Who was Sidney Colvin and why was he important to Robert Louis Stevenson?

Sidney Colvin was an English scholar who became a lifelong friend of Robert Louis Stevenson after they met in 1873.1

His importance to Stevenson is defined by several key roles:

• Personal Support: Colvin provided companionship during Stevenson’s periods of illness, notably joining him on the French Riviera in 1873 while Stevenson was recovering from severe respiratory issues.1
• Literary Stewardship: Colvin served as the editor of Stevenson’s letters, which were published in 1899. These letters are considered a vital resource for understanding the author's life and personality.2
• Archival Preservation: Colvin was instrumental in preserving Stevenson’s correspondence, including donating the author's letters to Fanny Sitwell to the National Library of Scotland.2

However, Colvin’s editorial work was also controversial; he omitted and compressed many letters, which obscured aspects of Stevenson’s emotional life for decades until the full, original texts were eventually made available to researchers.2