Robert Stewart, 1st Earl of Lennox then 1st Earl of March (c. 152229 March 1586) was a Scottish nobleman of the family of Stewart of Darnley.

Titles

Arms of Robert Stewart, 1st Earl of Lennox and March

He was the second son of

John Stewart, 3rd Earl of Lennox John Stewart, 3rd Earl of Lennox (4 September 1526, Linlithgow, West Lothian) was a prominent Scottish magnate. He was the son of Matthew Stewart, 2nd Earl of Lennox and Lady Elizabeth Hamilton, daughter of James Hamilton, 1st Lord Hamilton and ...

by his wife Elizabeth, daughter of

John Stewart, 1st Earl of Atholl John Stewart, 1st Earl of Atholl (15 September 1512), also known as Sir John Stewart of Balveny, was a Scottish nobleman and ambassador. Life He was the oldest child of Joan Beaufort, widow of James I of Scotland, and her second husband, Sir ...

, and younger brother of

Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox (21 September 1516 – 4 September 1571) was a leader of the Catholic nobility in Scotland. He was the paternal grandfather of King James VI of Scotland and I of England. He owned Temple Newsam in Yorkshire, ...

. He also bore the ecclesiastical titles of Bishop of Caithness, his grant confirmed by Pope Paul III in January 1542, an office previously held by his maternal uncle Andrew Stewart, and

Commendator In canon law, commendam (or ''in commendam'') was a form of transferring an ecclesiastical benefice ''in trust'' to the ''custody'' of a patron. The phrase ''in commendam'' was originally applied to the provisional occupation of an ecclesiastica ...

of St Andrews Cathedral Priory. When Matthew, 4th Earl of Lennox, died in 1571, his heir was his grandson

King James VI James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...

, as his eldest son

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 Sco ...

had died in 1567, so the title merged in the Crown. It was recreated for Matthew's second son Charles, (Darnley's younger brother), 1st Earl of Lennox (1572 creation), but he died without male issue in 1576. Robert Stewart was next in line, and was created

Earl of Lennox The Earl or Mormaer of Lennox was the ruler of the region of the Lennox in western Scotland. It was first created in the 12th century for David of Scotland, Earl of Huntingdon and later held by the Stewart dynasty. Ancient earls The first ear ...

and

on 16 June 1578. In 1580 Robert resigned his Earldom of Lennox and Lordship of Darnley; they were recreated the following year for his nephew Esmé Stewart, son of John Stewart,

seigneur d'Aubigny Duke of Aubigny (french: Duc d'Aubigny) is a title that was created in the Peerage of France in 1684. It was granted by King Louis XIV of France to Louise de Kérouaille, the last mistress of King Charles II of England, and to descend to Charles ...

, third son of the third Earl of Lennox. On 5 March 1580 he was created

Earl of March Earl of March is a title that has been created several times in the Peerage of Scotland and the Peerage of England. The title derived from the "marches" or borderlands between England and either Wales ( Welsh Marches) or Scotland (Scottish Mar ...

and Lord of Dunbar and held these titles until his death. As he had no legitimate issue, the titles again reverted to the crown.

Life

In 1543, Matthew and Robert Stewart came to oppose the rule of

Regent Arran 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, ...

and Mary of Guise in Scotland. After the battle of Glasgow, in April 1543 Robert crossed the

Clyde Clyde may refer to: People * Clyde (given name) * Clyde (surname) Places For townships see also Clyde Township Australia * Clyde, New South Wales * Clyde, Victoria * Clyde River, New South Wales Canada * Clyde, Alberta * Clyde, Ontario, a tow ...

from

Dumbarton Castle Dumbarton Castle ( gd, Dùn Breatainn, ; ) has the longest recorded history of any stronghold in Scotland. It sits on a volcanic plug of basalt known as Dumbarton Rock which is high and overlooks the Scottish town of Dumbarton. History Dum ...

and rode to England, where he was regarded as a 'pledge' or hostage for Lennox. As 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 the ...

continued, Robert Stewart briefly occupied Dumbarton Castle against the Scottish Government of

. Robert came from England in May 1546 with the support of Henry VIII; he sailed from Chester with around 20 followers in the ''Katherine Goodman'' accompanied by a pinnace. Having borrowed the artillery of the Earl of Argyle, Arran successfully besieged the castle, which surrendered after 20 days. The siege at Dumbarton delayed Arran's action at the siege of St Andrews Castle on the east coast of Scotland. Rehabilitated in Scotland, Robert continued to pursue legal action with

Alexander Gordon Alexander Gordon may refer to: * Alexander Gordon, 1st Earl of Huntly (died 1470), Scottish magnate * Alexander Gordon (bishop of Aberdeen) (died 1518), Precentor of Moray and Bishop-elect of Aberdeen * Alexander Gordon, 3rd Earl of Huntly (died ...

over their competition for church appointments. At the end of the war, in 1550, Robert sought permission from Arran and Guise to return to university in France, he was 28. John Elder, a Scottish writer who had settled in England, wrote a description of the wedding of Mary I of England and Philip II of Spain for Robert Stewart as a New Year's gift for 1555. Elder's letter was published, addressed to his good friend Lord Robert 'Stuarde' Bishop of Caithness and Provost of Dumbarton College.Elder, John, ''The copie of a letter sent in to Scotlande of the arivall and landynge, and most noble marryage of ... Philippe, prynce of Spaine to the ... Princes Marye quene of England solemnisated in the citie of Winchester,'' London (1555). On 6 January 1579 Lord Lennox married Elizabeth Stewart, daughter of

John Stewart, 4th Earl of Atholl John Stewart, 4th Earl of Atholl (died 25 April 1579), called the Fair, was a Scottish nobleman and courtier. He was favoured by Mary, Queen of Scots, but later turned against her. Biography Stewart was the son of John Stewart, 3rd Earl of Atho ...

and widow of Hugh Fraser, 5th Lord Lovat. They were divorced 19 May 1581 and she married

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 ...

shortly afterwards.

References

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:March, Robert Stewart, 1st Earl Of 1510s births Year of birth uncertain 1586 deaths

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

Earls of March (Scotland) 16th-century Scottish peers