Blackie, John Stuart

(1809-1895)

   Scholar and man of letters, b. in Glasgow, and ed. at the Universities of Aberdeen and Edin., after which he travelled and studied in Germany and Italy. Returning to Scotland he was, in 1834, admitted to the Scottish Bar, but did not practise. His first work was his translation of Faust (1834), which won the approbation of Carlyle. From 1841-52 B. was Prof. of Humanity (Latin) in Aberdeen, and from 1852-82, when he retired, of Greek in Edinburgh. His literary activity was incessant, his works consisting of translations of Æschylus and of the Iliad, various books of poetry, including Lays and Legends of Ancient Greece, and treatises on religious, philosophical, and political subjects, among which may be mentioned Self-Culture (1873), Horæ Hellenicæ, and a life of Burns. He was an enthusiastic champion of Scottish nationality. Possessed of great conversational powers and general versatility, his picturesque eccentricity made him one of the most notable members of Scottish society. It was owing to his efforts that a Chair of Celtic Language and Literature was established in Edinburgh University.