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Waverley

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Waverley; or, 'Tis Sixty Years Since /ˈweɪvərliː/ is a historical novel by Sir Walter Scott (1771–1832). Published anonymously in 1814 as Scott's first venture into prose fiction, it is often regarded as one of the first historical novels in the Western tradition.

Quick facts: Author, Original title …
Edward Waverley, an English gentleman of honour, chooses an occupation in the army at the time just before the Jacobite uprising of 1745 on advice of his father. He has an officer's commission. On leave from army training, he visits friends of his family in Scotland, as he is not far from their place. He enjoys their Scottish hospitality. His head is full of the romantic notions of his unstructured education, including much reading, and he is startled to find himself in the midst of loyalists who support the return of the Stuart king, known as Bonnie Prince Charlie to his supporters and as the usurper to his foes. His honour is often challenged as others interfere to push him to the Stuart side, where he is in battle, and he meets two women with whom he falls in love in turn, until he chooses one. His gentlemanly actions gain him friends in this precarious situation, on both sides of the uprising, who stand him in good stead when he is at risk from his own government when the uprising is put down.

The book became so popular that Scott's later novels were published as being "by the author of Waverley". His series of works on similar themes written during the same period have become collectively known as the "Waverley Novels". The novel was well-received by contemporary critics, and well-liked by those who purchased novels in the early 19th century. It has continued in favour with later critics.

Composition and sources
Evidence about the composition of the first volume of Waverley is inconclusive, but it was probably begun in 1808 and laid aside, continued in 1810 and again laid aside, and eventually taken up and completed in the later part of 1813. The second and third volumes were written in the spring and early summer of 1814. Scott had an intimate acquaintance with Jacobite history, and Waverley draws on an extensive range of anecdotal and historical literary material. He had talked to people who had been involved in the 1745 uprising, or to those who had known them. He drew on the resources of his extensive library for relevant printed material. Among the most consistently helpful books were:

John Home, The History of the Rebellion in the Year 1745 (1802)
Edmund Burt, Letters from a Gentleman in the North of Scotland (1754)
Donald Macintosh, A Collection of Gaelic Proverbs, and Familiar Phrases (1785).
Editions

Waverley Historical Novels Scott Published Scott's Gentleman Chooses