HALLOWEEN POSTER (2023) 3- THE LAMBTON WORM by Taliesaurus on DeviantArt (original) (raw)

Welcome to the THIRD ADDITION TO OUR 2023 HALLOWEEN POSTER SELECTION.

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And for tonight's post, I thought we'd take another gander into the world of mythology. More specifically we'll be journeying all the back to the 14th century in a sunny corner of North Eastern England, not too far away from where I myself live. A place where stories of knights, castles, princesses, honour and chivalry get passed down from parent to child (mostly through oral retellings as many people of the time couldn't read and write like we can today) alongside tales of witches, goblins, demons and monsters of all sorts...

Including of course:
Dragons!!!

However, despite what most people, understand not all European were the typical fire breathing, treasure hoarding, bat-winged tyrannical beasts that media has come to know, love and fear, as it turns out... european dragons came in several varieties. Some are small red and so hold their very skin sets anything it touches on fire, some have stumpy eggs and short bodies, some have multiple heads. And yet others, which we'll be discussing... don't have arms, legs or wings AT ALL.

It should also be noted that dragons in europe
also went by various different names

such as:

and most appropriately... in the case of our particular subject matter tonight.
people tend to call them by the term of "Worms" or "wyrms"

Like i said, our story is believed to date from roughly the 14th century (between 1301–1400 A.D)
and originates from the north english country of Durham. Told through word of mouth until eventually
written down and published into a book, before going on to inspire songs...comic...books and films.

I hereby present to you the story of:

THE LAMBTON WORM

The Lambton Worm is a legend from the County of Durham in mid-eastern section of the United Kingdom. The story takes place around the River Wear, and is one of the area's most famous pieces of folklore, having been adapted from written and oral tradition into pantomime and song formats. The earliest published version of the legend was by Robert Surtees in sometime around 1820, the well-known Durham historian who recorded the traditional oral version of the legend as recounted by Elizabeth Cockburn of Offerton (don't ask me about the strange titles they had).

And if you would like a basic idea of how the story plays out...
well I'd say it would be something rather like THIS:

THE STORY:

The story begin when a young rebellious boy named John Lambton, (son of a noble family in the County of Durham and an heir of the Lambton Estate) decided to skip church one day and go fishing in the River Wear (one of the region's longest rivers) bringing along some snacks, a basic fishing rod and hook and just decided to enjoy the afternoon sitting by the bank and trying to see what he can catch. In many versions of the story, while walking to the river, or setting up his equipment, John receives warnings from an old man (or a witch – depending on exactly who is telling the story) that no good can come from missing church.

But all things things considered... whilst I don't try to miss church myself...
Here, it just seems like a young lad wanting to have some innocent fun.

Anyway... as the day slowly begins to drag on by, our boy john doesn't seem to catch much of anything.

Until... eventually... His rod begins to twitch...the line bends as something has grabbed onto the hook, with understandably immense excitement, our young boy pulls on the line...to suddenly reveal a strange pinkish-red/orange/brown/black eel, serpent or dare i say...WORM-like creature with a salamander-like head. Depending on the version of the story, the worm is no bigger than a thumb, or about 3 feet (90 centimetres) long or even up to a meter and a half. In some renditions it has legs, while in others it is said to more closely resemble a snake.

Whatever the case, as our young boy is wrangling this strange "worm", that is when the old man returns, although in some versions it is a different character. He tells the young boy that this "worm" like beast might be a demon or even some aspect of the devil and that it should be dealt with as soon as possible, and don't just throw it back or it'll become much harder to deal with.

And you know what our young John does after the old man leaves?
He takes the "worm", walks to remote area boarding a village and just
STUFFS IT HEADFIRST DOWN A WELL!!! (I kid you not!).

Thinking that was that, Young Lambton goes about his day like normal and then forgets about the creature, paying it no mind as nothing bad seemed to have happened. Eventually some time goes by, matures into a fine teenager or young adult, and as a penance for his rebellious early years, goes on to join the Crusades.
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SIDE NOTE: Because the story is often said to have taken place in the 14th century, it is fairly likely that he fought in the Barbary Crusade or the Lithuanian Crusade. Each of those has a whole barrel of information and historical events tied to them but that is not what we are talking about right now.
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As all of this is happening, the "worm" slowly begins to grow...and grow...AND GROW! Eventually it has grown SO large, so dangerous and apparently so POISONOUS/venomous that it climbs out of the well, escaped into the countryside and starting wrecking havoc on the wildlife, the livestock and the townspeople of various different villages around the county. For seven years, it ate cows, sheep, pigs, stray children and lone travellers. It uprooted trees, coiled around hills, swam through streams and demosied simple huts.

Many brave villagers and even knights tried their best to slay this terrible beast... but none prevailed. Especially because when a chunk is cut off the worm, it simply reattaches or regrows the missing piece. It then heads towards Lambton Castle, where the Lord (John Lambton's aged father) manages to sedate or appease the creature in what becomes a daily ritual of offering the worm the milk of nine good cows – twenty gallons, or a filled trough. And if that didn't work... it would eat said cows, and if that didn't work... the pigs... you get the idea, it was a terrible mess.

After seven years, John Lambton finally returns from the Crusades to find his father's estates almost destitute because of the worm he had inflicted upon his family land. With no small amount of remorse for what his childish actions had spawned, John decides to fight it, after hearing of what became of the knights, first seeks the guidance of a wise woman or witch who lived near Durham.

She tells him to cover his armour in spearheads and fight the worm in the River Wear, the place where he had first fished it out from and where it now spends its days wrapped around a great rock. The witch also tells John that after killing the worm he must then kill the first living thing he sees, or else his family will be cursed for nine generations and will not die in their beds. John prepares his armour according to the witch's instructions and arranges with his father that, when he has killed the worm, he will sound his hunting horn three times. On this signal, his father is to release his favourite hound so that it will run to John, who can then kill the dog and thus avoid the curse. (fair enough but poor doggy :( )

John Lambton then fights the worm by the river and as you'd probably imagine it is qutie an epic battle. lots of jabs, cornering and slashing! Eventually, the worm tries to crush him, wrapping him in its coils like a boa constrictor, but in doing so it cuts itself on his armour's enchanted spikes; the pieces of the worm fall into the river, and are washed away before they can join up again. Eventually, the worm is dead and John sounds his hunting horn three times.

Unfortunately, John's father is so excited that the beast is dead that he forgets to release the hound and rushes out to congratulate his son. John cannot bear to kill his father and so, after they meet, the hound is released and dutifully dispatched. But it is too late and nine generations of Lambtons are cursed so they shall not die peacefully in their beds. Thus, the story ends.

This curse seems to have held true for at least three generations,
possibly helping to contribute to the popularity of the story.

These cases of death caused by bad luck include:

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overall... a pretty cool story with maybe not quite the happiest sort of ending.
But that being said... this went on to have an interesting cultural impact.
such as:

Books, Comics and literature:

Opera and films:

but most notably, way back before any of those were made.
the legend actually inspired a full blown...

SONG!

a song, written in 1867 by C. M. Leumane, which like the legend, passed into oral tradition and has several slightly different variants (most notably the use of "goggly" or "googly" eyes meaning bulging and searching, a term formerly widely used on Wearside). It features several words only found in Northumbrian or "Geordie" dialect.

Adnittly it is a bit of a long one but i think this should help you sing along.
Give it a try if you want... it's kinda fun :3

version 1 > www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gTEtV…
version 2 >www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBT7rI…
Version 3 >www.youtube.com/watch?v=xI4BBZ…
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LYRICS OF The Lambton Worm (by C. M. Leumane, 1867)

One Sunda morn young Lambton went A-fishing in the Wear; An' catched a fish upon he's heuk He thowt leuk't vary queer. But whatt'n a kind ov fish it was Young Lambton cudden't tell- He waddn't fash te carry'd hyem, So he hoyed it doon a well (Chorus, which goes like this: )

Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An' aa'll tell ye aall an aaful story,
Whisht! lads, haad yor gobs,
An' Aa'll tel ye 'boot the worm.

Noo Lambton felt inclined te gan
An' fight i' foreign wars.
He joined a troop ov Knights that cared
For nowther woonds nor scars,
An' off he went te Palestine
Where queer things him befel,
An varry seun forgat aboot
The queer worm i' tha well.

(repeat the Chorus)

But the worm got fat an' grewed an' grewed,
An' grewed an aaful size;
He'd greet big teeth, a greet big gob,
An greet big goggly eyes.
An' when at neets he craaled aboot
Te pick up bits o' news,
If he felt dry upon the road,
He'd milk a dozen coos.

(repeat the Chorus)

This feorful worm would often feed
On caalves an' lambs an' sheep,
An' swally little bairns alive
When they laid doon te sleep.
An when he'd eaten aall he cud
An' he'd had he's fill,
He craaled away an' lapped he's tail
Ten times roond Pensha Hill.

(repeat the Chorus)

The news ov this myest aaful worm
An' his queer gannins on
Seun crossed the seas, gat te the ears
Ov brave an' bowld Sor John.
So hyem he cam an' catched the beast,
An' cut 'im in three halves,
An' that seun stopped hes eatin' bairns
An' sheep an' lambs an' caalves.

(repeat the Chorus)

So noo ye knaa hoo aall the foaks
On byeth sides ov the Wear
Lost lots o' sheep an' lots o' sleep
An leeved i' mortal feor.
So let's hev one te brave Sor John
That kept the bairns frae harm,
Saved coos an' calves by myekin' haalves
O' the famis Lambton Worm.

(Final Chorus: which goes like this...)

Noo lads, Aa’ll haad me gob,
That's aall Aa knaa aboot the story
Of Sir John's clivvor job
Wi’ the aaful Lambton Worm.

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and THAT is the Lambton worm.
Hope you lot liked it.

write your thoughts in the comments below :3
O personally really like how Lambton's act is kinda like the irresponsible actions that caused the inception of dozens of invasive species. one example being if you just let goldfish out into a river... you find them several months later 6-10 TIMES THIER NORMAL SIZE!