''The Monastery: a Romance'' (1820) is a
historical novel
Historical fiction is a literary genre in which the plot takes place in a setting related to the past events, but is fictional. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to other ty ...
by
Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'', ''Rob Roy (n ...
, one of the
Waverley novels
The Waverley Novels are a long series of novels by Sir Walter Scott (1771–1832). For nearly a century, they were among the most popular and widely read novels in Europe.
Because Scott did not publicly acknowledge authorship until 1827, the se ...
. Set in the
Scottish Borders
The Scottish Borders ( sco, the Mairches, 'the Marches'; gd, Crìochan na h-Alba) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Dumfries and Galloway, East Lothian, Midlothian, South Lanarkshire, West Lothi ...
in the 1550s on the eve of the
Reformation
The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...
, it is centred on
Melrose Abbey
St Mary's Abbey, Melrose is a partly ruined monastery of the Cistercian order in Melrose, Roxburghshire, in the Scottish Borders. It was founded in 1136 by Cistercian monks at the request of King David I of Scotland and was the chief house of ...
.
Composition and sources
Scott had been contemplating ''The Monastery'' before August 1819, and it seems likely that he started writing it in that month while the production of ''
Ivanhoe
''Ivanhoe: A Romance'' () by Walter Scott is a historical novel published in three volumes, in 1819, as one of the Waverley novels. Set in England in the Middle Ages, this novel marked a shift away from Scott’s prior practice of setting st ...
'' was at a standstill because of shortage of paper. He had determined on the title by the middle of the month. It also seems likely that he took up composition again shortly after finishing ''Ivanhoe'' in early November. He made good progress, and the third and final volume was at the press by the end of February 1820. Originally the story was intended to include Mary Queen of Scots, but a decision to reserve the later material for a second novel (''
The Abbot
''The Abbot'' (1820) is a historical novel by Sir Walter Scott, one of the Waverley novels. A sequel to ''The Monastery'', its action takes place in 1567 and 1568. It reaches its climax in the escape of Mary, Queen of Scots from Lochleven Castle ...
'') was probably made before composition resumed in November.
Scott was intimately familiar with the history and topography of the Border region, and there is no evidence that he was following any formal written histories in detail. But two publications were useful to him for particular aspects of the novel. For sixteenth-century monastic life he was indebted to ''British Monachism; or, Manners and Customs of the Monks and Nuns of England'' by
Thomas Dudley Fosbrooke, of which he owned an enlarged edition published in 1817. Shafton's euphuistic speech owes something to ''Euphues: The Anatomy of Wit'' (1578) and ''Euphues and his England'' (1580) by
John Lyly
John Lyly (; c. 1553 or 1554 – November 1606; also spelled ''Lilly'', ''Lylie'', ''Lylly'') was an English writer, dramatist of the University Wits, courtier, and parliamentarian. He was best known during his lifetime for his two books '' Eu ...
, though affected speeches in the plays of
Jonson Jonson is a surname, and may refer to:
* Ben Jonson (c. 1572 – 1637), English Renaissance dramatist, poet and actor
* Fredric Jonson (born 1987), Swedish professional football player
* Gail Jonson (born 1965), former medley and butterfly swimmer
...
and
Shakespeare
William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...
were more consistently mined.
Editions
The first edition of ''The Monastery'', in three volumes, was published in Edinburgh by
Archibald Constable
Archibald David Constable (24 February 1774 – 21 July 1827) was a Scottish publisher, bookseller and stationer.
Life
Constable was born at Carnbee, Fife, son of the land steward to the Earl of Kellie.
In 1788 Archibald was apprenticed to Pe ...
and
John Ballantyne on 23 March 1820, and in London by
Longman
Longman, also known as Pearson Longman, is a publishing company founded in London, England, in 1724 and is owned by Pearson PLC.
Since 1968, Longman has been used primarily as an imprint by Pearson's Schools business. The Longman brand is also ...
, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown on the 30th. The print run was 10,000 and the price £1 4''s'' (£1.20). As with all the Waverley novels before 1827 publication was anonymous. There is no reason to suppose that Scott was involved with the novel again until the beginning of 1830 when he revised the text and added an introduction and notes for the 'Magnum' edition, where it appeared as Volumes 18 and 19 in November and December that year.
The standard modern edition, by Penny Fielding, was published in 2000 as Volume 9 of the
Edinburgh Edition of the Waverley Novels The Edinburgh Edition of the Waverley Novels by Walter Scott appeared in thirty volumes between 1993 and 2012. Published by Edinburgh University Press, it was the first complete critical edition of the novels.
History
On 22 June 1983 Archie Turnbul ...
: it is based on the first edition with emendations mainly from the manuscript; the Magnum material is included in Volume 25b.
Plot introduction
The action is centred on the
Monastery
A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...
of Kennaquhair, probably based on
Melrose Abbey
St Mary's Abbey, Melrose is a partly ruined monastery of the Cistercian order in Melrose, Roxburghshire, in the Scottish Borders. It was founded in 1136 by Cistercian monks at the request of King David I of Scotland and was the chief house of ...
in south east Scotland, on the
River Tweed
The River Tweed, or Tweed Water ( gd, Abhainn Thuaidh, sco, Watter o Tweid, cy, Tuedd), is a river long that flows east across the Border region in Scotland and northern England. Tweed cloth derives its name from its association with the R ...
. At this time, circa 1550, the
Scottish Reformation
The Scottish Reformation was the process by which Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland broke with the Pope, Papacy and developed a predominantly Calvinist national Church of Scotland, Kirk (church), which was strongly Presbyterianism, Presbyterian in ...
is just beginning, and the monastery is in peril.
A love story is interwoven as the Glendinning boys fall in love with Mary Avenel. Edward ends up becoming a monk, and Halbert finally marries Mary, after service with
the Earl of Murray.
Plot summary
In the many conflicts between England and Scotland the property of the Church had hitherto always been respected; but her temporal possessions, as well as her spiritual influence, were now in serious danger from the spread of the doctrines of the Reformation, and the occupants of the monasteries were dependent on the military services of their tenants and vassals for protection against the forays of Protestant barons and other heretical marauders. Dame Elspeth's husband Simon had fallen in the
battle of Pinkie
The Battle of Pinkie, also known as the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh ( , ), took place on 10 September 1547 on the banks of the River Esk near Musselburgh, Scotland. The last pitched battle between Scotland and England before the Union of the Cro ...
(1547), and the hospitality of her lonely tower had been sought by the widow of the Baron of Avenel and her daughter Mary, whose mansion had been seized and plundered by invaders, and subsequently taken possession of by her brother-in-law Julian. While confessing the baroness on her death-bed, Father Philip discovered that she possessed a Bible, and as he was carrying it to the Lord Abbot, it was, he declared, taken from him by a spectral White Lady, a character resembling the
Undine
Undines (; also ondines) are a category of elemental beings associated with water, stemming from the alchemical writings of Paracelsus. Later writers developed the undine into a water nymph in its own right, and it continues to live in modern li ...
, which Scott borrowed from
Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué
Friedrich Heinrich Karl de la Motte, Baron Fouqué (); (12 February 1777 – 23 January 1843) was a German writer of the Romantic style.
Biography
He was born at Brandenburg an der Havel, of a family of French Huguenot origin, as evidenced in ...
's ''
Undine
Undines (; also ondines) are a category of elemental beings associated with water, stemming from the alchemical writings of Paracelsus. Later writers developed the undine into a water nymph in its own right, and it continues to live in modern li ...
''. Disbelieving the sacristan's tale, the sub-prior visited the tower, where he met Christie of the Clinthill, a freebooter, charged with an insolent message from Julian Avenel, and learnt that the Bible had been mysteriously returned to its owner. Having exchanged it for a missal, he was unhorsed on his return by the apparition; and, on reaching the monastery, the book had disappeared from his bosom, and he found the freebooter detained in custody on suspicion of having killed him. The White Lady was next seen by Elspeth's son Halbert, who was conducted by her to a fairy grotto, where he was allowed to snatch the Bible from a flaming altar.
During his absence from the tower, Happer the miller and his daughter Mysie arrived on a visit, and soon afterwards came Sir Piercie Shafton, as a refugee from the English Court. The next day the abbot came to dine with them, and offered Halbert, who had quarrelled with the knight for his attentions to Mary, the office of ranger of the Church forests. He, however, refused it, and startled his rival with a token he had obtained from the mysterious spectre. The following morning they fought in a glen, and Halbert fled to the Baron of Avenel, leaving Sir Piercie apparently mortally wounded. His companion thither was Henry Warden, who offended the laird, and assisted Halbert in his determination to escape from the castle, rather than serve under his host's standard. The knight, however, had miraculously recovered, and on making his way back to the tower, was accused by Edward of having murdered his missing brother, in spite of his assurance that the youth was alive and uninjured. With the sub-prior's approval he was treated as a prisoner; but during the night Mysie assisted him to escape, and accompanied him northwards, dressed as his page. Mary Avenel, meanwhile, in the midst of her grief at the supposed death of her lover, was visited by the White Lady, who comforted her by disclosing the place where he had hidden the Bible, which she had secretly read with her mother.
The rest of the family were astounded by the arrival of Christie, who confirmed Sir Piercie's assertion, and announced that he had brought Henry Warden to be dealt with as a heretic by the lord abbot. But the preacher and Father Eustace had been intimate friends at college, and the sub-prior was urging him to save his life by returning to the bosom of the Church, when Edward interrupted them to confess his jealousy of his brother, and his resolution to become a monk, in obedience to the White Lady who had appeared to him. Father Eustace then decided to leave his prisoner at the tower, under promise to surrender when summoned to the monastery; and, having learnt from the freebooter that Julian Avenel would fight for the Church, despatched him in search of Sir Piercie and the miller's daughter. That same night the lord abbot, alarmed by intelligence that English and Scottish soldiers were advancing with hostile intentions against the monastery, resigned his office to the sub-prior. Having taken the road to Edinburgh, Halbert had joined a squadron commanded by the Earl of Murray, who sent him forward to prevent an engagement between the English, under Sir John Forster, and the supporters of the Church, under the Baron of Avenel. He arrived too late, but the earl induced Sir John, who had won the battle, to withdraw, and marched his troops to St Mary's. Here the new abbot had assembled his brotherhood in the village, in anticipation of the destruction of their home. The regent and his followers formed up facing them, and the first matter settled was the marriage of Halbert with the heiress of Avenel. Father Eustace was then summoned to produce Sir Piercie, who surrendered voluntarily, and a flaw in his pedigree having been proved, Mysie was declared a fitting wife for him, and they were shipped off to Flanders. The monks, at the intercession of Henry Warden, were allowed to retain their monastery and lands on condition of being laid under contribution; while Edward, who had sought another interview with the White Spirit, was told that the knot of fate was tied, and impressed with the belief that the marriage of his brother with Mary Avenel might prove fatal to both of them.
Characters
(''principal characters in bold'')
*Elspet Glendinning, of Glendearg
* Halbert and Edward, her sons
* Captain Stawarth Bolton, an English officer
* Brittson, his sergeant
* Alice, the Lady of Avenel
* Mary, her daughter
* Julian Avenel, her brother-in-law
* Catherine of Newport, his partner
* Martin Tacket, a shepherd
* Tibb, his wife
* Boniface, Abbot of St Mary's monastery
* Father Philip, the sacristan
* Father Eustace, the sub-prior
* Christie of Clinthill, a freebooter
* Happer (Hob Miller)
* Mysie, his daughter
* Sir Piercie Shafton, an English courtier
* Henry Warden, a preacher
*
James, Earl of Moray, Regent of Scotland
* Sir John Foster, an English Warden
*
James Douglas, Earl of Morton
* A pedlar
* The White Lady of Avenel, a spirit
Chapter summary
Introductory Epistle: Captain Clutterbuck, a retired captain living in Kennaquhair
elrose writes to the Author of Waverley telling of a visit by a Benedictine monk to retrieve from the monastery ruins the buried heart of the sixteenth-century Abbot Ambrose, and leaving for publication an account of the events of the period which Clutterbuck hopes the Author will undertake, making any improvements he thinks appropriate.
Answer by the Author of Waverley: The Author replies, accepting the commission, and defending his profession as a writer of fiction, of which Clutterbuck himself is a product.
Volume One
Ch. 1: A sketch of the history and state of the monastic vassals at Kennaquhair.
Ch. 2: A sketch of the situation and history of the tower of Glendearg. Stawarth Bolton and his English foraying party are received with defiance by Elspet Glendinning's two young sons, Halbert and Edward, but he offers the tower immunity.
Ch. 3: Threatened with English plundering, Lady Avenel and her household are helped by a spirit
he White Ladyto reach the safety of Glendearg on
All-Hallow Eve.
Ch. 4: Lady Avenel's brother-in-law Julian usurps the Avenel house and lands. On All-Hallow Eve three years later Mary Avenel sees her late father's spirit. Elspet and Tibb discuss the supernatural appearances.
Ch. 5: Two years later, Father Philip, sent to minister to the dying Lady of Avenel, seizes her vernacular bible. On his way back to Melrose he is ducked in the
River Tweed
The River Tweed, or Tweed Water ( gd, Abhainn Thuaidh, sco, Watter o Tweid, cy, Tuedd), is a river long that flows east across the Border region in Scotland and northern England. Tweed cloth derives its name from its association with the R ...
by the White Lady, who sings in the process.
Ch. 6: Abbot Boniface summons Father Eustace to discuss the campaign against heresy.
Ch. 7: Philip, haunted by the White Lady's song, tells Eustace, and next day Boniface, what happened. Eustace leaves for Glendearg to investigate.
Ch. 8: Eustace questions Elspet about the Lady of Avenel and learns that her bible was mysteriously restored to her. The Lady dies.
Ch. 9: Eustace quarrels with Christie of Clinthill over arrangements for the Lady's funeral. He gives Edward a missal in place of the bible, but on his way back to the monastery he is attacked and dispossessed of the volume.
Ch. 10: Christie confesses to Eustace and Boniface that he was Eustace's attacker, but he had been interrupted by the White Lady. He is pardoned, to avoid offending Julian of Avenel. Eustace tells Boniface in confession of the events of the day, which he suspects may have been a punishment for his uncharitable interpretation of Philip's adventure; he is irked by the Abbot's pompous and patronising attitude but submits to his authority.
Ch. 11: Two or three years pass. Eustace tries in vain to persuade Elspet and Edward that the lad should become a novice. Halbert rejects Edward's bookishness and summons the White Lady in a secluded ravine.
Volume Two
Ch. 1 (12): The White Lady conducts Halbert to a cavern where he snatches the bible from an unconsuming fire.
Ch. 2 (13): Elspet entertains Hob Miller and his daughter Mysie, who she thinks would make a good wife for Halbert.
Ch. 3 (14): Mary and Mysie observe Christie and Sir Piercie Shafton arrive at Glendearg: Edward is cowed by Shafton, but Halbert is visibly unimpressed.
Ch. 4 (15): Shafton and Halbert quarrel. Boniface arrives at Glendearg.
Ch. 5 (16): Shafton explains to Boniface and Eustace that he has been forced to flee from England because of his support of the Catholic faction. The monks agree that it would be prudent for him to stay at Glendearg rather than being accommodated at the monastery.
Ch. 6 (17): Martin urges patience on Halbert after his reaction to Shafton. Halbert summons the White Lady and receives from her a bodkin to display to Shafton when he is next boastful.
Ch. 7 (18): Boniface proposes to appoint Halbert bow-bearer in the monastic forest.
Ch. 8 (19): Halbert declines the position of bow-bearer, intending to make his fortune elsewhere. He disconcerts Shafton by showing him the bodkin. Shafton assures Boniface and Eustace that his reaction was attributable to a habitual malady.
Ch. 9 (20): Shafton and Halbert arrange a meeting to settle their account. The White Lady urges Halbert on.
Ch. 10 (21): Mary tries to dissuade Halbert from the duel, but he proceeds to fell Shafton.
Ch. 11 (22): Halbert leaves Shafton to seek help from a passing stranger, but when they reach the site of the duel they find only a newly-filled grave. The stranger asks Halbert to accompany him to Avenel.
Ch. 12 (23): Halbert is dismayed to learn that the stranger is the preacher Henry Warden. They reach Avenel.
Ch. 13 (24): Warden and Halbert are received at the castle by Julian and his partner Catherine of Newport.
Ch. 14 (25): Warden rebukes Julian for his relationship with Catherine, impressing Halbert, who agrees to escape from the castle and take a letter from the preacher to the leader of an advancing body of horse
he Earl of Moray
Volume Three
Ch. 1 (26): Shafton returns to Glendearg and has difficulties in presenting a credible story.
Ch. 2 (27): Eustace finds Shafton's account improbable, but he urges moderation on Edward who is seeking revenge for his brother's supposed death.
Ch. 3 (28): Mysie helps Shafton to escape from detention at Glendearg.
Ch. 4 (29): Mysie disguises herself as a page so as to continue to accompany Shafton.
Ch. 5 (30): During the confusion at Glendearg following the discovery of Shafton's escape, Mary discovers the bible in a spot indicated by the White Lady. Christie arrives to announce that Halbert is alive, and Edward leaves to investigate the site of the duel.
Ch. 6 (31): Christie delivers up Warden who has a debate with Eustace, recognising him as an old college companion.
Ch. 7 (32): Edward returns to report that there is no trace of a grave at the site of the duel, and Warden and Eustace continue their debate. Edward confesses to Eustace his jealousy of Halbert, whom Mary prefers to himself, and decides (prompted by the White Lady) to become a novice.
Ch. 8 (33): Warden promises Eustace to remain at Glendearg and appear when summoned. Christie tells Eustace that Julian is prepared to serve the monastery, but Eustace is reluctant to reward him for his change of allegiance with land belonging to a neighbour.
Ch. 9 (34): In the face of the threatening English forces Boniface resigns in favour of Eustace.
Ch. 10 (35): In company with a pedlar encountered on his journey, Halbert meets up with the Earl of Moray and enters his service.
Ch. 11 (36): Later in the year, arriving at the site of a battle between monastic and English forces, Halbert rescues the infant son of Julian and Catherine, who both die, as does Christie. Moray makes peace with the English commander Sir John Foster.
Ch. 12 (37): Kennaquhair is reprieved, for the time being. Shafton is exposed as a tailor and marries Mysie. Halbert marries Mary. Edward hears the White Lady sing of the downfall of Avenel.
Reception
''The Monastery'' was found disappointing after ''Ivanhoe'' by most reviewers, exhaustion and haste being suggested as likely causes.
[For a full list of contemporaneous British reviews of ''Ivanhoe'' see William S. Ward, ''Literary Reviews in British Periodicals, 1798‒1820: A Bibliography'', 2 vols (New York and London, 1972), 2.489. For an earlier annotated list see James Clarkson Corson, ''A Bibliography of Sir Walter Scott'' (Edinburgh and London, 1943), 234‒36.] There were the usual complaints about weak plotting. But the remarks were far from being universally negative. Even the White Lady, though often found intrusive, over-dominant, puzzling, or just absurd, prompted a number of positive reactions: her poetry was praised, and some reviewers found her striking, powerful, and even sublime. Shafton similarly divided opinion: although he was judged tiresome by some, there was considerable appreciation of his entertainment value, even when he was found to have outstayed his welcome. The author was welcomed back to his home ground, and his landscape descriptions were generally judged excellent, as were the confrontations between the principal characters. The introductory epistles attracted high praise, with only a couple of dissenting voices.
References
External links
*
Page on ''The Monastery'' at the Walter Scott Digital Archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Monastery, The
1820 British novels
Novels by Walter Scott
Historical novels
Novels set in the Scottish Borders
Waverley Novels