The son of a bankrupt farmer who barely knew Latin became Scotland’s national poet. Robert Burns transformed family tragedy and grueling farm work into poetry that still unites Scots around the globe during New Year’s celebrations.
Childhood in the Shadow of Bankruptcy
William Burns came to Ayrshire county hoping for a better life for his family. He first leased the Mount Oliphant farm, then Lochlea, but despite backbreaking work, misfortune never left his side. He died in 1784, broken and penniless, leaving his son with a deep wound and equally deep anger.
Young Robert watched as the social system crushed an honest man. This observation shaped his worldview more than any books ever could. The poet became a rebel who spent his life attacking every form of injustice, religious hypocrisy, and political cruelty towards common people with his pen.
Despite poverty, his parents ensured their son received an education. Burns learned from a hired teacher, acquired the basics of French, and a smattering of Latin. He read the most important English writers of the eighteenth century, reaching for Shakespeare, Milton, and Dryden, though Scottish literature he encountered mostly through folk songs passed down orally from generation to generation.
The Ploughman Poet
After his father’s death, Burns became the tenant of the Mossgiel farm and finally could decide how to spend his own time. Hard work in the fields did not stop him from seeking company, both male and female. His romances became as legendary as his poems, and his first illegitimate son was born in 1785, when the poet was just twenty-six years old.
The birth of servant Elizabeth Paton’s child was greeted by the poet with a lively, joyful poem. This reaction perfectly reflected his character: full of life, defiance, and a refusal to conform to the era’s conventions. Burns never hid his feelings nor apologized for his choices, making him a fascinating and controversial figure at the same time.
The years 1784 and 1785 brought an outpouring of creativity. Burns wrote more and more, expressing in his verses love, friendship, amusement, and ironic observation of the surrounding world. He kept a notebook analyzing versification problems, debunking the myth of him being a simple peasant who wrote spontaneously. He was a conscious craftsman of words, honing his skill with scientific precision.
From Local Printshop to Edinburgh’s Salons
In 1786, a small printshop in Kilmarnock published his collection of poetry simply entitled „Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect.” The success was immediate and overwhelming; instead of fleeing his financial troubles for Jamaica, as originally planned, Burns set off for Edinburgh. The local intellectual elite welcomed him with open arms.
His stay in the capital allowed him to publish another edition of his works and gather funds which enabled him to finally stabilize his life. In 1788, he settled in Dumfries, where he took a job as an excise officer, which provided a steady income, although the work could be exhausting and thankless. He married Jean Armour, the woman who stood by him through the hardest times, and devoted the rest of his energy to collecting and editing traditional Scottish folk songs for future generations.
It was during this period that he created works which became part of world cultural heritage, including the famous “Auld Lang Syne.” Burns worked tirelessly on “The Scots Musical Museum,” striving to preserve his nation’s musical legacy, which might otherwise have been lost. His creativity formed a bridge between oral tradition and great literature.
Robert Burns died in 1796 at only thirty-seven, worn out by heart disease and the arduous labor of his youth. Though he died in poverty, his funeral became a national manifestation, gathering thousands wishing to pay homage to their poet. Today, his influence extends far beyond Scotland’s borders.
Autor
Margot Cleverly
Margot's journey into women's history began with a box of forgotten letters in a Cambridge archive – suffragettes whose voices had been silenced for over a century. Since then, she's been on a mission to uncover the stories history overlooked.
What she writes about: Queens who ruled from the shadows. Scientists whose male colleagues took credit. Revolutionaries who risked everything. But also ordinary women – those who survived wars, raised families through upheaval, and shaped their communities in ways no one bothered to record.
Margot turns historical figures into real people. She writes with warmth and detail, making centuries-old stories feel surprisingly relevant. Rigorous research meets accessible storytelling – no dusty academic jargon, just compelling narratives backed by solid facts.
When she's not writing, you'll find her in regional archives, collecting oral histories, or visiting sites connected to the women she writes about.