William Stewart (makar) facts for kids

William Stewart (born around 1476, died around 1548) was a Scottish poet who lived and worked in the early 1500s. He was known for his poems and a long translation of a history book.

Who Was William Stewart?

William Stewart was the great-grandson of one of the sons of Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan. He went to the University of St Andrews, just like another famous person with the same name, William Stewart (1479–1545), who later became a bishop.

Stewart was originally planning to join the church, but he later became a courtier. This means he worked for the king, James V of Scotland, at his royal court. In 1527, he started receiving money from King James V. The last record of this payment, which was £40, was in 1541. He passed away sometime before 1560.

What Did William Stewart Write?

Stewart wrote several poems that gave advice to the young King James V. He also created a long poem that was a translation of a Latin history book about Scotland by Hector Boece.

Other writers mentioned Stewart in their works. David Lindsay of the Mount talked about him twice in his poem Complaynt of the Papingo. John Rolland also mentioned Stewart in the introduction to his book Seven Sages.

There were two students named William Stewart at St Andrews University at the same time. This can make it tricky to know which one did what! In his own work, the Buik of Chronicles, Stewart said he studied there for 14 years. Most people thought our poet, William Stewart, wrote both the court poems and the big history translation. However, a critic named Matthew McDiarmid believed the translation was actually done by the other William Stewart, the bishop.

Poems for the King's Court

Some of Stewart's poems that we still have today describe what life was like at the royal court of the Stewart kings. These poems often talk about how courtiers felt frustrated when they hoped for gifts or special treatment from the king.

Here is a small part from one of his poems called First Lerges. "Lerges" (or largesse) refers to the New Year's gifts that people expected from the Scottish treasury:

The thesaur and compttrollar,
Thay bade me cum I wait nocht quhair,
And thay suld gar I wait nocht quhay,
Gif me I wat nocht quhat full fair,
For lerges of this new yeirday,
* * * * * *
The Treasurer and Comptroller
They call me come: I know not where,
And they would do: I know not why/who,
Give me I know not what, full fair,
For largesse of this New Year's Day.

This poem shows his humor and how he felt about waiting for royal favors.

Translating Scotland's History

King James V or his mother, Margaret Tudor, asked for a version of Hector Boece's Latin history of Scotland to be written in verse. Boece's original Latin book, Historia Gentis Scotorum (History of the Scottish People), was published in Paris in 1527.

King James V wanted John Bellenden to translate it into Scots prose (like a normal book). He asked William Stewart to translate it into Scots verse (like a long poem). Bellenden's prose version came out in 1536. Stewart started his verse translation in 1531, but it stayed as a handwritten book for a long time. It wasn't published until 1858!

The book was edited by William Barclay Turnbull from a special, one-of-a-kind handwritten copy. This copy had been owned by several important people, including Bishop John Moore and King George I, before it ended up at Cambridge University Library.

Stewart's translation shows that he knew the works of other famous writers like John Mair, Jean Froissart, and John of Fordun. In some parts, he even added more details than were in the original Latin book.

Stewart also wrote an introduction to his translation. In it, a character explains that the English destroyed many written historical records of Scotland. This happened during the Wars of Scottish Independence when William Wallace was fighting. She says that small pieces of books, loose pages, and old memories were found and saved at Iona Abbey. These pieces were then put together to become the source material for Boece's history.

Here is a part from his prologue, explaining how old Scottish stories were lost:

Our auld storeis befoir thir mony yeir, (thir = these)
Thai war distroyit all with Inglismen,
In Wallace weir as it eith to ken; (weir = war)
Syne efterwart, quhen that thai wreit the storie,
Auld eldaris deidis to put into memorie,
Tha maid thair buikis, thair tractatis, and thair tabillis,
Part by gues, and part be fenyeit fabillis;
Part tha fand in ald broades of bukkis,
Part in lous quarris lyand wer in nukkis, (lous quarris = loose pages)
* * * * * *
Ane abbay sumtyme of authoritie,
In Iona yle within the occident se,
And in that place thair wes thir storeis fund,
Sum in lowss quarris and uther sum weill bund.