John Seton, Lord Barns (Born 1553. died 1594) was a Scottish diplomat, courtier and judge.

Life

He was the third son of

George Seton, 7th Lord Seton George Seton V, 7th Lord Seton (1531–1586), was a Lord of the Parliament of Scotland, Master of the Household of Mary, Queen of Scots, and Provost of Edinburgh. He was the eldest son of George Seton, 6th Lord Seton, and Elizabeth Hay, a daughter ...

, by his wife Isabel, daughter of Sir

William Hamilton of Sanquhar Sir William Hamilton of Sanquhar (c. 1510–1570) was pursemaster for James V and the Captain of Edinburgh Castle during the Regency of Regent Arran. William Hamilton was the son of William Hamilton, also of Sanquhar, and Katherine Kennedy, a daug ...

. While still a young man he went to Spain and the court of

Philip II Philip II may refer to: * Philip II of Macedon (382–336 BC) * Philip II (emperor) (238–249), Roman emperor * Philip II, Prince of Taranto (1329–1374) * Philip II, Duke of Burgundy (1342–1404) * Philip II, Duke of Savoy (1438-1497) * Philip ...

, by whom he was made Knight of the Military Order of Santiago and master of the household. He was an attendant to the

Earl of Leicester Earl of Leicester is a title that has been created seven times. The first title was granted during the 12th century in the Peerage of England. The current title is in the Peerage of the United Kingdom and was created in 1837. Early creations ...

in England in 1575.

Francis Walsingham Sir Francis Walsingham ( – 6 April 1590) was principal secretary to Queen Elizabeth I of England from 20 December 1573 until his death and is popularly remembered as her "spymaster". Born to a well-connected family of gentry, Wals ...

found his presence in the earl's household concerning, and Thomas Randolph wrote 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 ...

about him. Seton was appointed master of the stable to

James VI of Scotland James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until hi ...

and Great Master of His Highness' Horses in August 1581. At the same time

Esmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox Esmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox, 1st Earl of Lennox, 6th Seigneur d'Aubigny, (26 May 1583) of the Château d'Aubigny at Aubigny-sur-Nère in the ancient province of Berry, France, was a Roman Catholic French nobleman of Scottish ancestry ...

was made Master of Wardrobe. Only these two officers were allowed to order clothes for pages and lackeys. The Seton family were supporters 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 their politics were not aligned with England. On 14 February 1581 Mark Kerr met the English diplomat Thomas Randolph in Edinburgh and asked for a safe-conduct, a travel document, for

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 ...

to go the English court. Randolph refused, as Seton's politics had not previously favoured England, and Kerr took his answer to the king. John Seton then came to Randolph with the same request. Subsequently, John Seton was sent as ambassador to complain to

Elizabeth I of England Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is ...

regarding her conduct in interfering on behalf of

James Douglas, 4th Earl of 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 ...

, but was not permitted to enter England. He had an argument at court with

James Stewart, Earl of Arran Captain James Stewart, Earl of Arran (died 1595) was created Earl of Arran by the young King James VI, who wrested the title from James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran. He rose to become Lord Chancellor of Scotland and was eventually murdered in ...

and the Seton family were told to leave court and stay at Seton Palace in December 1582. According to

David Hume of Godscroft David Hume or Home of Godscroft (1558–1629) was a Scottish historian and political theorist, poet and controversialist, a major intellectual figure in Jacobean Scotland. It has been said that "Hume marks the culmination of the Scottish humani ...

, the king was ready to go riding when the courtiers were asked left him alone to speak to Arran in private. Seton, as master of the horse stayed, which angered Arran, who made to throw his baton of office at him, and the royal guard hustled him downstairs. He went abroad. In April 1584 the English ambassador heard various rumours of his return or demise, that he had arrived Dumbarton and was secretly in Edinburgh's Canongate and had met the king at Seton Palace, or that he had sea-sickness in the Irish sea, landed on the Isle of Man, and his ship had at Kirkcudbright by some accident without him, and he was dead. On 27 January 1587 he was admitted a member of the privy council; and on 17 February 1588 he was appointed, with the title Lord Barns, an

extraordinary lord of session Extraordinary Lords of Session were lay members of the Court of Session in Scotland from 1532 to 1762, and were part of the historical judiciary of Scotland. When the Court of Session was founded in 1532, it consisted of the Lord President, 14 ...

, in the place of his brother Alexander Seton. Seton died on 25 May 1594. His castle at

Barnes Castle Barnes Castle is an unfinished castle, with a number of defensive banks, located north-east of Haddington in East Lothian, Scotland. It is close to Athelstaneford on the slopes of the Garleton Hills. The remains, also known as Barney Vaults or ...

was uncompleted at his death. The poet William Fowler, who was secretary to the queen

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 ...

wrote an epitaph for John Seton which was printed as a broadsheet.

Family

Seton married Anne, daughter of

William Forbes, 7th Lord Forbes William Forbes, 7th Lord Forbes (1513-1593) was a Scottish landowner. William was the son of John, 6th Lord Forbes and Christian Lundie. His eldest son John, Master of Forbes, and his half-brother "Black" Arthur Forbes signed a band on 27 April 1 ...

, on 8 September 1588 at Lord Ogilvie's house in Angus. Seton had, with other children, a son John who succeeded him. John married Margaret Hay, a daughter of

Francis Hay, 9th Earl of Erroll Francis Hay, 9th Earl of Erroll (30 April 156416 July 1631) was a Scottish nobleman. A convert to Catholicism, he openly conspired with the king of Spain to try to unseat the Protestant Queen Elizabeth. Biography He was the son of Andrew Hay, ...

and

Elizabeth Douglas, Countess of Erroll Elizabeth Douglas, Countess of Erroll (died 1631) was a Scottish aristocrat. Elizabeth was the youngest daughter of William Douglas, 6th Earl of Morton and Agnes Leslie, Countess of Morton. Morton had seven daughters, alleged to have been called ...

. Another son was Hannibal Seton.George Seton, ''History of the family of Seton during eight centuries'', vol. 2 (Edinburgh, 1896), p. 897.

Notes

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Seton, John 1594 deaths Scottish diplomats

Barns A barn is an agricultural building usually on farms and used for various purposes. In North America, a barn refers to structures that house livestock, including cattle and horses, as well as equipment and fodder, and often grain.Allen G. N ...

Knights of Santiago Ambassadors of Scotland 16th-century diplomats 16th-century Scottish people 1553 births People from East Lothian Younger sons of barons

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...