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The Staggering State of Scottish Statesmen

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The Staggering State of Scottish Statesmen 427 THE STAGGERING STATE OF SCOTTISH STATESMEN. CHANCELLORS. i. James, Earl of Morton, Chancellor in Queen Mary's time, whose actions are at length set down in the histories of Buchanan and Knox, and Home's history of the family of Douglas, begot divers bastards, one of whom he made Laird of Spot, another Laird of Tofts. The first was purchased from his heirs by Sir Robert Douglas, and the last by one Belsches, an advocate. He was thereafter made regent in King James the VI.'s minority, anno 1572 ; but in that time was taxed with great avarice and extortion of the people, and by heightening the rate of money, and for coining of base coin, for adultery, and for delivering up the Earl of Northumberland to Queen Elizabeth, when he had fled to Scotland for refuge, being allured thereto by a sum of money.* He was overthrown by the means of the Earls of Argyle, Athole, and Montrose; and was accused and condemned for being art and part in the king's father's murder, which was proven by the means of Sir James Balfour, Clerk-Register, who produced his handwriting. He got a response to beware of the Earl of Arran, which he con- ceived to be the Hamiltons, and therefore was their perpetual enemy; but in this he was mistaken, seeing, by the furiosity of the Earl of Arran, Captain James Stewart was made his guardian, and afterwards became Earl of Arran, and by his moyenf Morton was condemned, and his head taken off at the market-cross of Edinburgh. He caused to bring home that heading instrument called The Maiden, out of Halifax in Yorkshire, wherewith he was first himself beheaded, 2nd June, 1581.$ * "The Earl of Northumberland had been delivered by the Earl of Mar, who was regent before Morton."—Goodal. t Unlawful means. % It was "The Gibbet Law" of Halifax, that a felon who had stolen goods within the liberty of the place should be taken to the gibbet, and have his head 428 TRANSACTIONS OF THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. 2. George, Earl of Huntly, chancellor in the time of Henry and Mary.* He was father to George, the first Marquis of Huntly, who slew the Earl of Murray, and burnt his house of Dunnybirsle, and did many other cruel actions, set down in Mr. MelviPs verses ; f and grandfather to George, late Marquis of Huntly, who, for assisting James Graham, the Marquis of Montrose, in the late troubles, against this kingdom, being apprehended and brought to Edinburgh, had his head struck off in 1648.$ His whole lands were apprised for debts, and most part of them are now in the hands of his brother- in-law, the Marquis of Argyle. His second brother, the Lord cut off. The execution took place on the market-day, in order to strike terror, and was performed by means of an instrument called a gibbet, which was raised upon a platform, four feet high, and thirteen feet square, faced on each side with stone, and ascended by a flight of steps. In the middle of this platform were placed two upright pieces of timber, fifteen feet high, joined at the top by a tranverse beam. Within these was a square block of wood, four feet and a half long, which moved up and down by means of grooves made for that purpose, to the lower part of which was fastened an iron axe, which weighed seven pounds and twelve ounces. The axe thus fixed was drawn up by means of a cord and pulley. At the head of the cord was a pin, fixed to the block, which kept it suspended till the moment of execution, when the culprit's head being' placed on the block, the pin was withdrawn, and [his head severed from his body. In passing through Halifax, the Regent Morton witnessed one of these executions. He ordered a model to be made of the gibbet, and, on his return to Scotland, had a similar in- instrument constructed, which, remaining long unused, was called " The Maiden." The instrument is now in the museum of the Society of Antiquaries at Edinburgh. —Halifax Gibbet and Gibbet Law. By John Ryley Robinson, LL.D., Stokesley, 1871, i2mo. • George, fifth Earl of Huntly, was appointed Chancellor 20th March, 1565. He died suddenly, May, 15 76. f The verses referred to were doubtless written by Andrew or James Melville, the eminent Presbyterian divines, both of whom composed verses—the former in Latin, the latter in his native tongue (James Melville's Autobiography, &c, Edin., 1842, Svo., pp. xlv.—xlvii.). The slaughter of "the bonny Earl of Murray" by the Marquis of Huntly, forms the subject of two old ballads (Maidment's " Scottish Ballads and Songs," Edin. 1818, 8vo., vol. I., pp. 234—9). James, fourth Earl of Murray, was slain in his house at Dunibristle, Fifeshire, in February, 1592. $ The author errs in describing the second Marquis of Huntly as having assisted the Marquis of Montrose. Huntly, who had by Charles I. been appointed his lieutenant-general in the north, was jealous of Montrose, who held office as lieu- tenant-general of the kingdom; besides he had some private wrongs to avenge. He therefore declined to co-operate with him—a resolution which proved fatal to the king, to Montrose, and to himself. Huntly was beheaded on the 22nd March, 1649. THE STAGGERING STATE OF SCOTTISH STATESMEN. 429 Aboyne,* and other four with him, as by divine providence revenging the fact of Dunnybirsle, were, in 1630, with a sudden fire in the night, burnt quick in the house of Frendraught. The Lord Gordon,f eldest son to the last marquis, was shot dead at a field with James Graham ; so that family is very near extinct and going to decay. 3. John Lyon, Lord Glammis, was made chancellor in King James's minority, 24th October, 1573. He was a good justiciar, but bruiked % the place only a few years; for, on the 17th March, 1577, he was shot at Stirling with a bullet by the Earl of Crawford and his followers, for a controversy that fell out betwixt them anent their marches. His grandchild, the late lord, died of the plague of pestilence, leaving behind him such a burden of debt upon the estate, that it behoved his mother to procure a warrant from the lords to sell lands till all the debts were paid. 4. John, Earl of Athole, was made chancellor after Glammis, but lived in the place but few years; yet in his time he did great oppres- sions to many, that he might augment his estate and grandeur, whereof this was not the least, that at the instigation of his mother he killed Sir John Rattray of that Ilk, being about the ninetieth year of his age, while he was sitting praying in his own chapel, by James Stewart, one of his domestics; who having but two daughters, Grizel and Jean Rattray, procreate on dame Elizabeth Kennedy, daughter to the Earl of Cassilis, he married the eldest himself, and * Sir John Gordon, second son of the Marquis of Huntly, was by Charles I. in 1627 created Viscount Melgum and Lord Aboyne ; he perished with Gordon of Rothiemay and their six attendants in the burning of the house of Frendraught on the 18th October, 163a The event has been commemorated in a pathetic ballad. For this composition, as well as an intelligent account of the burningof Frendraught Castle, see Maidment's "Scottish Ballads," Edin., 1868, 8vo., vol. i., pp. 262—271. t George, Lord Gordon, eldest son of the second Marquis of Huntly, fell at the battle of Alford on the 2nd July, 1645. He was deeply lamented by Montrose and his army. On account of having composed a few lines "on black eyes," included in Watson's Collection, Part HI., his name has obtained a place in Walpole's " Catalogue of Royal and Noble Authors." % Angl. "enjoyed." Lord Glammis corresponded with Theodore Beza, the col- league of Calvin, on the subject of church polity. After his death Andrew Melville bestowed on him the following epigram :— " Tu leo magne jaces inglorius; ergo manebunt Qualia fata canes ? qualia fata sues ? " 430 TRANSACTIONS OF THE HISTORICAL SOCIETY. gave the other to Sir James Stewart of Balvenie, his brother. By this marriage he joined to his own estate the baronies of Rattray and Redcastle; so that by that cruel fact, none was left of that house but a brother called Sylvester, who, being also pursued for his life, was preserved by flying to a room of his own, called Craig- hall, which he possesses to this day. He was poisoned by means of the Earl of Morton, and died at, Kincardine, 24th April, 1579 >* and albeit at his death he left his estate flourishing, yet did his suc- cessor sell the same wholly to the Murrays of Tullibardine and others ; and two of the sons of the house have wandered the country these forty years begging. 5. Colin, Earl of Argyle, succeeded to be chancellor after Athole, who also continued not long in the office. His house found little advantage, but hurt thereby ; for there was so great burden of debt upon the same, that it behoved his son, the late earl, to leave the country, not being able to give satisfaction to his creditors. He went over to West Flanders to serve the King of Spain, and became a papist, of whose flight the poet Craig \ wrote these lines*— " Now Earl of Guile and Lord Forlorn thou goes, Quitting thy prince to serve his Spanish foes.
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