Series 5 > Campbell Letters 1559-1583

142
CLAN CAMPBELL LETTERS
88 William Maitland of Lethington to Lady Glenorchy
GDI 12/39/6/19
2-4 February 1567,1 Callander
To the rycht honorabill and his assurit freind the Lady Glenwrquhaid
Eftir my hartlie commendatioun. I ressavit ane writting of youris and
ane uther of the Lairdis be the quhilkis I persawe ye desyre me to employ
yow.Ye may be assurit that thair is nane sib nor freindis in Scodand that I
will cherge mair hamelie nor yow. Quhidder I depart yitt or nocht I am
nocht resolute. My Lorde of Athiole is cumit heir this lastWodnisday and
I am rydand this day with him to Cumirnald2 to pas our tyme. Gif I gang
nocht away as it may weill chance I sail nocht faill to vesie yow and tare
quhill ye be tyrit. For I intend nocht schorthe quhatsumevir purpois I tak
to pas sone to the courte for ye may schaw the Laird that I lyke nathing
the sair of the men of weiris luntis that kepis the castell hill.3 Ye desyrit
me to feill my Lorde of Athioles mynde in the besines ye knaw.4 I have
felt his mynde and assuris yow that ye ar na better myndit your self nor he
is willing that purpoiss. I traist that tyme that [sic] dryve all thingis to a
gude end. I will nocht cummer yow with langer writting at this present
and sua committis yow to God. Off Calendar this ...5 ii of Februar 1566.
Your cousing ... command.
[PS] Mak my hartlie comendatioun to the Laird of [sic] your bedfallow.
89 [Atholl6] William Stewart of Grandtully to Glenorchy
GDI 12/39/6/20
1 June 1567, Edinburgh
The number of the date on this letter is obscured by fading but includes ‘ii’. Maitland*
was in Edinburgh on 8 Feb. 1567, CSP Scot., ii, 312, and remained there at least until
Darnley’s murder on 10 Feb. He was at Seton House, East Lothian, on 23 Feb. and
back in Edinburgh on 8 Mar., CSP Scot, ii, 315,317.The light tone of the letter with
no mention of Darnley’s murder suggest that the letter was written on 2-4 Feb.
‘Last Wednesday’ was probably 29 Jan. Cumbemald was the seat of John, 5th Lord
Fleming who was the brother-in-law of both Maidand and Atholl*. On 6 Jan. 1567,
Maitland had married Fleming’s sister, Mary, one of the queen’s ‘four Maries’.
Obviously a derogatory remark about Court and its political complexion, possibly
meaning that Maidand did not like the smell (‘sair’) of the men of war camps (‘luntis’)
which occupied the Casde Hill in Edinburgh.
This is probably the proposal for a marriage alliance between the houses of Atholl
and Glenorchy: Introduction, 30.
Ellipses represent damage to MS.
The signature is unlike any other of John, 4th earl of Atholl.* Wilham Stewart of
Grandtully* acted as a ‘man of business’ for Atholl, and this letter contains his
characteristic ‘slef’ for ‘self’ so it was almost certainly written, and probably signed, by
Grandtully on Atholl’s behalf.