Walter Scott

Writing

Born: August 16, 1771

Birthplace: Edinburgh, Scotland, UK

Sir Walter Scott (1771–1832), was a Scottish historical novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels Ivanhoe, Rob Roy, Waverley, Old Mortality, The Heart of Mid-Lothian and The Bride of Lammermoor, and the narrative poems The Lady of the Lake and Marmion. He is often considered both the inventor and the greatest practitioner of the historical novel; his knowledge of history and literary facility equipped him to establish the historical novel genre and as an exemplar of European Romanticism.