Richard Gall
Encyclopedia
Richard Gall was a Scottish
poet
.
Gall, the son of a notary
, was born at Linkhouse, near Dunbar
, in December 1776. Having attended the parish school of Haddington, he was apprenticed at the age of eleven to his maternal uncle, a carpenter and builder. He afterwards became a printer's apprentice in Edinburgh
, and there he gave his leisure to study. He then became travelling clerk to a Mr. Ramsay, in whose employment he remained till his death, 10 May 1801. His powers attracted considerable attention during his lifetime, and he enjoyed the friendship of Burns
and Thomas Campbell. Several of his songs were set to music, and became popular. Two of these, ‘The Farewell to Ayrshire,’ and ‘Now bank and brae are clad in green,’ were falsely assigned to Burns; the former was sent by Gall to Johnson's ‘Scots Poetical Museum,’ with Burns's name prefixed, and the latter appeared in Cromek's ‘Reliques of Burns.’ An edition of Gall's ‘Poems and Songs’ was published at Edinburgh in 1819.
Scottish people
The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...
poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
.
Gall, the son of a notary
Notary
A notary is a lawyer or person with legal training who is licensed by the state to perform acts in legal affairs, in particular witnessing signatures on documents...
, was born at Linkhouse, near Dunbar
Dunbar
Dunbar is a town in East Lothian on the southeast coast of Scotland, approximately 28 miles east of Edinburgh and 28 miles from the English Border at Berwick-upon-Tweed....
, in December 1776. Having attended the parish school of Haddington, he was apprenticed at the age of eleven to his maternal uncle, a carpenter and builder. He afterwards became a printer's apprentice 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...
, and there he gave his leisure to study. He then became travelling clerk to a Mr. Ramsay, in whose employment he remained till his death, 10 May 1801. His powers attracted considerable attention during his lifetime, and he enjoyed the friendship of Burns
Robert Burns
Robert Burns was a Scottish poet and a lyricist. He is widely regarded as the national poet of Scotland, and is celebrated worldwide...
and Thomas Campbell. Several of his songs were set to music, and became popular. Two of these, ‘The Farewell to Ayrshire,’ and ‘Now bank and brae are clad in green,’ were falsely assigned to Burns; the former was sent by Gall to Johnson's ‘Scots Poetical Museum,’ with Burns's name prefixed, and the latter appeared in Cromek's ‘Reliques of Burns.’ An edition of Gall's ‘Poems and Songs’ was published at Edinburgh in 1819.