| James II  Born: 16-Oct-1430
Birthplace: Edinburgh, Scotland
Died: 3-Aug-1460
Location of death: Roxburgh Castle, Roxburgh, Scotland
Cause of death: War
Remains: Buried, Holyrood Abbey, Edinburgh, Scotland
Gender: Male
Religion: Roman Catholic
Race or Ethnicity: White
Sexual orientation: Straight
Occupation: Royalty Nationality: Scotland
Executive summary: King of Scotland, 1437-60 James II, King of Scotland, the only surviving son of James I and his wife Jane, daughter of John Beaufort, Earl of Somerset, was born on the 16th of October 1430. Crowned king at Holyrood in March 1437, shortly after the murder of his father, he was first under the guardianship of his mother, while Archibald, 5th Earl of Douglas, was regent of the kingdom, and considerable power was possessed by Sir Alexander Livingstone and Sir William Crichton (d. 1454). When about 1439 Queen Jane was married to Sir James Stewart, the knight of Lorne, Livingstone obtained the custody of the young king, whose minority was marked by fierce hostility between the Douglases and the Crichtons, with Livinstone first on one side and then on the other. About 1443 the royal cause was espoused by William, 8th Earl of Douglas, who attacked Crichton in the king's name, and civil war lasted until about 1446. In July 1449 James was married to Mary (d. 1463), daughter of Arnold, Duke of Gelderland, and undertook the government himself; and almost immediately Livingstone was arrested, but Douglas retained the royal favor for a few months more. In 1452, however, this powerful earl was invited to Stirling by the king, and, charged with treachery, was stabbed by James and then killed by the attendants. Civil war broke out at once between James and the Douglases, whose lands were ravaged; but after the Scots parliament had exonerated the king, James, the new earl of Douglas, made his submission. Early in 1455 this struggle was renewed. Marching against the rebels James gained several victories, after which Douglas was attainted and his lands forfeited. Fortified by this success and assured of the support of the parliament and the great nobles, James, acting as an absolute king, could view without alarm the war which had broken out with England. After two expeditions across the borders, a truce was made in July 1457, and the king employed the period of peace in strengthening his authority in the Highlands. During the Wars of the Roses he showed his sympathy with the Lancastrian party after the defeat of Henry VI at Northampton by attacking the English possessions at the south of Scotland. It was while conducting the siege of Roxburgh Castle that James was killed, through the bursting of a cannon, on the 3rd of August 1460. He left three sons, his successor, James III, Alexander Stewart, duke of Albany, and John Stewart, earl of Mar, and two daughters. James, who is sometimes called "Fiery Face", was a vigorous and popular prince, and, although not a scholar like his father, showed interest in education. His reign is a period of some importance in the legislative history of Scotland, as measures were passed with regard to the tenure of land, the reformation of the coinage, and the protection of the poor, while the organization for the administration of justice was greatly improved.
Father: James I (King of Scotland)
Mother: Joan Beaufort
Wife: Mary of Guelders (m. 3-Jul-1449, seven children)
Son: James III (King of Scotland)
Daughter: Margaret
Son: John Stewart, Earl of Mar (d. 1479)
Son: Alexander Stewart, Duke of Albany
Scottish Monarch 1437 to 3-Aug-1460
Requires Flash 7+ and Javascript.
Do you know something we don't?
Submit a correction or make a comment about this profile
Copyright ©2019 Soylent Communications
|
