Traditional: Collected Lyrics
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Public-domain lyrics

I'll tend thy bower

Traditional

“I'll tend thy bower” as printed in The Book of Scottish Song (1843).

Traditional: Collected Lyrics Text 176 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

I'll tend thy bower, my bonnie May,

In spring-time o' the year,

When saft'ning winds begin to woo

The primrose to appear—

When daffodils begin to dance,

And streams again flow free,

And little birds are heard to pipe

On the sprouting forest tree.

I'll tend thy bower, my bonnie May,

When summer days are lang—

When nature's heart is big wi' joy,

Her voice laden wi' sang—

When shepherds pipe on sunny braes,

And flocks roam at their will,

And auld an' young in cot an' ha',

O' pleasure drink their fill.

I'll tend thy bower, my bonnie May,

When autumn's yellow fields—

That wave like seas o' gowd—before

The glancin' sickle yields;

When ilka bough is bent wi' fruit—

A glorious sight to see!—

And showers o' leaves, red, rustling, sweep

Out owre the withering lea.

I'll tend thy bower, my bonnie May,

When through the naked trees,

Cauld, shivering on the bare hill side,

Sweeps wild the frosty breeze;

When tempests roar, and billows rise,

Till nature quakes wi' fear—

And on the land and on the sea,

Wild winter rules the year.

Credits

Written by Traditional

Traditional words. 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, “I'll tend thy bower”

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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