James I and VI | The first King of England and Scotland

The death of Elizabeth I led to the end of the Tudor dynasty and the beginning of the reign of House Stuart. James, who was a great great grandson of Henry VII through both his parents and Elizabeth’s godson, was the first king to rule both England and Scotland, though the two kingdoms remained individual sovereign states with their own parliaments and laws. James committed the majority of his rule as King of England to unite England and Scotland in more than just his name.  

 Quick Facts 

Born: 19th June 1566 at Edinburgh Castle, Scotland 
Died: 27th March 1625, Theobalds House, Hertfordshire 
Reign: 24th March 1603 – 27th March 1626 (England) 24th July 1567 – 27th March 1625 (Scotland) 
Parents: Mary, Queen of Scots and Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley 
Predecessor: Elizabeth I  (aunt)
Successor: Charles I  (son)
Spouse: Anne of Denmark (1589 – 1619) 
Children: Henry Prince of Wales, Elizabeth Queen of Bohemia, Margaret, Charles I, Robert, Mary and Sophia 
Royal House: Stuart 

James’ reign in England marked the beginning of the royal house of Stuart in the country. He was well versed in kingship when, at the age of 37, he succeeded Elizabeth I having been king of Scotland since he was a year old.  

Image: James I/VI

James’ early life 

James’ parents were Mary Queen of Scots and her second husband, Henry Stuart, the Lord Darnley. Both his parents were great grandchildren of Henry VII through his eldest daughter, Margaret Tudor and as such, both had claims to the English throne. His mother’s claim was especially bolstered by her support from France as the Dowager Queen of France, but her hold on Scotland was insecure. Many of the lords who had ascended to the ruling council were protestant and as both she and Darnley were catholics, constantly faced rebellion from the nobles. While you might think this led to the Queen and her husband to have a united front, it was a difficult marriage that was mostly done for political reasons. When Mary was around 7 months pregnant, Darnley allied himself with the rebels, hoping to gain more power for himself and conspired to murder Mary’s private secretary David Rizzio. Rizzio was murdered in front of Mary and her household at Holyrood Palace, something that deeply affected the young queen.  

James was born on 19th June 1566 at Edinburgh Castle and as the only son and heir apparent, automatically gained the titles of Duke of Rothersay, Prince of Scotland and Great Stewart of Scotland. At the time of his birth, his mother and her cousin, Elizabeth who was Queen of England were on good terms and she was one of his godparents alongside Charles IX of France and the Duke of Savoy. Just months after his birth, James’ father was murdered at Kirk o Field in Edinburgh. The act didn’t just deprive the young prince of his father, but also his mother. Mary was suspected of orchestrating the murder and disappeared for some time immediately afterwards claiming to have been abducted and forcibly married to the Earl of Bothwell. She was imprisoned on her return to the capital and forced to abdicate, leaving the 13 month old James as king under the guardianship of a number of regents, including her half brother the Earl of Moray. James never saw his mother again. She fled to England hoping that Elizabeth would grant her sanctuary, leaving him to be raised by protestant lords and was later executed for her part in a plot against the queen.  

For the next few years, James ruled in name only with a variety of regent led governments made up of a rotation of Scottish lords. He was finally proclaimed an adult at the age of 15 in 1579, but still didn’t receive full control of the government until some time later.  

Reign in Scotland 

As a king, James was much more successful in Scotland than in England, particularly before ascending the English throne, managing to achieve most of his aims for the country.  

One issue he faced in Scotland was over his relationship with the Earl of Lennox, who was a favourite of his, but was very unpopular with the other nobles. Lennox was made the only Duke in Scotland which brought more scrutiny to the pair’s relationship, it led to James being imprisoned by the Earl of Angus and Lennox being exiled. After James was freed he assumed the leading of the kingdom, establishing an effective government and relative peace among the lords.  

One of James’ main policies in Scotland were those on the subject of witchcraft. He saw the study of witchcraft as another arm of theology and was deeply interested in witches. He attended the first major persecution of witches in Scotland under the Witchcraft Act 1563. During his reign in Scotland, several people were convicted of using witchcraft to send storms against his ships and James personally supervised the torture of women accused of being witches. He was considered to be an accomplished author and one of his most popular works included discussion of witchcraft.  

Marriage and personal life 

Throughout his life, James surrounded himself with male courtiers, something that often got him into trouble, such as the incident with the Earl of Lennox. Historians have stated that he showed very little interest in women and was praised in his youth for his chastity. As king and heir to the English throne, it was imperative for him to marry well and he was eventually betrothed to Anne of Denmark who was just 14 at the time. Anne was a fellow protestant which is likely one of the reasons why she was chosen.  

On her voyage to Scotland to meet her new husband, Anne’s ship ran into difficulties, so James set sail with 300 ships to rescue her, something that has been referred to as the one romantic episode of his life. The couple ended up marrying in Norway and then returned to Scotland. It would appear that the early years of the marriage were affectionate between the two and they would go on to have seven children, though only three survived childhood, Henry the Prince of Wales who would die aged 18, Elizabeth who became Queen of Bohemia and Charles I, who would be his successor. James outlived his wife and it is believed that he had a mistress while living in Scotland, however there is speculation that he may have been homosexual. Aside from the Earl of Lennox, James also had close, personal relationships with several other men, including Robert Carr and George Villiers who would be a particular favourite. Villiers was made the Duke of Buckingham after James became King of England and also had a close relationship with his son Charles, though historians understand that it was different in nature to that of the king. Villiers himself in his own personal writings stated that he and James shared a bed and he was present at the king’s death bed. There continues to be debates over the true nature of James’ relationships with these men, with some speculating that they had been lovers and others pointing out the affectionate nature of his relationship with Anne and their seven children. Those who believe the relationships were purely platonic say that when reading Villier’s words in the context of the time makes the statement much more ambiguous. Contemporary historians posit that he may have been bisexual which would validate both relationships.  

During James’ reign, homosexuality was deemed to be a crime and he refered to it as such in his own books. His association with these men not only brought scrutiny from his court and the British people, especially after Villiers and Carr had him embroiled in a scandal involving a murder.  

Accession in England 

James began seriously considering his claim to the English throne in the 1580s. In 1586, the Treaty of Berwick was signed between Scotland and England which, along with the execution of his mother, cleared the way for his succession in England. From this point on, he made securing the English throne as part of his policy and made an ally of Elizabeth.  

In the last years of Elizabeth’s life, her chief advisor, Robert Cecil maintained a secret correspondence with James to prepare for a smooth succession. Elizabeth had refused to name an heir and being childless and unmarried had few other options. When it was clear the queen was dying, Cecil sent a draft proclamation to James in March 1603. Elizabeth succumbed to illness at the end of the month and James was proclaimed king later the same day.  

On 5th April, a few days after being named King, James set off for England, promising to continue his reign in Scotland and to return in three years, something that he never did. On his route, he met with several lords and nobles, who supported his ascension and offered him horses, men and housing on his journey to London. When he arrived in the capital, he was mobbed by a crowd of spectators who gathered to see him arrive and praise his ascension. It was a pleasant surprise for all involved that there was no unrest or rebellion for his coronation.  

Though he was greeted with warmth and appeared to be a popular choice among the people when he first took the throne, he survived several plots against his life, two of which happened in his first year as king of England. The Bye Plot and the Main Plot both of which stemmed from unrest surrounding Catholicism and led to the arrest of Sir Walter Raleigh. The most famous plot against James is the Gunpowder Plot which took place on 5th November 1605. A group of catholics protesting against the continued persecution of their communities organised a scheme to blow up the House of Parliament on the day of the Opening of State. The plot was foiled an one of the plotters, Guy Fawkes, was caught guarding 36 barrels of gunpowder in one of the cellars of the House of Parliament. He was sent to the Tower of London and the other members of the plot were hunted down and executed for treason.  

King of England and Scotland   

Throughout his reign, James referred to himself as King of Great Britain and Ireland and after becoming King of England, he based himself in England, only returning to Scotland briefly in 1617, despite promising that he would be back after three years. He remains the longest ruling Scottish monarch and was a major advocate of a single parliament for both England and Scotland, even though the pair continued to be run as separate kingdoms.  

Under his reign as King of Great Britain and Ireland, he oversaw the English colonisation of the Americas, the first colony being Jamestown, Virginia, which was named after both James and his predecessor, and the Plantation of Ulster which began to be colonised by English and Scottish Protestants. His period of rule was known as the Jacobean period and during this time, the Golden Age of literature and art started under Elizabeth continued to flourish.  

Freedom of worship for Catholics in England continued to be an issue for James, but he was strongly committed to peace and tried to avoid involvement in religious conflicts, such as the Thirty Years War which devastated much of Central Europe. He tried and failed to prevent war with Spain, but was pressured by parliament to go ahead, leading to him leaving much of the governing to his advisors and devoting his time to ending the Anglo-Spanish war.  

Conflict with Spain caused all manner of financial issues for England and Scotland and James attempted to solve both issues by betrothing his younger son, Charles to the Infanta Maria Anna of Spain. The betrothal, known of the Spanish Match fell apart, partly because of continued fighting. Sir Walter Raleigh, was freed from imprisonment to allow him to head to America, under strict instructions not to engage with the Spanish. His son died in a battle with Spanish soldiers, leading to Raleigh to be executed on his return and the break down of marriage negotiations.  

Later, in 1623, the Prince Charles, alongside Villiers, who at that time was Duke of Buckingham, travelled to Spain to win the Infanta directly, but she hated Charles on sight and the Spanish issued new terms, including the repeal of any anti Catholic legislation. Villiers and Charles signed a treaty, but on their return to England they failed to honour the terms, instead turning to France for a bride and support in a war against the Spanish. It was a move that caused parliament to shift their support from James to his son, Charles.  

The other lasting legacy of James’ reign is the introduction of the King James Bible, a new English translation that the king sponsored. The King James Bible remains one of the most popular translations used in English speaking countries.  

Succession of Charles 

In later years, James suffered with his health and lived with arthritis, gout and kidney stones. It is said that he drank heavily and had lost all his teeth by his 50s. He was often seriously ill by this time and rarely visited London, choosing to spend his time at one of his smaller residences instead.  

In 1625, he suffered a stroke and then died in the March of that year after an attack of dysentery with Villiers at his side. He was buried at Westminster Abbey, though the site of his grave was lost for a number of years, eventually being rediscovered during excavation work in the 19th century. He was succeeded by Charles, his oldest surviving son.  

At the time of his death, he was greatly mourned however there has been a lot of anti-Stuart sentiment in the years following his death. During his lifetime, he was described as being a fool, but historians have since said he was actually a serious and thoughtful monarch. Some say that James’ financial irresponsibility and unpopular favourites laid the foundations of the English Civil War which would see his son deposed and the monarchy abolished. James had raised Charles to believe in the Divine Right of Kings, which led to tension with parliament.  

Places to visit 

Banqueting House, Whitehall, London 
Built for James I, was the only part of Whitehall Palace to survive a fire in 1698. Later became the venue for Charles I’s execution 

Bath, Somerset 
A visit from Queen Anne and James I led to it becoming a fashionable Spa town as the queen visited to use the spa water.  

Buckingham Palace, London 
Stands on the site of James I’s plantation of mulberry trees 

Edinburgh Castle, Edinburgh