Mary Queen of Scots was beheaded in 1587. English observers, anxious about James VI of Scotland's reaction to his mother's execution, were alarmed to discover that the greatest of the Scottish Catholic peers, George Gordon, Sixth Earl of Huntly, was rapidly becoming his chief confidant. In 1588 James arranged Huntly's marriage to Henrietta Stuart, daughter of his former favourite the Duke of Lennox, thus admitting him into the wider royal family. In the following decade, Huntly's various escapades - the murder of the Earl of Moray; the 'Spanish Blanks' affair, an offer by Scottish Catholics to facilitate a Spanish invasion of England - caused James major political difficulties, but the King remained loyal to him. On the eve of his death in 1625, James recommended Huntly to his son Charles as 'the most faithful servant that ever served a prince'.

LRB 9 October 2003 | PDF Download