The Lady of the Last Minstrel

Sir Walter Scott’s epic narrative poem in six cantos, The Lay of the Last Minstrel, was published in 1805. It was the author’s first original poetic romance, and it cemented his place in the literary world. ‘A long poem a kind of Romance of Border Chivalry, in a Light Horseman sort of stanza,’ Scott wanted to include in the third book of the Minstrelsy (letter to George Ellis, December 1802). This was the original draught of Scott’s Lay of the Last Minstrel, which he began in Lasswade in the summer or fall of 1802. Scott was inspired by a recital of Coleridge’s Christabel for the four-beat lines that produce its unique galloping rhythm. The poem quickly grew too long for inclusion in the Minstrelsy as Scott, at the Countess of Dalkeith’s suggestion, weaved the local legend of the goblin Gilpin Horner into his original tale of Border conflicts.

The Lay of the Last Minstrel was inspired by an old Scottish Border legend about the goblin Gilpin Horner. The poem is set up in the form of a frame story. Its narrator is the last of the traditional line of minstrels, living in the late 17th century. He relates the story of Lady Buccleuch’s 16th-century quarrel with Lord Cranstoun, who adores the lady’s daughter. The “lay” of the minstrel—a term that refers to a number of lyrical styles, the majority of which are medieval—is full of mystical and folk elements, as well as knightly battle between the English army and Scottish clans. A few of ballads are also included.

The Lay of the Last Minstrel Meaning

Walter Scott’s The Lay of the Last Minstrel (1805) is a six-canto narrative poem with abundant antique comments. It is set in the Scottish Borders in the mid-16th century and is shown as being sung by a minstrel in the late 1600s. He relates the story of Lady Buccleuch’s 16th-century quarrel with Lord Cranstoun, who adores the lady’s daughter. The “lay” of the minstrel—a term that refers to a number of lyrical styles, the majority of which are medieval—is full of mystical and folk elements, as well as knightly battle between the English army and Scottish clans.

The Lay of the Last Minstrel Analysis

The poem is about a Border feud in the sixteenth century. An ancient minstrel who enjoys hospitality from Ann, Duchess of Buccleuch at Newark Castle tells the story over a century and a half later. In exchange, he tells a story about the Duchess’s family. He sings about her ancestor, the widowed Lady of Branksome Hall, whose husband was killed in a quarrel with Lord Cranstoun’s party. She uses sorcery to prevent Cranstoun and her daughter Margaret from marrying because she is so hostile to their relationship. Sir William Deloraine, one of her retainers, is dispatched to Melrose Abbey to recover a mystical book from the wizard Michael Scott’s grave. 

Deloraine meets and fights Cranstoun on his way back, and is wounded by him. Cranstoun orders his page to escort Deloraine to Branksome Hall, a goblin-like person who has inexplicably attached himself to him. The goblin page finds Michael Scott’s book on Deloraine’s person and uses it to lure Lady Branksome’s infant son into the woods in an act of pure mischief. Lord Dacre, the English opponent of his mother, captures the boy here. Lord Dacre has assembled a force to punish Deloraine for violating a truce and ravaging Sir Richard Musgrave’s holdings. They occupy Branksome and demand that the Lady surrender her wounded retainer.

Instead, she suggests that Deloraine defend himself in single battle with Musgrave against the charge. As a Scottish force approaches, Dacre grudgingly accepts, vowing to restore the Lady’s son if Deloraine triumphs. Cranstoun disguises himself as the wounded Deloraine and beats Musgrave with the help of his goblin page. The infant is returned, and the grateful Lady agrees to Cranstoun and Margaret’s marriage. The spirit of Michael Scott enters at the wedding feast and claims the goblin-page as his own servant.

Conclusion

The Lay became an instant publishing sensation, propelling Scott to stardom. Within three years, six editions were published, with sales reaching 27,000 copies in a decade, unheard of for poetry. The description of the moonlit Melrose Abbey (Canto II, stanza 1) was the earliest example of Scott’s impact on tourism in Scotland, and it led to the destroyed Abbey being a favourite subject for nineteenth-century painters. Even the Prime Minister, William Pitt, was a lover of the poem, reciting sections from it at his dinner table. The critics were mostly positive as well. Many sections were deemed “in the very top rank of poetical perfection” by Francis Jeffrey of the Edinburgh Review. Scott’s expertise in refining the ‘rich but unrefined ore’ of ballad poetry was complimented by the Critical Review.