Guy Mannering
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{{infobox Book | <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject_Novels or Wikipedia:WikiProject_Books -->
| name = Guy Mannering or The Astrologer
| orig title =
| translator =
| image =
| author = Sir [[Walter Scott]]
| cover_artist =
| country = [[Scotland]]
| language = [[English language|English]], [[Scots language|Lowland Scots]]
| series = [[Waverley Novels]]
| genre = [[Historical novel]]
| publisher =
| release_date = 1815
| media_type = Print ([[Hardcover|Hardback]] & [[Paperback]])
| pages =
| isbn = NA
| preceded_by = [[Waverley (novel)|Waverley]]
| followed_by = [[The Antiquary]]
}}
'''''Guy Mannering or The Astrologer''''' is a [[novel]] by Sir [[Walter Scott]], published anonymously in [[1815]].
According to an introduction that Scott wrote in [[1829]], he had originally intended to write a story of the supernatural, but changed his mind soon after starting.
The book was a huge success, selling out the day after its first edition [http://www.walterscott.lib.ed.ac.uk/works/novels/mannering.html]
==Plot==
[[Image:Dandie Dinmont Terrier 600.jpg|right|thumb|300px|A [[Dandie Dinmont Terrier]]; the breed's name derives from one of the characters in ''Guy Mannering'' who keeps such dogs]]
Guy Mannering is set in the 1760s to 1780s, mostly in the [[Galloway]] area of south west Scotland. It tells the story of Harry Bertram, the son of the [[Laird]] of Ellangowan, who is kidnapped at the age of five by smugglers after witnessing the murder of a customs officer. It follows the fortunes and adventures of Henry and his family in subsequent years, and the struggle over the inheritance of Ellangowan. The novel also depicts the lawlessness that existed at the time, when smugglers operated along the coast and thieves frequented the country roads.
The title character, Guy Mannering, is a relatively minor character in the story, a friend of the family who uses his knowledge of astrology to predict Henry's future on the day of his birth.
The book is notable for some of its minor characters. The most important of these is the old gypsy woman Meg Merrilies, who is evicted from the Bertram lands early in the novel. In spite of this she remains loyal to the Bertram family, and much of the plot is dependent on her actions. She was based on an 18th century gypsy named [[Jean Gordon (Gypsy)|Jean Gordon]]. Dandie Dinmont is a rough but friendly farmer from the [[Liddesdale]] hills, who owns a number of terriers - the [[Dandie Dinmont Terrier]] is named after him. Dominie Sampson, according to Nuttall, was "a poor, modest, humble scholar, who had won his way through the classics, but fallen to the leeward in the voyage of life". "Dominie" is the [[Scots language|Lowland Scots]] term for a school master. Tib Mumps was the disreputable landlady of the inn where an important meeting takes place between Meg Merrilies and Bertram. The inn was later revealed by Scott to be based upon [[Mumps Hall]] in [[Gilsland]].
== Characters ==
* ''Laird of Ellangowan''
* ''Harry Bertram'', son of Laird of Ellangowan
* ''Guy Mannering'', [[astrology|astrologer]]
* ''Meg Merrilies'', [[Roma people|gypsy]] woman
* ''Dandie Dinmont'', farmer
* ''Dominie Sampson'', schoolmaster
* ''Jean Gordon'', gypsy queen
==External links==
* [http://dandiedinmontweb.com/dandie-dinmont-terrier-history.html Dandie Dinmont terrier history, and connection with the book]
* [http://www.walterscott.lib.ed.ac.uk/works/novels/mannering.html page on ''Guy Mannering'']
*[http://www.eswsc.com/ The Edinburgh Sir Walter Scott Club]
===E-texts===
* [http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/5999 Project gutenburg]
* [http://www.electricscotland.com/etexts/guymn10.txt Electric Scotland]
* [http://arthurwendover.com/arthurs/scott/guymn10.html Arthur's Classic Novels]
{{Scott}}
[[Category:1815 novels]]
[[Category:Novels by Walter Scott]]
[[Category:Scotland in fiction]]
[[fr:Guy Mannering]]