Count Robert of Paris (Paperback or Softback)

A complete, critically edited edition of the Waverley Novels as Scott originally wrote them! The first of Scott's "Waverley" novels burst upon an astonished world in 1814. Its publication marked the emergence of the modern novel in the western world, influencing all the great 19th-century writers. This edition of Sir Walter Scott's novels captures the original power and freshness of his best-loved novels. Going back to the original manuscripts, a team of scholars has uncovered what Scott originally wrote and intended his public to read before errors, misreadings and expurgations crept in during production. This edition offers: a clean, corrected text; textual histories; explanatory notes; verbal changes from the first-edition text; and full glossaries. Set during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Alexius Comnenus (1081-1118), this novel focuses on the arrival of the first Crusaders in 1096. During the oath-taking ceremony on the eve of the Crusade, the haughty Count Robert insults the Emperor by seating himself on the imperial throne.

Walter Scott (1771-1832) was a Scottish author and poet. When a young boy, Scott contracted polio and was sent to his grandfather's farm at Sandyknowle to recuperate, and therefore got to know the Border country which had a profound influence on his future writing.

Educated at Edinburgh University, Scott became a law clerk in his father's office. After 1792 Scott worked as an advocate but his main ambition was to become a writer. In 1797 he published a translation of Burger's The Wild Huntsmen. This was followed by the three volumes, Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border (1802-1803) and The Lay of the Last Minstrel (1805).

After becoming a partner in the printing business, James Ballantyne & Co, Scott wrote and published The Lady of the Lake (1810), Rokeby (1813), The Bridal of Triermain (1813), The Lord of the Isles (1815) and Harold the Dauntless (1817).

Scott also contributed to the Edinburgh Review but he disapproved of its support for the Whigs and in 1809 helped establish the Tory journal, The Quarterly Review.

In 1813 Scott refused the offer of poet laureate and recommended Robert Southey for the post. Scott now turned from poetry to the novel. Over the next ten years he anonymously published several novels including Waverly (1814), Guy Mannering (1815), The Antiquary (1816), Rob Roy (1817), The Heart of Midlothian (1818), Ivanhoe (1819), Kenilworth (1821) and Redgauntlet (1824).

Scott, who had established the form of the historical novel, was an extremely popular writer. However, James Ballantyne & Co went bankrupt in 1826 and Scott found himself liable for a debt of £114,000. Scott worked tirelessly to pay off his creditors and over the next few years wrote Woodstock (1826), The Fair Maid of Perth (1828), Anne of Geierstein (1829) and Count Robert of Paris (1831). Sir Walter Scott, who was created a baronet in 1820, died at Abbottsford in 1832.