Lord Randall

"Lord Randall", or "Lord Randal", (Roud 10, Child 12) is an Anglo-Scottish border ballad, a traditional ballad consisting of dialogue. The different versions follow the same general lines: the primary character (in this case Randall, but varying by location) is poisoned, usually by his sweetheart; this is revealed through a conversation where he reports on the events and the poisoner. Variants of this ballad are found in Danish, German, Magyar, Swedish and Wendish. Similar ballads exist across Europe. There are, for example different Italian versions, usually titled "L'avvelenato" ("The Poisoned Man") or "Il testamento dell'avvelenato" ("The Poisoned Man's Will"). One of them was published for the first time in 1629 by Camillo il Bianchino, in Verona.