Farewell to Ballochmyle by Robert Burns
Maria sings a sorrowful farewell while passing through the fading Catrine woods. Autumn has dulled the landscape: flowers decay, no lav’rock sings, and nature seems sickened. Though Maria herself is in the bloom of beauty, the wild woods echo her repeated farewell to the braes of Ballochmyle. She reflects that the sleeping flowers will bloom again and the silent birds will once more fill the air with song, but she believes that neither birds nor flowers will ever again delight her there. She bids farewell to the bonie banks of Ayr and to sweet Ballochmyle.
By Robert Burns · First published 1808 · Genre: Lyric Poetry, Farewell Poem, Pastoral Poetry · 176 words
First lines
Tune-"Miss Forbe's farewell to Banff."
The Catrine woods were yellow seen, / The flowers decay'd on Catrine lee, / Nae lav'rock sang on hillock green, / But nature sicken'd on the e'e. / Thro' faded groves Maria sang, / Hersel' in beauty's bloom the while; / And aye the wild-wood ehoes rang, / Fareweel the braes o' Ballochmyle!
Low in your wintry beds, ye flowers, / Again ye'll flourish fresh and fair; / Ye birdies dumb, in with'ring bowers, / Again ye'll charm the vocal air. / But here, alas! for me nae mair / Shall birdie charm, or floweret smile; / Fareweel the bonie banks of Ayr, / Fareweel, fareweel! sweet Ballochmyle!
Similar titles
- Montgomeries Peggy by Robert Burns
- Winter A Dirge by Robert Burns
- Song Composed In August by Robert Burns
- The Lass Of Cessnock Banks by Robert Burns
- The Ploughmans Life by Robert Burns
- Mary Morison by Robert Burns
Genres
- Lyric Poetry — A brief, song-like first-person poem expressing personal feeling through musical rhythm, refrain, and compressed imagery.
- Farewell Poem — Its central action and repeated refrain are the speaker's departure from Ballochmyle and the banks of Ayr.
- Pastoral Poetry — The poem focuses on rural woods, flowers, birds, hills, groves, and the idealized natural landscape of Ayrshire.
- Scottish Vernacular Poetry — Burns uses Scots diction and spelling, including words such as 'nae,' 'lav'rock,' 'birdies,' 'bonie,' and 'fareweel.'
Tags
Scottish lyric poetry · farewell song · pastoral elegy · autumnal landscape · Catrine woods · banks of the River Ayr · Ballochmyle braes · rural Scotland · eighteenth-century Scotland · Maria · parting · loss and separation
What this Textopian page supports
Farewell to Ballochmyle is listed on Textopian as a poem by Robert Burns, dated 1808 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Poem
- Author: Robert Burns
- Date: 1808 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Lyric Poetry, Farewell Poem, Pastoral Poetry, Scottish Vernacular Poetry, Nature Poetry
- Length: 176 words
- Structure: 1 section, 3 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for Farewell to Ballochmyle by Robert Burns
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
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