Alexander Garden or Gardyne (c. 1585 - c. 1642) was a Scottish poet from Aberdeenshire.

Life and works

He is believed to have graduated from

Marischal College Marischal College ( ) is a large granite building on Broad Street in the centre of Aberdeen in north-east Scotland, and since 2011 has acted as the headquarters of Aberdeen City Council. However, the building was constructed for and is on long- ...

before 1609 when a work of his was published calling him '' Mr.'', implying he had the degree of MA. This book was ''A Garden of Grave and Godlie Flowers'': a collection of poems, elegies and prayers in praise of King James, other public figures and also friends. His ''The Theatre of the Scottish Kings'' (c. 1625, but started in 1612) and ''A Theatre of Scottish Worthies'' are a series of short poems about every Scottish king from

Fergus I Fergus may refer to: Given name or surname *Fergus (name), including lists of people and fictional and mythological characters Places *Fergus, Ontario, Canada * River Fergus, County Clare, Ireland *Lake Fergus, South Island, New Zealand *Loc ...

on, and about various warriors and knights. He also wrote ''The Lyf, Doings and Deathe of William Elphinstoun'' (1619) based on a Latin work by

Hector Boece Hector Boece (; also spelled Boyce or Boise; 1465–1536), known in Latin as Hector Boecius or Boethius, was a Scottish philosopher and historian, and the first Principal of King's College in Aberdeen, a predecessor of the University of Abe ...

about

Bishop Elphinstone William Elphinstone (143125 October 1514) was a Scottish statesman, Bishop of Aberdeen and founder of the University of Aberdeen. Biography He was born in Glasgow. His father, also William Elphinstone, later became the first Dean of the Fac ...

. The first two of these books were published together in 1845 for the

Abbotsford Club The Abbotsford Club was a text publication society founded in Edinburgh in 1833 or 1834. This was the year after the death of Sir Walter Scott, whose residence of Abbotsford House gave the society its name, and whose literature the club's publicatio ...

, the historical and literary society. There are records of Garden as an advocate in 1633, and again in 1638 when he was one of a committee appointed to choose a new sub-principal sheriff. It used to be thought that the poet died around 1634; but recently 1642 has been suggested as more likely.Derrick McClure, in ''ODNB'' 2004

References

*
National Library of Scotland

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Garden, Alexander 1580s births 1640s deaths Scottish poets Members of the Faculty of Advocates People from Aberdeenshire Alumni of the University of Aberdeen