Annotation:Yorkshire Grey (The)
X:1 T:Yorkshire Grey M:6/8 L:1/8 R:Jig S:Frank Kidson – Old English Country Dances (1890) Z:AK/Fiddler’s Companion K:D dcd AFA|dfd ecA|dcd AFA|dec d3:| |:dA=c BAG|eBd ^cBA|dA=c BAG|eBd ^cBA|efg fed|eBc d3:||
YORKSHIRE GREY. AKA and see "Cynsêt Dafudd ap gwylim," "Gwilym's Delight." English, Country Dance Tune (6/8 time). D Major. Standard tuning (fiddle). AABB. Kidson suggests the first strain was derived from "Hunting the Hare (3)" or "Green Gown (The)." The second strain is two measures longer (six in total) than the first. The air appears in Charles and Samuel Thompson's Complete Collection of Country Dances and Cotillions for the Harpsichord (c. 1775). The tune's provenance may be Welsh, or, at the least, is strongly associated with Wales, and appears as "Cynsêt Dafudd ap gwylim" in Morris Edwards' (Anglesey, north Wales) music manuscript collection of 1778.
The Yorkshire Grey was breed of horse favoured by medieval knights for its load carrying capacity, a feature not lost later when strong horses were needed by the military for hauling caissons. In the 18th century the Yorkshire Grey was adopted by the stage coach companies as the preferred engine, which explains the number of pubs with that name on the old trunk routes.
