Robert Burns (1759-96) is best known for his poems and songs that reflect Scotland's cultural heritage. He was born in Alloway, Ayrshire, Scotland, the first of seven children belonging to William Burnes, a tenant farmer, and his wife Agnes Broun. Burns had little formal education, but he read English literature and absorbed the traditional, largely oral Scots-language folk songs and tales of his rural environment. He began to compose songs in 1774, and published his first book, <em>Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect</em>, in 1786. The work was a critical success, and its poems in both Scots and English, on a range of topics, established Burns's broad appeal. While building his literary reputation, Burns worked as a farmer, and in 1788 he was appointed an excise officer in Ellisland. He spent the final 12 years of his life collecting and editing traditional Scottish folk songs for collections including <em>The Scots Musical Museum</em> and <em>A Select Collection of Original Scotish</em> [sic] <em>Airs for the Voice</em>. Burns contributed hundreds of Scottish songs to these anthologies, sometimes rewriting traditional lyrics and setting them to new or revised music. 
<p>This rhyming epistle was written by William Shepherd, a dissenting minister, schoolmaster and active politician of Liverpool. He was closely acquainted with William Roscoe, who was deeply interested in Burns and his works. Shepherd wrote the 39-line poem in the style of Burns, commemorating Dr. James Currie's edition of <em>The Works of Robert Burns</em>, published in 1800.
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<br>Burns, Robert, 1759-1796; Currie, James, 1756-1805; Dialect Poetry, Scottish; Poetry; Shepherd, William, 1768-1847
Shepherd, William (1768-1847)
12 July 1800<div style="display: none;">date QS:P571,+1800-07-12T00:00:00Z/11</div>
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