James, Duke of Rothesay (22 May 1540 – 21 April 1541) was the first of the two sons and three children born to King

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 ...

and his second wife,

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. Sh ...

. From the moment of his birth James was

Duke of Rothesay Duke of Rothesay ( ; gd, Diùc Baile Bhòid; sco, Duik o Rothesay) is a dynastic title of the heir apparent to the British throne, currently William, Prince of Wales. William's wife Catherine, Princess of Wales, is the current Duchess of Ro ...

and

heir apparent An heir apparent, often shortened to heir, is a person who is first in an order of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person; a person who is first in the order of succession but can be displaced by the b ...

to the Scottish throne.

Life

James, Duke of Rothesay was born in

St Andrews St Andrews ( la, S. Andrea(s); sco, Saunt Aundraes; gd, Cill Rìmhinn) is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fourt ...

on 22 May 1540. As James V's first legitimate child and the heir to the throne, he automatically became Duke of Rothesay,

Earl of Carrick Earl of Carrick (or Mormaer of Carrick) is the title applied to the ruler of Carrick (now South Ayrshire), subsequently part of the Peerage of Scotland. The position came to be strongly associated with the Scottish crown when Robert the Bruce, ...

, Baron of Renfrew,

Lord of the Isles The Lord of the Isles or King of the Isles ( gd, Triath nan Eilean or ) is a title of Scottish nobility with historical roots that go back beyond the Kingdom of Scotland. It began with Somerled in the 12th century and thereafter the title ...

and

Prince and Great Steward of Scotland Prince and Great Steward of Scotland are two of the titles of the heir apparent to the throne of the United Kingdom. The current holder of these titles is Prince William, who bears the other Scottish titles of Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick ...

. The baby prince was baptised in a lavish ceremony in St Andrews on 26 May. His godparents were the Queen Dowager

Margaret Tudor Margaret Tudor (28 November 1489 – 18 October 1541) was Queen of Scotland from 1503 until 1513 by marriage to King James IV. She then served as regent of Scotland during her son's minority, and successfully fought to extend her regency. Ma ...

(his paternal grandmother),

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

David Beaton David Beaton (also Beton or Bethune; 29 May 1546) was Archbishop of St Andrews and the last Scottish cardinal prior to the Reformation. Career Cardinal Beaton was the sixth and youngest son of eleven children of John Beaton (Bethune) of Bal ...

Archbishop of St Andrews The Bishop of St. Andrews ( gd, Easbaig Chill Rìmhinn, sco, Beeshop o Saunt Andras) was the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of St Andrews in the Catholic Church and then, from 14 August 1472, as Archbishop of St Andrews ( gd, Àrd-easbaig ...

, and Gavin Dunbar,

Archbishop of Glasgow The Archbishop of Glasgow is an archiepiscopal title that takes its name after the city of Glasgow in Scotland. The position and title were abolished by the Church of Scotland in 1689; and, in the Scottish Episcopal Church, it is now part of ...

. Fifteen ells of white Genoese

taffeta Taffeta (archaically spelled taffety or taffata) is a crisp, smooth, plain woven fabric made from silk, cuprammonium rayons, acetate, and polyester. The word is Persian (تافته) in origin and means "twisted woven". As clothing, it is used i ...

were used as

serviette A napkin, serviette or face towelette is a square of cloth or paper tissue used at the table for wiping the mouth and fingers while eating. It is usually small and folded, sometimes in intricate designs and shapes. Etymology and terminology ...

s to hold the torches at the baptism, the child was provided with a cradle carved by a French craftsman

Andrew Mansioun Andrew Mansioun, or Mentioun or Manschone or Manson, (d. 1579) was a French artist who worked at the court of James V, King of Scots. He was the master carpenter of the Scottish artillery for Mary, Queen of Scots and James VI of Scotland. Works ...

, and a canopy for his bed of state, members of the nobility were summoned to attend, coats of arms were painted, and some of the king's silver plate was sent from Edinburgh for the occasion. James V also sent messengers to inform

Henry VIII of England Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

and

Francis I of France Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin on ...

of the birth. The baptism may have been celebrated with a fireworks display, the royal accounts for June 1540 reveal two French royal gunners were paid for making . The ingredients for the fire-balls and other fireworks included mercury, aqua vitae, walnut oil, brimstone, lint, hemp, and tallow. The king's former favourite

James Hamilton of Finnart Sir James Hamilton of Finnart (c. 1495 – 16 August 1540) was a Scottish nobleman and architect, the illegitimate son of James Hamilton, 1st Earl of Arran, and Marion Boyd of Bonshaw. Although legitimated in 1512 while still a minor, he conti ...

was executed in August 1540. His silver, for use in his chapel, was brought from

Craignethan Castle Craignethan Castle is a ruined castle in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is located above the River Nethan, a tributary of the River Clyde, at . The castle is two miles west of the village of Crossford, and 4.5 miles north-west of Lanark. Built ...

to Edinburgh, where John Mosman engraved it with the heraldry of James, Duke of Rothesay. The re-purposed silverware was sent to Thomas Duddingston, master of the prince's household at St Andrews. A list of payments for livery clothes to his household servants made in January 1541 includes two servants of his half-sister

Lady Jean Stewart Lady Jean Stewart (also known as Jane Stuart; c. 1533 – 7 January 1587/88), was an illegitimate daughter of King James V of Scotland by his mistress, Elizabeth Bethune (sometimes spelled ''Betoun'' or ''Beaton''). Childhood Jean was born bet ...

. The prince had four ladies to rock his cradle and his own master cook.

Jean Sinclair Jean or Janet Sinclair was the Scottish nurse of Mary, Queen of Scots. In a letter to Mary of Guise written in 1553, Sinclair mentions her long service starting as nurse to her short-lived son James, Duke of Rothesay (born 1540), Prince James, bo ...

was his nurse. James, Duke of Rothesay died at St Andrews on 21 April 1541, before he had reached his first birthday. He was buried in

Holyrood Abbey Holyrood Abbey is a ruined abbey of the Canons Regular in Edinburgh, Scotland. The abbey was founded in 1128 by David I of Scotland. During the 15th century, the abbey guesthouse was developed into a royal residence, and after the Scottish Ref ...

, his grandmother, wrote to her brother

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

on 12 May from

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 ...

about the death of the two sons and the grief of the parents. She said she took great diligence to put them in comfort, and was "never from them, but ever in their company". Henry Ray,

Berwick Pursuivant Berwick Pursuivant of Arms in Ordinary was an English office of arms created around 1460 for service on the Scottish Marches based at Berwick-upon-Tweed. In the 16th century there was also a Herald or Pursuivant based at Carlisle on the west bord ...

, an English messenger, saw James V at Stirling Castle and reported he "was very pensive and sorrowful for the death of his two children, dying suddenly, both within 14 hours". Scottish chronicle writers including

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 ...

and

George Buchanan George Buchanan ( gd, Seòras Bochanan; February 1506 – 28 September 1582) was a Scottish historian and humanist scholar. According to historian Keith Brown, Buchanan was "the most profound intellectual sixteenth century Scotland produced." ...

mention a story that James V had a dream at

Linlithgow Palace The ruins of Linlithgow Palace are located in the town of Linlithgow, West Lothian, Scotland, west of Edinburgh. The palace was one of the principal residences of the monarchs of Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland in the 15th and 16th ce ...

which foretold the death of his sons. In the dream, James Hamilton of Finnart came to him and threatened to cut his arms off.

Antonia Fraser Lady Antonia Margaret Caroline Fraser, (' Pakenham; born 27 August 1932) is a British author of history, novels, biographies and detective fiction. She is the widow of the 2005 Nobel Laureate in Literature, Harold Pinter (1930–2008), and ...

, ''Mary Queen of Scots'' (Panther, 1970), p. 29.

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stewart, James 1540 births 1541 deaths 16th-century Scottish peers People from St Andrews Scottish royalty Scottish princes James House of Stuart Dukes of Rothesay High Stewards of Scotland Burials at Holyrood Abbey Royalty and nobility who died as children Sons of kings