ABSTRACT
This song depicts a sexual encounter between a soldier and a maiden, described euphemistically in terms that would have been understood by all listeners. The “green gown” that the soldier gave her was a common term signifying sex in the grass, which would stain a woman’s clothing green. The soldier pulling out his fiddle and playing with such skill that she was finally able to hear the nightingale sing, as he had promised, was probably a thinly-veiled allusion to his bringing her to orgasm. The term “fiddling” could also be used euphemistically for sexual play with a woman. Note that her exclamation “Gramercy”, is from the French “grand merçi”, which literally translates to “a big thank-you”. The “Gold Ring” had some significance as a promise of marriage, though a ring on its own did not form a betrothal contract. 15 Since female orgasm was believed to be necessary for conception, the maid feared the “sad sorrows” of an illegitimate pregnancy, but the soldier still refused to promise more than casual sex. The song thus concludes with a warning to maids to beware these sorts of “flattering young Men”. The disreputable bastard-begetting soldier was a common trope in eighteenth-century fiction. It is likely that it had some basis in reality, though it was likely that some promises of marriage were genuine and subsequently thwarted by the army refusing to allow the soldier to be with his betrothed.
