Lesley Baillie

Other names: 
Mrs. Lesley Cumming, Mrs Robert Cumming, Bonnie Lesley (after the poem by Robert Burns); spelled Leslie on marriage registration and on son's birth registrations
Dates: 
6 March 1768 - 12 July 1843

Lesley Baillie was born at Mayfield House in Schoolwell Street, Stevenston, Ayrshire on 6 March 1768 to parents Robert Baillie, a sea captain, and Marion (May) Reid (b Sept 1739, m reg. 14 March 1760).

She had 3 sisters, May (born 24 December 1761), Elizabeth (14 October 1781)and Maria (Grace), the last mentioned by Robert Burns and recorded on the family memorial.

She married Robert Cumming of Logie in Morayshire on 22nd June 1799 at Stevenston.

They had 6 sons: Alexander (b 14 April 1800 at Stevenston - d 7 Jan 1840 on Indian Service), Robert Hugh ( b September 1801 - d 19 Sept 1822 Bengal Artillery), twins George (b 21st July 1802 - d 1856 surgeon in Madras Army) and John Peter (b 21st July 1802 - d 2 Sept 1852 Lieutenant Colonel in Bombay Army)), William Fullert (b October 1804) and May Anne (b October 1806 became Mrs Fraser, then Mrs James Coxe, d August 1841), Alexander was born at Stevenston, the others at Edinkillie in Morayshire.

Lesley was immortalised by Robert Burns who spent a short time with the family one day as they travelled through Dumfries to England in 1792. He wrote the songs "Bonnie Leslie" (1792) and "Blythe Hae I been On Yon Hill" (1793) in her honour.

Bonnie Lesley

O SAW ye bonnie Lesley
As she gaed o'er the Border?
She 's gane, like Alexander,
To spread her conquests farther.

To see her is to love her,
And love but her for ever;
For Nature made her what she is,
And ne'er made sic anither!

Thou art a queen, fair Lesley,
Thy subjects we, before thee:
Thou art divine, fair Lesley,
The hearts o' men adore thee.

The Deil he couldna scaith thee,
Or aught that wad belang thee;
He'd look into thy bonnie face
And say, 'I canna wrang thee!'

The Powers aboon will tent thee,
Misfortune sha'na steer thee:
Thou'rt like themsel' sae lovely,
That ill they'll ne'er let near thee.

Return again, fair Lesley,
Return to Caledonie!
That we may brag we hae a lass
There 's nane again sae bonnie!

Blythe hae I been on yon hill

Blythe hae I been on yon hill,
As the lambs before me;
Careless ilka thought and free,
As the breeze flew o'er me:
Now nae langer sport and play,
Mirth or sang can please me;
Lesley is sae fair and coy,
Care and anguish seize me.

Heavy, heavy is the task,
Hopeless love declaring:
Trembling, I dow nocht but glowr,
Sighing, dumb, despairing!
If she winna ease the thraws,
In my bosom swelling;
Underneath the grass-green sod
Soon maun be my dwelling.

Lesley died in Edinburgh on 12 July 1843, and is buried there.

Sources
CUMMING, ROBERT (O.P.R. Marriages 615/00 0020 0068 STEVENSTON)
marriage record of Robert Cumming and Leslie Baillie
BAILLIE, ELIZABETH (O.P.R. Births 615/00 0010 0114 STEVENSTON)
birth record of sister Elizabeth
BAILLIE, MAY (O.P.R. Births 615/00 0010 0069 STEVENSTON)
birth record of sister May
Old Parish Records Births & Baptisms Search Returns for children of Robert Cumming and Leslie Baillie
record of sons' birth
Lesley Baillie Scotland Ancestry blog
family information
The Burns Encyclopedia Baillie, Lesley (d. 1843)
Encyclopedia of things relating to Robert Burns
OPR Births & Baptisms Search Returns for Marion Reid
mothers birth record