John Erskine of Dun (1509–1591) was a Scottish religious reformer.

Biography

The son of Sir John Erskine,

Laird Laird () is the owner of a large, long-established Scottish estate. In the traditional Scottish order of precedence, a laird ranked below a baron and above a gentleman. This rank was held only by those lairds holding official recognition in ...

of Dun, he was educated at King's College,

University of Aberdeen , mottoeng = The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom , established = , type = Public research universityAncient university , endowment = £58.4 million (2021) , budget ...

. At the age of twenty-one Erskine was the cause — probably by accident — of a priest's death, and was forced to go abroad, where he came under the influence of the new learning. It was through him that

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

was first taught in Scotland by Pierre de Marsilliers, whom he brought to live at Montrose. This was a factor in the progress of the

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

. Erskine was also drawn towards the new faith, being a close friend of George Wishart, the reformer, from whose fate he was saved by his wealth and influence, and of

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 ...

, who advised him to discountenance

the mass Mass is the main Eucharistic liturgical service in many forms of Western Christianity. The term ''Mass'' is commonly used in the Catholic Church, in the Western Rite Orthodox, in Old Catholic, and in Independent Catholic churches. The term ...

openly. Erskine was a supporter 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. Sh ...

during the war of the

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 th ...

and she wrote to him in March 1548 to thank him for his support 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 S ...

, and recommended him to Henri II of France. In August 1549 Erskine objected to the appointment of Captain Beauchastell and a French garrison to the fort of Montrose. Guise wrote that he was still technically in command, and that, "Otherwise it is not best that such thing should be done, considering we have written so much good of your part to the king, and that now any thing should be shown of you in the contrary". In the stormy controversies of the time of Mary, Queen of Scots, and her son,

James VI James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

, Erskine was a conspicuous figure and a moderating influence. He was able to soothe the queen when her feelings had been outraged by Knox's denunciations — being a man "most gentill of nature" — and frequently acted as mediator both between the

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

and reforming parties, and among the reformers themselves. In 1560 he was appointed — though a layman — superintendent of the reformed church of Scotland for Angus and Mearns, and in 1572 he gave his assent to the modified episcopacy proposed by

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 ...

at the Leith convention. Following his ordination to the ministry in 1561,Fasti Ecclesiae Scoticanae, Revised and Enlarged edition 1925, Volume 5 p. 387. because he was held in such high esteem by the leaders of the church that he was elected

moderator of the general assembly The moderator of the General Assembly is the chairperson of a General Assembly, the highest court of a Presbyterian or Reformed church. Kirk sessions and presbyteries may also style the chairperson as moderator. The Oxford Dictionary states t ...

several times (first in 1564), and he was amongst those who in 1588 drew up the '' Second Book of Discipline''. From 1579 he was a member of the king's council. Erskine owed his peculiar influence among the Scottish reformers to his personality; Queen Mary described him as "a mild and sweet-natured man, with true honesty and uprightness". Erskine married Agnes Ogilvy, daughter of Katherine Campbell (d. 1578) and James Ogilvy, Master of Ogilvy.

Notes

References

* This article cites: **"Dun Papers" in the Spalding Club ''Miscellany'', vol. iv. (1849), ** {{DEFAULTSORT:Erskine of Dun, John 1509 births 1591 deaths Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland People from Angus, Scotland Scottish scholars and academics Alumni of the University of Aberdeen Lords of the Congregation 16th-century Scottish people