Agnes Maclehose, née Craig (26 April 1758 – 23 October 1841), known to her friends as ‘Nancy’, met Robert Burns on 4 December 1787, embarking on a relationship, both emotional and literary (as ‘Clarinda’ and ‘Sylvander’) that lasted until 6 December 1791 with their final meeting: “Ae fond kiss, and then we sever; Ae fareweel, alas, for ever!”
Her birthday is on Sunday 26 April which we will remember with a short walk, starting at 14.00, from 14 Calton Hill, where she lived from 1810 to 1841, via the Burns Monument and Clarinda’s Tearoom, to her memorial and resting place in Canongate Kirkyard.
The text of Sylvander and Clarinda; the Love Letters of Robert Burns and Agnes M’Lehose is here. See also here for a short but detailed biography.
