John Stewart, 4th Earl of Atholl facts for kids

John Stewart, 4th Earl of Atholl (died 25 April 1579), known as the Fair, was an important Scottish nobleman and a member of the royal court. He was a favorite of Mary, Queen of Scots, for a time, but later changed his support.

Life Story

John Stewart was the son of John Stewart, 3rd Earl of Atholl and Grizel Rattray.

He supported Mary of Guise, who was the queen dowager (the queen mother) and ruled Scotland for her young daughter, Mary. In 1554, he wrote to her about a fight where his cousin was killed. He asked for a fair trial for some innocent men who were arrested. A man named Patrick Blair was later found guilty and executed for the murder.

In 1560, during the Scottish Reformation Parliament, John Stewart was one of only three nobles who voted against the new Protestant faith. He wanted to remain Catholic. However, he later joined forces against Huntly. He helped defeat Huntly at the Battle of Corrichie in 1562, alongside other powerful nobles like Murray and Morton. He also supported the idea of Queen Elizabeth I of England marrying Arran.

When Mary, Queen of Scots, returned from France in 1561, John Stewart became one of her twelve special advisors, called privy councillors. Because he was Catholic, he gained more of the Queen's favor than others. He strongly supported Mary's marriage to Lord Darnley. He became a leader for the Catholic nobles and helped protect Mary and Darnley from those who tried to challenge their power. It was said that he openly attended Catholic Mass in the Queen's chapel. Mary trusted him greatly with her plans to bring back Catholicism. He was put in charge of Tantallon Castle and in 1565, he became the lieutenant (a high-ranking officer) of northern Scotland.

After a difficult event in 1567, he joined the Protestant lords who were against Mary. He was one of the leaders at Carberry Hill and later agreed to her imprisonment at Loch Leven Castle. In July, he attended the coronation of James VI, Mary's young son. He was also part of the group that would rule Scotland while James was a child, after Mary gave up her throne. However, he was not at the Battle of Langside in 1568. By July, he had changed his mind again and supported Mary, even voting for her divorce from her husband, Bothwell, in 1569. In 1570, he joined other lords in writing to Queen Elizabeth of England, asking her to help Mary.

In 1574, John Stewart faced problems for being Catholic and was threatened with being removed from the church. He met with church leaders and was given time to decide. In October 1578, he stayed with Morton at Dalkeith Palace and was thought to have become a Protestant.

He had tried to stop Morton from becoming the ruler (regent) in 1572. But in 1578, he and the Earl of Argyll succeeded in removing Morton from power. On March 24, King James VI took control of the government himself, ending the regency. Atholl and Argyll became members of the new council, and on March 29, Atholl was named Lord Chancellor. Later, on May 24, Morton managed to get into Stirling Castle and regain control over young King James. Atholl and Argyll, who were now talking with Spain for help, marched to Stirling with a large army. A compromise was reached, and all three earls were included in the government.

His Death

On April 20, 1579, John Stewart attended a celebration banquet at Stirling Castle to mark the peace agreement. On his way home, he suddenly became very ill. Despite the efforts of court doctors and a Highland healer, he died on April 25 at Kincardine.

He was buried at the High Kirk of Edinburgh, close to the tomb of Regent Moray, as the King had wished.

There were strong rumors that he had been poisoned. His family, including William Stewart of Grandtully, complained to King James VI. Some people suspected Regent Morton or Annabell Murray, Countess of Mar. Rumors also spread in England that he was poisoned along with the Earl of Montrose, who survived.

Regent Morton's friend, George Auchinleck of Balmanno, was questioned very harshly on March 15, 1580. He was said to have confessed that Morton had poisoned Atholl. Auchinleck blamed another person connected to Morton, Sanders Jordan. It was believed that a man named John Provand had provided the poison.

Family Life

John Stewart married twice.

• His first wife was Elizabeth Gordon, daughter of George Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly. They had two daughters:
  • Elizabeth Stewart, Countess of Arran, who married three times: first to Hugh Fraser, 5th Lord Lovat; second to Robert Stewart, 1st Earl of March; and third to James Stewart, Earl of Arran.
  • Barbara Stewart, who married John Law.

• His second wife was Margaret Fleming (1529-1586). She was the daughter of Malcolm Fleming, 3rd Lord Fleming and Janet Stewart. Margaret had been married before. With Margaret, John had three daughters and one son:
  • Jean Stewart, who married Duncan Campbell of Glenorchy in 1574. She was the mother of Colin Campbell of Glenorchy and Robert Campbell of Glenorchy.
  • Grizel Stewart, who became the wife of David Lindsay, 11th Earl of Crawford.
  • Mary Stewart, who married Francis Hay, 9th Earl of Erroll.
  • John Stewart, 5th Earl of Atholl. He married Marie Ruthven. When he died in 1595 without male heirs, the title of Earl of Atholl went back to the crown.