Encyclopaedia Britannica, or, a Dictionary of arts, sciences, and miscellaneous literature : enlarged and improved. Illustrated with nearly six hundred engravings > Volume 18, RHI-SCR

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362
xtinftion
i: the
idncipal
ifanch of
ne family
1;’ Douglas.
!i»n. 1448.
363
’ufillani-
! nous beha
iour of
ames.
iScotland. time 5 for he died without iffue at Lindores, on the 15th
of April 1488 •, and in him ended the firlt branch of
that noble and illuftrious houfe. He was remarkable
for being the molt learned of all the Scots nobility, and
for the comelinefs of his perfon.
James appears to have been no flranger to the pro¬
ceedings of the confpirators •, but though he dreaded
them, he depended on the protection of the law, as they
did on his pufillanimity. His degeneracy in this refpeCt
is remarkable. Defcended from a race of heroes, he
was the firit of his family who had been branded with
cowardice. But his conduCt at this time fully juftifies
the charge. Inftead of vigoroufly fupporting the exe¬
cution of the laws in his own perfon, he (hut himfelf up
in his beloved cattle of Stirling, and raifed a body
guard j the command of which he gave to the lord
Bothwel, mailer of his houfehold. He likewife blued
a proclamation, forbidding any perfon in arms to ap¬
proach the court } and Bothwel had a warrant to fee
the fame put in execution. Though the king’s pro¬
ceedings in all this were perfectly agreeable to law, yet
they were given out by his enemies as fo many indica¬
tions of his averfion to the nobility, and ferved only to
induce them to parade, armed, about the country in
more numerous bodies.
The connexions entered into by James with Henry
VII. of England, alarmed the confpirators, and made
them refolve to itrike the great blow, before James could
avail himfelf of an alliance that feemed to place him
above all oppofition either abroad or at home. The
acquifition of Berwick to the crown of Scotland, which
was looked on to be as good as concluded ; the mar¬
riage of the duke of Rothefay with the daughter of the
dowager and fitter to the confort queen of England ;
and, above all, the ttriCt harmony which reigned be¬
tween James and the dates of his kingdom, rendered
the confpirators in a manner defperate. Befides the earl
of Angus, the earls of Argyle and Lenox favoured the
confpirators. When the whole of James’s convention
with England is confidered, and compared with after¬
events, nothing can be more plain, than that the fuc-
cefs of the confpirators Avas owing to his Englifh con¬
nections ; and that they made ufe of them to affirm,
that Scotland was foon to become a province of Eng¬
land, and that James intended to govern his fubjeCts by
an Engliffi force.—Thofe fpecious allegations did the
confpirators great fervice, and inclined many, even of
the moderate party, to their caufe. They foon took
the field, appointed their rendezvoufes, and all the fouth
of Scotland was in arms. James continued to rely on
the authority of his parliament ; and fummoned, in the
terms of law, the infurgents to anfwer at the proper
tribunals for their repeated breaches of the peace.
The confpirators, far from paying any regard to his
citations, tore them in pieces, buffeted and otherwife
maltreated the meffengers, and fet the laws of their coun¬
try at open defiance. Even north of the Forth, the
heads of tLe houfes of Gray and Drummond fpread the
fpirit of difaffeCtion through the populous counties of
Fife and Angus ; but the counties north of the Gram¬
pians continued firm in their duty.
The duke of Rothefay was then a promifing youth
about fifteen years of age ; and the lubjeCting the
kingdom of Scotland to that of England being the
chief, if not the only caufe urged by the rebels for
2
3*4
fet at lie.
nice by
ie confpi-
tars.
their appearing in arms, they naturally threw their eyes Scotland;
upon that prince, as his appearance at their head would ““v"—
give {Length and vigour to their caufe j and in this
they were not deceived. James, in the mean time, find¬
ing the inhabitants of the fouthern provinces either
Avere engaged in the rebellion, or at belt obferved a
cold neutrality, embarked on board a veffel which Avas
then lying in the frith of Forth, and paffed to the
north of that river, not finding it fafe to go by land to ^65
Stirling. Arriving at the caftle, he gave orders that the The duke
duke of Rothefay (as if forefeeing what afterwards hap- of Rothe-
pened) fliould be put under the care of one Schavv 0f fay Put int*
Sauchie, Avhom he had made its governor, charging him ^eut ’
not to fuffer the prince on any account to depart out
of the fort. The rebels gLing out that James had fled
to Flanders, plundered his equipages and baggage before
they paffed the Forth ; and they there found a large
fum of money, Avhich proved to be of the utmoft con-
fequence to their affairs. They then furprifed the caf- Succefs of
tie of Dunbar, and plundered tire houfes of every man d16 rebals.
to the fouth of the Forth Avhom they fufpeded to be a
reyalift.
James Avas all this time making a progrefs, and
holding courts of juftice, in the north, xvhere the
great families were entirely devoted to his fervice, par¬
ticularly the earls of Huntly, Errol, and Marfhal.—
Every day brought him frefli alarms from the fouth,
Avhich left him no farther room either for delay or deli¬
beration. The confpirators, notwithftanding the pro¬
mifing appearance of their affairs, found, that in a fliort
time their caufe muff languiffi, and their numbers dwin¬
dle, unlefs they were furnifhed vvith freih pretexts, and
headed by a perfon of the greateff authority. While
they Avere deliberating Avho that perfon ftiould be, the
earl of Angus boldly propofed the duke of Rothefay
and an immediate application Avas made to Schaw, the
young prince’s governor, Avho fecretly favoured their ^
caufe, and Avas prevailed on by a confiderable fum of They are
money to put the prince into their hands, and to de- headed by
clare for the rebels. the duke of
James having ordered all the force in the north to af- ^ot*ie^ay.
femble, hurried to Perth (then called St John’s toAvn),
Avhere he appointed the rendezvous of his army, Avhich
amounted to 30,000 men. Among the other noblemen
Avho attended him Avas the famous lord David Lindfay
of the Byres (an officer of great courage and expe¬
rience, having long ferved in foreign countries), Avho
headed 3000 foot and 1000 horfe, raifed chiefly in
Fifefhire. Upon his approaching the king’s perfon, he
prefented him with a horfe of remarkable fpirit and
beauty, and informed his majefty, that he might truft
his life to his agility and fure-footednefs. The lord
Ruthven, who was theriff of Strathern, and anceftor
(if we miftake not) to the unfortunate earls of Gowrie,
joined James at the head of 3000 well armed men.— „
The whole army being affembled, James proceeded tojameSaf-
Stirling ; but he was aftonifhed, Avhen he was not only femblcs his
denied entrance into the caftle, bat faw the guns point-army-|
ed againft his perfon, and underftood, for the firft time,
that his fon was at the head of the rebels. Schaw pre¬
tended that the duke of Rothefay had been carried off
againft his Avill : but the king’s anfwer Avas, “ Fye,
traitor, thou haft deceived me ; and if I live I (hall be
revenged on thee, and thou (halt be rewarded as thou
haft defended.” James lay that night in the town of
Stirling;,