Old Mortality: Sir Walter Scott

By Arielle Potter, ?/07

Old Mortality is a tale of the religious struggles in Scotland in the 1600s. Young Henry Morton, a Presbyterian, is caught between the two factions. He cannot be false to his faith and join the bloodthirsty Catholics, and he cannot countenance the violent extremism of his own sect. Soon Henry is counted a rebel by one side and a traitor by the other! Facing capture, privations, torture, exile, cruel adversaries and radical reformers, Henry remains faithful to the Bible’s laws of mercy and forgiveness. The novel contains much insight into the violent agitations leading up to, and the bloody retribution following the Battle of Bothwell Brig.