Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 11.djvu/121

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JAMES II. 105 JAMES V. pendence. Crichton regained his former position as royal adviser, and Douglas, driven from power, lormed an alliance with the Earl of Crawford. By the union of these two powerful nobles, it seemed that the royal authority in Scotland might virtually become extinct. James, how- ever, treacherously murdered Douglas with his own hand in Stirling Castle (1452), and Douglas's son, after a vain resistance, fled. The lands were granted to the Earl of Angus. In 1400, from causes not clearly known, James infringed an existing truce with England, by laying siege to the Castle of Roxburgh, then in the hands of the English. On August 3d he was killed by the bursting of a cannon. Boece's statements in his Chronicle about this period are frequentlv untrustworthy, but his account is the fullest. JAMES III. (1451-88). King of Scotland from 1460 to 1488. He was the son of .James IT. and Mary of Gelderland. On the death of his father, the Ciovernment appears to have been conducted by his mother, who was under the influence of Archbishop Kennedy. On the death of the latter, in 14(i6. the young King fell under the control of Lord Boyd and his family. In 1467 they had acquired influence so great that •James gave his sister in marriage to Sir Thomas Boyd, son of Lord Robert. Sir Thomas being at the same time created Earl of Arran. On the King's marriage, however, in 1409, with Mar- garet of Denmark, power changed hands ; Lord Boyd was obliged to flee, and even Arran was driven into e.xile. Soon after this .James seems to have fallen under the influence of favorites. Conspicuous among these was a man named Cochrane, an architect. Through his wiles the Duke of Albany, brother of .James, was forced to flee from the Kingdom, having been charged with witchcraft; while the Earl of Mar, also a brother of the King, was imprisoned on the same accusation, and probably put to death. The banished Duke of Albany was, by some unknown means, restored to his brother's favor (1482). He did not long hold it, however. In 1487 Mar- garet of Denmark died. .James's love of pur- suits which for the age in which he lived were intellectual brought upon him the contempt of a warlike and barbarous nobility, on which the weakness of his moral character imposed no check. A conspiracy, the origin of which is obscure, ended in a rebellion, having for its avowed object the dethronement of the King. Many of the peers, however, remained loyal, so that James was enabled to put himself at the head of a considerable force. But, mainly through the cowardice of the King, the royal army was defeated at Sauchie. June 11, 1488. James es- caped from the field : but he was afterivards discovered by one of the rebels and murdered. Boece's Chronicle is the fullest account. JAMES rv. (147.3-151.3). King of Scotland from 14>!8 to 1513. The son of .James III. and Margaret of Denmark, he was born March 17, 1473. Though but a youth at his accession, he began immediately to take part in public affairs, and aided personally in suppressing the rebellion headed by the Earl of Lennox. The young King was vigorous as well as popular. Throughout his reign he labored to develop commerce and to build up a na r. In 1503 he married Mar- garet, daughter of Henry VII. of England, and made a treaty with his father-in-law which secured peace between the two countries for a few years. Meantime James was passing law3 for the better administration of criminal justice, for the annual election of magistrates, for con- finning the privileges of the burghs, for the discouragement of beggars, and for the daily session of tlie council at Edinburgh. This city was now becoming the capital of the Kingdom. Not only is his reign important in th^ history of Scottish law, but he showed skillful diplomacy in securing friendly relations with the Continental powers. From the accession of Henry VIII., however, trouble again arose between England and Scotland. In 1513 the English Parliament declared war against both Scotland and France. The Scottish King, who had long been making preparations, marched with a large, well- equipped army to meet .Surrey, the English commander, at Flodden. It was a 'black day' for Scotland; she lost perhaps 10,000 men. a great number of nobles, and her King, who fell fighting in the ranks (.September 9, 1513). Though great in the history of Scottish civilization, he was an incompetent general, and the defeat was due chiefly to him. Xot till after her union with England did his country recover from the loss. His fickle wavering between France and England also caused Scotland much trouble. .James V., his only legitimate child, succeeded him. Con- sult: Treasurer's Accounts, Exchequer Rolls, And. Acts of Parliament of his reign; "Teulet, Papiers d'etat, pieces et documents in&lits ou peu con' nus. relatifs a I'histoire de I'Ecosse au XVIeme siecle, tires des hibliotheques et des archives de France (Paris. 1851-60) ; Buchanan. History of Scotland (Glasgow, 1824) : Brown. Histori/ of Hcotland. vol. i. (Cambridge. 1899) ; Burton, History of Scotland (Edinburgh, 1867-70). JAMES V. (1512-42). King of Scotland from 1513 to 1542. The son of .James IV. and :Mar- garet of England, he was born April 10. 1512. The period of his long minority is one of the gloomiest in Scottish history. Such was the lawless state of the country- that it was impossible to travel safely except in armed companies. The Duke of Albany was chosen Regent by Parliament, but his government was almost powerless, owing chiefly to the jealousy and enmity of the Earl of Angus, who had married the Queen mother. L'ltimately Angus prevailed, and the Duke re- tired to France. For a while the Angus branch of the Douglas family ruled Scotland in the same manner as the elder branch had ruled it in the beginning of the reign of .James II. In his seventeenth year the King, resolving no longer to brook the authority of the Earl, escaped from his custody. Angus and his family were ban- ished, and their estates declared forfeited. In 1536 .James visited the Court- of France, and next year married Magdalen, daughter of Fran- cis I. She lived but a few weeks. Soon after her death the King married Mary of Lorraine, daughter of the Duke of Guise. Henry '^II.. after declaring his independence of the Pope, wished his nephew to support him in the move- ment: but James remained true to his ancestral faith. Far from coming to an agreement on the subject of religion, the two Kings went to war against each other. In 1542 the English, while making an incursion across the border, were attacked and defeated with irrcat loss by the Earl of Huntly and Home. To avenge this