Author: Hogg, James
Biography:
Hogg, James (1770-1835: ODNB)
Poet, novelist, and shepherd. He was born at Ettrick Hall Farm, Selkirkshire, to Robert Hogg, a farmer, and Margaret (Laidlaw) Hogg. His father’s sheep business became bankrupt when Hogg was a small child and, expected to work at menial chores on neighbouring farms, he had little formal schooling. For ten years from 1790 he was shepherd at Blackhouse Farm in the Yarrow valley where he enjoyed access to books and began reading widely and writing his own songs and poems. His first publication, “The Mistakes of a Night’ in the Scots Magazine, was in 1794 and, despite feeling that magazine publishing was often not adequately remunerated, he continued issuing both prose and poetry in periodicals throughout his life. Around 1800 he began planning a move to the highlands with his parents; when that fell through, he moved to Dumfriesshire where, with the proceeds of his growing career as a published poet, he was able to establish his own sheep farm. Unfortunately, the farm suffered financial losses and Hogg moved to Edinburgh where he further developed his literary career, helped in part by Scott. (Hogg had assisted Scott in gathering material for his 1803 Minstrelsy of the Scottish Border.) He briefly set up his own periodical, The Spy (1810-11), and his finances finally improved on the publication of The Queen’s Wake (1813) which established his reputation as a leading Scottish poet. When, over time, interest in his poetry diminished, Hogg turned to novel-writing, and produced five major works, including The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner (1824). He was involved with Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine from its 1817 inception and features as “the Ettrick Shepherd” in “Noctes Ambrosianae.” Hogg remained productive as a poet, memoirist, and novelist almost up to the time of his death (his Tales of the Wars of Montrose was issued in 1835). He died from liver disease at his home, Altrive Lake Farm. His reputation as a major poet and novelist suffered over time but recent years have seen a healthy resurgence of interest. (ODNB 12 Mar. 2019)
Other Names:
- Hogg