Marmion ( poem ) - wikipedia Marmion ( poem ) This article is about the poem. For other uses, see Marmion. This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. ( Learn how and when to remove these template messages ) This article does not cite any sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( July 2014 ) This article possibly contains original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding inline citations. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed. ( June 2017 ) This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( June 2017 ) First edition title page Marmion ; A Tale of Flodden Field ( published in 1808 ; 209 years ago ( 1808 ) ) is an historical romance in verse of 16th - century Britain, ending with the Battle of Flodden ( 1513 ), by Sir Walter Scott. It was published in Edinburgh, printed by Ballantyne and Co. for Archibald Constable. Contents 1 History 2 Plot 3 Reception 4 See also 5 References 6 Bibliography 7 External links History In November 1806, Scott started writing Marmion, his second major work. When Archibald Constable, the publisher, learnt of this, he offered a thousand guineas for the copyright unseen. William Miller and John Murray each agreed to take a 25 % share in the project. Murray observed : `` We both view it as honourable, profitable, and glorious to be concerned in the publication of a new poem by Walter Scott. '' Scott later said that he thoroughly enjoyed writing the work. He told his son - in - law, Lockhart : `` Oh, man, I had many a grand gallop among these braes when I was thinking of Marmion. '' In 1807, Scott practised manoeuvres with the Light Horse Volunteers ( formed to defend against invasion from France ) in order to polish his description of Flodden. On 22 January 1808, Marmion was finished, and it was published on 22 February 1808 in a quarto first edition of two thousand copies. This edition, priced at one and a half guineas, sold out in a month. It was followed by twelve octavo editions between 1808 and 1825. Plot This section possibly contains original research. Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding inline citations. Statements consisting only of original research should be removed. ( June 2017 ) The poem tells how Lord Marmion, a favourite of Henry VIII of England, lusts for Clara de Clare, a rich woman. He and his mistress, Constance De Beverley, forge a letter implicating Clara 's fiancé, Sir Ralph De Wilton, in treason. Constance, a dishonest nun, hopes that her aid will restore her to favour with Marmion. When De Wilton loses the duel he claims in order to defend his honour against Marmion, he is obliged to go into exile. Clara retires to a convent rather than risk Marmion 's attentions. Constance 's hopes of a reconciliation with Marmion are dashed when he abandons her ; she ends up being walled up alive in the Lindisfarne convent for breaking her vows. She takes her revenge by giving the Abbess who is one of her three judges documents that prove De Wilton 's innocence. De Wilton, having returned disguised as a pilgrim, follows Marmion to Edinburgh where he meets the Abbess, who gives him the exonerating documents. When Marmion 's host, the Earl of Angus is shown the documents, he arms De Wilton and accepts him as a knight again. De Wilton 's plans for revenge are overturned by the Battle of Flodden. Marmion dies on the battlefield, while De Wilton displays heroism, regains his honour, retrieves his lands, and marries Clara. Reception Although the book was a huge and lasting commercial success in both Britain and the United States, it did not find favour with contemporary critics. The introductory letters to Scott 's friends, which open each canto, were dismissed as unwarranted intrusions. A hero as flawed as Marmion was also unwelcome at this time and the story was criticised for its obscurity. Francis Jeffrey published a particularly harsh review in the Edinburgh Review. Jeffrey observed that much of the verse was ' flat and tedious ' ; he accused Scott of simply showing off his historical erudition. He also objected to the anachronism of the chivalric code and opposed the warlike sentiments of the introductory epistles. Ultimately, however, the public enthusiasm for Scott 's work was undimmed and the poem remained popular for over a century. The stanzas telling the story of `` young Lochinvar '', excerpted from Canto V, particularly caught the public imagination and were widely published in anthologies, and learned as a recitation piece. One of the most quoted excerpts from Scottish poetry is derived from Canto VI, XVII : Oh, what a tangled web we weave When first we practise to deceive ! See also Sir Walter Scott Battle of Flodden References Jump up ^ ( 1 ) Jump up ^ ( 2 ) Bibliography Scott, Walter. Marmion : A Tale of Flodden Field ( Edinburgh : Printed by J. Ballantyne and Co. For Archibald Constable and Company, Edinburgh ; and William Miller, and John Murray, London, 1808 ). Scott, Walter. Marmion : A Tale of Flodden Field ( London : A.W. Bennett 1866 ). ( Ill. with 15 mounted original albumen photographs of Scottish scenery by Thomas Annan ). External links Wikiquote has quotations related to : Marmion Marmion at Project Gutenberg Marmion at Archive.org Marmion public domain audiobook at LibriVox Works by Walter Scott Novels Waverley ( 1814 ) Guy Mannering ( 1815 ) The Antiquary ( 1816 ) The Black Dwarf ( 1816 ) Old Mortality ( 1816 ) Rob Roy ( 1817 ) The Heart of Midlothian ( 1818 ) The Bride of Lammermoor ( 1819 ) A Legend of Montrose ( 1819 ) Ivanhoe ( 1819 ) The Monastery ( 1820 ) The Abbot ( 1820 ) Kenilworth ( 1821 ) The Pirate ( 1821 ) The Fortunes of Nigel ( 1822 ) Peveril of the Peak ( 1823 ) Quentin Durward ( 1823 ) St. Ronan 's Well ( 1823 ) Redgauntlet ( 1824 ) The Betrothed ( 1825 ) The Talisman ( 1825 ) Woodstock ( 1826 ) The Fair Maid of Perth ( 1828 ) Anne of Geierstein ( 1829 ) Count Robert of Paris ( 1831 ) Castle Dangerous ( 1831 ) The Siege of Malta ( 1831 - 1832, pub. posthumously 2008 ) Bizarro ( 1832, pub. posthumously 2008 ) Poetry Translations and Imitations from German Ballads ( 1796 - 1819 ) `` Glenfinlas '' ( 1800 ) The Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border ( 1802 - 1803 ) The Lay of the Last Minstrel ( 1805 ) Ballads and Lyrical Pieces ( 1806 ) Marmion ( 1808 ) The Lady of the Lake ( 1810 ) The Vision of Don Roderick ( 1811 ) The Bridal of Triermain ( 1813 ) Rokeby ( 1813 ) The Field of Waterloo ( 1815 ) The Lord of the Isles ( 1815 ) Harold the Dauntless ( 1817 ) Short stories Chronicles of the Canongate, 1st series ( 1827 ) The Keepsake Stories ( 1828 ) Plays Halidon Hill ( 1822 ) MacDuff 's Cross ( 1823 ) The Doom of Devorgoil ( 1830 ) Auchindrane, or, The Ayrshire Tragedy ( 1830 ) Non-fiction The Journal ( 1825 - 1832 ) Tales of a Grandfather ( 1828 - 1831 ) People James Ballantyne Lord Byron James Hogg William Laidlaw John Gibson Lockhart Robert Southey William Wordsworth Characters Jedediah Cleishbotham Jeanie Deans Dryasdust Lord Glenallan Saunders Mucklebackit Edie Ochiltree Jonathan Oldbuck Dominie Sampson Sir Arthur Wardour Related Abbotsford House Dandie Dinmont Terrier `` Hail to the Chief '' Kennaquhair Maida Scott Monument Scott 's View Sir Walter Scott Way Walter Scott Prize Writers ' Museum Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Marmion_(poem)&oldid=799021227 '' Categories : Scottish poems Poetry by Walter Scott 1808 poems Epic poems in English Hidden categories : Articles lacking sources from July 2014 All articles lacking sources Articles that may contain original research from June 2017 All articles that may contain original research Articles needing additional references from June 2017 All articles needing additional references All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from June 2017 All articles with vague or ambiguous time Vague or ambiguous time from June 2017 Articles with unsourced statements from April 2017 Articles with LibriVox links Talk Contents About Wikipedia Français Русский Edit links This page was last edited on 5 September 2017, at 05 : 01. 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Question: who wrote oh what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive
Answer: Canto VI, XVII