Walter Scott (1771-1832) was born and educated in Edinburgh. His most famous novels include Waverley, Ivanhoe and Guy Mannering, but he first made his name as a poet. Scott was one of the best-selling novelists of the nineteenth century and is credited with establishing the historical novel. Claire Lamont is Professor of English Romantic Literature at University of Newcastle and series editor for Walter Scott in Penguin Classics. Peter Garside is a Professorial Fellow at the University of Edinburgh. Ian Duncan is Professor of English at Berkeley. His most recent book is Scott's Shadow: The Novel in Romantic Edinburgh.