Timothy Cagnioli (floruit 1540–1590) was an Italian merchant and banker in Scotland. Cagnioli was active in Edinburgh during the Regency of

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 ...

and the personal reign 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 ...

. As a merchant he supplied luxury fabrics used in costume and interior decoration. He was able to lend large sums of money and issue letters of credit needed by travellers abroad. He wrote to

from Edinburgh in July 1552, sending three pounds weight of crimson silk, gold and silver thread, and 24 ells of golden gauze. He had ordered more gold and silver gauze to be made in Paris. An account of textiles provided in 1553 includes black velvet, black satin, black damask, taffeta, silk chamlet, and more silver gauze, and crimson, gold, and silver thread. The fabrics were delivered to her at

Stirling Castle Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most important castles in Scotland, both historically and architecturally. The castle sits atop Castle Hill, an intrusive crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological ...

and recorded in her wardrobe book. The burgh council of Edinburgh allowed him to sell whole "sticks" or lengths of silks which he had imported in September 1557, as a wholesaler, but not cut and sell fabrics to customers as free merchants or burgesses of the town could. In February 1558 he provided finance for Mary's half-brother, James Stewart, Commendator of St Andrews, to travel to Paris to complete the marriage contract of Mary and the Dauphin. Cagnioli gave letters of credit worth £6,687 Scots. His mother,

Margaret Erskine Lady Margaret Erskine (8 October 1515 – 5 May 1572) was a mistress of King James V of Scotland and mother of Regent Moray. She was a daughter of John Erskine, 5th Lord Erskine and Lady Margaret Campbell. Royal mistress and mother James V had ...

, Lady of Lochleven, made a bond for repayment with the Clerk Register, James MacGill, and two Edinburgh merchants, James Adamson and

James Barroun James Barroun or Baron (died 1569) was a wealthy Scottish merchant based in Edinburgh and supporter of the Scottish Reformation. He was a member of a family of Edinburgh merchants and became a burgess and member of the guild in 1547. In 1558 his k ...

. At the same time Cagnioli advanced the

Earl of Cassilis Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particular ...

£6,720. Cassilis died in France and Cagnioli was still not repaid in 1586. His cook, Ninian McCrechan, was censured by the town council for slandering the kirk minister

John Knox John Knox ( gd, Iain Cnocc) (born – 24 November 1572) was a Scottish minister, Reformed theologian, and writer who was a leader of the country's Reformation. He was the founder of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland. Born in Giffordgat ...

on 8 April 1562. He said in public on the

High Street High Street is a common street name for the primary business street of a city, town, or village, especially in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. It implies that it is the focal point for business, especially shopping. It is also a metonym fo ...

of Edinburgh that the Earls of

Bothwell Bothwell is a conservation village in the South Lanarkshire council area of Scotland. It lies on the north bank of the River Clyde, adjacent to Uddingston and Hamilton, east-south-east of Glasgow city centre. Description and history An ancie ...

and Arran were agreed, and so Knox's time was run. He was whipped in the

tolbooth A tolbooth or town house was the main municipal building of a Scottish burgh, from medieval times until the 19th century. The tolbooth usually provided a council meeting chamber, a court house and a jail. The tolbooth was one of three essen ...

and put in the branks. Another offence would result in his banishment. Cagnioli received £500 Scots from the queen's income known as the "Thirds of Benefices" in 1562. This was repayment for money advanced to decorate a cabinet room for Mary, Queen of Scots in

Holyrood Palace The Palace of Holyroodhouse ( or ), commonly referred to as Holyrood Palace or Holyroodhouse, is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. Located at the bottom of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, at the opposite end to Edinbu ...

. The queen's valet

Servais de Condé Servais de Condé or Condez (employed 1561-1574) was a French servant at the court of Mary Queen of Scots, in charge of her wardrobe and the costumes for masques performed at court. Varlet of the Wardrobe He was usually referred to as Servais or ...

had lined the cabinet room with 26

ells Ells may refer to: * Ell, a measure of length * Ell (architecture) * Ells (surname), a surname * Ells Field, an airport in Mendocino County, California, United States * Ells River, in Alberta, Canada * Euroleague for Life Sciences See also * E ...

of a fabric called "Paris Green". The English diplomat Thomas Randolph mentions this cabinet as a space to which he was not admitted, where the queen withdrew to write letters and to weep. On 17 February 1565, at

Wemyss Castle Wemyss Castle (pronounced eems is situated in Wemyss on the sea cliffs between the villages of East Wemyss and West Wemyss in Fife, Scotland. Wemyss Castle is considered to be a multi-period building, and today's castle includes many elements ...

, Mary made Cagnioli her "argentar", in charge of her personal expenses. She met

Lord Darnley Lord Darnley is a noble title associated with a Scottish Lordship of Parliament, first created in 1356 for the family of Stewart of Darnley and tracing a descent to the Dukedom of Richmond in England. The title's name refers to Darnley in Scot ...

for the first time on the same day. On 23 February he was made a burgess of Edinburgh, and had customs exemptions granted by Mary. He was allowed to be a burgess because his wife Jonet Curle was from Edinburgh. In October 1565 he was involved in a contract for mining lead ore at

Leadhills Leadhills, originally settled for the accommodation of miners, is a village in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, WSW of Elvanfoot. The population in 1901 was 835. It was originally known as Waterhead. It is the second highest village in Scotland, ...

granted by Mary and

. Joseph Riccio, a brother of Mary's servant

David Riccio 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 ...

ran away from Edinburgh towards England in January 1566, taking money belonging to courtiers including Cagnioli. James Stewart, now Regent Moray, granted him a pension of £100 yearly on 17 May 1569. In June 1574 he had a legal dispute with Marie Pieris, Lady Seton.''Register of the Privy Council of Scotland'', vol. 2, p. 377.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cagnioli, Timothy Court of Mary, Queen of Scots 16th-century Scottish businesspeople Scottish people of Italian descent Material culture of royal courts Monarchy and money