"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.
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Famous quotes containing the words lord and/or randall:
“Our civility, England determines the style of, inasmuch as England is the strongest of the family of existing nations, and as we are the expansion of that people. It is that of a trading nation; it is a shopkeeping civility. The English lord is a retired shopkeeper, and has the prejudices and timidities of that profession.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“I’m going to my room now. Nobody must disturb me. Nobody, do you understand? I—I sleep during the day.”
—Griffin Jay, Randall Faye, and Lew Landers. Armand Tesla (Bela Lugosi)