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The Octavians were a special group of eight people who helped manage the money for the Scottish government. They were first chosen by James VI, the King of Scotland, on January 9, 1596. Their main job was to fix the country's financial problems.

Why the Octavians Were Needed

King James VI was having money troubles. His main minister, John Maitland, 1st Lord Maitland of Thirlestane, who handled finances, had passed away in October 1595. This left the king's money situation in a difficult spot.

The idea for the Octavians partly came from a group chosen in 1593 by the Parliament of Scotland. This earlier group was meant to look after the lands and money of Anne of Denmark, who was King James's wife and Queen. At this time, King James found it hard to pay for his and the Queen's royal households. He later joked that his "house could not be kept upon epigrams," meaning that good words alone wouldn't bring in money.

An English visitor named Roger Aston wrote in a letter that by the end of 1595, the Queen's advisors were working with some of the King's advisors to improve the King's money matters. The group that managed the Queen's estates continued even after James VI became King of England as well, in what was called the Union of Crowns. New members were added to this group in 1617.

How the Octavians Worked

It was said that in late December 1595, the Queen's advisors, who were now part of the Octavians, gave Queen Anne a bag of gold. She then gave it to the King as a New Year's gift. The exact details of this story are not very clear.

The Octavians worked hard to cut down on the costs of the royal households for both King James VI and Queen Anne of Denmark. They encouraged important officials like the chamberlain, the Duke of Lennox, and the Master Households, to reduce the number of people who received payments and meals at court. They managed to cut about 70 jobs!

The Octavians were a group focused on making changes. They wanted to bring order to the royal money and stop people from getting special favors that cost the government. They put a new 5% tax on goods coming into the country. They also pushed for a trip into the Highlands to collect taxes that were owed. The Octavians chose Henry Wardlaw of Pitreavie to be the Receiver General. This meant he was in charge of collecting money from various sources, including the Comptrollery, new taxes from former church lands, and the royal mint.

The Octavians were first appointed for only one year, and many people didn't like them. A group of Presbyterians even tried to start an uprising on December 17, 1596. One of their demands was that the Octavians should be removed. King James VI was in the Tolbooth in Edinburgh with most of his Privy Council and the Octavians. After a sermon by Walter Balcanquhall in St Giles, the crowd came out shouting and some people called for weapons. The royal guards had to escort King James VI safely back to Holyroodhouse.

When the Octavians' term was renewed in 1597, they faced strong opposition from people who had special interests and didn't want changes. Also, some of the Octavians were thought to be friendly towards Catholics, which was a problem for some. However, the idea of having a special commission to help manage the government's money continued. This idea, under the name of the New Octavians, played a role in Scottish government even into the time of King Charles I.

The Octavians of 1596

New Octavians of 1611

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