<Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This section possibly contains original research . Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding inline citations . Statements consisting only of original research should be removed . (June 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> <P> The poem tells how Lord Marmion, a favourite of Henry VIII of England, lusts for Clara de Clare, a rich woman . He and his mistress, Constance De Beverley, forge a letter implicating Clara's fiancé, Sir Ralph De Wilton, in treason . Constance, a dishonest nun, hopes that her aid will restore her to favour with Marmion . When De Wilton loses the duel he claims in order to defend his honour against Marmion, he is obliged to go into exile . Clara retires to a convent rather than risk Marmion's attentions . Constance's hopes of a reconciliation with Marmion are dashed when he abandons her; she ends up being walled up alive in the Lindisfarne convent for breaking her vows . She takes her revenge by giving the Abbess who is one of her three judges documents that prove De Wilton's innocence . De Wilton, having returned disguised as a pilgrim, follows Marmion to Edinburgh where he meets the Abbess, who gives him the exonerating documents . When Marmion's host, the Earl of Angus is shown the documents, he arms De Wilton and accepts him as a knight again . De Wilton's plans for revenge are overturned by the Battle of Flodden . Marmion dies on the battlefield, while De Wilton displays heroism, regains his honour, retrieves his lands, and marries Clara . </P> <P> Although the book was a huge and lasting commercial success in both Britain and the United States, it did not find favour with contemporary critics . The introductory letters to Scott's friends, which open each canto, were dismissed as unwarranted intrusions . A hero as flawed as Marmion was also unwelcome at this time and the story was criticised for its obscurity . Francis Jeffrey published a particularly harsh review in the Edinburgh Review . Jeffrey observed that much of the verse was' flat and tedious'; he accused Scott of simply showing off his historical erudition . He also objected to the anachronism of the chivalric code and opposed the warlike sentiments of the introductory epistles . Ultimately, however, the public enthusiasm for Scott's work was undimmed and the poem remained popular for over a century . </P> <P> The stanzas telling the story of "young Lochinvar", excerpted from Canto V, particularly caught the public imagination and were widely published in anthologies, and learned as a recitation piece . </P>

Oh what a tangled web we weave walter scott