John Lindsay of Balcarres, Lord Menmuir facts for kids

John Lindsay of Balcarres (born in 1552, died in 1598) was an important person in Scotland during the time of King James VI. He served as the Secretary of State for Scotland, which was a very powerful job. In 1581, he was also made a judge, known as a Lord of Session, and was given the title Lord Menmuir.

Life of John Lindsay

John Lindsay was the second son of David Lindsay, 9th Earl of Crawford and Catherine Campbell. He and his brother, Lord Edzell, traveled to Europe to study. They were looked after by James Lawson.

They had to quickly return from Paris to Dieppe because of the French Wars of Religion. After that, they moved to the University of Cambridge in England.

Menmuir's Properties and Home

John Lindsay received lands in Menmuir, Lethnot, and Lochlee. These lands were given to him by the Edzell family. Later, in 1576, he also received payments from church taxes, called teinds, and a pension. He also got a small estate called Drumcairn.

In 1586, he bought more lands in Fife, including Balcarres, Balniell, and Pitcorthie. These lands were later combined into a special area called a free barony in 1592. This meant he had special rights over them. In 1595, he built a large house called Balcarres House, which became his main home.

Working for King James VI

Lord Menmuir was a strong supporter of King James VI's plans to improve Scotland.

• In 1587, he helped create several new laws for the Scottish Parliament.
• In 1588 and 1589, he was part of a group that looked into problems at the University of St Andrews.
• In November 1589, he joined the Privy Council. This was a group of trusted advisers to the King.

Menmuir became very influential because he was good with money.

• In 1591, he was chosen as one of four people to manage the money for the Queen, Anne of Denmark.
• In 1592, Menmuir was put in charge of the King's income from gold mining and other mineral works. He was called the "Master of Metals."
• In 1593, he joined a special council that managed the Queen's money.
• In 1596, he was one of eight special financial managers for the King, known as the Octavians. People thought he was the best at managing money among them.
• In March 1596, he became the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal, which meant he was in charge of the King's official seal.
• On May 28, 1596, he was appointed Secretary of State, Scotland for life. This was one of the most important jobs in the government.

Menmuir also advised the King on religious matters. He supported the King's idea of having bishops in the church, a system called Episcopacy. In 1596, he created a plan to set up churches across Scotland with regular payments for ministers. However, this plan was not popular with the Presbyterian church, so he stopped it.

He also had a more relaxed view towards Catholic nobles, which caused problems with the church. In 1596, he was with the King when a crowd surrounded them in the Tolbooth building. Some people criticized Menmuir for not being religious enough. In 1597, he helped write 55 points to be discussed at the church's main meeting, the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, in Perth.

From 1597 to 1598, he was the leader of the University of St Andrews, known as the Chancellor.

Later Life and Death

Lord Menmuir was involved in important talks with other countries. In 1597, he was chosen to be an ambassador to France. He planned to have an operation for a medical condition called "the stone" while in Paris. However, he became too ill to travel.

In February 1598, he had to give up his job as Secretary of State because of his poor health. He died at Balcarres House in Fife on September 3, 1598. According to his wishes, he was buried in the church of Kilconquhar.

Family Life

John Lindsay was married twice.

His first wife was Marion Guthrie. She was the daughter of Alexander Guthrie and had been married before. With Marion, John had two sons and three daughters:

• John, Lord Menmuir, who died young in 1601.
• David Lindsay, 1st Lord Balcarres.
• Catherine, who married Sir John Lindsay of Woodhead, and later John Brown of Fordel.
• Margaret, who married Sir John Strachan of Thornton.
• Janet, who married Sir David Auchmutie of Auchmutie.

His second wife was Jane Lauder. She had also been married before. John and Jane did not have any children together.