One day a young bard, named Thomas, was sitting beneath the branches of the Eildon tree, quietly passing the time, when he saw a beautiful woman riding past at the foot of the hill. Thomas was captivated and ran down the hill to intercept the stranger.

He showered compliments on her, saying that she must be the “Queen of Heaven”. However she replied, “No, I am just from another country, simply out hunting.”

Soon Thomas discovered that she was, in fact, the Queen of Elfland, and that she was hunting for a mortal captive to take back to her realm. The Queen seized Thomas up onto her horse and rode with him into the hillside.

It was seven years later that Thomas escaped from Elfland back to the mortal realm. He brought with him three gifts. First, he became the greatest bard that ever lived; second, he was unable to speak anything but the truth; and third, he had knowledge of things yet to come. It was because of these gifts he became known as True Thomas, or Thomas the Rhymer.