Alexander Clark of Balbirnie (died 1591) was a Scottish merchant and Provost of Edinburgh. He was closely involved with English diplomacy. Alexander Clark was

Provost of Edinburgh The Right Honourable Lord Provost of Edinburgh is the convener of the City of Edinburgh local authority, who is elected by the city council and serves not only as the chair of that body, but as a figurehead for the entire city, ex officio the ...

in 1578 and from 1579 to 1584. His surname can also be written "Clerk" or "Clarke", the historian Michael Lynch uses "Clark". Balbirnie is now part of

Glenrothes Glenrothes (; , ; sco, Glenrothes; gd, Gleann Rathais) is a town situated in the heart of Fife, in east-central Scotland. It is about north of Edinburgh and south of Dundee. The town had a population of 39,277 in the 2011 census, making i ...

Career

In November 1560 Clark was in Paris, an archer of the Scottish Guard, and a friend of the English ambassador

Nicholas Throckmorton Sir Nicholas Throckmorton (or Throgmorton) (c. 1515/151612 February 1571) was an English diplomat and politician, who was an ambassador to France and later Scotland, and played a key role in the relationship between Elizabeth I of Englan ...

. He obtained permission to return to Scotland with a Scottish ambassador

Lord Seton Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or a ...

, and Throckmorton gave him a letter for William Cecil in London, recommending his services. Throckmorton advised secrecy in London and did not wish French diplomats to see Clark received at court by

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". El ...

. Throckmorton also wrote to Elizabeth, explaining that Clark could help her ally, the Protestant

James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran (1537–1609) was a Scottish nobleman and soldier who opposed the French-dominated regency during the Scottish Reformation. He was the eldest son of James Hamilton, Duke of Châtellerault, sometime regent of S ...

and was also in credit with the Catholic Lord Seton. He would be able to send her good intelligence on French initiatives in Scotland. Clark wrote to Cecil on 1 January 1561 from Edinburgh. He said that Lord Seton had been invited to an audience in France with

Francis, Duke of Guise Francis de Lorraine II, the first Prince of Joinville, also Duke of Guise and Duke of Aumale (french: François de Lorraine; 17 February 1519 – 24 February 1563), was a French general and statesman. A prominent leader during the Italian War of ...

and Cardinal of Lorraine and two military engineers or "devisers of forts". They had discussed a map of

Lindisfarne Lindisfarne, also called Holy Island, is a tidal island off the northeast coast of England, which constitutes the civil parish of Holy Island in Northumberland. Holy Island has a recorded history from the 6th century AD; it was an important ...

or Holy Island near

Berwick-upon-Tweed Berwick-upon-Tweed (), sometimes known as Berwick-on-Tweed or simply Berwick, is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, and the northernmost town in England. The 2011 United Kingdom census recor ...

, with a clay model of the island with two forts intended to be garrisoned for France. The plan, according to Clark, was to capture the English fortress town of Berwick by next May. Clark was established in Edinburgh as a burgess and guild member in the 1560s with the help of the Earl of Moray. He became a friend of the English ambassador, Thomas Randolph. In April 1565 he was one of the first to see Roman remains discovered at Inveresk near Musselburgh and described a

hypocaust A hypocaust ( la, hypocaustum) is a system of central heating in a building that produces and circulates hot air below the floor of a room, and may also warm the walls with a series of pipes through which the hot air passes. This air can warm th ...

and carved stones to Thomas Randolph. Randolph sent a copy of an inscription, "APOLLONI GRANNO Q. L. SABINIANUS PROC. AUG" to Cecil. This "proud and blasphemous superscription" was first published by

John Napier John Napier of Merchiston (; 1 February 1550 – 4 April 1617), nicknamed Marvellous Merchiston, was a Scottish landowner known as a mathematician, physicist, and astronomer. He was the 8th Laird of Merchiston. His Latinized name was Ioann ...

in 1593. Later in April 1565, Clark sent Randolph a political newsletter. He opened with comments on Randolph's personal business, his debts and rent, and made a joke with nonsense words about Randolph's affection for

Mary Beaton Mary Beaton (1543–1598) was a Scottish noblewoman and an attendant of Mary, Queen of Scots. She and three other ladies-in-waiting ( Mary Livingston, Mary Fleming and Mary Seton) were collectively known as "The Four Marys". Family Mary wa ...

, a companion of

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of Scot ...

; "And as to your mistress Marie Beton, she is both darimpus and sclenbrunit, and you in like manner without contrebaxion or kylteperante, so you are both worth little money." In September 1567 Clark lent Regent Moray £530 Scots on the security of a gold pendant enamelled in black with a long

cabochon A cabochon (; ) is a gemstone that has been shaped and polished, as opposed to faceted. The resulting form is usually a convex (rounded) obverse with a flat reverse. Cabochon was the default method of preparing gemstones before gemstone cutt ...

ruby from the

jewels of Mary, Queen of Scots The jewels of Mary, Queen of Scots (1542–1587), are mainly known through the evidence of inventories held by the National Records of Scotland. She was bought jewels during her childhood in France, adding to those she inherited. She gave gifts o ...

. He formed a partnership with another merchant, William Birnie, to sell the lead from the roof of

Elgin Cathedral Elgin Cathedral is a historic ruin in Elgin, Moray, north-east Scotland. The cathedral—dedicated to the Holy Trinity—was established in 1224 on land granted by King Alexander II outside the burgh of Elgin and close to the River Lossie. ...

. Clark loaned money to

William Kirkcaldy of Grange Sir William Kirkcaldy of Grange (c. 1520 –3 August 1573) was a Scottish politician and soldier who fought for the Scottish Reformation but ended his career holding Edinburgh castle on behalf of Mary, Queen of Scots and was hanged at the co ...

secured on more of the queen's jewels. Grange used the money to pay the wages of the garrison of

Edinburgh Castle Edinburgh Castle is a historic castle in Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland. It stands on Castle Rock (Edinburgh), Castle Rock, which has been occupied by humans since at least the Iron Age, although the nature of the early settlement is unclear. ...

during the " Lang Siege". After the castle surrendered, Clark delivered the jewels to

Regent Morton James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton (c. 1516 – 2 June 1581, aged 65) was the last of the four regents of Scotland during the minority of King James VI. He was in some ways the most successful of the four, since he won the civil war that had b ...

. In May 1581 Clark asked the

Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mon ...

that if Kirkcaldy's heirs were ever restored to his lands, he should be paid. In February 1580 Clark was reimbursed £106 by the town's treasurer for a banquet he held for the king and the

. On 8 June 1582 Clerk appeared before the

Privy Council of Scotland The Privy Council of Scotland ( — 1 May 1708) was a body that advised the Scottish monarch. In the range of its functions the council was often more important than the Estates in the running the country. Its registers include a wide range of m ...

Stirling Castle Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most important castles in Scotland, both historically and architecturally. The castle sits atop Castle Hill, an intrusive crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological ...

and gave his oath with others of the burgh council that they would endeavour to recover 8,000

merks The merk is a long-obsolete Scottish silver coin. Originally the same word as a money mark of silver, the merk was in circulation at the end of the 16th century and in the 17th century. It was originally valued at 13 shillings 4 pence (exactly ...

from the estate of the late Robert Reid, Bishop of Orkney and employ the money to found the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

. As Provost of Edinburgh, Clark loaned money to

James VI James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

. In April 1584 the king's valet John Gibb delivered a royal jewel, a tablet or locket with a diamond and an emerald, to Clark, as a pledge for a loan of 6,000

. In October 1589 the next Provost John Arnot gave the jewel back to the king as a gift on his marriage. It was delivered by Clark's son-in-law John Provand to

William Fairlie William Fairlie or Fairley ( fl. 1570–1600) was an Edinburgh merchant and burgess. Fairlie was frequently asked by Edinburgh town ( burgh) council to survey and account for public works for the town council of Edinburgh. He was described as a " ...

, who commissioned the goldsmith David Gilbert to refashion and upgrade it, and it was presented to

Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional fo ...

during her Entry to Edinburgh in May 1590.

Marguerite Wood Marguerite Wood (30 August 1887 – 19 August 1954) was a Scottish historian and archivist who specialised in Scottish history. She served as Keeper of the Burgh Records of Edinburgh and was a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and a member o ...

, ''Extracts from the Burgh Records of Edinburgh: 1589-1603'', vol. 6 (Edinburgh, 1927), p. 7.

Marriage and family

Clark married Marion Primrose, a daughter of the royal physician Gilbert Primrose. Their children included: * Alexander Clerk * James Clark or Clerk of Balbirnie * Bathia Clark, who married

John Provand John Provand (died 1610) was a Scottish merchant in 16th-century Edinburgh. He was usually described as "Mr John Provand", indicating he had a university education. There was at this time a John Provand, Provost of the Collegiate Church of Abernet ...

of Caldhame. His first wife was Katherine Henrysoun. * Magdalene Clark, who married

Edward Bruce, 1st Lord Kinloss Edward Bruce, 1st Lord Kinloss PC (1548 – 14 January 1611) was a Scottish lawyer and judge. He was the second son of Edward Bruce of Blairhall and Alison Reid. Career In 1594 James VI sent him as ambassador to London and gave him £1,000 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark of Balbirnie, Alexander 1591 deaths Year of birth unknown 16th-century Scottish people People of the Scottish Marian Civil War Lord Provosts of Edinburgh 16th-century Scottish businesspeople