Titlepage of the first edition
The Lay of the Last Minstrel is an 1805 Narrative Poem by Sir Walter Scott. It's set in the Scottish Borders in the 1500s, with a Framing Device set in the 1600s.
An elderly minstrel takes shelter at Newark Castle
. His hostess is the Duchess of Buccleuch; in recompense for her hospitality, the minstrel tells her a story about her distant relative Margaret Scott.
The clans of Scott and Carr are feuding, and Lady Margaret's father has recently been killed by the Carrs. Margaret happens to be in love with Baron Henry of Cranstoun, who's allied to the Carrs. Margaret's mother doesn't approve.
A digitised version of the first edition is available on Internet Archive.
Contains examples of:
- Anachronism Stew:
- The exact setting of the main story is unclear, but can't be later than 1562 (assuming Walter's son was born the same year he died and is ten during the narrative — though this is probably overestimating his age.) Lord William Howard appears as a middle-aged military commander; historically he was born in 1563.
- At least three different families have inherited the title Lord Dacre at various times, and two of them held it separately but simultaneously in the 1550s. None of the candidates fit the poem's Lord Dacre.
- Antagonist in Mourning: Sir William's reaction to Musgrave's death.I'd give the lands of Deloraine,
Dark Musgrave were alive again. - Antiquated Linguistics: Even by the standards of early 19th-century poetry, the spelling "Ladye" is glaringly archaic.
- Blood Knight: Lord Dacre is really eager to attack the castle. In fact, when Lord Howard advises settling the dispute by single combat, Dacre is so annoyed that he and Howard are never friends again.
- Cannot Cross Running Water: Gilpin can cross it, but doing so forces him to give up his disguise and turn back into his real form.
- Capture and Replicate: Gilpin abducts Margaret's brother, then returns to the castle disguised as the boy.
- Casts No Shadow: The Ladye's father is said to have gained this power through studying magic.His form no darkening shadow trac'd
Upon the sunny wall! - Catchphrase: Gilpin's first words are "Lost! lost! lost!". He repeats them throughout the poem. We find out what they mean near the end.
- Changeling Tale: Played with. Gilpin abducts a child of about ten, then impersonates him so no one realises he's gone. His behaviour is so different to the child's that everyone knows something's wrong.
- Cold Iron: Michael Scott's book is kept shut with iron locks. They don't hurt Gilpin when he tries to undo them; they just won't let him permanently open them.The iron band, the iron clasp,
Resisted long the elfin grasp:
For when the first he had undone,
It closed as he the next begun. - Combat by Champion: Howard suggests the duel between Musgrave and Deloraine will decide the fate of Margaret's brother. Henry replaces Deloraine. Musgrave loses.
- Confronting Your Imposter: Everyone thinks they've just seen Sir William (in full armour so no one could see his face) defeat Musgrave. They're amazed when the real Sir William arrives at the battlefield.
- Contrived Coincidence: Henry happens to be waiting for Margaret right where Sir William will meet him on his way back to the castle.
- Dating What Daddy Hates: Margaret's mother hates the Carr clan and everyone associated with them. Margaret falls in love with one of their allies.Her lover, 'gainst her father's clan,
With Carr in arms had stood,
When Mathouse-burn to Melrose ran
All purple with their blood;
And well she knew, her mother dread,
Before Lord Cranstoun she should wed,
Would see her on her dying bed. - Death Equals Redemption: Michael Scott studied magic and learnt things men weren't meant to know. On his death-bed he repented and ordered the monk to bury his magic book, allowing it to be used only once more.
- Dedication: To Scott's friend and distant cousin Charles, Earl of Dalkeith (later the Duke of Buccleuch — a descendant of Anne, the Duchess in the poem).
- Dramatic Unmask: Everyone discovers the guy they thought was Sir William isn't actually Sir William. He takes off his helmet and reveals... Henry!
- Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: Or, in this case, The Fair Folk cannot comprehend true love.For happy love's a heavenly sight,
And by a vile malignant sprite
In such no joy is found... - Exact Eavesdropping: The river spirit and the mountain spirit discuss Margaret's love for Henry. The Ladye hears every word.
- Extremely Short Timespan: The whole poem takes three days and three nights.
- The Fair Folk: Gilpin, who's variously described as a goblin, a dwarf, and "Elfin" (which doesn't mean Tolkien-style Elves). He's a very sinister character (He was always for ill, and never for good) and the only thing that stops him mutilating a child is fear of the child's mother.
- Fate Worse than Death: The Ladye warns Sir William that this will happen to him if he reads the book from Michael Scott's grave.Into it, Knight, thou must not look;
If thou readest, thou art lorn!
Better had'st thou ne'er been born. - Feuding Families: The Scotts and the Carrsnote . Both families really exist — in fact, Sir Walter belonged to a cadet branch of the Scott clan — and there really was a feud between them.While Cessford owns the rule of Carr,
While Ettrick boasts the line of Scott,
The slaughter'd chiefs, the mortal jar,
The havoc of the feudal war,
Shall never, never be forgot! - Framing Device: An elderly minstrel is telling the story to his hosts about a hundred years after it happened.
- Gondor Calls for Aid: The war-beacon is lit, so the seneschal sends out men to the castle's allies.Mount, mount for Branksome, every man!
Thou, Todrig, warn the Johnstone clan,
That ever are true and stout;
[...] Ride, Alton, ride, for death and life!
And warn the Warder of the strife.
Young Gilbert, let our beacon blaze,
Our kin, and clan, and friends to raise. - Gorgeous Period Dress: The minstrel dedicates almost a full stanza to describing Howard's clothes.Costly his garb; his Flemish ruff
Fell o'er his doublet, shap'd of buff,
With satin slash'd and lin'd;
Tawny his boot, and gold his spur,
His cloak was all of Poland fur,
His hose with silver twin'd... - Historical Character's Fictional Relative: Margaret's birthdate is unknown, but she's believed to have been the youngest of Walter and Janet's children. Her younger brother is fictional. Possibly Sir Walter was thinking of Walter's grandson Walter Scott (yes, yet another Walter Scott!), who was a toddler at the time of the murder.
- Historical Domain Character: The Duchess of Buccleuch and her ancestor Walter Scott (a distant relative of the author) were real people. The Ladye is unnamed but is clearly meant to be Janet Beaton, who really was accused of witchcraft. Ditto with Michael Scott.
- Walter and Janet really did have a daughter named Margaret, but there's no evidence the real Margaret was in love with someone on the other side of the feud. Historically she married a Robert Scott (presumably a cousin or more distant relative) of Thirlestane.
- Lord Howard is a major character (though he was historically either a child or not born yet during the time the poem is set). His grandfather the Earl of Surrey is the main character in one of the poems-within-the-poem.
- Lady of Black Magic: The Ladye is a relatively heroic one. She uses magic, but her only really villainous action is forbidding her daughter to marry a man from a rival clan.
- Last of His Kind: It's there in the title.The last of all the Bards was he...
- Lie to the Beholder:
- Gilpin finds a spell that allows the user to "make a ladye seem a knight", among other deceptions.
- Possibly because of the magic book, Gilpin is able to make himself and Sir William look like a haystack to the guards. Then he abducts Margaret's little brother and tricks the guards into seeing only two dogs.
- Loophole Abuse: The iron bands around Michael Scott's book won't open to "unchristen'd hand", which includes The Fair Folk like Gilpin. So Gilpin smears the cover with Sir William's blood. This tricks the magic into thinking Sir William, who was christened, wants to read the book.
- Magic Realism: It's the story of a feud in medieval Scotland, with goblins and witches and magic and (possibly undead) wizards hanging around.
- Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane: Sir William thinks he sees Michael Scott's corpse frown at him. It's unclear if this actually happened or if it was a trick of the light, but considering magic is definitely real and spirits are gathering around Scott's tomb...
- Mood Whiplash: Henry and Margaret are getting married, various poets are entertaining the guests, and then Michael Scott appears in a flash of lightning and takes Gilpin away somewhere. The next five stanzas are all about the guests saying prayers for Michael's soul... and then the poem ends.After such dreadful scene, 'twere vain
To wake the note of mirth again. - No Name Given: Margaret's mother is known only as "the Ladye". (Historically her name was Janet Beaton.)
- Oh, Crap!: Even Gilpin is terrified when Michael Scott returns.The elvish page fell to the ground,
And, shuddering, mutter'd, 'Found! found! found!' - Outliving One's Offspring: The last minstrel had a son who died in battle.
- Pet the Dog: The otherwise-sinister Gilpin arranges for Henry and Margaret to meet. The minstrel theorises that his motives were bad, but at least his actions were kind.
- Private Military Contractors: The English army includes a band of German mercenaries. Truth in Television — German soldiers were often hired to fight in other countries' wars.
- The Reliable One: The Elliot and Armstrong clans are so reliable that the castle inhabitants know they don't even need to send them word; as soon as they see the war-beacon, they'll come to Branksome's aid.
- Show Within a Show: Or in this case, Poems Within a Poem. Græme, Fritztraver, and Harold recite poems at Henry and Margaret's wedding.
- Star-Crossed Lovers:
- Margaret and Henry are an example who finally manage to get together in the end.
- The lovers in Græme's poem are a straight example: the bride's brother poisons her rather than see her marry a Scottish knight, the groom murders the brother in revenge, and finally the groom dies in battle.
- These Are Things Man Was Not Meant to Know: Whatever is in Michael Scott's book. The Monk of St. Mary's aisle has been doing penance for sixty years and still feels he hasn't atoned for reading it.
- Too Dumb to Live: In Harold's poem, Rosabelle insists on trying to sail home in spite of the warnings that the weather's too bad. Unsurprisingly, her ship sinks and she drowns.
- Worthy Opponent: Sir William is sorry when Musgrave dies.No mortal man should us divide,
Till one, or both of us, did die:
Yet, rest thee God! for well I know
I ne'er shall find a nobler foe.