Margaret Knox (née Stewart; 1547 – after 1612) was a Scottish noblewoman and the second wife of Scottish reformer John Knox, whom she married when she was 17 years old and he 54. The marriage caused consternation from

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 ...

, as the couple had married without having obtained royal consent.

Family

Margaret Stewart was born in 1547, the daughter of

Andrew Stewart, 2nd Lord Ochiltree Andrew Stewart, 2nd Lord Ochiltree (c. 1521–1591) fought for the Scottish Reformation. His daughter married John Knox and he played a part in the defeat of Mary, Queen of Scots at the battle of Langside. Biography Andrew's father, Andrew Stewart ...

, and Agnes Cunningham. The family was staunchly

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...

, and also related to the Scottish royal family and the Hamiltons. Margaret had three sisters and four brothers, including

James Stewart, Earl of Arran Captain James Stewart, Earl of Arran (died 1595) was created Earl of Arran by the young King James VI, who wrested the title from James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran. He rose to become Lord Chancellor of Scotland and was eventually murdered in ...

Marriages and children

On 26 March 1564, she married her first husband, John Knox, leader of the

Scottish Reformation The Scottish Reformation was the process by which Scotland broke with the Papacy and developed a predominantly Calvinist national Kirk (church), which was strongly Presbyterian in its outlook. It was part of the wider European Protestant Refor ...

, and a close friend of her father. His first wife, Marjorie Bowes, had died in December 1560, leaving him with two small sons, Nathaniel and Eleazer. The marriage was strongly criticised by Queen Mary, as they had married without having first obtained her consent. Margaret, as the Queen's relative, was required to ask the monarch for permission to marry. The couple made their home on

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...

's Royal Mile, and together they had three daughters: * Martha Knox (1565–1592), married Alexander Fairlie, by whom she had issue. * Margaret Knox (b.1567), married Zachary Pont, by whom she had issue. * Elizabeth Knox (1570- January 1622), married in 1594, John Welsh, minister of Ayr, by whom she had issue. Margaret served as Knox's secretary, and later, when he became ill, his nurse. Following Knox's death in November 1572, the General Assembly, at the suggestion of the

Regent A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

Morton Morton may refer to: People * Morton (surname) * Morton (given name) Fictional * Morton Koopa, Jr., a character and boss in ''Super Mario Bros. 3'' * A character in the ''Charlie and Lola'' franchise * A character in the 2008 film '' Horton H ...

, allowed Margaret to receive, for the year succeeding her husband's death, his pension of 500

merks The merk is a long-obsolete Scottish silver coin. Originally the same word as a money mark of silver, the merk was in circulation at the end of the 16th century and in the 17th century. It was originally valued at 13 shillings 4 pence (exactly ...

.Rogers, p. 139 In January 1574, she married her second husband, Sir Andrew Ker of Faldonside. He had been part of the conspiracy of Protestant nobles, led in March 1566 by

Patrick Ruthven, 3rd Lord Ruthven Patrick Ruthven, 3rd Lord Ruthven (c. 1520 – 13 June 1566) played an important part in the political intrigues of the 16th century Scotland. He succeeded to the lordship in December 1552. The Ruthven lordship encompassed the offices of Provost ...

, who had stabbed to death Queen Mary's Italian secretary,

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 ...

in the presence of the Queen, who was almost six months pregnant at the time. It was Ker who had held his pistol at Mary's side, while she was constrained to watch Rizzio's killing. Together they had a number of children, one of which was named John Ker, minister of Salt Preston.''Genealogical Memoirs of John Knox and of the Family of Knox'' On 8 April 1574, a Charter of Alienation confirmed Ker's provision for Margaret, in her widowhood, of the liferent of a third of ancestral lands in

Haddingtonshire East Lothian (; sco, East Lowden; gd, Lodainn an Ear) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, as well as a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area. The county was called Haddingtonshire until 1921. In 1975, the histo ...

. Kerr died on 19 December 1599, and she did not remarry. Margaret died sometime after 1612.

References

Citations

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Knox, Margaret 1547 births 17th-century deaths Margaret 16th-century Scottish people Scottish Reformation 16th-century Scottish women Daughters of barons