The _History of the French Revolution_, delayed though it was by the accidental burning of the manuscript of the first volume, was finished in January, 1837, and published shortly afterwards. It was the turning point in Carlyle's literary life. Hitherto it had been a long, hard, almost fierce struggle; but the _History_ at once established him as one of the foremost men of letters of his day. Success came none too soon. His resources were all but exhausted, and, like his countryman Burns, so close to him in some of the circumstances of his early life, he contemplated emigration to America. From this he was saved by the project, devised by Harriet Martineau, which produced his lectures on German literature. The popularity of the _History_ reacted on his earlier works; publishers sought him instead of waiting to be approached; a proposal was made for republishing even _Sartor_; and for the future Carlyle was sure, at any rate, of a competence. His next work of moment was _Chartism_ (1839), written with a view to publication in the _Quarterly Review_. It was declined by Lockhart, but in such a way that the author and the editor retained for the future a strong mutual regard. In the year following Carlyle delivered the last of his courses of lectures, afterwards (1841) printed as _Heroes and Hero-Worship_. He was already deep in study for his _Cromwell_, and finding, as usual, great difficulty in beginning. Very different was his experience with _Past and Present_. This book, inspired by the same sense of social evils to which we owe _Chartism_, 'was written off with singular ease in the first seven weeks of 1843.' _Cromwell_ was not finished till 1845. It was no sooner out than Carlyle began to think of _Frederick_; but of all the long 'valleys of the shadow' of his literary life, that was the longest. Before it took shape there appeared his _Latter-Day Pamphlets_ (1850), of which the celebrated paper on _The Nigger Question_ was the precursor. The _Life of Sterling_ (1851) is a strange contrast in tone and temper; for while the _Pamphlets_ are among the most violent of Carlyle's writings, the _Life of Sterling_ is one of the calmest. It was not until after the publication of _Sterling_ that he seriously took to _Frederick the Great_, which had hitherto been only a project floating in his mind with many others. He visited Germany to see the scenes with which he had to deal and to gather materials. The first and second volumes were published in 1858, and the third followed in 1862. In the interval Carlyle had visited Germany a second time. _Frederick_, finished in January, 1865, set the seal on Carlyle's reputation as the head of the literature, at least the prose literature, of his time. It was also practically the end of his literary career. The world was ready to shower honours upon him. He was chosen Rector of the University of Edinburgh; but the triumph of his great inaugural speech was dashed almost