Annotation:Dame of Honour (The)

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DAME OF HONOUR, THE. AKA and see "Queen Bess’s Dame of Honour." English, Country Dance Tune (6/4 time). B Flat Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB. Kidson (1890) finds that the original song "Dame of Honour" was by Thomas D'Urfey and appeared (sung by Mrs. Willis) in the opera The Kingdom of the Birds, although it was also printed in vol. 1 of his Pills to Purge Melancholy (1719). However, the melody, set as a country dance/jig, was earlier published by both John Young in the Second Book of the Dancing Master (1st edition, London, 1710), and by Walsh and Randall in their New Country Dancing Master, Second Book (London, 1710) as "Queen Bess's Dame of Honour." The air proved popular and was used for several subsequent ballad operas such as Polly (1729), Fashionable Lady (1730), The Lottery (1731), The Devil to Pay (1731), and Jovial Crew (1732).

Since now the world's turned upside down,
And all things changed in Nature;
As if a doubt were newly grown,
We had the same Creator
Of ancient modes and former ways,
I'll teach you sirs, the manner
In good Queen Bess' golden days,
When I was dame of honour.

Source for notated version:

Printed sources: Kidson (Old English Country Dances), 1890; p. 6.

Recorded sources:



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