Robert Burns: Collected Lyrics
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Public-domain lyrics

Beware o' bonnie Ann

Robert Burns

“Beware o' bonnie Ann” as printed in The Book of Scottish Song (1843).

Robert Burns: Collected Lyrics Text 17 1843 · historical text
Public domainScottish songFolk
Complete public-domain lyrics

This text comes from The Book of Scottish Song, edited by Alexander Whitelaw, a historical songbook transcribed on Wikisource and reproduced from the pinned revision linked below.

Verse 1

Ye gallants bright, I rede ye right,

Beware o' bonnie Ann;

Her comely face sae fu' o' grace,

Your heart she will trepan.

Her een sae bright, like stars by night,

Her skin is like the swan;

Sae jimply laced, her genty waist,

That sweetly ye might span.

Youth, grace, and love, attendant move,

And pleasure leads the van;

In a' their charms, and conquering arms,

They wait on bonnie Ann.

The captive bands may chain the hands,

But love enslaves the man;

Ye gallants braw, I rede ye a',

Beware o' bonnie Ann.

Credits

Written by Robert Burns

Words by Robert Burns. Historical text published in The Book of Scottish Song (1843); public domain. No claim to a modern recording or arrangement.

Source & text edition

The Book of Scottish Song (1843), edited by Alexander Whitelaw, “Beware o' bonnie Ann”

Every contribution in this 1843 anthology predates modern copyright terms by more than a century; any contributor died at least 130 years ago, so the text is in the public domain worldwide (life+70 terms expired no later than 2020).

How to read this historical text and its source

Read the source on Wikisource

View copyright evidence · Transcription terms (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Retrieved 2026-10-12. Line spacing and section labels are adapted for reading. The displayed text follows the linked edition. Editorial notes and abstract artwork are by 52lyrics.
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