Scotland 2019 4: Abbotsford House

Sir Walter Scott's home, Abbotsford House, has become a shrine to the great man, who is treated with even more reverence than William Shakespeare.  After all, he has a railway station named after one of his creations (Edinburgh Waverley), which is more than can be said for his English counterpart.

The house itself is in the "Scottish Baronial" style; and, as one might expect, it's absolutely full of historical references, many of which are delightfully over the top.  Scott himself struggled with debt while building the house, and needed to keep on churning out novels in order to make ends meet.  Such was Scott's esteem that the library and museum were presented to him as a gift by his creditors, and the debt was eventually written off by his publisher in exchange for a share in the copyright income from the books.

The historical theme is continued in the gardens, which contains throw-backs to ancient Rome and Greece.

We can attest that, when a good dose of Scottish weather arrives, there's absolutely nowhere to shelter in the gardens!

...but the rain storm didn't last for long.