A
Discussion of the Eildon Hills' Arthurian Connections
By
David Nash Ford
E I L D O N
H I L L S
King
Arthur sleeping in the Scottish Borders
The Eildon
Hills dominate the little town of Melrose in Southern
Scotland, famous for the ruins of its Cistercian
Abbey. Beneath them lies a hidden cave, the most
northerly claimant for the site of Arthur's
everlasting sleep.
The local
story told around Melrose is quite detailed. A
horse-dealer named Canonbie Dick was, one day, stopped
on Bowden Moor by a stranger dressed in old-fashioned
clothes. The man asked if he could by the pair of
horses which Dick was riding. Having failed to sell
the two animals at a local fair, Dick eagerly struck a
deal and received several ancient gold coins for his
trouble.
This
encounter reoccurred several nights in a row, and Dick
became intrigued by his mysterious companion. At last,
he suggested that the two should retire to the
stranger's home for a drink. The unfashionable fellow
agreed, but warned the horse-dealer to show no fear or
there would be trouble.
Together
they rode to the hillock of Lucken Hare where a magic
door opened to reveal a torch-lit passage. This led
the two men deep beneath the hills to a vast cavern
under the Eildon Tree, the largest peak of all. All
around the astonished horse-dealer slept the ancient
knights of old, with Arthur, their leader at their
head. On a nearby table sat a great sword and a horn.
The stranger explained that Dick must now choose.
Should he draw the sword or blow the horn? If he chose
correctly, he would be "King of All
Britain".
Dick
considered carefully. He felt that to draw the sword
might be seen as an aggressive threatening action, and
decided to blow the horn instead. Arthur immediately
arose and Dick was afraid. The great knight told the
horse-dealer his actions had not been those of a
warrior, but those of a man summoning help.
"Woe
to the coward, that ever he was born
Who did not draw the sword before he blew the
horn!"
A terrible
wind arose and swept young horse-dealer right out of
the cave and back onto the moors once more. The
exhausted Dick just managed to relay his story to some
local shepherds before he dropped dead. Of course,
no-one ever found the cave again.
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