Carnegie Mellon University

The Last Minstrel: Sir Walter Scott and the Minstrelsy of the Scottish Borders

Exhibit by Posner Center intern Sheila Liming
Spring 2012

Failed as a playwright, and a mediocre  legal scholar, Walter Scott was yet determined to succeed. In 1802, he convinced a publisher to publish The Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border. Growing from a planned “slim volume, “ the final book was a three-volume set, containing traditional Scottish folk ballads, war epics, romantic sagas, and new works emulating the diction of Scottish folk balladry. The Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border was a hit, and earned Scott wealth and prestige. This exhibit explores the early nineteenth century literary network and Scott’s rise to unprecedented, international literary fame.

Sir Walter ScottMinstrelsy of the Scottish Border title page
        







Images: National Galleries of Scotland, Posner Memorial Collection