Author: Sir Walter Scott
Walter Scott, Scottish writer and poet, one of the greatest historical novelists. Scott's influence is seen among others in the works of James Fennimore Cooper, Alexandre Dumas, and Aleksandr Pushkin. Scott was born in Edinburgh as the son of a solicitor Walter Scott and Anne, a daughter of a professor of medicine. An early illness left him lame in the right leg, but he grew up to be a man over six feet tall and of great physical endurance. He attended Edinburgh High School (1779-1783) and studied arts (1783-86) and law (1789-92) at Edinburgh University. Scott was apprenticed to his father in 1786 and in 1792 he was called to the bar. In 1799 he was appointed sheriff deputy of the county of Selkirk. In 1797 Scott married Margaret Charlotte Charpentier (or Charpenter), daughter of Jean Charpentier of Lyon in France. They had five children. In 1806 Scott became clerk to the Court of Session in Edinburgh. To increase his income he started a printing and publishing business with his friend James Ballantyne. In the 1810s the firm had financial difficulties and Scott spent his time in immense labours for his publishers, much of it hack editorial work. During these years Scott also expanded his Abbotsford estate, but it was not until 1826 when the final crash came. He accepted all Ballantyne's debts and decided to pay them off with his writings. However, difficulties lasted the best part of Scott's writing career. In 1820 Scott was created a baronet. His wife, Lady Scott, died in 1826, and the author himself had a stroke in 1830 and in the following year Scott sailed to Italy. After return to England in 1832, he died on September 21. Scott was buried beside his ancestors in Dryburgh Abbey. All his debts were ultimately paid off from the profits of his writing.
