Jeanie Deans
Encyclopedia
Jeanie Deans is a fictional character in Sir Walter Scott's
novel, The Heart of Midlothian
. "Jeanie Deans" is also the name of at least two pubs,at least three passenger ships, two railway locomotives, an opera, a play, a poem, a song, a hybrid rose, an antipodean potato, and a geriatric unit in a hospital. They all take their name from Scott's heroine. There was also a so-called Jeanie Deans' Cottage in Edinburgh. It was demolished in 1965. The name 'Jeanie' or 'Jeannie' is still popular today but this may be due to the influence of the television series, I Dream of Jeannie
, which ran from 1965 to 1970 and starred Larry Hagman
and Barbara Eden
. Also there is a popular song called Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair
.
who takes her to meet Queen Caroline
at Richmond Lodge. She impresses the Queen with her eloquence, spoken in broad Scots
. The Queen promises to intercede with King George II, and she ensures that her sister is granted a pardon, on pain of being banished from Scotland for fourteen years. When Jeanie returns to Scotland, she finds that the Duke of Argyll
had given her father land to superintend at Rosneath
in Argyll
. She is also overjoyed to find that her fiancé, Reuben Butler, has been appointed Minister
at the neighbouring kirk of Knocktarlitie. She subsequently marries Butler and raises three children named David, Reuben and Euphemia. Jeanie's sister, Effie, pays her a clandestine visit to inform her that she had married her lover who was now Sir George Staunton. Jeanie later learns that her sister's child had not been murdered but was sold to a Highland brigand and was reared to a life of robbery and violence. Sir George is later shot by his own son who escapes to America, where he gets into trouble, joins a tribe of native Americans and is heard of no more. As Lady Staunton, Effie takes her place in London society but eventually retires to a French convent, much to her sister's disappointment at her relinquishing her father's religion.
at Muschat's Cairn. This cairn can be seen today at the eastern (Meadowbank) entrance to Holyrood Park
, though in the novel Scott seems to locate it further west, near the ruins of St. Anthony's Chapel. The pub is in the vicinity of Jeanie Deans' cottage as depicted in Scott's novel (see below). He seems to have imagined the cottage as being on St. Leonards Crags situated behind where the pub is. Nowadays, there is a building on St. Leonards Crags which was previously occupied by the James Clark School.
This ship was the first paddle steamer to be fitted with a three crank engine, which could push her 800 tons through the water at more than 18 knots, but her deep draught kept her in the lower reaches of the Clyde. Jeanie Deans was refurbished after her first season in that she had a deck shelter constructed forward of the bridge, after she was found to have insufficient shelter during poor weather. She also had her funnels increased in height after they were found to deposit grit on the passengers, something that was rather annoying to those affected.
By the outbreak of war she was the longest and fastest paddle steamer (at 18.5 knots) on the Firth. She was requisitioned by the government during the Second World War and saw war service as a minesweeper and then as an anti aircraft vessel on the River Thames (where she later returned as Queen of the South). She narrowly missed being hit by a parachute mine during the Blitz.
After the war she returned to her former duties up and down the Clyde estuary and was once more a firm favourite with holidaymakers and day-trippers alike. Her route was later extended to take in Arrochar, the Three Lochs cruise and, during the 1950's, she cruised around the Isle of Bute. In 1964, no longer able to compete with the multitude of more modern vessels on the Clyde, she was laid up at Greenock. However, a paddle-steamer enthusiasts' group bought her and she sailed to the Thames the following year where she was renamed Queen of the South. She was employed by the Coastal Steam Packet Company on river cruises until 1967. However, she suffered from poor reliability, lack of planning and funding. These technical problems resulted in her being sent to Belgium where she was eventually scrapped in 1967. Photographs of PS Jeanie Deans in her wartime role can be viewed here and here.
. "Jeanie Deans 3104 worked the 2 p.m. Scotch dining train daily from January, 1891, until August, 1899 - with trains weighing 260 to 310 tons, and almost always kept time."
which were all named by William Paton Reid
(1854–1932) after Waverley novels or characters in these novels. The last D29 was withdrawn in 1952, and none have survived into preservation. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBR_J_class
This 'Jeanie Deans" locomotive was built in 1909 at the NBR works at Cowlairs, Glasgow. It was disposed of in 1949.
and was published in 1894. The music was composed by Hamish MacCunn
(1868-1916) and the lyrics written by Joseph Bennett. The opera was first produced at Royal Lyceum Theatre
in Edinburgh
in June 1894 to great acclaim. It was performed in repertory for over twenty years and has been revived in recent years. It was performed in 1986 and 1994 by Opera West. Excerpts from the opera are available on an audio CD which was recorded by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra in Govan Town Hall, June 1995. The original scores of the opera are available in the Mitchell Library
, Glasgow and they form part of the MacCunn Collection in the Special Collections of Glasgow University Library. The opera is loosely based on Scott's novel, The Heart of Midlothian
. The ending in which Effie Deans is freed from Tolbooth prison is not in the book. The crowd scene in fact refers back to the beginning of the novel where the Porteous riots are described. The plot of the opera therefore ends with the freeing of Effie, and the lives of Jeanie and her sister afterwards are not dealt with.
in 1860. It was also known as 'The Trial of Effie Deans' or 'The Heart of Mid-Lothian', but they are definitely the same play as 'Jeanie Deans'. It was first produced on 9 January 1860 at Laura Keene's Theatre
, New York. It was produced in London
at the Westminster Theatre
on 26 January 1863 under the title of 'The Trial of Effie Deans'. The play seems not to have been performed in the 20th century. Boucicault may have been influenced by Thomas Hailes Lacy's
earlier play, The Heart of Mid-Lothian; or, the Sisters of St. Leonard's which was published in 1850.
who became Lord Penance in 1869. He was a Judge of the Court of Probate and Divorce, and retired in 1872, but accepted the post of Dean of Arches Court in 1875, a position he kept on until the year of his death. His main residence was Eashing Park in Godalming
, Surrey
in the mild south of England. There he relaxed from the stresses of judicial duties by enjoying his gardens. Apparently his roses afforded him great enjoyment because he started to hybridize then, and grow them from seed. He was keen on Sir Walter Scott and his novels and named many of his hybrid roses after characters in his novels. The 'Jeanie Deans' rose was introduced in 1895. It is known as a hybrid rubiginosa and was apparently a hybrid of R. eglanteria with something else. It is described as being profuse, scarlet-crimson, with semi-double flowers.
, Dumbartonshire. It was built in 1989 and opened as a 30 bed Care of the Elderly Unit.
Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet was a Scottish historical novelist, playwright, and poet, popular throughout much of the world during his time....
novel, The Heart of Midlothian
The Heart of Midlothian
The Heart of Midlothian is the seventh of Sir Walter Scott’s Waverley Novels. It was originally published in four volumes on 25 July 1818, under the title of Tales of My Landlord, 2nd series, and the author was given as "Jedediah Cleishbotham, Schoolmaster and Parish-clerk of Gandercleugh"...
. "Jeanie Deans" is also the name of at least two pubs,at least three passenger ships, two railway locomotives, an opera, a play, a poem, a song, a hybrid rose, an antipodean potato, and a geriatric unit in a hospital. They all take their name from Scott's heroine. There was also a so-called Jeanie Deans' Cottage in Edinburgh. It was demolished in 1965. The name 'Jeanie' or 'Jeannie' is still popular today but this may be due to the influence of the television series, I Dream of Jeannie
I Dream of Jeannie
I Dream of Jeannie is a 1960s American sitcom with a fantasy premise. The show starred Barbara Eden as a 2,000-year-old genie, and Larry Hagman as an astronaut who becomes her master, with whom she falls in love and eventually marries...
, which ran from 1965 to 1970 and starred Larry Hagman
Larry Hagman
Larry Martin Hagman is an American film and television actor, producer and director known for playing J.R. Ewing in the 1980s primetime television soap opera Dallas and Major Anthony "Tony" Nelson in the 1960s sitcom I Dream of Jeannie.-Early life and career:Hagman was born in Fort Worth, Texas...
and Barbara Eden
Barbara Eden
Barbara Eden is an American film and television actress and singer who is best known for her starring role in the sitcom I Dream of Jeannie.-Early years:...
. Also there is a popular song called Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair
Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair
"Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair" is a parlor song by Stephen Foster . It was published by Firth, Pond & Co. of New York in 1854. Foster wrote the song with his wife Jane McDowell in mind. "Jeanie" was a notorious beneficiary of the ASCAP boycott of 1941...
.
The Fictional Character
Jeanie Deans was one of Scott's most celebrated characters during the 19th century, although she is almost entirely forgotten nowadays. She was renowned as an example of an honest, upright, sincere, highly religious person. When her sister, Effie, is wrongly convicted of murdering her own child, Jeanie travels, partly by foot, all the way to London. She begins walking on her bare feet to save her shoes but puts them on when she passes through towns and villages. By a series of improbable adventures she finds George Staunton alias Robertson who had fathered her sister's baby son. Thereafter she travels on by coach and on reaching London she seeks out the Duke of ArgyllJohn Campbell, 2nd Duke of Argyll
Field Marshal John Campbell, 2nd Duke of Argyll, 1st Duke of Greenwich KG , known as Iain Ruaidh nan Cath or Red John of the Battles, was a Scottish soldier and nobleman.-Early Life:...
who takes her to meet Queen Caroline
Caroline of Ansbach
Caroline of Brandenburg-Ansbach was the queen consort of King George II of Great Britain.Her father, John Frederick, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach, was the ruler of a small German state...
at Richmond Lodge. She impresses the Queen with her eloquence, spoken in broad Scots
Scots language
Scots is the Germanic language variety spoken in Lowland Scotland and parts of Ulster . It is sometimes called Lowland Scots to distinguish it from Scottish Gaelic, the Celtic language variety spoken in most of the western Highlands and in the Hebrides.Since there are no universally accepted...
. The Queen promises to intercede with King George II, and she ensures that her sister is granted a pardon, on pain of being banished from Scotland for fourteen years. When Jeanie returns to Scotland, she finds that the Duke of Argyll
John Campbell, 2nd Duke of Argyll
Field Marshal John Campbell, 2nd Duke of Argyll, 1st Duke of Greenwich KG , known as Iain Ruaidh nan Cath or Red John of the Battles, was a Scottish soldier and nobleman.-Early Life:...
had given her father land to superintend at Rosneath
Rosneath
Rosneath is a village in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It sits on the western shore of the Gare Loch near to the tip of the Rosneath peninsula which projects south to the Firth of Clyde between the Gare Loch and Loch Long to the west, and about 2 miles from the village of Kilcreggan which is sited...
in Argyll
Argyll
Argyll , archaically Argyle , is a region of western Scotland corresponding with most of the part of ancient Dál Riata that was located on the island of Great Britain, and in a historical context can be used to mean the entire western coast between the Mull of Kintyre and Cape Wrath...
. She is also overjoyed to find that her fiancé, Reuben Butler, has been appointed Minister
Minister
Minister can mean several things:* Minister , a Christian who ministers in some way* Minister , the rank of diplomat directly below ambassador* Minister , a politician who heads a ministry...
at the neighbouring kirk of Knocktarlitie. She subsequently marries Butler and raises three children named David, Reuben and Euphemia. Jeanie's sister, Effie, pays her a clandestine visit to inform her that she had married her lover who was now Sir George Staunton. Jeanie later learns that her sister's child had not been murdered but was sold to a Highland brigand and was reared to a life of robbery and violence. Sir George is later shot by his own son who escapes to America, where he gets into trouble, joins a tribe of native Americans and is heard of no more. As Lady Staunton, Effie takes her place in London society but eventually retires to a French convent, much to her sister's disappointment at her relinquishing her father's religion.
Jeanie Deans Tryste
This pub is situated at 67 St Leonards Hill, Edinburgh. The 'tryste' in the pub's name refers to Jeanie Deans' meeting with the outlaw, George Robertson, which took place in Holyrood ParkHolyrood Park
Holyrood Park is a royal park in central Edinburgh, Scotland about a mile to the east of Edinburgh Castle. It has an array of hills, lochs, glens, ridges, basalt cliffs, and patches of whin providing a remarkably wild piece of highland landscape within its area...
at Muschat's Cairn. This cairn can be seen today at the eastern (Meadowbank) entrance to Holyrood Park
Holyrood Park
Holyrood Park is a royal park in central Edinburgh, Scotland about a mile to the east of Edinburgh Castle. It has an array of hills, lochs, glens, ridges, basalt cliffs, and patches of whin providing a remarkably wild piece of highland landscape within its area...
, though in the novel Scott seems to locate it further west, near the ruins of St. Anthony's Chapel. The pub is in the vicinity of Jeanie Deans' cottage as depicted in Scott's novel (see below). He seems to have imagined the cottage as being on St. Leonards Crags situated behind where the pub is. Nowadays, there is a building on St. Leonards Crags which was previously occupied by the James Clark School.
Jeanie Deans
Jeanie Deans, 512 St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, G3 8XZ. In this pub, there are pictures of the ship, PS Jeanie Deans hanging on the walls. The patrons of the pub are convinced that it was named after the ship which was built in Glasgow. However, there are roundels in the windows of the pub showing a young woman with a tartan shawl round her head. This is undoubtedly Jeanie Deans as depicted by Scott in the novel. The pub may have got its name in the late nineteenth century during the height of her popularity and well before the ship was built in 1931.The Jeanie
The Jeanie, 6 Dinmont Road, Glasgow G41 3UD. This pub was named after the passenger ship, Jeanie Deans. It no longer exists as it was demolished around 2004 to make way for flats which start at no. 8. Where the pub was is an empty space. A website exists advertising this pub.Jeanie Deans
There was also a Jeanie Deans pub at no. 1/3 Govan Road, Kinning Park, Glasgow. This pub had a large mural of PS Jeanie Deans. It was demolished around 1990 and there is nothing to be seen of where it was.The Paddle Steamer Jeanie Deans
The PS Jeanie Deans was built for the London and North Eastern Railway at Fairfield's Govan yard in Glasgow, and was launched in 1931. She was built for summer pleasure services and was therefore a paddle steamer rather than a turbine steamer of the type which had become more popular, as she needed a more shallow draught to visit the piers at Craigendoran and Helensburgh. She was based at Craigendoran near Helensburgh, and cruised to Arran, Ayr, Girvan and Ailsa Craig.This ship was the first paddle steamer to be fitted with a three crank engine, which could push her 800 tons through the water at more than 18 knots, but her deep draught kept her in the lower reaches of the Clyde. Jeanie Deans was refurbished after her first season in that she had a deck shelter constructed forward of the bridge, after she was found to have insufficient shelter during poor weather. She also had her funnels increased in height after they were found to deposit grit on the passengers, something that was rather annoying to those affected.
By the outbreak of war she was the longest and fastest paddle steamer (at 18.5 knots) on the Firth. She was requisitioned by the government during the Second World War and saw war service as a minesweeper and then as an anti aircraft vessel on the River Thames (where she later returned as Queen of the South). She narrowly missed being hit by a parachute mine during the Blitz.
After the war she returned to her former duties up and down the Clyde estuary and was once more a firm favourite with holidaymakers and day-trippers alike. Her route was later extended to take in Arrochar, the Three Lochs cruise and, during the 1950's, she cruised around the Isle of Bute. In 1964, no longer able to compete with the multitude of more modern vessels on the Clyde, she was laid up at Greenock. However, a paddle-steamer enthusiasts' group bought her and she sailed to the Thames the following year where she was renamed Queen of the South. She was employed by the Coastal Steam Packet Company on river cruises until 1967. However, she suffered from poor reliability, lack of planning and funding. These technical problems resulted in her being sent to Belgium where she was eventually scrapped in 1967. Photographs of PS Jeanie Deans in her wartime role can be viewed here and here.
Two Sailing Ships
- Four masted sailing ship, Jeanie Deans: In 1843, this ship is recorded as having sailed from Port GlasgowPort GlasgowPort Glasgow is the second largest town in the Inverclyde council area of Scotland. The population according to the 1991 census for Port Glasgow was 19426 persons and in the 2001 census was 16617 persons...
to Toronto, Canada, but further information about this ship is lacking. - Wooden Schooner, Jeannie Deans. This ship was wrecked and is recorded as being built in New South WalesNew South WalesNew South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
in 1850. It was registered in SydneySydneySydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
in 1851. Its length was 49.3 ft. On 10 April 1851, it was on a voyage from Sydney to BrouleeBroulee, New South WalesBroulee is a town on the south coast of New South Wales between Batemans Bay and Moruya. In 2006, the town had a population of 1,292 people. Just off the beach is a Broulee Island, currently joined to the mainland, but in past years the connecting spit has been covered by water, at times a very ...
, MoruyaMoruya, New South WalesMoruya is a small regional centre in New South Wales, Australia, situated on the Moruya River, approximately 300 kilometers south of Sydney. At the 2006 census, Moruya had a population of 10,278 people. The town relies predominantly on agriculture, aquaculture, and tourism...
when she was lost after running aground off Broulee.. All the crew were saved.
First "Jeanie Deans" Locomotive (1891-1899)
LNWR "Jeanie Deans" Locomotive No 3105 B. This six-wheeled passenger steam engine was apparently built in 1890 when it was exhibited at the Edinburgh Electrical Exhibition of 1890 at Shandon, EdinburghShandon, Edinburgh
Shandon is an area of Edinburgh within North Merchiston approximately three miles west of the centre of Edinburgh. It is bounded by Slateford Road to the north, Harrison Road to the east, the Union Canal to the south and the Glasgow-Edinburgh and Suburban rail lines to the west.- Etymology :Harris...
. "Jeanie Deans 3104 worked the 2 p.m. Scotch dining train daily from January, 1891, until August, 1899 - with trains weighing 260 to 310 tons, and almost always kept time."
Second "Jeanie Deans" Locomotive (1909-1949)
"Jeanie Deans" locomotive D29 'Scott'. BR no. 62404. This was one of class D29 locomotivesNBR J class
The NBR J Class , were a class of 4-4-0 steam tender locomotives designed by William P. Reid for the North British Railway. They passed to the London and North Eastern Railway at the grouping in 1923...
which were all named by William Paton Reid
William P. Reid
William Paton Reid was apprenticed to the Cowlairs railway works of the North British Railway in 1879 and was Locomotive Superintendent from 1903-1919. He was awarded a CBE in 1920. He was born, and died, in Glasgow, Scotland...
(1854–1932) after Waverley novels or characters in these novels. The last D29 was withdrawn in 1952, and none have survived into preservation. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NBR_J_class
This 'Jeanie Deans" locomotive was built in 1909 at the NBR works at Cowlairs, Glasgow. It was disposed of in 1949.
The Opera
The opera, Jeanie Deans, was commissioned by the Carl Rosa Opera CompanyCarl Rosa Opera Company
The Carl Rosa Opera Company was founded in 1873 by Carl August Nicholas Rosa, a German-born musical impresario, to present opera in English in London and the British provinces. The company survived Rosa's death in 1889, and continued to present opera in English on tour until 1960, when it was...
and was published in 1894. The music was composed by Hamish MacCunn
Hamish MacCunn
thumb|right|Portrait of MacCunn, 1889, by [[John Pettie]]Hamish MacCunn , Scottish romantic composer, was born in Greenock, the son of a shipowner, and was educated at the Royal College of Music, where his teachers included Sir Hubert Parry and Sir Charles Villiers Stanford.MacCunn's first success...
(1868-1916) and the lyrics written by Joseph Bennett. The opera was first produced at Royal Lyceum Theatre
Royal Lyceum Theatre
The Royal Lyceum Theatre is a 658 seat theatre in the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, named after the Theatre Royal Lyceum and English Opera House, the residence at the time of legendary Shakespearean actor Henry Irving. It was built in 1883 by architect C. J. Phipps at a cost of UK£17,000 on behalf...
in Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
in June 1894 to great acclaim. It was performed in repertory for over twenty years and has been revived in recent years. It was performed in 1986 and 1994 by Opera West. Excerpts from the opera are available on an audio CD which was recorded by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra in Govan Town Hall, June 1995. The original scores of the opera are available in the Mitchell Library
Mitchell Library
The Mitchell Library is a large public library and centre of the public library system of Glasgow, Scotland.-History:The library was established with a bequest from Stephen Mitchell, a wealthy tobacco manufacturer, whose company, Stephen Mitchell & Son, would become one of the constituent members...
, Glasgow and they form part of the MacCunn Collection in the Special Collections of Glasgow University Library. The opera is loosely based on Scott's novel, The Heart of Midlothian
The Heart of Midlothian
The Heart of Midlothian is the seventh of Sir Walter Scott’s Waverley Novels. It was originally published in four volumes on 25 July 1818, under the title of Tales of My Landlord, 2nd series, and the author was given as "Jedediah Cleishbotham, Schoolmaster and Parish-clerk of Gandercleugh"...
. The ending in which Effie Deans is freed from Tolbooth prison is not in the book. The crowd scene in fact refers back to the beginning of the novel where the Porteous riots are described. The plot of the opera therefore ends with the freeing of Effie, and the lives of Jeanie and her sister afterwards are not dealt with.
The Play
The play, Jeanie Deans, was written by Dion BoucicaultDion Boucicault
Dionysius Lardner Boursiquot , commonly known as Dion Boucicault, was an Irish actor and playwright famed for his melodramas. By the later part of the 19th century, Boucicault had become known on both sides of the Atlantic as one of the most successful actor-playwright-managers then in the...
in 1860. It was also known as 'The Trial of Effie Deans' or 'The Heart of Mid-Lothian', but they are definitely the same play as 'Jeanie Deans'. It was first produced on 9 January 1860 at Laura Keene's Theatre
Laura Keene
Laura Keene was a British-born American stage actress and manager. In her twenty-year career, she became known as the first powerful female manager in New York.-Early life:...
, New York. It was produced in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
at the Westminster Theatre
Westminster Theatre
The Westminster Theatre was a London theatre, on Palace Street in Westminster. It was originally built as the Charlotte Chapel in 1766, which was altered and given a new frontage for use as a cinema from 1924 onwards. It finally became a theatre in 1931 after radical alterations...
on 26 January 1863 under the title of 'The Trial of Effie Deans'. The play seems not to have been performed in the 20th century. Boucicault may have been influenced by Thomas Hailes Lacy's
Thomas Hailes Lacy
Thomas Hailes Lacy was a British actor, playwright, theatrical manager, bookseller, and theatrical publisher.Lacy made his West End stage debut in 1828 but soon turned manager, a position he held from 1841 at The Theatre, Sheffield...
earlier play, The Heart of Mid-Lothian; or, the Sisters of St. Leonard's which was published in 1850.
The Hybrid Rose
This rose was created by Sir James Plaisted WildeJames Wilde, 1st Baron Penzance
James Plaisted Wilde, 1st Baron Penzance was a noted British judge and rose breeder who was also a proponent of the Baconian theory that the works usually attributed to William Shakespeare were in fact authored by Francis Bacon....
who became Lord Penance in 1869. He was a Judge of the Court of Probate and Divorce, and retired in 1872, but accepted the post of Dean of Arches Court in 1875, a position he kept on until the year of his death. His main residence was Eashing Park in Godalming
Godalming
Godalming is a town and civil parish in the Waverley district of the county of Surrey, England, south of Guildford. It is built on the banks of the River Wey and is a prosperous part of the London commuter belt. Godalming shares a three-way twinning arrangement with the towns of Joigny in France...
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
in the mild south of England. There he relaxed from the stresses of judicial duties by enjoying his gardens. Apparently his roses afforded him great enjoyment because he started to hybridize then, and grow them from seed. He was keen on Sir Walter Scott and his novels and named many of his hybrid roses after characters in his novels. The 'Jeanie Deans' rose was introduced in 1895. It is known as a hybrid rubiginosa and was apparently a hybrid of R. eglanteria with something else. It is described as being profuse, scarlet-crimson, with semi-double flowers.
The Antipodean Potato
The "Jeanie Deans" potato seems to have been popular in Australia and New Zealand in the late 19th century. It was advertised as seed potato in a New Zealand Newspaper in 1895: "A flatish tuber, with few and shallow eyes, resembling the old Lothian Flake. Ripens in February. Cooking quality cannot be surpassed. First at Invercargill Show for Best White Potato, any variety."The Geriatric Unit
The "Jeanie Deans" Unit is in Victoria Infirmary, HelensburghHelensburgh
Helensburgh is a town in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It lies on the north shore of the Firth of Clyde and the eastern shore of the entrance to the Gareloch....
, Dumbartonshire. It was built in 1989 and opened as a 30 bed Care of the Elderly Unit.
The so-called Jeanie Deans Cottage
This cottage was situated at the southern end of St. Leonards Bank, Edinburgh. It appears that Scott did not have this cottage in mind for his fictional characters of Jeanie Deans and her father, Davie Deans, as he informs us in the novel that the place had already been built over by the expansion of the suburbs of Edinburgh. Scott tells us that David Deans was a dairy farmer (or cow-feeder) who moved to "a place called Saint Leonard's Crags, lying betwixt Edinburgh and the mountain called Arthur's Seat, and adjoining to the extensive sheep pasture still named the King's Park.... Here he rented a small lonely house, about half a mile distant from the nearest point of the city, but the site of which, with all the adjacent ground, is now occupied by the buildings which form the south-eastern suburb." St. Leonard's Crags itself is a few hundred metres to the north of the would-be Jeanie Deans Cottage and is now occupied by the building which was the James Clark School (now converted to flats). However, this cottage features in a map of Edinburgh as early as 1784. The same cottage is named as a 'Herds cottage' in a map of 1823 The book was published in 1818 when the cottage still existed so it is possible Scott was either ignorant of its existence or wished not to identify his characters with it. The cottage was demolished as recently as 1965.The PoemJEANIE DEANSby Carolina Oliphant (Lady Nairne) 1766-1845, St. Leonard's hill was lightsome land, Where gowan'd grass was growin', For man and beast were food and rest, And milk and honey flowin'. A father's blessing followed close, Where'er her foot was treading, And Jeanie's humble, harmless joys, On every side were spreading wide, On every side were spreading. The mossy turf on Arthur Seat, St. Anthon's well aye springing, The lammies playing at her feet, The birdies round her singing. The solemn haunts o' Holyrood, Wi' bats and houlits eerie, The tow'ring craigs o' Salisbury, The lowly wells o' Weary, O, the lowly wells o' Weary. But evil days and evil men Came owre their sunny dwelling, Like thunder storms on sunny skies Or wastefu' waters swelling. What ance was sweet is bitter now; The sun of joy is setting; In eyes that wont to glance wi' glee, — The briny tear is wetting fast, The briny tear is wetting. Her inmost thought to heaven is sent, In faithful supplication; Her earthly stay's Macallummore, The guardian o' the nation. A hero's heart — a sister's love — They're a' i Jeanie's tartan plaid, And she is gane, her liefu' lane, To Lunnon toun she's wending. |
The SongJEANIE DEANSMusic at JAS. S. KERR'S, 314 Paisley Rd., Glasgow, Far awa' frae bonnie Scotland, I have often spent my time, By the mountains, lakes, and valleys, In some distant foreign clime. There I'd sit and sometimes ponder. 'Midst their bright and varied scenes; But my thoughts would always wander To the hame o' Jeanie Deans. CHORUS. Here's to Auld Reekie, and its glorious Princes Street, Here's to Auld Reekie, and its famous Arthur Seat; Here's to Auld Reekie, and its grand Historic Scenes— The hame of Scotland's bravest lass, my bonnie Jeanie Deans. Oft I see her sad and dreary, Wi' tartan plaid and hame-spun gown; Broken-hearted, worn and weary, Tramping on to London town. Leaving those behind who missed her— Those who know what true love means— Seeking pardon for her sister, Brave, true hearted, Jeanie Deans. Fancy ofttimes brings before me, Jeanie's simple, winsome style, As she told me her sad, sad story, When she met the great Argyle. Hear her pleading in the garden, Asking mercy from the Queen; See her joy, she's got the pardon, Brave, Victorious, Jeanie Deans. "Jeanie woman" though departed, We will keep the honoured name Of one so true and loyal-hearted, Written on the scroll of fame. Sir Walter Scott immortalised you— "Thou wer't one of nature's queens"—. And in our hearts we'll ever praise you, Gallant, Scottish, Jeanie Deans. |
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