 1889. Communicated by Miss Mary E. Burleigh, of Worcester, Massachusetts, and derived, through a relative, from her great-grandmother, who had heard the ballad sung at gatherings of young people in Webster, Massachusetts, not long after 1820.
1 There was such a man as King William, there was,
And he courted a lady fair,
He courted such a lady as Lady Margaret,
For a whole long twelve-month year.
2 Said he, 'I'm not the man for you,
Nor you the maid for me,
But before many, many long months
My wedding you shall see.'
3 Said she, 'If I'm not the maid for you,
Nor you the man for me,
Before many, many long days
My funeral you shall see.'
4 Lady Margaret sat in a green shady bower,
A combing her yellow, yellow hair,
When who should she see but King William and his bride,
And to church they did repair.
5 She threw all down her ivory comb,
Threw back her yellow hair,
And to the long chamber she did go,
And for dying she did prepare.
6 King William had a dream that night,
Such dreams as scarce prove true:
He dreamed that Lady Margaret was dead,
And her ghost appeared to view.
7 'How do you like your bed?' said she,
'And how do you like your sheets?
And how do you like the fair lady
That's in your arms and sleeps?'
8 'Well do I like my bed,' said he,
'And well do I like my sheets,
But better do I like the fair lady
That's in my arms and sleeps.'
9 King William rose early the next morn,
Before the break of day,
Saying, ' Lady Margaret I will go see,
Without any more delay.'
10 He rode till he came to Lady Margaret's hall,
And rapped long and loud on the ring,
But there was no one there but Lady Margaret's brother
To let King William in.
11 'Where, O where is Lady Margaret?
Pray tell me how does she do.'
'Lady Margaret is dead in the long chamber,
She died for the love of you.'
12 'Fold back, fold back that winding sheet,
That I may look on the dead,
That I may kiss those clay-cold lips
That once were the cherry-red.'
13 Lady Margaret died in the middle of the night,
King William died on the morrow,
Lady Margaret died of pure true love,
King William died of sorrow.
14 Lady Margaret was buried in King William's church-yard,
All by his own desire,
And out of her grave grew a double red rose
And out of his'n a briar.
15 They grew so high, they grew so tall,
That they could grow no higher;
They tied themselves in a true-lover's knot,
And both fell down together.
16 Now all ye young that pass this way,
And see these two lovers asleep,
'T is enough to break the hardest heart,
And bring them here to weep.
_______________________________________________
Fair Margaret and Sweet William (Child 74) [Belden- Notes from Ballads and Songs- 1940]
Child remarks that this is 'a favorite of the stalls,' a fact which perhaps accounts in part for its frequency in American collections. He gives one text (V 293-4) from Massachusetts. Since the completion of his work it has been reported from tradition in Yorkshire (JFSS II 289-90) and Dorset (JFSS III 64-6), and on this side of the Atlantic from Newfoundland (FSN 94-8), Nova Scotia (BSSNS 25-6), Ontario (JAFL XXXI 74, a fragment), Maine (BBNI 134-9), Vermont (VFSB 213-4), Virginia (TBV 221-39, Sharpl( I 139-40, 143-5, SCSM 103-5), West Virginia (FSS 65-77), Kentucky (JAFL XXIII 381-2, LT 94-9, FSKM 69-70, SharpK I 134-5, 142-3, besides a text introduced into a story by Julian Ralph in Harper's Monthly for July 1903),
Tennessee (SharpK I 132-4, 140-2), North Carolina (JAFL XXVIII 154-5, SharpK I135-9, 145, FSSM 2-3), Mississippi (FSM 87-90), Ohio (JAFL XXXV 340-2), Indiana (JAFL XITVIII 301-3), Illinois (TSSI 141-2), the Ozarks (OASPS 181-3), and Missouri (JAFL XIX 28I-2; w hether the text printed by Kittredge in JAFL XXX 303-4 is to be assigned to Missouri or to Indiana
is not clear). The rather puzzling opening scene in Child A and in many American texts is probably understood by singers of the ballad as an answer to sorne question asked by Margaret's father; it is specifically so presented in FSS E. Several texts-perhaps feeling that this opening is not intelligible- have dropped it, beginning with Margaret looking out of her bower window
and seeing William and his bride going by to church. Generally we are told that after this Margaret is seen no more, leaving it to be inferred that she dies of grief; but a good many texts imply, and some say, the Missouri-Indiana text in JAFL XXX 303-4, directly say, that she commits suicide by throwing herself down from her high window. The visit of Margaret's ghost, William's
report next morning of a dream that his bower was full of red (sometimes white) swine and his bride-bed full of blood, and the rose-and-briar ending are fairly persistent features of the story. The phrase 'with the leave of my (wedded) lady' of the Child versions has been expanded in some of the American texts for a formal asking of his lady's permission to visit the dead Margaret.
_____________________________________
Brown Collection, version G; 1952; also complete text from the W. Amos Abrams Collection at App state date 1936 in Brown Collection. The MS is titled, "Fair Margaret and Sweet William- Variant 1." This was collected around 1939 by Edith Cavell Walker(1919-1994) of Madison County who was a student of Abrams, from Nora Hicks (1886-1953), while the family lived on the side of Rich Mountain, Watauga County, North Carolina. Some of the ballads collected from Nora were written down by Addie Hicks, Nora's daughter because Nora could not write. This branch of the Hicks family (Nora's mother lived there also, her name was Aunt Betty Hicks) is called the Mast's Gap Hicks who were named, I assume for John Mast and his family. John married a Hicks the sister of Sabra Hicks who was Council Harmon's mother. "Couce" lived with John Mast after his mother married a Ward and moved to Illinois in the early 1800s.
Sweet William- Nora Hicks
Sweet William he rose one morning in May,
Himself he dresses in blue.
His mother asked him about that long, long love
[That] Lies between Lady Margaret and you.
Its I know nothing of Lady Margaret, he said,
Lady Margaret knows nothing of me;
But tomorrow morning by eight o'clock
The new bride she shall see.
As she set in her dressing room
Combing back her yellow hair,
Its then she saw Sweet William and his dear
At the old church yard they drew near.
She threw down her ivory comb,
Twisted back her yellow hair,
And out of her dressing room she did go
To never return no more.
The day a-being gone and the night a-coming on
Most of he people were asleep,
Lady Margaret she rose and stood all alone
At Sweet William's bed feet.
Its how do you like your blanket, she said,
And how do you like your sheets;
And how do you like your gay ladee
That lies in your arms asleep?
Well enough I like my blankets, he said,
Well enough I like my sheets,
But ten times better do I like the gaily girl
That stands at my bed feet.
I dreampt a dream, Sweet William said,
That troubles me in my head;
I dreampt my hall was full of wild swine,[1]
And Lady Margaret she was dead.
The night a-being gone and the day a-coming on
Most of the people were asleep,
Sweet William asked leave of his own true love
Lady Margaret he might go see.
He rode till he come to Lady Margaret's gate,
He dangled at the bell,
But none so ready as her own kind brother
To rise and let him come in.
Where is Lady Margaret, he said?
Is she in her dressing room,
Or is she in the hall, or is she in her bright chamber
Among the merry maids all?
She's not in her dressing room.
Neither in the the hall,
She's a lying in her cold coffin,
That sets again yonders wall.
Unwind, unwind, her winding sheet,
That's made of Holland so fine,
Let me kiss her cold clay lips,
For I'm sure she'll never kiss mine.
Today it's over Lady Margaret's grave,
And tomorrow it's over mine;
I'll bid farewell to my kinfolks all;
It's all I've left behind.
________________________________________
[From; Ballads and Songs of Michigan
5 SWEET WILLIAM AND LADY MARGARET
(Fair Margaret and Sweet William, Child, No. 74)
This widely disseminated ballad is quoted in Act II, Scene 8, and in Act III, Scene 5, of Beaumont and Fletcher's Knight of the Burning Pestle (1610). The Michigan version is a marked composite, containing many details which occur only in variants from localities widely removed from one another. In general it is most similar to Child B, although it has something in common with A and C. For additional forms and discussion see Barry, Eckstorm, and Smyth, pp. 134-139; Cox, pp 65-77; Davis, pp. 221-239; Eddy, No. 8, Flanders and Brown, pp. 213-214; Mackenzie, pp. 25-26, Scarborough, pp. 103-105; and Sharp, I, 132-145. The present version was sung in 1934 by Mr. Otis Evilsizer, Alger.
1 O 'twas on one merry May morning
Sweet William arose all dressed in blue.
"O it's tell me that long, long love
That's between Lady Marg'ret and you."
2 "O I know no harm of her," says he,
"And I hope that she knows none of me,
For tomorrow morning by eight o'clock
Lady Marg'ret my bride shall be."
3 As she was standing in her hall,
A-combing back her hair,
It was there that she spied Sweet William and his bride,
As to the churchyard they drew nigh.
4 O it's down she threw her ivory comb,
And with silk she tied up her hair;
And out of the hall this fair damsel went
And nevermore was seen there.
5 As the day was gone and the night came on,
. . . .
Lady Marg'ret's ghost appeared alone
A-standing at Willie's bed feet.
6 "O it's how do you like your bed?" said she,
"And it's how do you like your sheet?
And it's how do you like that gay lady
That lies in your arms asleep?"
7 "O it's well do I like my bed," said he,
"And it's well do I like my sheet;
But the best of all is that gay lady
That stands at my bed feet."
8 When the night was gone and day came on,
. . . .
Sweet William he said he was troubled in his head
From a dream that he had last night.
9 "Such dreams, such dreams,
I fear they are not good,
For I dreamed that my hall was all full of wild swine,
And my bride's bed was swimming in blood."
10 "Go call up your merry maidens all,
By one, by two, by three;
And last of all bring my own dear bride,
That Lady Marg'ret we may go and see.
11 "O is she in her own bowery?
Or is she in her hall?
Or is she in her own bay coach
With her merry maidens all?"
12 "O she's not in her own bowery,
Nor is she in her hall;
But she is in her own coffin
Lying out against the wall."
13 "Take down those sheets, those sheets," cried he,
"Made out of your silk so fine,
That I may kiss those clay-cold lips,
For ofttimes they've kissed mine.
14 "Take down those sheets, those sheets," he cried,
"Made of your Holland so fine,
For today they are over Lady Marg'ret's corpse,
And tomorrow they'll be over mine."
15 Lady Marg'ret she died as it might be today;
Sweet William he died as tomorrow.
Lady Marg'ret she died of a pure, pure love;
Sweet William he died of sorrow.
16 Lady Marg'ret was buried under a rose
Sweet William in under a willow;
And they both grew tall, and they both grew together,
And they tied in a true lover's knot.
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From California Gold: Northern California Folk Music from the Thirties
Sung by Mrs. Wells
SIR WILLIAM AND LADY MARGARET
Sir William courted Lady Margaret so fair
And intended to make her his wife;
But they'd quarreled about some trifling affair,
And it cost then both their life.
Said he: I am no man for you
And you are no girl for me,
But before many days are over and gone
To my wedding you may be.
Said she, I'm no girl for you,
And you're no man for me,
Before many days are over and gone,
To my funeral you may be.
Lady Margret sat in her window high,
A-combing her yellow hair.
She saw Sir William and his bride riding by,
Lady Margret put down her ivory comb;
With silk tied up her hair.
She threw herself out the castle window
And never spoke any more.
Sir William had a dreadful dream,
He dreamed that was not good.
He dreamed his hall was full of white swine
And his bride's chamber full of blood.
Lie still, lie still, his bride she cried,
Dreams seldom do prove true.
But it's I will arise and to Lady Margret go,
Without the leave of you.
So he arose and straightway went,
And knocking at the door;
And who was so ready as Lady Margret's brother
To open up the door.
Oh where is Lady Margret, he cried.
Seat her by the side of me.[1]
Lady Margret is dead and under the sheet lies,
And she died for the love of thee.
Oh open up the winding sheet
And let me view the dead.
Oh let me kiss those clay cold lips
That once were cherry red.
Lady Margret died all as today;
Sir William as tomorrow.
And they were in the churchyard laid.
On account of a foolish quarrel.
They buried Lady Margret in churchyard,
And Sir William in [the] choir;
And of her grave there grew a red rose,
And out of Sir William's a briar.
They grew and grew so very high,
They grew till they reached the steeple top.
And there the Red Rose and the briar did meet.
All tied a true lovers' knot.
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[Notes From British Ballads from Maine; 1929; Barry]
See also Wyman and Brockway, Lonesome Tumes, p. 99. Stanza 9, which corresponds to Child A 16, is a commonplace, found in "Lord Lovel" (Child G g-12, I 15). The stanza in Child I 15 is as follows:
"Gar deal, gar deal the bread," he says,
"The bread bat an the wine,
And at the morn at twelve o'clock,
Ye's gain as much at mine."
This ballad was known to Mrs. Rose Robbins of Northeast Harbor. When shown Cox's texts, out of his seven versions she chose G as the form nearest that sung by her father. Of this she recognized the substance of every stanza except the fourth. Mrs. Fred W. Morse of Islesford selected Cox G as nearest the form she knew, but she recognized only four stanzas of it.
"Fair Margaret and Sweet William" was one of the best known of the older ballads.
Twice it is quoted in Beaumont and Fletcher's Knight of the Burning Pestle-act II, sc. 8; act III, sc. 5--and we are of the opinion that in addition to the two well-known snatches so often cited there is still another reference to it in the same play, in act IV, sc. 1. where the Citizen's Wife arranges a scene in the play for her favorite Ralph to act in:
an let him be very weary, and come to the King of Cracovia's house, covered with black velvet; and there let the king's daughter stand in her window, all in beaten gold, combing her golden locks with a comb of ivory; and let her spy Ralph and fall in love with him.
The ivory comb, the golden locks, the maid in the window, all belong to the ballad of "Fair Margaret and Sweet William," already twice quoted in the same play.
Our Maine copies of this ballad, if we may judge by our samples, are most like the text written down from memory in 1776, by Mrs. Bernard, mother of the Dean of Derry, and preserved in the Percy Papers. It must have been long afloat in this country to get in such a broken-down condition.
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Davis' notes: More Traditional Ballads of Virginia- FAIR MARGARET AND SWEET WILLIAM
The excluded texts add little to the story, though each has its characteristic variants: in one the name of Sweet William is
changed to William Hall, a corruption from a later well-known British broadside ballad; in another Lady Margaret becomes Liddy Margaret, and the following dialogue takes place between Sweet William and her brother:
"Good morning, good morning to you,
What makes you look so pale and blue ?"
"I'm mourning the loss of my own dear sister
Who died for the love of you."
The relationship of the Virginia texts to the Child texts is complex and not very close. See the TBVa headnote, and add the
information given above. Most of the Virginia texts conform to Coffin's Story Typ. A, but CC would seem to represent Story
Type B. That the ballad is a rich repository of folklore material is obvious: the ghost, the portent dream, the appearance of blood, swine, and tears in dreams of ill omen, the sympathetic plants of the rose-and-brier ending. See Wimberly, passim.
________________________________
Ballads and Folksongs from West Virginia
by Ruth Ann Musick
The Journal of American Folklore, Vol. 70, No. 277 (Jul. - Sep., 1957), pp. 247-261
7. "Lady Margaret" (Fair Margaret and Sweet William, Child 74) [10]
7.1. Contributed by Mrs. Glasscock, who learned it from a cousin; only her first two and final two verses are given (for music see Ex. 12).
(1) Sweet William arose one Easter morn
And dressed himself in blue;
"Pray tell me about the long courtship
'Tween Lady Marg'ret and you."
(2) "I know nothing of Lady Margaret,
And she knows nothing of me;
But tomorrow morning just the hour of day,
Lady Marg'ret my bride shall be."
(13) "Is Lady Margaret in her drawingroom?
Or is she in the hall?
Or is she in her high chamber,
A-combing her long yellow hair?"
(14) "She is not in her drawingroom;
She is not in the hall;
But she lies in yonder in her cold coffin,
With her pale face turned to the wall."
7.2. Contributed by Mrs. Ethel Cunningham of Smithfield, as sung by Frank Fisher of Wetzel County.
(I) One May morning Sweet William arose
And dressed himself in green;
Lady Margaret'sm other appeared unto him and said
"What's between Lady Margaret and you?"
(2) He said, "I know nothing of Lady Margaret;
Nothing's between Lady Margaret and me;
But tomorrow morning at the earliest, six o'clock,
Lady Margaret I must see."
(3) Lady Margaret, a-sitting in her hall door,
Combing back her hair,
When she spied her Sweet William
and his only intended
Bride in yonder's churchyard.
(4) As they drew near, she threw away her ivory comb,
And out her door she fell;
She never, never woke, nor she never, never spoke,
Nor she never rose any more.
(5) Sweet William, he was wedded, and he was bedded,
Bedded in the finest of sheets;
And Lady Margaret's ghost appeared unto him,
Standing at his bed feet.
(6) Saying, "How do you like your bed?" says she;
How do you like your sheets?
And how do you like your newly wedded wife,
That in your arms do sleep?"
(7) "Well do I like my bed," says he;
"Well do I like my sheets (says he);
But far better do I like that pretty little miss
A standin' at my bed feet."
(8) "I dreamed a dream the other night;
I fear it is no good;
I dreamed my room was full of ill,
And I seen my bed swimming in blood."
(9) "I called in my servant men,
It's one, it's two, it's three.
I must take leave from my newly wedded wife,
For Lady Margaret I must see."
(10) "Is she in her own bedroom?
Or is she in her hall?
Or is she in her kitchen,
With modesty of all?"
(11) "Is neither in her own bedroom,
Or is she in her hall;
But yonder she lies in her own coffin,
With her face turned to the wall."
(12) "Unfold those lily-white sheets,
For I must see her again;
For oft times I've kissed her red, rosy cheeks,
And she has oft kissed mine."
(13) The first he kissed was her red, rosy cheeks,
And the next he kissed her chin;
And the next he kissed was her claycold lips,
That pierced his heart within.
(14) Lady Margaret died as though today;
Sweet William died tomorrow;
Lady Margaret died in pure heart's love,
Sweet William died of sorrow.
(15) Out of her grave there grew a red rose,
Out of his a brier;
And they grew to the church steeple top,
And couldn't grow any higher.
And there they entwined in a true love knot,
For all true lovers to admire.
Excerpt from The British Traditional Ballad in North America
by Tristram Coffin 1950, from the section A Critical Biographical Study of the Traditional Ballads of North America
74. FAIR MARGARET AND SWEET WILLIAM
Texts: Barry, Brit Bids Me, 134 / Belden, Mo F-S, 48 / Brewster, Bids Sgs Ind, 71 / Brown Coll / Bull Tenn FLS, VIII, #3, 66 / Chappell, F-S Rnke Alb, 25 / Child, V, 293 / Cox, F-S South, 65 / Cox, W. Va. School Journal and Educator, XLV, 378 / Cutting, Adirondack Cnty, 64 / Davis, Trd Sid Va, 221 / Eddy, Bids Sgs Ohio, 34 / Flanders, Vt F-S Bids, 213 / Focus, IV, 426 / Gardner and Chickering, Bids Sgs So Mich, 40 / Harper's Mgz (June, 1903), 272 / Haun, Cocke Cnty, 94 / Hudson, F-S Miss, 87 / Hudson, Spec Miss F-S, 111 / Hummel, Oz F-S / JAFL, XIX, 281; XXIII, 381 5 XXVIII, 154; XXX, 3035 XXXI, 74; XXXV, 340;
XLVIII, 301 / Leach-Beck Mss. / Lunsford and Stringfield, 30 & 1 F-S So Mis, 2 / Luther, Americans Their Sgs, 20 / MacKenzie, Bids Sea Sgs N Sc, 25 / MacKenzie, Quest Bid, 124 / Me Gill, F-S Ky Mts, 71 / Minish Mss. / Neely and Spargo, Tales Sgs So III, 141 / North American Review, CCXXVIII, 221 / Pound, Am Bids Sgs, 40 / Randolph, Oz F-S, I, 108 / Randolph, The Ozarks, 181 / Scarborough, Sgctchr So Mts, 103 / SharpC, Eng F-S So Aplchns, #17 / SharpK, Eng F-S So Aplchns, I, 139 / Shearin and Combs, Ky Syllabus, 8 / SFLQ, II, 69 / Va FLS Bull, =[s 26, 8 10 / Wyman and Brockway, Lonsome Tunes, 94.
Local Titles: Fair Margaret and Sweet William, False William, Lady Margaret (Marget, Maggie, Margot, etc., etc.), Lady Margaret's Ghost, Lady Maud's Ghost, Little Marget, Lyddy Margot, Lydia Marget, Pretty Polly and Sweet William, Sweet William, Sweet William's Bride, Sweet William and Lady Margaret, Sweet Willie, William and Margaret.
Story Types: A: Sweet William, rising and dressing in blue, denies that he and Lady Margaret are in love and states that she will see his bride the next day. Margaret, after watching the wedding procession past her window, throws down her comb, leaves the room, and is never more seen alive. That night William sees Margaret's ghost at the foot of his bed in a dreamlike
vision. (In some texts he also dreams of swine and blood.) The ghost asks how he likes his bride, and he replies that he loves the person at the foot of his bed far better. When William awakes, he tells his wife of the vision and goes to see Margaret. Her family shows him her body, and he kisses the corpse before dying himself.
Examples: Belden (A), Davis (A), Gardner and Chickering.
B : The story is the same as that of Type A, except that Margaret commits suicide by throwing herself from the window (or by some such means). The death is on-stage, instead of off-stage.
Examples: Barry (A); Belden (B); Randolph, OzF-S (A).
C: The story is the same as that of Type A, except that it is William's bride who has the dream. She tells it to William.
Examples : Barry (B), Haun.
D: The usual story is told, but the off-stage actions of Margaret after she leaves the window are described. She has her mother and sister make her "bed and bind her head because she feels ill. She then dies of a broken heart.
Examples : MacKenzie, Bids Sea Sgs N Sc.
E: The usual story is told, except that Margaret is still alive when she comes to the foot of William's bed.
Examples: JAFL, XXIII, 381.
F: An incomplete text in which the ghost comes to the foot of the bed and blesses the sleeping lovers before going to the grave has been found.
Examples: Minish Mss. (Sweet Willie, ).
Discussion: This song is very popular in America, but the New World texts are not very like any Child version. Generally (see Davis, Trd Bid Va, 221), they follow Child A in the "such dreams" stanza; Child B in the conversation of William and Margaret's ghost (but see Barry, Brit Bids Me, B and Haun, Cocke Cnty) ; and Child C in the fact the bride is not brown (a corruption from 73 when it does occur). The puzzling opening scene of Child A (the talking on the hill) is generally dropped in America (but see Haun, Cocke Cnty, 94), and usually a scene of William rising and dressing in blue replaces it. The phrase "with the leave of my (wedded) lady" of the Child texts is frequently expanded (see Cox, F-S South, G and Sharp K, Eng F-S So Aplchns, A) to a formal asking of the wife's permission to visit the dead Margaret.
Type B texts show the frequent trend toward the spectacular in the American ballad, and Type D is even more specific in the details of the death, at the same time revealing a change in narrative through the influence of convention. Type E is an excellent example of the American tendency to rationalize supernatural material, while Type F is an odd sentimentalization.
The SharpK, op. cit., versions are exceptionally interesting. A, a Type A story, has a confused beginning and a ghost which appears to both William and the bride. In B, also Type A, the wife goes with William to see Margaret the next morning. In addition, the Flanders, Ft F-S Bids, version opens with two stanzas that begin, "If you're no woman for me, and I'm no man for
you". And the whole Eddy text (J4FL, XXXV, 340) is worth note.
This song has affinities with 73, other than those mentioned above. See Child, II, 200. In the Brewster, Bids Sgs Ind, 76, C text Margaret attends the wedding against the advice of her mother, as does Annet or Eleanor in 73. The rest of the narrative of this version is the usual Type A sort.
Some incomplete texts exist which, tell the story with no mention of the ghost. These skip the events between Margaret's suicide and William's awakening the day after his wedding. See the Leach-Beck Mss.
__________________________________
Missing versions:
GHOST OF MARGARET, THE
Source Folklore & Folklife in Virginia 4 (1988) p.56
Performer Ewell, Maud
Place collected USA : Virginia : Haymarket
Collector Morton, Susan R.
FAIR MARGARET AND SWEET WILLIAM
Source WPA Collection, Univ. of Virginia, Charlotteville, No.374 (version e)
Performer Wooding, Mrs. Nancy C.
Place collected USA : Virginia : Danville
Collector Scales, Bessie A.
FAIR MARGARET AND SWEET WILLIAM
Source Helen Hartness Flanders Collection (Middlebury College, Vermont) D6 A 05
Performer Dragon, Edward
Place collected USA : Vermont : Ripton
Collector Flanders, Helen Hartness
FAIR MARGARET, THE
Source WPA Collection, Univ. of Virginia, Charlotteville, No.374 (version j)
Performer Leonard, Mrs. Lithie
Place collected USA : Virginia : Waterfall
Collector Morton, Susan R.
LADY MARGARET
Source WPA Collection, Univ. of Virginia, Charlotteville, No.374 (version f)
Performer Yowell, Mrs. Judy
Place collected USA : Virginia : Culpeper
Collector Jeffries, Margaret
LADY MARGARET
Source WPA Collection, Univ. of Virginia, Charlotteville, No.374 (version g)
Performer Holyfield, Mrs. Lurline
Place collected USA : Virginia : Pound
Collector Hamilton, Emory L.
LILLY MARGARET
Source WPA Collection, Univ. of Virginia, Charlotteville, No.374 (version i)
Performer Wells, Mrs. Theo
Place collected USA : Virginia : Bear Branch
Collector Hamilton, Emory L.
LILY MARGARET
Source WPA Collection, Univ. of Virginia, Charlotteville, No.374 (version h)
Performer Ison, Mrs. Sarah
Place collected USA : Virginia : Wise
Collector Hamilton, Emory L.
SWEET WILLIAM
Source WPA Collection, Univ. of Virginia, Charlotteville, No.374 (version a)
Performer Hamilton, Mrs. Goldie
Place collected USA : Virginia : Esserville
Collector Hamilton, Emory L.
SWEET WILLIAM
Source WPA Collection, Univ. of Virginia, Charlotteville, No.374 (version b)
Performer Brummett, Mrs. Lauretta
Place collected USA : Virginia : Wise
Collector Hamilton, Emory L.
SWEET WILLIAM
Source Combs, Folk-Songs of the Southern United States (1967) pp.203-204 item 19(a)
Performer
Place collected USA : Kentucky : Hindman
Collector Combs, Josiah H.
SWEET WILLIAM AND LILY MARGARET
Source WPA Collection, Univ. of Virginia, Charlotteville, No.374 (version c)
Performer Wampler, Miss Thelma
Place collected USA : Virginia : Esserville
Collector Hamilton, Emory L.
SWEET WILLIAM RODE ONE MORNING BRIGHT (this appears in Cox as collected by Woofter)
Source Combs, Folk-Songs of the Southern United States (1967) pp.203-204 item 19(c)
Performer Rhinehart, Mrs. Effie
Place collected USA : W. Virginia : Randolph County
Collector Combs, Josiah H. / Woofter, Carey
SWEET WILLIAM ROSE ONE MORNING BRIGHT (this appears in Cox as collected by Woofter)
Source Combs, Folk-Songs of the Southern United States (1967) pp.203-204 item 19(b)
Performer
Place collected USA : Kentucky?
Collector Combs, Josiah H.
LITTLE MARGARET
Source Amberg, Sodom Laurel Album (2002) (acc. CD)
Performer Wallin, Doug
Place collected USA : N. Carolina : Madison County
Collector
FAIR MARGARET AND SWEET WILLIAM
Source Anderson: Tennessee Folklore Soc. Bulletin 8:3 (1942) p.66
Performer Brewer, Adra
Place collected USA : Tennessee : Walland
Collector
FAIR MARGARET AND SWEET WILLIAM
Source Haun, Cocke County Ballads & Songs (1937) p.94
Performer Haun, Mrs. Maggie
Place collected USA : Tennessee : Cocke County
Collector
SWEET WILLIAM
Source Duncan, Ballads & Folk Songs Collected in Northern Hamilton County (1939) pp.52-55
Performer Gentry, Pearl Green
Place collected USA : Tennessee : Sale Creek
Collector Duncan, Ruby
39. [Lady Margaret and Sweet William]
Davis, 1929, p. 573 (P). Sung by Raz Shiffiet, Blackwell's Hollow, Va., November 1920. Collected by John Stone.
[no text]
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digital Appalachia - Little Margaret Sitting in Her... Ballads;
Sheila Kay Adams sings to a ballad singing class at Warren Wilson College. Sheila learned these ballads from her relatives, primarily from her great-aunt, Dellie Chandler Norton. Sheila is from Madison County, North Carolina. Warren Wilson College