"A well-worn copy of 'Marmion' – just the thing." (February 1, 1814)

The epic poem Marmion by Walter Scott was finally completed on January 22, 1808, and published on February 22 in a quarto edition of two thousand copies, priced one and a half guineas. It was followed by twelve octavo editions between 1808 and 1825. The expensive first edition sold out in under two months, and by the end of May 1808 the poem was into its third edition. This gave Justin plenty of time to read it before embarking for Corunna with the 15th Hussars in September 1808. A good introduction, summary, and links to the full text of Marmion may be found here.

Thanks to the book’s immense popularity, the publisher was able to commission a portrait of the poet from the celebrated painter Sir Henry Raeburn, who also created the painting I’ve used for the cover of An Independent Heart. The Walter Scott portrait is now in the National Gallery of Scotland.

This is not the title page of the first edition, but from a later copy published in 1809. The image is from the Walter Scott Image Collection, which I hope I've credited correctly!