| Gt Escapes: Scottish Borders 1 |
Monumental words
Sir Walter Scott |
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“Breathes there a man, with soul so dead,
Who never to himself hath said,
This is my own, my native land!
Whose heart hath never within him burned,
As home his footsteps he hath turned,
From wandering in a foreign strand!”
The Lay of the Last Minstrel, by Sir Walter Scott
On 5 August, 1771, Sir Walter Scott, one of Scotland’s greatest writers, was born in Edinburgh. This boy was to grow into one of the best-loved and most respected of all Scotland’s writers, and it was the picturesque Scottish Borders that helped give shape to his particular brand of romantic
writing. As a boy, he was sent to his grandfather’s farm to recuperate from polio, which had left him lame. Here, though, he befriended a shepherd and was influenced by his ballads and stories. These were the beginnings of his love for his ancestors’ folklore and the Scottish Borders. Here, we show you the places that inspired his work.
1 SMAILHOLM TOWER, KELSO
Perched atop a spectacularly craggy outcrop, the 16th-century Smailholm tower boasts stunning views of the surrounding scenery. Close to his grandfather’s farm, Sandyknowe, where Scott lived to the age of eight, the tower houses a collection of figures from his work The Minstrelry of the Scottish Borders as well as Scott-related tapestries.
2 KELSO
After Scott left Edinburgh High School, he went to live at his uncle’s house at Rosebank, in Kelso, now named Waverley Lodge. Here, he attended Kelso High School.
3 SIR WALTER SCOTT'S COURTROOM
Having served an apprenticeship at his father’s law firm, Scott served as Selkirk county sheriff at Selkirk’s town hall, from 1799 until his death in 1832. The courtroom has now been refurbished and uses an audio-visual display to explore Scott’s time in office. Outside the court, in the marketplace, stands an impressive statue of the man.
4 ABBOTSFORD HOUSE
In 1811, Scott became a Tweedside Laird, paying
the parish minister of Galashiels, Dr Robert Douglas, 4000 guineas for the title. On the land lay a farm called Cartley Hole and it was here that Scott began
his Waverley novels in 1814. On the success of this series, Scott demolished the old farm and built Abbotsford in 1824.
It was during this period that Scott became
governor of Edinburgh Castle and here is where he found the Honours of Scotland – the Scottish Crown Jewels – in the closed-off Crown Room in Edinburgh Castle, in 1818: they had been hidden there
since the Act of Union in 1707 and are the oldest
sovereign regalia in the British Isles, dating
back to 1494.
Abbotsford House
has changed little over the years and a 19th-century atmosphere still pervades the wonderful study-cum-drawing room, the fine library, the dining room (where Scott died on 21 September, 1832), and the beautiful gardens.
Most impressive, though, is his writing desk, made from wood taken from the ships of the Spanish Armada, and also his collection of military artefacts including Rob Roy’s sword. The house is owned today by his great, great, great granddaughter Dame Maxwell–Scott.
5 NEWARK CASTLE
While Wordsworth was staying at Abbotsford House during his second tour of Scotland, Scott took the English poet to see the remains of Newark castle. The ruins are mentioned in Wordsworth’s Yarrow Re-visited.
6 TIBBIE SHIEL'S INN
Scott regularly visited this inn with shepherd James Hogg, who knew the keeper, Tibbie Shiel. Tibbie was a young widow who, with six children to feed, had to rent out her front room. It became the meeting place for the stars of Scottish literary society at the time. And although there’s no record of Wordsworth’s stay here, St Mary’s Loch, on which the house sits, is referred to in his work. Today, meals are served everyday from 12.30pm to 8.30pm.
7 TRAQUAIR HOUSE, INNERLEITHEN
Scotland’s oldest inhabited castle was the inspiration for the Tully–veolan house in his book Waverley. Scott frequently visited the Lairds of Traquair. The house has been inhabited for over five centuries and today you can visit the house and its gardens, and its various craft shops.
8 OLD GALA HOUSE
Scott was a frequent visitor to this building, which dates back to 1583. Scott claimed kinship with the Laird of Gala, also called Scott. As young men, Scott and the Laird gathered trophies from the field at the battle of Waterloo. Today, the house exhibits
the history of the town and building, and is set in pleasant gardens.
9 MELROSE ABBEY
Situated so close to Abbotsford, this majestic, ancient abbey was a regular visiting place for Scott.
He persuaded the Duke of Buccleuch to pay for
the removal of rubbish that lay five-feet deep on the abbey floor, and to forbid locals from using those remains as a source of building material.
10 SCOTT'S VIEW
This was Scott’s favourite spot in the Borders, with its commanding views of the Cheviots, the Gala Water hills and the three peaks of the Eildons. The colours and light are spectacular. It is said that when Sir Walter’s horse was leading the funeral cortège to Dryburgh Abbey, it stopped here, unprompted, as it was accustomed to so doing at its master’s request.
11 THE GORDON ARMS HOTEL
The pub in Mountbenger, just outside Melrose, is the pub that was a favourite of Scott’s where he and his great friend, the novelist James Hogg, met and
parted for the last time before Scott’s death in 1832.
12 DRYBURGH ABBEY
Dryburgh Abbey is a serene last resting place for Sir Walter. He was buried here in St Mary’s aisle on 26 September 1832, and lies here with his wife and other members of his family.
It is fitting that he is buried here, as this abbey, which was sacked by the English in 1385, greatly influenced his poems and novels. On the Eve of St John he wrote:
“O fear not the priest, who sleepeth to the east!
For to Dryburgh the way he was tae’n;
And there to say mass till three days to pass,
For the soul of a knight that is slayne.
The varying light deceived thy sight,
And the wild winds drown’d the name;
For the Dryburgh bells ring, and the
white monks do sing,
For Sir Richard of Coldinghame!”
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Stay at Springwood Caravan Park, Kelso
Suitable for Anyone interested in Scottish literature
Tourist information
Scottish Borders Tourist Board Information Service
Tel 0870 608 0404
Refreshments
Abbotsford Tea Rooms, Abbotsford
Tel 01896 752043
For superb home-made soups, and a bakery at the entrance to Scott’s Abbotsford home.
Attractions
Smailholm Tower
Tel 01573 460365
Sir Walter Scott’s Courtroom
Tel 01750 20096
Traquair House
Tel 01896 830323
Old Gala House
Tel 01750 20096
Abbotsford
Tel 01896 752043
Dryburgh Abbey
Tel 01835 822381
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Tip When visiting Abbotsford, look carefully around the walls at some of his collected objects. There are some important historical items here, including the key to Loch Leven Castle, where Mary Queen of Scots was imprisoned.
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