| James V | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Biographical Information | |
| Title: | James V of Scotland
Duke of Rothesay Prince of Scotland Great Steward of Scotland |
| Reign: | 9 September 1513 – 14 December 1542 |
| Predecessor: | James IV |
| Successor: | Mary Stuart |
| Born: | 10 April 1512 |
| Burial: | Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh |
| Religion: | Roman Catholic |
| House: | House of Stewart |
| Relationship Information | |
| TV Character Information | |
| Portrays: | King James V |
James V was the nephew of King Henry VIII of England. When Henry decided to lead the catholic church to marry his 2nd wife, James refused to follow him. A choice that lead to The Battle of Solway Moss, and his own death. He is also the rathe of Mary Stuart, the future Queen of Scotland.
Childhood
James was born on 10 April 1512, at Linlithgow Palace, and christened the next day, receiving the titles Prince, and Great Steward of Scotland. He became king at seventeen months old when his father was killed at the Battle of Flodden Field on 9 September of 1513.
James was crowned in the Chapel Royal at Stirling Castle on 21 September 1513. During his childhood, the country was ruled by regents. In February 1517, James came from Stirling to Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh, but during an outbreak of The Black Plague in the city he was moved to Craigmillar Castle.
At Stirling, 10-year-old James had a guard of 20 footmen dressed in his colours, red and yellow. When he went to the park below the Castle, six horsemen would scour the countryside two miles roundabout for intruders.
In the autumn of 1524 James dismissed his Regents and was proclaimed an adult ruler by his mother. The following year, Archibald Douglas, the young king's stepfather, took custody of James and held him as a virtual prisoner for three years, exercising power on his behalf. After three attempts to break free, James finally escaped in 1528 and assumed the reins of government himself. [1]
Reign and Religion
James first action as king was to remove Angus from the scene. The Douglas family were forced into exile and James besieged their castle at Tantallon.
James increased his income by tightening control over royal estates and from the profits of justice, customs and feudal rights. He also diverting substantial church wealth into his coffers. James spent a large amount of his wealth on building work at Stirling Castle, Falkland Palace, Linlithgow Palace and Holyrood and built up a collection of tapestries from those inherited from his father. James recovered money from the church by getting Pope Clement VII to allow him to tax monastic incomes.
After Henry VIII broke from The Catholic Church, James V did not tolerate heresy and during his reign, a number of outspoken Protestants were persecuted. A meeting between King Henry VIII & James was arranged, and Henry sent his men to York in September 1541, James did not come. The lack of commitment to this meeting was regarded by the English as a sign that Scotland was firmly allied to France and Catholicism, and a cause for war. [2]
Marriage
By August 1517, a clause of the Treaty of Rouen provided that if an alliance between France and Scotland was maintained, James would have a French royal bride. However the daughters of King Francis I of France were promised elsewhere. Negotiations for his marriage to Catherine de'Medici, and Mary of Austria, Queen of Hungary, who was the sister of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V began.
On 6 March 1536, a contract was made for James V to marry Mary of Bourbon. She would have a dowry as if she were a French Princess. James decided to visit Fance in person and sailed from Kirkcaldy on 1 September 1536. On 1 January 1537 James married Madeleine of Valois, the king's daughter, in Notre Dame de Paris. They returned from Scotland on 19 May 1537.
Madeleine died soon after arrival in Scotland in July 1537. James then proceeded to marry Mary of Guise on 12 June 1538. Mary already had two sons from her first marriage, and the union produced two sons. However, both died in April 1541. Their daughter and James's only surviving legitimate child, Mary, was born in 1542 at Linlithgow Palace. [3]
War with England
The death of James's 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 August 1542.
James returned to Edinburgh on the way writing a letter in French to his wife from Falahill mentioning he had three days of illness. Next month his army suffered a serious defeat at The Battle of Solway Moss. James took ill shortly after this, soon James was on his deathbed at Falkland Palace when his only surviving legitimate child, a girl, was born. James died at midnight on Thursday 15 December. James was buried at Holyrood Abbey in Edinburgh. [4]
Notes
- King Henry II's sister, Madeleine of Valois, was Queen Mary of Scotland's father's first wife.
- Only legitimate child of James IV to survive infancy
- Became king at just seventeen months old