James V of Scotland

James V
King of Scots
Reign	9 September 1513 – 14 December 1542
Coronation	21 September 1513
Predecessor	James IV
Successor	Mary I
Regent	Margaret Tudor (1513–14) John, Duke of Albany (1515–24) Archibald, Earl of Angus (1525–28)
Burial	Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh
Spouse	Madeleine of Valois (1537) Mary of Guise (1538—)
Issue	James Stewart, Duke of Rothesay Mary I of Scotland
House	House of Stewart
Father	James IV of Scotland
Mother	Margaret Tudor

James V (c. 10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was King of Scots from 9 September 1513 until his premature death at the age of thirty, which followed the Scottish defeat at the Battle of Solway Moss. His only surviving legitimate child, Mary I, Queen of Scots, who succeeded him to the throne was just six days old at the time.

Early life

The son of King James IV of Scotland, he was born on 10 April 1512, at Linlithgow Palace, West Lothian, and was just seventeen months old when his father was killed at the Battle of Flodden Field on 9 September 1513.

He was crowned in the Chapel Royal at Stirling Castle on 21 September 1513. During his childhood, the country was ruled by regents, first by his mother, Margaret Tudor (sister of King Henry VIII of England), until she remarried the following year, and thereafter by John Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany, who was himself next in line for the throne after James and his younger brother, the posthumously-born Alexander Stewart, Duke of Ross. In 1525, Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus, the young king's stepfather, took custody of James and held him as a virtual prisoner for three years, exercising power on his behalf. James finally escaped in 1528 and assumed the reins of government himself.

Reign

His first action as king was to remove Angus from the scene, and he then subdued the Border rebels and the chiefs of the Western Isles. James increased his income by tightening control over royal estates and from the profits of justice, customs and feudal rights. He also gave his illegitimate sons lucrative benefices, diverting substantial church wealth into his coffers. James spent a large amount of his wealth on building work at Stirling, Falkland, Linlithgow and Holyrood.

James V did not tolerate heresy and during his reign, a number of outspoken supporters of church reform were executed. The most famous of these was Patrick Hamilton who was burned at the stake as a heretic at St Andrews in 1528.

Illegitimate children

James V fathered nine known illegitimate children, at least three of whom were sired before the age of twenty. The most notable were:

• Robert Stewart, 1st Earl of Orkney, son of Euphame Elphinstone
• John Stewart of Darnley (b circa 1531, d. November 1563 in Inverness), son of Elizabeth Carmichael, both of whose families were to entangle themselves with the Shetland Islands and with the Bruces of Cultmalindie. John Stewart was the 1st Lord Darnley and Prior of Coldingham. He was the father of Francis Stewart, 1st Earl of Bothwell.
• James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray, son of Margaret Erskine, James's favourite mistress, who went on to play an important part in the reigns of his half-sister, Mary, Queen of Scots and his nephew, James VI

Marriages

Portrait of James V, c. 1536, by Corneille de Lyon.

James renewed the Auld Alliance with France, and on 1 January 1537, he married Madeleine of Valois, daughter of Francis I of France.

Following her death in July 1537, he proceeded to marry, on 12 June 1538, Mary of Guise, daughter of Claude, Duke of Guise and widow of Louis of Orleans, Duke of Longueville. Mary already had two sons from her first marriage, and the union produced two sons, James Stewart, Duke of Rothesay (b. 22 May 1540), and Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany (b. 1541). However, both died in April 1541, just eight days after baby Robert was baptised. In 1542, their daughter Mary, later Queen of Scots, was born.

War with England

The death of his mother in 1541 removed any incentive for peace with England, and war broke out. Initially the Scots won a victory at the Battle of Haddon Rig in 1542, but later that year, they suffered a defeat at the Battle of Solway Moss. Although this is now disputed by some historians, by some accounts he experienced a nervous collapse after the defeat, and was on his deathbed at Falkland Palace on 8 December when his only living heir, a girl, was born.

Before he died, he is reported to have said, "it came wi a lass, it'll gang wi a lass" ("It began with a girl and it will end with a girl"). This was a reference to the Stewart dynasty, and how it came to the throne through Marjorie, daughter of Robert the Bruce. As it happened, his words came true, although not with his daughter Mary I but with the last monarch of the House of Stewart, Queen Anne, who was James V's great-great-great-granddaughter.

Outside interests

According to legend, James would sometimes travel around Scotland, disguised as a common man, describing himself as the Gudeman of Ballengeich ('Gudeman' means 'landlord' or 'farmer', and 'Ballengeich' was the nickname of a road next to Stirling Castle - meaning 'windy pass' in Gaelic), and sometimes even seducing women. However, it has been suggested that, if he did do this, many people may have recognised him because of his red hair.

James V so liked red clothing that, during the festivities in Paris in 1537, he upset the city dignitaries who had sole right to wear that colour in processions. They noted he could not speak a word of French.

Later life

James was succeeded by his infant daughter, Mary, Queen of Scots. He was buried at Holyrood Abbey alongside Madeleine and his sons by Mary of Guise.

Titles, styles, honours and arms

Titles and styles

Royal styles of James VI, King of Scots
Reference style	His Grace
Spoken style	Your Grace
Alternative style	Sire

Full achievement of Arms as King of Scots

• 10 April 1512–9 September 1513: The Duke of Rothesay
• 9 September 1513–14 December 1542: His Grace The King

James's full style prior to acceding the throne was Prince James Stewart, Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Lord Renfrew, Prince and Great Steward of Scotland

Ancestors

Family of James V of Scotland

16. James I of Scotland 8. James II of Scotland 17. Joan Beaufort 4. James III of Scotland 18. Arnold, Duke of Gelderland 9. Mary of Guelders 19. Catherine of Cleves 2. James IV of Scotland 20. Dietrich, Count of Oldenburg 10. Christian I of Denmark 21. Helvig of Schauenburg 5. Margaret of Denmark 22. John, Margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach 11. Dorothea of Brandenburg 23. Barbara of Saxe-Wittenberg 1. James V of Scotland 24. Owen Tudor 12. Edmund Tudor, 1st Earl of Richmond 25. Catherine of Valois 6. Henry VII of England 26. John Beaufort, 1st Duke of Somerset 13. Margaret Beaufort 27. Margaret Beauchamp of Bletso 3. Margaret Tudor 28. Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York 14. Edward IV of England 29. Cecily Neville 7. Elizabeth of York 30. Richard Woodville, 1st Earl Rivers 15. Elizabeth Woodville 31. Jacquetta of Luxembourg

References

Donaldson, Gordon (1965). Scotland: James V to James VII. Edinburgh: Oliver & Boyd.

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Wood, James, ed. (1907). The Nuttall Encyclopædia. London and New York: Frederick Warne. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)