John Spens, Lord Condie (1520?–1573) was a Scottish lawyer and judge who became

Lord Advocate His Majesty's Advocate, known as the Lord Advocate ( gd, Morair Tagraidh, sco, Laird Advocat), is the chief legal officer of the Scottish Government and the Crown in Scotland for both civil and criminal matters that fall within the devolved p ...

Life

The son of James Spens of Condie and Joanna Arnot, he was born about 1520, and educated at

St Salvator's College, St Andrews St Salvator's College was a college of the University of St Andrews in St Andrews, Scotland. Founded in 1450, it is the oldest of the university's colleges. In 1747 it merged with St Leonard's College to form United College. History St S ...

, where he became a determinant in 1543. In 1549 he was, with eight other advocates, chosen by the Court of Session to plead before them in all cases. On 21 Oct. 1555 he was appointed joint Queen's Advocate to

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 Sco ...

with David Lauder, after whose death in 1560 he was made a judge; but he continued to hold the post of queen's advocate, which he shared with Robert Crichton from 8 February 1560. When John Knox, on account of his letter about the

mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different eleme ...

, was in 1563 accused of

treason Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

, Spens came to him privately, and expressed the opinion that Knox had not been guilty of anything punishable by law. Knox stated that when Spens was commanded to accuse him before the queen, he did so, but "very gently". He adhered to the queen's party after her marriage to Henry Darnley; and he was officially entrusted with the prosecution of the murderers of

David Rizzio David Rizzio ( ; it, Davide Rizzio ; – 9 March 1566) or Riccio ( , ) was an Italian courtier, born in Pancalieri close to Turin, a descendant of an ancient and noble family still living in Piedmont, the Riccio Counts di San Paolo e Solbrito ...

. He also attended officially at the indictment of

James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell James Hepburn, 1st Duke of Orkney and 4th Earl of Bothwell ( – 14 April 1578), better known simply as Lord Bothwell, was a prominent Scottish nobleman. He was known for his marriage to Mary, Queen of Scots, as her third and final husband ...

for the murder of Darnley. In 1566 Spens was appointed one of a commission for the revision of the laws. He remained in office after the imprisonment of the queen. Mary escaped from

Lochleven Castle Lochleven Castle is a ruined castle on an island in Loch Leven, in the Perth and Kinross local authority area of Scotland. Possibly built around 1300, the castle was the site of military action during the Wars of Scottish Independence (1296– ...

in May 1568. At

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

she gave her oath that she had made her abdication under duress. John Spens of Condie drafted a strongly-worded revocation of her demission, denouncing the

Earl of Morton The title Earl of Morton was created in the Peerage of Scotland in 1458 for James Douglas of Dalkeith. Along with it, the title Lord Aberdour was granted. This latter title is the courtesy title for the eldest son and heir to the Earl of Morto ...

, the Earl of Moray, the

Earl of Mar There are currently two earldoms of Mar in the Peerage of Scotland, and the title has been created seven times. The first creation of the earldom is currently held by Margaret of Mar, 31st Countess of Mar, who is also clan chief of Clan Mar. T ...

, and many others.William Fraser
''Memoirs of the Earls of Haddington'', vol. 2 (Edinburgh, 1889), pp. 268-77.
/ref> He died in 1573.

Notes

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Spens, John 1520 births 1573 deaths Lord Advocates Alumni of the University of St Andrews Members of the Faculty of Advocates 16th-century Scottish judges