James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran
Encyclopedia
James Hamilton, Duke of Châtellerault
and 2nd Earl of Arran
(c. 1516 – 22 January 1575) was a Scottish
nobleman.
.
Through his paternal grandmother Mary of Scotland
, Hamilton was the great grandson of James II of Scotland
. On the death of John Stewart, Duke of Albany in 1536, Arran became the next heir of the Kingdom of Scotland
after the king's immediate family.
in 1542 the Earl of Arran
stood next in line to the Scottish throne after the king's six-day-old newborn baby daughter Mary, Queen of Scots, for whom he was appointed regent
. In 1543, supporters of Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox
challenged Arran's claim and legitimacy by suggesting that his father's divorce and second marriage were invalid.
Initially a Protestant and a member of the pro-English party, in 1543 he was involved in negotiating the marriage of the Queen of Scots to the infant Prince of Wales (the future Edward VI of England
). Cardinal Beaton
, who favoured the Auld Alliance
, was imprisoned at Dalkeith Palace
and then Blackness Castle
. Henry VIII of England doubted Arran's commitment to English policy and wanted him deposed. On 18 March 1543, Sir George Douglas of Pittendreich
, brother of the Earl of Angus
told the English ambassador, Ralph Sadler
that;
. Shortly after, Arran became a Catholic and joined the pro-French faction, consenting to the marriage of the Queen to the French Dauphin, later Francis II of France
.This led to the seven-year war with England now called the Rough Wooing which was declared on 20 December 1543. The declaration of war was brought by Henry Ray
to give to the Parliament of Scotland
. Arran replied that the parliament was dissolved, and so he thought it expedient not to answer Henry VIII on the points raised at the time. In 1548 the Queen of Scots went to live in the French court. For his work on negotiating her marriage, Hamilton was created Duke of Châtellerault
, and made a knight of the Order of Saint Michael
.
, Queen Mary's mother. Hamilton gave up the Regency on the condition that he would be next in line after the Queen, if she died childless. But the Scottish succession had been secretly promised to France.
In the first months of the Scottish Reformation
Hamilton continued to support Mary of Guise. He changed allegiance again in August 1559, joining the Protestant Lords of the Congregation
to oppose the regency of Mary of Guise
, and lost his French dukedom as a result. After the death of Guise, Hamilton persuaded the Parliament of Scotland
to back a plan to marry his son James
to Elizabeth I of England
, and then after the death of Francis II of France
in 1560 he attempted, without success, to arrange for James to marry the young widowed Queen Mary.
After Mary married Lord Darnley
in 1565 he withdrew to his estates in France. In 1569, he returned to Scotland and was imprisoned until, in 1573, he agreed to recognize Mary's infant James as King of Scotland.
A building from his heyday as Regent survives at Kinneil
in West Lothian
, his Eastern residence, including carvings and paintings of his heraldry with the collar of Saint Michael.
and Catherine Stewart, herself a natural daughter of James IV
. His older half-brother James Hamilton of Finnart
paid Morton 4000 marks as part of the marriage settlement. They had the following issue:
Duke of Châtellerault
The French noble title of Duke of Châtellerault has been created several times.The first was for François de Bourbon-Montpensier, a younger son of Gilbert, Comte de Montpensier. He received the duchy-peerage of Châtellerault in 1515, but died the same year, being succeeded by his brother Charles,...
and 2nd Earl of Arran
Earl of Arran
Earl of Arran is a title in both the Peerage of Scotland and the Peerage of Ireland. The two titles refer to different places, the Isle of Arran in Scotland, and the Aran Islands in Ireland...
(c. 1516 – 22 January 1575) was a Scottish
Kingdom of Scotland
The Kingdom of Scotland was a Sovereign state in North-West Europe that existed from 843 until 1707. It occupied the northern third of the island of Great Britain and shared a land border to the south with the Kingdom of England...
nobleman.
Biography
He was the eldest legitimate son of James Hamilton, 1st Earl of ArranJames Hamilton, 1st Earl of Arran
James Hamilton, 1st Earl of Arran and 2nd Lord Hamilton was a Scottish nobleman and first cousin of James IV of Scotland.-Biography:...
.
Through his paternal grandmother Mary of Scotland
Mary Stewart, Princess of Scotland
Princess Mary, Countess of Arran was the eldest daughter of King James II of Scotland and Mary of Guelders. Her brother was King James III of Scotland. She married twice; firstly to Thomas Boyd, 1st Earl of Arran; secondly to James Hamilton, 1st Lord Hamilton...
, Hamilton was the great grandson of James II of Scotland
James II of Scotland
James II reigned as King of Scots from 1437 to his death.He was the son of James I, King of Scots, and Joan Beaufort...
. On the death of John Stewart, Duke of Albany in 1536, Arran became the next heir of the Kingdom of Scotland
Kingdom of Scotland
The Kingdom of Scotland was a Sovereign state in North-West Europe that existed from 843 until 1707. It occupied the northern third of the island of Great Britain and shared a land border to the south with the Kingdom of England...
after the king's immediate family.
Regent of Scotland
The children of the immediate royal family proved to be short-lived, so on the death of James V of ScotlandJames V of Scotland
James V was King of Scots from 9 September 1513 until his death, which followed the Scottish defeat at the Battle of Solway Moss...
in 1542 the Earl of Arran
Earl of Arran
Earl of Arran is a title in both the Peerage of Scotland and the Peerage of Ireland. The two titles refer to different places, the Isle of Arran in Scotland, and the Aran Islands in Ireland...
stood next in line to the Scottish throne after the king's six-day-old newborn baby daughter Mary, Queen of Scots, for whom he was appointed regent
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
. In 1543, supporters of Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox
Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox
Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox was the 4th Earl of Lennox, and leader of the Catholic nobility in Scotland. He was the son of John Stewart, 3rd Earl of Lennox. His grandson was James VI of Scotland....
challenged Arran's claim and legitimacy by suggesting that his father's divorce and second marriage were invalid.
Initially a Protestant and a member of the pro-English party, in 1543 he was involved in negotiating the marriage of the Queen of Scots to the infant Prince of Wales (the future Edward VI of England
Edward VI of England
Edward VI was the King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death. He was crowned on 20 February at the age of nine. The son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, Edward was the third monarch of the Tudor dynasty and England's first monarch who was raised as a Protestant...
). Cardinal Beaton
David Beaton
The Most Rev. Dr. David Cardinal Beaton was Archbishop of St Andrews and the last Scottish Cardinal prior to the Reformation.-Career:...
, who favoured the Auld Alliance
Auld Alliance
The Auld Alliance was an alliance between the kingdoms of Scotland and France. It played a significant role in the relations between Scotland, France and England from its beginning in 1295 until the 1560 Treaty of Edinburgh. The alliance was renewed by all the French and Scottish monarchs of that...
, was imprisoned at Dalkeith Palace
Dalkeith Palace
Dalkeith Palace in Dalkeith, Midlothian, Scotland, is the former seat of the Duke of Buccleuch.Dalkeith Castle was located to the north east of Dalkeith, and was originally in the hands of the Clan Graham in the 12th century and given to the Douglas family in the early 14th century. James Douglas...
and then Blackness Castle
Blackness Castle
Blackness Castle is a 15th century fortress, near the village of Blackness, Scotland, on the south shore of the Firth of Forth. It was built, probably on the site of an earlier fort, by Sir George Crichton in the 1440s. At this time, Blackness was the main port serving the Royal Burgh of...
. Henry VIII of England doubted Arran's commitment to English policy and wanted him deposed. On 18 March 1543, Sir George Douglas of Pittendreich
George Douglas of Pittendreich
George Douglas of Pittendreich was a member of the powerful Douglas family who struggled for control of the young James V of Scotland in 1528. His second son became James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton and Regent of Scotland. Initially, George Douglas promoted the marriage of Mary, Queen of Scots and...
, brother of the Earl of Angus
Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus
Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus was a Scottish nobleman active during the reigns of James V and Mary, Queen of Scots...
told the English ambassador, Ralph Sadler
Ralph Sadler
Sir Ralph Sadler, PC, Knight banneret was an English statesman of the 16th century, and served as a Secretary of State for King Henry VIII.-Background:...
that;
"if there be any motion now to take the Governor from his state, and to bring the government of this realm to the king of England, I assure you it is impossible to be done at this time. For, there is not so little a boy but that he will hurl stones against it, and the wives will handle their distaffs, and the commons universally will rather die in it, yea, and many noblemen and all the clergy be fully against it.On 3 September 1543 there was panic in Edinburgh when it became known that Arran had quietly left town. Although he had said that he was visiting his pregnant wife at Blackness Castle, the pro-English party guessed he would try to meet Cardinal Beaton. The Governor and the Cardinal were reconciled at Callendar House
Callendar House
Callendar House is a mansion set within the grounds of Callendar Park in Falkirk, central Scotland. Its present form, in the style of a French Renaissance château, dates from the 19th century, although at its core is a 14th-century tower house...
. Shortly after, Arran became a Catholic and joined the pro-French faction, consenting to the marriage of the Queen to the French Dauphin, later Francis II of France
Francis II of France
Francis II was aged 15 when he succeeded to the throne of France after the accidental death of his father, King Henry II, in 1559. He reigned for 18 months before he died in December 1560...
.This led to the seven-year war with England now called the Rough Wooing which was declared on 20 December 1543. The declaration of war was brought by Henry Ray
Berwick Pursuivant
Berwick Pursuivant of Arms in Ordinary was a British office of arms created around 1460 for English service on the Scottish Marches based at Berwick-upon-Tweed...
to give to the Parliament of Scotland
Parliament of Scotland
The Parliament of Scotland, officially the Estates of Parliament, was the legislature of the Kingdom of Scotland. The unicameral parliament of Scotland is first found on record during the early 13th century, with the first meeting for which a primary source survives at...
. Arran replied that the parliament was dissolved, and so he thought it expedient not to answer Henry VIII on the points raised at the time. In 1548 the Queen of Scots went to live in the French court. For his work on negotiating her marriage, Hamilton was created Duke of Châtellerault
Duke of Châtellerault
The French noble title of Duke of Châtellerault has been created several times.The first was for François de Bourbon-Montpensier, a younger son of Gilbert, Comte de Montpensier. He received the duchy-peerage of Châtellerault in 1515, but died the same year, being succeeded by his brother Charles,...
, and made a knight of the Order of Saint Michael
Order of Saint Michael
The Order of Saint Michael was a French chivalric order, founded by Louis XI of France in 1469, in competitive response to the Burgundian Order of the Golden Fleece founded by Philip the Good, duke of Burgundy, Louis' chief competitor for the allegiance of the great houses of France, the Dukes of...
.
The Duke and the reformation
In 1554, Arran surrendered the regency to Mary of GuiseMary of Guise
Mary of Guise was a queen consort of Scotland as the second spouse of King James V. She was the mother of Mary, Queen of Scots, and served as regent of Scotland in her daughter's name from 1554 to 1560...
, Queen Mary's mother. Hamilton gave up the Regency on the condition that he would be next in line after the Queen, if she died childless. But the Scottish succession had been secretly promised to France.
In the first months of the Scottish Reformation
Scottish Reformation
The Scottish Reformation was Scotland's formal break with the Papacy in 1560, and the events surrounding this. It was part of the wider European Protestant Reformation; and in Scotland's case culminated ecclesiastically in the re-establishment of the church along Reformed lines, and politically in...
Hamilton continued to support Mary of Guise. He changed allegiance again in August 1559, joining the Protestant Lords of the Congregation
Lords of the Congregation
The Lords of the Congregation were a group of Protestant Scottish nobles who in the mid-16th century favoured reformation of the church along Protestant principles and a Scottish-English alliance.- Historical events :...
to oppose the regency of Mary of Guise
Mary of Guise
Mary of Guise was a queen consort of Scotland as the second spouse of King James V. She was the mother of Mary, Queen of Scots, and served as regent of Scotland in her daughter's name from 1554 to 1560...
, and lost his French dukedom as a result. After the death of Guise, Hamilton persuaded the Parliament of Scotland
Parliament of Scotland
The Parliament of Scotland, officially the Estates of Parliament, was the legislature of the Kingdom of Scotland. The unicameral parliament of Scotland is first found on record during the early 13th century, with the first meeting for which a primary source survives at...
to back a plan to marry his son James
James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran
James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran was a Scottish nobleman and soldier who fought against French troops during the Scottish Reformation....
to Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
, and then after the death of Francis II of France
Francis II of France
Francis II was aged 15 when he succeeded to the throne of France after the accidental death of his father, King Henry II, in 1559. He reigned for 18 months before he died in December 1560...
in 1560 he attempted, without success, to arrange for James to marry the young widowed Queen Mary.
After Mary married Lord Darnley
Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley
Henry Stewart or Stuart, 1st Duke of Albany , styled Lord Darnley before 1565, was king consort of Scotland and murdered at Kirk o'Field...
in 1565 he withdrew to his estates in France. In 1569, he returned to Scotland and was imprisoned until, in 1573, he agreed to recognize Mary's infant James as King of Scotland.
A building from his heyday as Regent survives at Kinneil
Kinneil House
Kinneil House is a historic house to the west of Bo'ness in east-central Scotland. It was once the principal seat of the Hamilton family in the east of Scotland. The house was saved from demolition in 1936 when 16th-century mural paintings were discovered, and it is now in the care of Historic...
in West Lothian
West Lothian
West Lothian is one of the 32 unitary council areas in Scotland, and a Lieutenancy area. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Falkirk, North Lanarkshire, the Scottish Borders and South Lanarkshire....
, his Eastern residence, including carvings and paintings of his heraldry with the collar of Saint Michael.
Marriage and issue
Hamilton married in 1532, to the Lady Margaret Douglas, daughter of James Douglas, 3rd Earl of MortonJames Douglas, 3rd Earl of Morton
James Douglas, 3rd Earl of Morton was a son of John Douglas, 2nd Earl of Morton and a grandson of James Douglas, 1st Earl of Morton and Joan of Scotland, a daughter of James I of Scotland. He married Catherine Stewart, an illegitimate daughter of King James IV of Scotland by his mistress Marion...
and Catherine Stewart, herself a natural daughter of James IV
James IV of Scotland
James IV was King of Scots from 11 June 1488 to his death. He is generally regarded as the most successful of the Stewart monarchs of Scotland, but his reign ended with the disastrous defeat at the Battle of Flodden Field, where he became the last monarch from not only Scotland, but also from all...
. His older half-brother James Hamilton of Finnart
James Hamilton of Finnart
Sir James Hamilton of Finnart was a Scottish nobleman and architect, the illegitimate son of James Hamilton, 1st Earl of Arran, and Mary Boyd of Bonshaw....
paid Morton 4000 marks as part of the marriage settlement. They had the following issue:
- James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of ArranJames Hamilton, 3rd Earl of ArranJames Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran was a Scottish nobleman and soldier who fought against French troops during the Scottish Reformation....
- Lady Anne HamiltonAnne Hamilton, Countess of HuntlyAnne Hamilton, Countess of Huntly , was a Scottish noblewoman and a member of the powerful Hamilton family which had a strong claim to the Scottish crown...
- married George Gordon, 5th Earl of HuntlyGeorge Gordon, 5th Earl of HuntlyGeorge Gordon, 5th Earl of Huntly , was Lord Chancellor of Scotland and major conspirator of his time.-Biography:... - Lady Jean Hamilton - married Hugh Montgomerie, 3rd Earl of EglintonEarl of EglintonEarl of Eglinton is a title in the Peerage of Scotland.Some authorities spell the title: Earl of Eglintoun In 1859 the thirteenth Earl of Eglinton, Archibald Montgomerie, was also created Earl of Winton in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, which gave him an automatic seat in the House of Lords,...
- Lady Barbara Hamilton - married 1st Alexander Gordon, Lord Gordon, 2nd James Fleming, 4th Lord Fleming
- John Hamilton, 1st Marquess of HamiltonJohn Hamilton, 1st Marquess of HamiltonJohn Hamilton, 1st Marquess of Hamilton was a Scottish nobleman.-Life:Hamilton was the third son of James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran by his wife Margaret Douglas, a daughter of James Douglas, 3rd Earl of Morton...
-married Margaret, daughter of John Lyon, 7th Lord Glamis - Lady Margaret Hamilton - married Sir Alexander Pethein (Peden)
- Gawain Hamilton - died in infancy
- Lady Elizabeth - married George Hamilton
- David Hamilton - had three children in 1575.
- Claud Hamilton, 1st Lord PaisleyClaud Hamilton, 1st Lord PaisleyClaud Hamilton, 1st Lord Paisley was a Scottish politician. He was a younger son of James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran. In 1553, he received the lands of the abbey of Paisley...
- married Margaret, daughter of George Seton, 7th Lord SetonGeorge Seton, 7th Lord SetonGeorge Seton V, 7th Lord Seton was a Lord of the Parliament of Scotland, Master of the Household of Mary, Queen of Scots and Provost of Edinburgh. He was the eldest son of George Seton, 6th Lord Seton and Elizabeth Hay, a daughter of John Hay, 3rd Lord Hay of Yester...
Further reading
- Franklin, David Byrd (1995). The Scottish Regency of the Earl of Arran: A Study in the Failure of Anglo-Scottish Relations. Edwin Mellen Press.