John Barbour

John Barbour , c.1316?-1395, Scottish poet. He was archdeacon of Aberdeen from 1355 until his death. His romance, The Bruce (1375), celebrating Scotland's emancipation from England, recounts the heroic deeds of Robert I and Sir James Douglas. The poem was meant to be read as history and shows remarkable accuracy. Barbour's authorship of a fragmentary Troy-Book and the Buik of Alexander is disputed.

Barbour, John (c.1320–95), Scottish poet, archdeacon of Aberdeen in 1357. The only poem ascribed to him with certainty is The Bruce (The Actes and Life of the Most Victorious Conquerour, Robert Bruce King of Scotland), in over 13,000 lines, which dates from 1376. The poem is a verse chronicle of the deeds of Bruce and his follower James Douglas, and it contains a celebrated, graphic account of Bannockburn.

Barbour, John (d. 1395). Medieval Scottish poet, author of The Bruce. Barbour was probably born in south-west Scotland (c.1325), and became archdeacon of Aberdeen diocese (1357). In this position he played a significant role in political and ecclesiastical affairs, attending general council to discuss David II's ransom (1357), and travelling abroad to Oxford and France.

From the accession of Robert II (1371) he was closely associated with the royal court, acting as a clerk of audit and auditor of Exchequer regularly until 1385. He also received considerable financial patronage from the king, some undoubtedly for his compositions. The Bruce (written 1375–7) is the earliest substantial poem in Scots to survive. It deals with the reign of Robert I (1306–29), and is based on oral and written testaments, often of contemporaries. He is also known to have written The Brut and The Stewartis Original, which do not survive.

Roland Tanner