Thomas Lyon (of Auldbar)
Encyclopedia
Sir Thomas Lyon, Master of Glammis (i.e. Glamis
) (died 1608) was a Scottish nobleman and official, Lord High Treasurer of Scotland.
during his minority. His original style was Sir Thomas of Auldbar and Balduckie.
On the death of his elder brother, John Lyon, 8th Lord Glamis, in 1578, he became tutor to his nephew, Patrick, ninth lord, and, being after Patrick the nearest presumptive heir to the title, was known as Master of Glamis
. He married Agnes Gray, widow of Alexander Home, 5th Lord Home
, who died in 1575; and his right to the keeping of Hume Castle
in opposition to Andrew Kerr, commendator of Jedburgh
, was confirmed by the privy council on 8 November 1578. On 17 December 1579 he gave security in £5,000 not to make trouble for the widow of John, lord Glamis, or his daughter, in their lands.' On 12 December he was relieved by the privy council of the keepership of Hume Castle.
against the ascendency of Esmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox
, and James Stewart, Earl of Arran
, and a main contriver of the raid of Ruthven
. The precise form which the conspiracy should take had not been determined when the plotters received intelligence that Lennox was aware of their design, and conspiring against them. Advantage was therefore at once taken of the king's visit to Ruthven Castle
, a seat of the Earl of Gowrie, near Perth
, to gain possession of his person. On the morning of 23 August 1582 the castle was surrounded by an armed force of a thousand men, under Gowrie, Glamis, and John Erskine, 18th Earl of Mar
, so as to prevent the access of Lennox and his supporters to the king. Glamis and his friends placed before James a loyal supplication, with special reference to the wrongs committed against them by Lennox and Arran, Next day they escorted the king to Perth, and on the 30th they went on to Stirling
. On arriving at Stirling the king expressed his intention to proceed to Edinburgh; but this, they informed him, was not expedient; and at last they plainly told him that either 'the duke or they should leave Scotland.' On the king moving towards the door, the Master of Glamis rudely 'laid his leg before him.' The indignity caused the king to burst into tears, whereupon Glamis made the unsympathetic comment, 'Better bairns greet than bearded men.'
After the king's escape from the Ruthven raiders at St Andrews
in August 1583, Glamis was ordered to enter into ward in Dumbarton Castle
within three days, but made his escape to Ireland. On 31 January 1583-4 he was charged to leave Scotland, England, and Ireland under pain of treason and on 29 March his adherents and those of the other banished lords were commanded to leave Edinburgh within twenty-four hours. By this time probably Glamis and his associates had arrived in Scotland, for on 17 April they captured Stirling Castle
('The Raid of Stirling'). But Gowrie was arrested two days later at Dundee
; and on learning that the king was setting forth against them from Edinburgh with a force of twelve thousand men, they abandoned Stirling and fled to England, ultimately taking up their residence in a lodging in Westminster
. There they entered into secret communications with Elizabeth.
At the parliament held in Scotland in the following August sentence of forfeiture was passed against the raiders, but the attempt to induce Elizabeth to deliver them up was unsuccessful. They returned, with the connivance of Elizabeth, to Scotland in October 1585. Arran's overthrow followed, and on 4 November Glamis was pardoned along with other lords and received into favour. On 7 November he was admitted a member of the privy council, and appointed captain and commander of the king's guard. In the new ministry he was also appointed Lord High Treasurer for life, with a salary of £1,000 Scots. At the parliament at Linlithgow in December an act was also passed restoring him to his estates. On 9 February 1586 he became an extraordinary lord of session
.
On 14 December 1586, Glamis, as the representative of his house, and David Lindsay, 11th Earl of Crawford
, by one of whose followers the eighth Lord Glamis had been slain, gave mutual assurances to each other; and on 15 May 1587 they walked arm in arm before the king to and from the banquet of reconciliation at the Market Cross of Edinburgh. The feud between the two families remained, however, very much as it was before; and the king in November 1588 took the captaincy of the guard from Glamis and giving it to Alexander Lindsay, the Earl of Crawford's uncle. Glamis was offended, and a scene took place between him and Francis Stewart, 5th Earl of Bothwell
. To prevent the quarrel proceeding further, Bothwell was commanded to ward within in Linlithgow Palace
, and Glamis within the castle of Edinburgh. Shortly afterwards the captaincy of the guard was transferred to George Gordon, 6th Earl of Huntly.
Glamis was present with the king in the Tolbooth
when the intercepted letters, revealing the treasonable communications of Huntly and others with Spain, were opened and read. In April 1589 Glamis was surprised by Huntly at Meigle
, and chased to his house of Kirkhill
. On refusing to surrender, the house was set on fire, and he was carried captive to the north. On the appearance of the king with a force at Aberdeen, Huntly set him free on 22 April.
At the coronation of the queen, 17 May 1590, Glamis received the honour of knighthood. The favour in which he was held at court since the queen's accession began to arouse the jealousy of the chancellor John Maitland, 1st Lord Maitland of Thirlestane
. Maitland complained that he supped at Leith
with the outlawed Earl of Bothwell in June 1591, and his hereditary enemy, Lord Spynie, was thereupon empowered to apprehend him. Spynie was unsuccessful, but Glamis was shortly afterwards committed to Blackness Castle
, and then warded beyond the River Dee
.
On 6 November 1591 he was deprived of the office of extraordinary lord of session, which was conferred on John Graham, 3rd Earl of Montrose
. Not long afterwards he was restored to royal favour, and the chancellor Maitland was compelled to retire from court. On 8 March 1593 he appointed extraordinary lord of session, and on the 28th he was admitted an ordinary lord and sat till 28 May. Glamis had now become an avowed opponent of Bothwell, and one of the conditions of agreement between Bothwell and the king, in August 1593 was that Glamis as well as the chancellor should retire from court till November. At a convention held at Stirling in September this agreement was renounced, and Glamis and others returned to court. Shortly afterwards Glamis and Maitland were reconciled. In February 1595-6 the eight commissioners of the exchequer, known as Octavians
, were appointed, but Glamis declined to resign his office of treasurer, and he had ultimately to be compensated by a gift of £6000. From this time Thomas ceased to take a prominent part in public affairs. He died 18 February 1608. On learning of his decease, the king is said to have exclaimed, 'that the boldest and hardiest man of his dominions was dead.'
, and widow of Sir Robert Logan of Restalrig, and Alexander, 5th Lord Home; and secondly, Lady Euphemia Douglas, fourth daughter of William Douglas, 6th Earl of Morton
. He had a daughter Mary, married to Sir Robert Semple of Beltries
, and a son John Lyon of Auldbar.
Glamis Castle
Glamis Castle is situated beside the village of Glamis in Angus, Scotland. It is the home of the Earl and Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne, and is open to the public....
) (died 1608) was a Scottish nobleman and official, Lord High Treasurer of Scotland.
Master of Glamis
Lyon was the younger son of John Lyon, 7th Lord Glamis, by his wife Janet Keith, daughter of Robert, Lord Keith, and sister of the fourth Marischal. He was one of the youths who attended King James in StirlingStirling Castle
Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most important castles, both historically and architecturally, in Scotland. The castle sits atop Castle Hill, an intrusive crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological formation. It is surrounded on three sides by steep...
during his minority. His original style was Sir Thomas of Auldbar and Balduckie.
On the death of his elder brother, John Lyon, 8th Lord Glamis, in 1578, he became tutor to his nephew, Patrick, ninth lord, and, being after Patrick the nearest presumptive heir to the title, was known as Master of Glamis
Glamis Castle
Glamis Castle is situated beside the village of Glamis in Angus, Scotland. It is the home of the Earl and Countess of Strathmore and Kinghorne, and is open to the public....
. He married Agnes Gray, widow of Alexander Home, 5th Lord Home
Alexander Home, 5th Lord Home
Alexander Home, 5th Lord Home was the son of George Home, 4th Lord Home and Mariotta Haliburton. He became Lord Home on the death of his father who was injured in a skirmish with the English two days before the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh.-Marriages:...
, who died in 1575; and his right to the keeping of Hume Castle
Hume Castle
Hume Castle is the heavily modified remnants of a late 12th or early 13th century "Castle of enceinte".The village of Hume is located between Greenlaw and Kelso, two miles north of the village of Stichill, in Berwickshire, Scotland....
in opposition to Andrew Kerr, commendator of Jedburgh
Jedburgh
Jedburgh is a town and former royal burgh in the Scottish Borders and historically in Roxburghshire.-Location:Jedburgh lies on the Jed Water, a tributary of the River Teviot, it is only ten miles from the border with England and is dominated by the substantial ruins of Jedburgh Abbey...
, was confirmed by the privy council on 8 November 1578. On 17 December 1579 he gave security in £5,000 not to make trouble for the widow of John, lord Glamis, or his daughter, in their lands.' On 12 December he was relieved by the privy council of the keepership of Hume Castle.
Raid of Ruthven, the Gowrie Regime, and exile
The Master of Glamis was one of the principal supporters of William Ruthven, 1st Earl of GowrieWilliam Ruthven, 1st Earl of Gowrie
William Ruthven, 1st Earl of Gowrie , known as The Lord Ruthven between 1566 and 1581, was a son of Patrick Ruthven, 3rd Lord Ruthven.-Life account:...
against the ascendency of Esmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox
Esmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox
Esmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox, 1st Earl of Lennox was the son of John Stewart, 5th Lord of Aubigny who was the younger brother of Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox...
, and James Stewart, Earl of Arran
James Stewart, Earl of Arran
Captain James Stewart, Earl of Arran was created Earl of Arran by the young King James VI, who wrested the title from James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran...
, and a main contriver of the raid of Ruthven
Raid of Ruthven
The Raid of Ruthven was a political conspiracy in Scotland which took place on 22 August 1582. It was composed of several Presbyterian nobles, led by William Ruthven, 1st Earl of Gowrie, who abducted King James VI of Scotland. He was seized while staying at the castle of Ruthven , and kept under...
. The precise form which the conspiracy should take had not been determined when the plotters received intelligence that Lennox was aware of their design, and conspiring against them. Advantage was therefore at once taken of the king's visit to Ruthven Castle
Huntingtower Castle
Huntingtower Castle once known as Ruthven Castle or the Place [Palace] of Ruthven is located near the village of Huntingtower beside the A85 and near the A9, about 5km NW of the centre of Perth, Perth and Kinross, in central Scotland, on the main road to Crieff.- History :Huntingtower Castle was...
, a seat of the Earl of Gowrie, near Perth
Perth, Scotland
Perth is a town and former city and royal burgh in central Scotland. Located on the banks of the River Tay, it is the administrative centre of Perth and Kinross council area and the historic county town of Perthshire...
, to gain possession of his person. On the morning of 23 August 1582 the castle was surrounded by an armed force of a thousand men, under Gowrie, Glamis, and John Erskine, 18th Earl of Mar
John Erskine, 18th Earl of Mar
John Erskine, 2nd Earl of Mar was a Scottish politician, the only son of John Erskine, 1st Earl of Mar. Together with King James VI of Scotland he was educated by George Buchanan...
, so as to prevent the access of Lennox and his supporters to the king. Glamis and his friends placed before James a loyal supplication, with special reference to the wrongs committed against them by Lennox and Arran, Next day they escorted the king to Perth, and on the 30th they went on to Stirling
Stirling
Stirling is a city and former ancient burgh in Scotland, and is at the heart of the wider Stirling council area. The city is clustered around a large fortress and medieval old-town beside the River Forth...
. On arriving at Stirling the king expressed his intention to proceed to Edinburgh; but this, they informed him, was not expedient; and at last they plainly told him that either 'the duke or they should leave Scotland.' On the king moving towards the door, the Master of Glamis rudely 'laid his leg before him.' The indignity caused the king to burst into tears, whereupon Glamis made the unsympathetic comment, 'Better bairns greet than bearded men.'
After the king's escape from the Ruthven raiders at St Andrews
St Andrews
St Andrews is a university town and former royal burgh on the east coast of Fife in Scotland. The town is named after Saint Andrew the Apostle.St Andrews has a population of 16,680, making this the fifth largest settlement in Fife....
in August 1583, Glamis was ordered to enter into ward in Dumbarton Castle
Dumbarton Castle
Dumbarton Castle has the longest recorded history of any stronghold in Great Britain. It overlooks the Scottish town of Dumbarton, and sits on a plug of volcanic basalt known as Dumbarton Rock which is high.-Iron Age:...
within three days, but made his escape to Ireland. On 31 January 1583-4 he was charged to leave Scotland, England, and Ireland under pain of treason and on 29 March his adherents and those of the other banished lords were commanded to leave Edinburgh within twenty-four hours. By this time probably Glamis and his associates had arrived in Scotland, for on 17 April they captured Stirling Castle
Stirling Castle
Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most important castles, both historically and architecturally, in Scotland. The castle sits atop Castle Hill, an intrusive crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological formation. It is surrounded on three sides by steep...
('The Raid of Stirling'). But Gowrie was arrested two days later at Dundee
Dundee
Dundee is the fourth-largest city in Scotland and the 39th most populous settlement in the United Kingdom. It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firth of Tay, which feeds into the North Sea...
; and on learning that the king was setting forth against them from Edinburgh with a force of twelve thousand men, they abandoned Stirling and fled to England, ultimately taking up their residence in a lodging in Westminster
Westminster
Westminster is an area of central London, within the City of Westminster, England. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, southwest of the City of London and southwest of Charing Cross...
. There they entered into secret communications with Elizabeth.
At the parliament held in Scotland in the following August sentence of forfeiture was passed against the raiders, but the attempt to induce Elizabeth to deliver them up was unsuccessful. They returned, with the connivance of Elizabeth, to Scotland in October 1585. Arran's overthrow followed, and on 4 November Glamis was pardoned along with other lords and received into favour. On 7 November he was admitted a member of the privy council, and appointed captain and commander of the king's guard. In the new ministry he was also appointed Lord High Treasurer for life, with a salary of £1,000 Scots. At the parliament at Linlithgow in December an act was also passed restoring him to his estates. On 9 February 1586 he became an extraordinary lord of session
Extraordinary Lord of Session
Extraordinary Lords of Session were lay members of the Court of Session in Scotland from 1532 to 1762.When the Court of Session was founded in 1532, it consisted of the Lord President, 14 Ordinary Lords and three or four Extraordinary Lords. The Extraordinary Lords were nominees of the King, not...
.
Later political career and the Lindsay–Lyon feud
The hope of the presbyterian clergy that the return of the banished lords would effect a change in the ecclesiastical policy of the king was not fulfilled. The Master of Glamis advised that it was not expedient to sound out the king, who favoured episcopacy, on reform of the kirk.On 14 December 1586, Glamis, as the representative of his house, and David Lindsay, 11th Earl of Crawford
David Lindsay, 11th Earl of Crawford
David Lindsay, 11th Earl of Crawford was a Scottish nobleman.-Life:He was the eldest son of David Lindsay, 10th Earl of Crawford, by Margaret, daughter of Cardinal Beaton and Marion Ogilvy, and was born about 1547...
, by one of whose followers the eighth Lord Glamis had been slain, gave mutual assurances to each other; and on 15 May 1587 they walked arm in arm before the king to and from the banquet of reconciliation at the Market Cross of Edinburgh. The feud between the two families remained, however, very much as it was before; and the king in November 1588 took the captaincy of the guard from Glamis and giving it to Alexander Lindsay, the Earl of Crawford's uncle. Glamis was offended, and a scene took place between him and Francis Stewart, 5th Earl of Bothwell
Francis Stewart, 5th Earl of Bothwell
Francis Stewart, Earl Bothwell , was Commendator of Kelso Abbey and Coldingham Priory, a Privy Counsellor and Lord High Admiral of Scotland. Like his stepfather, Archibald Douglas, Parson of Douglas, he was a notorious conspirator, who died in disgrace...
. To prevent the quarrel proceeding further, Bothwell was commanded to ward within in Linlithgow Palace
Linlithgow Palace
The ruins of Linlithgow Palace are situated in the town of Linlithgow, West Lothian, Scotland, west of Edinburgh. The palace was one of the principal residences of the monarchs of Scotland in the 15th and 16th centuries. Although maintained after Scotland's monarchs left for England in 1603, the...
, and Glamis within the castle of Edinburgh. Shortly afterwards the captaincy of the guard was transferred to George Gordon, 6th Earl of Huntly.
Glamis was present with the king in the Tolbooth
Old Tolbooth, Edinburgh
The Old Tolbooth was a medieval building located on the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, Scotland.Demolished in 1817, the Tolbooth served various purposes during its existence. It housed early meetings of the Estates of Scotland, Court of Session, and also of the Provost and Burgesses of the Burgh Council...
when the intercepted letters, revealing the treasonable communications of Huntly and others with Spain, were opened and read. In April 1589 Glamis was surprised by Huntly at Meigle
Meigle
Meigle is a village in Strathmore, Scotland. It lies in the council area of Perth and Kinross in the Coupar Angus and Meigle ward. The nearest town is Forfar in neighbouring Angus. Other smaller settlements nearby are Balkeerie, Kirkinch and Kinloch. Meigle is accessed from the north and south...
, and chased to his house of Kirkhill
Kirkhill
Kirkhill is a district of the town of Cambuslang, South Lanarkshire and was the home of the boxer Scott Harrison when he was young.Kirkhill railway station opened on 1 August 1904....
. On refusing to surrender, the house was set on fire, and he was carried captive to the north. On the appearance of the king with a force at Aberdeen, Huntly set him free on 22 April.
At the coronation of the queen, 17 May 1590, Glamis received the honour of knighthood. The favour in which he was held at court since the queen's accession began to arouse the jealousy of the chancellor John Maitland, 1st Lord Maitland of Thirlestane
John Maitland, 1st Lord Maitland of Thirlestane
John Maitland, 1st Lord Maitland of Thirlestane, , Knight , was Lord Chancellor of Scotland.He was the second son of Sir Richard Maitland of Thirlestane, Berwickshire, and Lethington, Haddingtonshire, who settled the lands of Thirlestane upon him, and he was sent abroad for his education.Upon John...
. Maitland complained that he supped at Leith
Leith
-South Leith v. North Leith:Up until the late 16th century Leith , comprised two separate towns on either side of the river....
with the outlawed Earl of Bothwell in June 1591, and his hereditary enemy, Lord Spynie, was thereupon empowered to apprehend him. Spynie was unsuccessful, but Glamis was shortly afterwards committed to Blackness Castle
Blackness Castle
Blackness Castle is a 15th century fortress, near the village of Blackness, Scotland, on the south shore of the Firth of Forth. It was built, probably on the site of an earlier fort, by Sir George Crichton in the 1440s. At this time, Blackness was the main port serving the Royal Burgh of...
, and then warded beyond the River Dee
River Dee, Aberdeenshire
The River Dee is a river in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It rises in the Cairngorms and flows through Strathdee to reach the North Sea at Aberdeen...
.
On 6 November 1591 he was deprived of the office of extraordinary lord of session, which was conferred on John Graham, 3rd Earl of Montrose
John Graham, 3rd Earl of Montrose
John Graham, 3rd Earl of Montrose was a Scottish peer and Chancellor of the University of St Andrews from 1599 to 1604. He was Lord High Commissioner to the Parliament of Scotland, from 1605 to 1607....
. Not long afterwards he was restored to royal favour, and the chancellor Maitland was compelled to retire from court. On 8 March 1593 he appointed extraordinary lord of session, and on the 28th he was admitted an ordinary lord and sat till 28 May. Glamis had now become an avowed opponent of Bothwell, and one of the conditions of agreement between Bothwell and the king, in August 1593 was that Glamis as well as the chancellor should retire from court till November. At a convention held at Stirling in September this agreement was renounced, and Glamis and others returned to court. Shortly afterwards Glamis and Maitland were reconciled. In February 1595-6 the eight commissioners of the exchequer, known as Octavians
Octavians
The Octavians were a financial commission of eight in the government of Scotland first appointed by James VI in January 1596. James's minister John Maitland, 1st Lord Maitland of Thirlestane had died a few months earlier, and his financial situation was troubled. They were a reforming body, eager...
, were appointed, but Glamis declined to resign his office of treasurer, and he had ultimately to be compensated by a gift of £6000. From this time Thomas ceased to take a prominent part in public affairs. He died 18 February 1608. On learning of his decease, the king is said to have exclaimed, 'that the boldest and hardiest man of his dominions was dead.'
Family
Thomas married, first, Agnes, third daughter of Patrick, fifth lord GrayLord Gray
Lord Gray is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1445 for the Scottish diplomat and politician Sir Andrew Gray. His great-great-great-great-great-grandson, the seventh Lord, was granted a new patent with remainder to William Gray, husband of his only daughter Anne, and his heirs...
, and widow of Sir Robert Logan of Restalrig, and Alexander, 5th Lord Home; and secondly, Lady Euphemia Douglas, fourth daughter of William Douglas, 6th Earl of Morton
William Douglas, 6th Earl of Morton
William Douglas, 6th Earl of Morton was the son of Sir Robert Douglas of Lochleven and Margaret Erskine, a former mistress of James V of Scotland. Sir William's half-brother from his mother's liaison with the king was James Stewart, Earl of Moray, Regent of Scotland from 1567 until his...
. He had a daughter Mary, married to Sir Robert Semple of Beltries
Robert Sempill the younger
Robert Sempill, the younger , Scottish poet, son of James Sempill, was educated at the University of Glasgow, having matriculated in March 1613....
, and a son John Lyon of Auldbar.