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Summary of the Speech:

Sir Henry Craik delivered a rich and impassioned tribute to Sir Walter Scott, speaking not only of Scott’s literary greatness but of his moral and cultural legacy. Craik began self-deprecatingly, likening his own nervousness to comical figures in Scott’s novels. Yet, he quickly rallied to celebrate Scott’s towering role in shaping both national identity and literary taste.

Craik’s central argument was that Scott’s genius lay not just in his scope, but in his rare ability to combine universal resonance with deep personal intimacy. Scott, he said, spoke to all mankind—and to each individual. This combination, Craik asserted, is achieved only by the most consummate geniuses, akin to celestial bodies that “belong to everybody in particular.”

He drew strong comparisons between Scott and Shakespeare, claiming that Scott made Shakespeare “familiar as a household word” to the Scots. He praised Scott’s weaving of Shakespeare into prose, poetry, and daily speech, doing more to familiarise the bard than centuries of commentators or actors.

Craik also emphasised Scott’s contribution through the Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border, describing it as a cultural rescue mission for forgotten ballads and nameless poets. Scott’s revivalist efforts helped preserve a “side of the national genius” that might otherwise have been lost.

In a broader context, Craik juxtaposed Scott with the early reformers of The Edinburgh Review, celebrating Scott’s generosity toward fellow poets like Byron and Wordsworth, in contrast to the Review’s disdainful tone. He quoted Scott’s lament that “bit by bit you will destroy one thing after another until all that has made Scotland Scotland will be no more,” presenting Scott as a defender of cultural continuity and poetic feeling in an era of reform and rationalism.

He also linked Scott to Thomas Chalmers, with whom he shared patriotic sentiment, social conservatism, and romantic imagination, though separated by politics and religion.

Craik closed with a glowing image of Scott’s novels as a lasting source of comfort and inspiration—“the golden branch amongst the shadows,” guiding and sustaining even in grief and hardship. He urged the gathering to drink in silence to “The Immortal Memory of Sir Walter Scott.”

Interesting Points to Highlight:

1. Scott’s Role in Popularising Shakespeare: Craik’s claim that Scott did more to popularise Shakespeare in Scotland than centuries of scholarship is compelling. Scott infused Shakespeare into letters, speeches, and even economic pamphlets, making him part of the national voice.
2. Minstrelsy as Cultural Revival: Craik called the Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border a profound act of cultural preservation, rescuing Scotland’s oral traditions and romantic heritage.
3. Contrast with The Edinburgh Review: Craik sharply contrasted Scott’s reverence for the past and literary camaraderie with the Review’s rationalist elitism, especially in their rejection of Wordsworth. He quoted Scott’s protest against Jeffrey with deep admiration.
4. Scott and Thomas Chalmers: The speech draws a rare and touching comparison between Scott and Chalmers, two very different figures united by patriotic fervour, romantic imagination, and a fear of modern mass politics.
5. The Emotional Core: The speech is ultimately not literary criticism, but a profound emotional tribute. Craik invokes Scott as a personal guide through life’s difficulties, with lines like “he warmed our best impulses” and “in the drudgery of life… he is the one light”.

Download the [transcript] or read the [bulletin] 

Subsidiary Toasts Summary:

The evening featured a series of toasts and speeches, each combining reverence for tradition with reflections on the contemporary moment, national identity, and the enduring legacy of Sir Walter Scott. Here’s a structured summary and key highlights:

1. The King and the Royal Family

Proposed by: The Chairman, Sir Henry Craik

• The toast to King Edward VII was delivered with special emphasis, reflecting on the emotional arc of the past three years: the death of Queen Victoria, Edward’s sudden illness, and his eventual coronation.
• Craik imagined how such dramatic events would have stirred Scott's genius, seeing continuity between monarchy and national character.
• The toast to Queen Alexandra and the Prince and Princess of Wales highlighted the Queen's integration into British identity over 40 years and praised the Prince’s global tour and leadership potential.

2. The Imperial Forces

Proposed by: Sir M. Mitchell-Thomson, Bart.
Reply: Lieutenant-General Sir Ian Hamilton

• Mitchell-Thomson praised the Army and Navy during the recent South African War, noting a public debt of gratitude. He suggested reforms like “less pipeclay and more open-jacket” (a humorous call for practicality in military affairs).
• He regretted the loss of a permanent regiment in Edinburgh Castle but welcomed its use for fitness and training elsewhere. He also stressed helping ex-servicemen find civilian employment.
• Sir Ian Hamilton’s response was one of warmth and humility. He paid tribute to the Gordons and Black Watch, reflected on his own diverse wartime experiences, and made a heartfelt appeal for employment for returning reservists.
• He linked Scott’s legacy directly to the martial spirit of Scotland, calling Scott the imaginative forebear of regiments like the Scottish Horse and Lovat’s Scouts.
• Hamilton saw Scott not as an inventor of Scotland but as the man who revealed her essence—"like the enchanted Princess of the fairy tale"—to herself and the world.

3. Literature

Proposed by: Sheriff Ferguson, K.C.
Reply: Professor Raleigh

• Ferguson highlighted the historic bond in Scotland between law and literature, citing figures from Sir George Mackenzie to R.L. Stevenson.
• He praised Scott as the great national interpreter who ennobled the past and left no "ugly impressions." His works, said Ferguson, upheld goodness and moral order: “How true men throve and villains fell, / And how the world is ordered well.”
• He called for appreciation of both professional and "volunteer" writers—those from other fields who dabbled in literature, including military men and politicians.
• Professor Raleigh offered a modern perspective, defending popular taste and journalism, particularly reporting, as vibrant avenues for future literary promise.

4. The City of Edinburgh

Proposed by: Sir Thomas Gibson-Carmichael
Reply: Bailie Gibson

• Gibson offered a charming anecdote: when the Town Council wished to present a patriotic address to the Prince Regent, they bypassed the Town Clerk and asked Sir Walter Scott to write it instead. In gratitude, he was granted the Freedom of the City—a gesture reflecting Edinburgh’s esteem.



5. The Chairman

Proposed by: Lord Stormonth-Darling

• The toast was warmly delivered and acknowledged Sir Henry Craik's dual achievements as an efficient civil servant and a literary man.
• The days of Boswellian embarrassment for being Scottish, said Lord Stormonth-Darling, were long gone: there was no need to apologise for being countrymen of Sir Walter Scott.

Other Notables:

• Musical Entertainment was provided by Mr Dambmann’s orchestra.
• Songs were sung by Mr Robert Burnett.
• The menu card, designed by artist James Hay, featured a portrait of Sir Henry Craik and a Highland scene by T. Marjoribanks Hay.

Interesting Points:

1. Scott’s Legacy as a National Mirror: Both Craik and Hamilton saw Scott not just as a writer but as a visionary who captured and shaped Scotland’s moral and martial identity.
2. Scott as Patron of the Military Spirit: Hamilton’s imagined scenario—Scott living 200 years later and writing of South African campaigns—is moving and poetic, suggesting that Scott would have immortalised modern soldiers just as he did historical figures.
3. Law and Literature: The repeated emphasis on how Scottish legal professionals embraced literature—from Sheriff Mackenzie to Stevenson—speaks to a unique national tradition of blending justice and art.
4. Civic and Cultural Memory: The story of the Town Council employing Scott to craft a royal address—and honouring him for it—perfectly illustrates Scott's civic stature as well as his literary skill.

Download the [Subsidiary Toasts] to read in full.