Isabella Burns Begg (1771-1858)

Isabella Burns Begg was the youngest sister of Robert Burns. After the death of their father, she was brought up by her brother. Widowed in 1813, she supported her nine children by setting up a school. Her many anecdotes of Robert Burns included recollections of him asking her to sing his songs. She was painted by several artists and photographed by David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson. Her association with Burns and the belief that she bore a strong resemblance to him was a source of fascination. In her later years, she lived in Alloway, where - as the gatekeeper to Burns’s memory - she received, from all over the world, visitors who wanted to hear her speak of her famous brother. In 1842, admirers of Robert Burns, including Thomas Carlyle, set up a fund to provide financial support for Isabella Burns Begg in her old age and, on the instruction of Queen Victoria, she was provided with a pension.

Credit: Elliot Collection, bequeathed 1950