James Melville: Life Story

Melville now became concerned as to the fate of Mary’s son, Prince James. The child was in the keeping of the Earl of Mar, at Stirling, but Bothwell, apparently, was trying to get the child into his own hands and Mar was worried that once the Prince was in Bothwell’s power, he would not make old bones.

Melville was unable to help directly, but aware that Sir James Balfour, who was the Keeper of Edinburgh Castle, and a former crony of Bothwell’s, had quarrelled with him and refused to take part in the murder of Darnley, Melville went to Balfour, and told him to hold on to the castle. By so doing he might be able to help both Prince James and Queen Mary, who was now in such a state of despair that she was threatening to harm herself. If Balfour handed over the castle, he would be pursued with Bothwell for the murder of the late King.

For that faction of the nobility who were not supporters of Bothwell, were now hoping to pursue him for the murder, and planned to crown James as King. Bothwell was warned that a march on Holyrood was planned, so he left abruptly, taking Mary with him, and raced for Dunbar.

Melville had been a faithful supporter of Mary during her active reign, but once Bothwell was in the picture, his allegiance to Moray came to the fore. Moray and the Lords raised an army, and so did Bothwell and the Queen.The forces met at Carberry Hill on 15^th June 1567. Many in Bothwell’s army believed that Mary was secretly in league with Lords, because he had treated her so badly. From the events, this appears to be true. No battle was fought, but negotiations resulted in Mary leaving her army and returning to Edinburgh with the Lords.

This should have been a liberation for her, but she had been double-crossed again, the Lords had no intention of allowing her to resume power. She was shouted at and insulted in the streets as a whore and a murderer.

It has been pointed out, by Robert Stedall in his ‘The Challenge to the Crown: The Struggle for Supremacy in the Reign of Mary, Queen of Scots’ that one of the reasons the Lords were eager to replace Mary with another minor was financial. Under Scots law, when a sovereign reached the age of twenty-five, he or she could resume all lands that had been granted away during his or her minority. Mary would be twenty-five in the forthcoming December, and, as the Crown was in a poor financial state would be very likely to do so. Another long minority would allow the nobility to continue to help themselves to Crown lands.

Whether their reasons were financial, religious or political, Mary was imprisoned at Lochleven. Whilst there, she was bullied into abdicating, having been assured, by Melville’s brother, who remained one of her staunchest supporters, that anything done under duress could not be binding. Still trusting her brother, Moray, most of all the lords, she requested he be appointed as Regent.

There were now two parties in Scotland – the Queen’s Party, that believed she had abdicated under duress, and the King’s Party, who wished for a Regency. Melville seems to have equivocated somewhat. Initially, there was no open rupture, and Melville was sent to Berwick to meet Moray (who had been in France, avoiding both the death of Darnley, and its aftermath). Melville also had a commission from those in the King’s Party who had only wished for the overthrow of Bothwell, and not for the deposition of Mary, to encourage Moray to make terms with the Queen that would bring her back to power, guided by him.

Moray, after some pressing, accepted the Regency, but when he went to Mary in Lochleven they quarrelled so bitterly (because, according to Melville, he used ‘language to break her heart’) that ‘it cut the thread of credit and love between the Queen and [Moray] for ever.’

In the meantime, as Melville notes, the English did all they could to ‘kindle the fire’, promising support to both sides, sending embassies under Throckmorton, Drury, Randolph, Davison and others. Apparently Throckmorton was so disgusted by the double-dealing of his own colleagues that he leaked information to Melville.

Mary then escaped from Lochleven Castle and supported by a good number of the nobles, took up arms. According to Melville, this all happened too soon – that Moray, over time, would have softened his stance and restored her. The Queen however, was pushed into giving battle early – she would have preferred to make a base at Dumbarton Castle and gather support gradually, but the Hamiltons, who were her chief supporters, were keen for battle.

At Langside on 13^th May 1568, the Queen’s forces were defeated, and she lost courage, which, Melville comments, she had never done before. Mary fled to England, and was never permitted her freedom again.