Janet Douglas, Lady Glamis (c. 1498 – 17 July 1537) was a Scottish noblewoman accused of witchcraft, who was executed by burning during the reign of

James V of Scotland James V (10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was King of Scotland from 9 September 1513 until his death in 1542. He was crowned on 21 September 1513 at the age of seventeen months. James was the son of King James IV and Margaret Tudor, and du ...

Treason and charges of witchcraft

The Douglas family was far from favoured by King

; Janet's brother,

Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus (c. 148922 January 1557) was a Scottish nobleman active during the reigns of James V and Mary, Queen of Scots. He was the son of George, Master of Angus, who was killed at the Battle of Flodden, and suc ...

, was the King's stepfather, and Angus had imprisoned the young James. James' hatred for Angus extended to his whole family, including Janet. After James had broken free of the Douglas family, in December 1528, Janet was summoned for treason. She was accused with others for bringing supporters of the

Earl of Angus The Mormaer or Earl of Angus was the ruler of the medieval Scottish province of Angus. The title, in the Peerage of Scotland, is held by the Duke of Hamilton, and is used as a courtesy title for the eldest son of the Duke's eldest son. Histor ...

to Edinburgh in June. However, James called her "our lovittis Dame Jonat Douglas" in a licence of 1529, allowing her and a co-accused Patrick Charteris of Cuthilgurdy to go on pilgrimage, and be exempt from legal proceedings. A recent historian, Jamie Cameron, thinks it unlikely that Janet went on pilgrimage, as she was the subject of a number of legal actions culminating in a charge of poisoning her husband

John Lyon, 6th Lord Glamis John Lyon, 6th Lord Glamis (died 1528) was a Scottish nobleman. He was the second son of John Lyon, 4th Lord Glamis, and succeeded his brother as Lord Glamis in 1505. He married Janet Douglas (died 17 July 1537) Janet was falsely charged with ...

who had died on 17 September 1528. This case was dropped, and Janet was free to marry her second husband, Archibald Campbell of Skipness by the summer of 1532. However, on 17 July 1537, Janet was convicted of planning to poison the King, and communicating with her brothers, the Earl of Angus and George Douglas. James had Janet accused of witchcraft against him, although it was clear that the accusations were false. She was imprisoned with her husband (who escaped but was later killed) in a dungeon of Edinburgh Castle. It was easy for James to imprison Janet, but actually convicting her was more difficult. To gain "evidence", James had Janet's family members and servants subjected to torture. Janet was convicted and burned at the stake on 17 July 1537 by Edinburgh Castle, which her young son was forced to watch.

Family

She was the daughter of George Douglas, Master of Angus and Elizabeth Drummond, daughter of

John Drummond, 1st Lord Drummond {{Infobox noble , name = John Drummond , title = Lord Drummond , image = , caption = , alt = , CoA = , more = no , succession = , reign ...

. She married firstly to John Lyon, 6th

Lord Glamis 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 are ...

(1492–1528) and by him had issue: *

John Lyon, 7th Lord Glamis John Lyon, 7th Lord Glamis (1558) was a Scottish nobleman. Life He was born about 1521, the son of John Lyon, 6th Lord Glamis, by Janet Douglas, second daughter of George, master of Angus. His father died in 1528. Along with his mother, who ha ...

* George Lyon * Margaret Lyon * Elizabeth Lyon, married 1st: John Forbes, Master of Forbes; married 2nd: Thomas Craig of Balnely; married 3rd: John Tulloch of Montcoffer; married 4th: John Abernethy. Janet, Lady Glamis married secondly Archibald Campbell of

Skipnish Skipness ( gd, Sgibinis, ) is a village on the east coast of Kintyre in Scotland, located just over south of Tarbert and facing the Isle of Arran. There is Skipness Castle (a ruined castle) and Kilbrannan Chapel, which contains some rare ...

, second son of

Archibald Campbell, 2nd Earl of Argyll Gillespie Archibald Campbell, 2nd Earl of Argyll ( – 9 September 1513) was a Scottish nobleman and politician who was killed at the Battle of Flodden. Biography Archibald was the eldest son of Colin Campbell, 1st Earl of Argyll and Isabel Ste ...

, and had issue:Balfour Paul, Sir James, ''Scots Peerage'' vol viii, pp.278-280, Edinburgh 1904
/ref> * John Campbell, of Skipness, Provost of Kilmun

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Douglas, Janet, Lady Glamis 1490s births 1537 deaths Year of birth uncertain People executed for witchcraft Executed Scottish women Executed British people 16th-century Scottish people Court of James V of Scotland Ladies of Parliament People executed by the Kingdom of Scotland by burning 16th-century executions by Scotland Witchcraft in Scotland Witch trials in Scotland