''Lion'' was the name of five warships of the
Royal Scottish Navy
The Royal Scots Navy (or Old Scots Navy) was the navy of the Kingdom of Scotland from its origins in the Middle Ages until its merger with the Kingdom of England's Royal Navy per the Acts of Union 1707. There are mentions in Medieval records of ...
during the 16th century, some of which were
prizes
A prize is an award to be given to a person or a group of people (such as sporting teams and organizations) to recognize and reward their actions and achievements. captured by, and from the
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
. The names of these ships reflect the
Royal Arms of Scotland
The royal arms of Scotland is the official coat of arms of the King of Scots first adopted in the 12th century.
With the Union of the Crowns in 1603, James VI inherited the thrones of England and Ireland and thus his arms in Scotland were now Qua ...
and its central motif of the
Lion Rampant
The lion is a common charge in heraldry. It traditionally symbolises courage, nobility, royalty, strength, stateliness and valour, because historically the lion has been regarded as the "king of beasts". The lion also carries Judeo-Christia ...
.
The two ''Lion''s of James IV
''Lion'' was commanded by brothers Sir
Robert Barton
Robert Childers Barton (14 March 1881 – 10 August 1975) was an Anglo-Irish politician, Irish nationalist and farmer who participated in the negotiations leading up to the signature of the Anglo-Irish Treaty. His father was Charles William Bar ...
and Sir
Andrew Barton. The ship did not belong to the king but was fitted out for warfare by the Barton brothers. She was around 120 tons with a crew of forty, and probably the largest merchant ship used and hired by
James IV of Scotland
James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was King of Scotland from 11 June 1488 until his death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. He inherited the throne at the age of fifteen on the death of his father, James III, at the Battle of Sauchi ...
; small in comparison the king's ''
Margaret
Margaret is a female first name, derived via French () and Latin () from grc, μαργαρίτης () meaning "pearl". The Greek is borrowed from Persian.
Margaret has been an English name since the 11th century, and remained popular througho ...
'' and ''
Great Michael
''Michael'', popularly known as ''Great Michael'', was a carrack or great ship of the Royal Scottish Navy. She was the largest ship built by King James IV of Scotland
James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was King of Scotland fr ...
''.
Robert Barton took James IV of Scotland to the
Isle of May
The Isle of May is located in the north of the outer Firth of Forth, approximately off the coast of mainland Scotland. It is about long and wide. The island is owned and managed by NatureScot as a national nature reserve. There are now no ...
and
Blackness Castle
Blackness Castle is a 15th-century fortress, near the village of Blackness, Scotland, on the south shore of the Firth of Forth.
It was built, probably on the site of an earlier fort, by Sir George Crichton in the 1440s. At this time, Blacknes ...
with the ''Lion'' and another boat in July and September 1506. Andrew Barton took ''Lion'' and the small ''Jennet of Purwyn'', (which was a captured Danish ship) close to England in June 1511. He was acting with a royal ''
Letter of Marque'', which was a license to plunder Portuguese ships. Both ships were captured by
Sir Edward and
Sir Thomas Howard
''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English language, English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist i ...
and taken to Blackwall. Andrew Barton was killed during their capture.
Robert Barton provided a new larger replacement ''Lion'' of 300 tons. The new ''Lion'' was victualled at Honfleur on 24 August 1513 with supplies for 260 men. James IV had lent his ships to France in the months before
Flodden
The Battle of Flodden, Flodden Field, or occasionally Branxton, (Brainston Moor) was a battle fought on 9 September 1513 during the War of the League of Cambrai between the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland, resulting in an English ...
.
''Lion'' and ''Lioness'' of James V
''Lion'', or ''Great Lion'' was commanded by Sir Robert Barton and later by his nephew John Barton. Captured by the English off the Kent coast in March 1547. In the 1530s this ship had been captured from the English navy and passed into the hands of
James V of Scotland
James V (10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was List of Scottish monarchs, 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 James IV of Sco ...
. The Lion was part of the fleet that James V took to France in 1536 and brought back
Madeleine of Valois
Madeleine of France or Madeleine of Valois (10 August 1520 – 7 July 1537) was a French princess who briefly became Queen of Scotland in 1537 as the first wife of King James V. The marriage was arranged in accordance with the Treaty of Rouen, ...
in 1537. Known as ''Great Lion'', she and ''
Salamander
Salamanders are a group of amphibians typically characterized by their lizard-like appearance, with slender bodies, blunt snouts, short limbs projecting at right angles to the body, and the presence of a tail in both larvae and adults. All ten ...
'' were fitted with 15 large wheeled guns and 10 smaller wheeled guns in May 1540, for the king's voyage to Orkney in June. John Barton sailed to Dieppe with ''Great Lion'' and ''Salamander'' in June 1541, and had their 27 guns cleaned and the latter ship re-rigged. In December 1542, ''Mary Willoughby'', ''Salamander'' and ''Lion'' blockaded the London merchant ship ''Antony of Bruges'' in a creek on the coast of Brittany near
'Poldavy Haven.'
In March and April 1544, ''Lion'' was prepared for a voyage to France with ambassadors.
David Lindsay of the Mount
Sir David Lyndsay of the Mount (c. 1490 – c. 1555; ''alias'' Lindsay) was a Scottish herald who gained the highest heraldic office of Lyon King of Arms. He remains a well regarded poet whose works reflect the spirit of the Renaissance, spec ...
,
David Paniter
David Panter lso written Painter, or Paniter(died 1 October 1558), Scottish diplomat, clerk and bishop of Ross, was the illegitimate son of Patrick Paniter, secretary to James IV; his mother was Margaret Crichton, illegitimate daughter of ...
, Sir John Campbell of Lundy, and Marco Grimani, Patriarch of Aquileia were rumoured to be passengers.
Hertford
Hertford ( ) is the county town of Hertfordshire, England, and is also a civil parish in the East Hertfordshire district of the county. The parish had a population of 26,783 at the 2011 census.
The town grew around a ford on the River Lea, ne ...
noted this was a prize not to be missed, and the
Master of Morton wrote to him pointing out the opportunity to capture friend and foe, including his own father. She sailed on 7 April 1544, evading capture. The ''Mary Willoughby'', ''Lyon'', ''Andrew'', and three French-built ships menaced the quay of Bridlington on 19 September 1544.
In October 1546, Florence Corntoun spent £305 repairing the ''Lion.'' Captain William Forstar was compensated with £540 for his expenses during 1544 fighting the war of
Rough Wooing
The Rough Wooing (December 1543 – March 1551), also known as the Eight Years' War, was part of the Anglo-Scottish Wars of the 16th century. Following its break with the Roman Catholic Church, England attacked Scotland, partly to break the ...
; £483 for repairs in March 1545; £708 for a voyage to the isles in June 1545; and £346 for recent works in dry-dock described as;
to Williame Forstar quhilk he debursit upoun the calfating, dok casting, putting in of the under lute of the said Lyoun, and outred of hir to the Raid (attack)."
![AnthonyRoll-7 Pauncy](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/57/AnthonyRoll-7_Pauncy.jpg)
From October 1546, with other Scottish warships she was disrupting the English wine trade by blockading
Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectur ...
and
La Rochelle
La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle''; oc, La Rochèla ) is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department. With ...
. In March 1547, she took a broadside from
Andrew Dudley
Sir Andrew Dudley, KG (c. 1507 – 1559) was an English soldier, courtier, and diplomat. A younger brother of John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland, he served in Henry VIII's navy and obtained court offices under Edward VI. In 1547&n ...
's ''Pansy'' off Dover which burst her
orlop
The orlop is the lowest deck in a ship (except for very old ships). It is the deck or part of a deck where the cables are stowed, usually below the water line.
According to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'', the word descends from Dutch
Dut ...
. She was lost off
Harwich
Harwich is a town in Essex, England, and one of the Haven ports on the North Sea coast. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the north-east, Ipswich to the north-west, Colchester to the south-west and Clacton-on- ...
or
Yarmouth
Yarmouth may refer to:
Places Canada
*Yarmouth County, Nova Scotia
**Yarmouth, Nova Scotia
**Municipality of the District of Yarmouth
**Yarmouth (provincial electoral district)
**Yarmouth (electoral district)
* Yarmouth Township, Ontario
*New ...
during the salvage operation.
Odet de Selve
Odet de Selve (c. 1504-1563) was a French diplomat.
He was the son of Jean de Selve, first president at the parliaments of Rouen and Bordeaux, vice-chancellor of Milan, and ambassador of the king of France. In 1540 Odet was appointed councillor at ...
, the French ambassador in London gained a detailed account from Nicolas d'Arfeville, a French painter and cartographer. Dudley was 30 miles from Yarmouth when he saw ''Great Lion'', with ''Lioness'', ''Mary Gallant'' and another unnamed Scottish ship on Tuesday 7 March 1547. ''Great Lion'' was overwhelmed by superior firepower, and the others surrendered, excepting the unnamed ship. The badly damaged ''Lion'' was lost while being towed to Yarmouth when she grounded on a sandbank. Those on board were brought as prisoners to the
Tower of London
The Tower of London, officially His Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress of the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, which is separa ...
, and at least one notable passenger was killed in the firefight.
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 ...
sued for the release of one passenger, the diplomat Thomas Erskine
Commendator of Dryburgh.
''Lioness''; during the Scottish lifetime of ''Great Lion'' there appears to have been another ship called ''Lion'' in the Scots navy. This was probably ''Lioness'', described by de Selve as of similar size to ''Mary Gallant'', between 100 and 300 tons.
The private ''Lion of Leith'' and privateer
Mary of Guise
Mary of Guise (french: Marie de Guise; 22 November 1515 – 11 June 1560), also called Mary of Lorraine, was a French noblewoman of the House of Guise, a cadet branch of the House of Lorraine and one of the most powerful families in France. She ...
also hired a private ship, called ''Lion'' in August 1554 to attack
Borve Castle, Sutherland
Borve Castle in Sutherland, Scottish Highlands is now a ruin. Formerly called the House of Burro. It was built in Kirtomy Bay near the hamlet of Farr. It is also known as Farr Castle.
History
The castle, which may have originally been constr ...
held by
Iye Du Mackay.
Hugh Kennedy of Girvanmains
Hugh or Huw Kennedy of Girvanmains was a Scottish courtier, soldier, and landowner.
He was the son of Alexander Kennedy of Girvanmains in Ayrshire. The family lived at Dalquharran Castle.
He was a supporter of Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus ...
embarked 50 men of war and the royal gunner Hans Cochrane with a cannon. On New Year's Day 1560 this ''Lion'' captured a Portuguese merchant ship carrying cloth near the
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...
; and later another carrying sugar and olives; ''Our Lady of Consolation'' of
Oporto
Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...
carrying figs; and ''Saint Anthony'' of Aviero laden with salt. The partners in this adventure and the Captain, John Edmondstone, fell out over the proceeds and brought the case to the court of the
Lord High Admiral of Scotland
The Lord High Admiral of Scotland was one of the Great Officers of State of the Kingdom of Scotland before the Union with England in 1707.
The office was one of considerable power, also known as ''Royal Scottish Admiralty'', including command ...
,
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 ...
. They produced a letter of marque dating to the time of James IV belonging to
Robert Logan of Restalrig
Sir Robert Logan of Restalrig (1555-July 1606) was a Scottish knight involved in the Gowrie House affair of 1600.
Family background
Robert Logan's father and grandfather were also called "Robert Logan of Restalrig".
In 1547, his father, Robert ...
. A year later, another Captain of the ''Lion'', Patrick Blackadder, came to the court on 13 May 1561, this time for two Portuguese ships carrying sugar, ''Peter'' and ''Holy Spirit'', captured in
the Wash
The Wash is a rectangular bay and multiple estuary at the north-west corner of East Anglia on the East coast of England, where Norfolk, England, Norfolk meets Lincolnshire and both border the North Sea. One of Britain's broadest estuaries, it i ...
in April 1561. Blackadder produced the captured Portuguese sailors and the original letter of marque given to Andrew Barton on 20 November 1506. Robert Barton's descendant John Moubray of
Barnebougall made a counterclaim for ownership of the letter and a share of the spoil.
In February 1567, ''Lion of Leith'' and ''Unicorn of Leith'' were at the Port of London, and were licensed by
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 ...
to carry bows and arrows and pewter vessels to Scotland for the
Earl of Murray. This ''Lion'' was taken in 1567 by
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 c ...
in pursuit of the
Earl of Bothwell
Earl of Bothwell was a title that was created twice in the Peerage of Scotland. It was first created for Patrick Hepburn in 1488, and was forfeited in 1567. Subsequently, the earldom was re-created for the 4th Earl's nephew and heir of line, F ...
to
Shetland
Shetland, also called the Shetland Islands and formerly Zetland, is a subarctic archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands and Norway. It is the northernmost region of the United Kingdom.
The islands lie about to the no ...
where he ran aground north of
Bressay
Bressay ( sco, Bressa) is a populated island in the Shetland archipelago of Scotland.
Geography and geology
Bressay lies due south of Whalsay, west of the Isle of Noss, and north of Mousa. With an area of , it is the fifth-largest island in Shet ...
Sound.
[Reid, David ed., ''Hume of Godscroft's History of the House of Angus'', vol. 1, STS (2005), p.171: ''Register of the Privy Seal of Scotland'', vol. 8, HMSO, (1982), 66-67, no. 397: Strickland, Agnes, ed., ''Letters of Mary Queen of Scots'', vol.1 (1842), pp. 244-248]
Footnotes
External links
Electric Scotland, Leiths sea-dogs: The fighting Bartons
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lion
Ships of the Royal Scots Navy
Individual sailing vessels
16th-century ships
Captured ships