The Scottish Borders became a popular source of inspiration for English landscape artists at the beginning of the nineteenth century, chiefly through the influence of Sir Walter Scott’s poetry. Ward travelled to Scotland in about 1806, and stayed at Lord Somerville’s home, the Pavilion, clearly visible in the background of the painting. During his stay he made two studies of the area: a drawing for this picture (now in a private Scottish collection) and a watercolour for its companion piece, The Eildon Hills and the Tweed. The painting combines topographical accuracy with a sense of the picturesque. Ward may have been inspired by Scott’s Lay of the Last Minstrel, published earlier that year, with its vivid descriptions of the borders landscape and the architecture of Melrose.