From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Rob Roy (1817) is a novel by Walter Scott about Frank Osbaldistone, the son of an English merchant who goes to the Scottish Highlands to collect a debt stolen from his father. Rob Roy MacGregor, whom the book is named after, appears in the book several times but is not the lead character (in fact the narrative does not move to Scotland until half way through the book).

The story takes place at the time of the 'Fifteen Jacobite Rising. The plot has been criticized as disjointed; the end especially is hurried.

Frank Osbaldistone, the narrator, quarrels with his father and is sent to stay with an uncle, Sir Hildebrand Osbaldistone, in Northumberland. Frank falls in love with Diana Vernon, Sir Hildebrand's niece, whose father has been forced to go into hiding because of his Jacobite sympathies. Frank's cousin, Rashleigh, steals important documents vital to the honour of Frank's father, William, and Frank pursues Rashleigh to Scotland. There he meets Robert Roy MacGregor, an associate of Diana's father. When Rashleigh attacks Frank, Rob Roy kills Rashleigh. All Sir Hildebrand's other sons are killed in the Jacobite rebellion, and Frank inherits Sir Hildebrand's property and marries Diana.

The novel is a brutally realistic depiction of the social conditions in Highland and Lowland Scotland in the early 18th Century. The Highlanders were compared with the American Red Indians, as regards to their primitive, isolated lifestyle. Like Old Mortality, the previous novel, the social and religious warfare in recent history, is educational when regarding social and religious warfare today.

Rob Roy was written from the Spring of 1817 and published on Hogmanay of that year. Like the original Waverley novel it was published anonymously and came in three volumes. The demand for the novel was huge and a whole ship from Leith to London contained nothing but an entire edition of it. Scott visited Loch Lomond and the cathedral in Glasgow as research for the novel.^{[citation needed]}

It is claimed that Rob Roy was penned at the Rose and Thistle pub in Alwinton, Northumberland.^{[citation needed]}

As in the more recent Rob Roy film, the character is based on truth, but the story is complete fiction.

Contemporary critics were disappointed that Rob Roy was not presented as a more impressive figure; however, in general the criticism was favourable.^{[citation needed]}

• Francis Osbaldistone, son of an English Merchant
• Rashleigh Obaldistone, his cousin, and the villain.
• Robert Roy MacGregor Campbell, a scot livestock operator, and leader of an old clan-based group
• Helen Campbell, his wife
• Andrew Fairservice, a shrewd gardener
• Diana Vernon, resident at Obaldistone Hall, the love interest.
• Bailie Nicol Jarvie

• The novel was not the source of the film in 1995 as Rob Roy. It was directed by Michael Caton-Jones and starred Liam Neeson, Jessica Lange, John Hurt.

• It also made it onto film by the Disney studios in 1953 as Rob Roy, the Highland Rogue.

• A brand of blended Scotch whisky, Bailie Nicol Jarvie, is named after a character from the book.

• Rob Roy, available at Project Gutenberg.
• The Edinburgh Sir Walter Scott Club