James I
(James I of England )
1566–1625James I of England was the first of the Stuart kings. He was over thirty-five when he came to the throne of England, but had been sole monarch of Scotland, (there known as James VI), since his first year. Scotland was a far poorer and ruder country than England at the time, and the transition was a somewhat difficult one. James was very well educated, and the Stuarts were known as a refined and somewhat poetical family. It Scotland, they were considered very high-bred. In far wealthier, and more sophisticated England, however, where dozens of nobles lived in higher estate than the King of Scotland, they were considered rubes.
 |
England, however was in an different political condition than Scotland, and his methods of government were not entirely successful there. The Tudors, particularly Henry VIII, and Elizabeth, had been exceeding powerful and flamboyant rulers, and James I was unable to command their level of respect. Plots were laid against him from the beginning, and as some of the leaders of parliament grew in power, he neither acquiesced, nor won them over to his side. One of the unfortunate legacies that he left to his son Charles was a history of bad relations with parliament. This conflict did not break out into war during James reign, but it did under his son.
Although of necessity James had tolerated the Calvinists in Scotland, they annoyed him terribly because in essence, they failed to recognize the ideas of tradition and authority, which were central to the legitimacy of the monarchy. As king of England, he was a strong backer of the Anglican Church and supported the persecution of Puritans and non-conformers. Many puritans, including the Mayflower pilgrims, in fact, left England during the reign of James I to settle the new world. James even preferred Catholics to the inexorable puritans, although he stepped up his persecutions of Catholics after the gun-powder plot was discovered.
In short, James was a good and effective king of Scotland, but a considerably ineffective king of England. In the absence of a personally powerful king the influence of parliament was certain to grow, and many, in retrospect, consider this a good thing. It was James personal ambition to be remembered for his literary contributions as well as his kingship, and he left a larger body of writings than any other king of England, but his writings reflect the dual nature of his legacy—exemplary by Scottish standards, but mediocre by English standards. He was a Stuart poet, in the age of Shakespeare, Bacon, and Johnson.
Key events during the life of James I of England (a.k.a James VI of Scotland):
| James VI of Scotland born to Mary, Queen of Scots. | |
| Mary deposed. James crowned, but controlled by a Protestant regent. | |
| Assumed responsibilities of King of Scotland. | |
| Execution of Mary, the mother of James. | |
| Married to Anne of Denmark. | |
| Birth of Charles I. | |
| Proclaimed King of England on death of Elizabeth. | |
| Gunpowder plot is foiled. | |
| King James Bible published. | |
| Death of Salisbury | |
| Death of Shakespeare | |
| Charles I and Buckingham travel to Spain. | |
| Death of James I. |
Other Resources
| His Childhood and Youth in | Charles I by Jacob Abbott |
| James I., the First Stuart King in | The Story of England by Samuel B. Harding |
| How Englishmen Fought a Duel with Tyranny in | This Country of Ours by H. E. Marshall |
| James VI.—King's Men and Queen's Men in | Scotland's Story by Henrietta Elizabeth Marshall |
| Misrule of the Stuarts: James I in | The Tudors and the Stuarts by M. B. Synge |
Image Links | ||
|---|---|---|
 King James I in Queen Elizabeth |
 James I in Sir Walter Raleigh |
 James I. of England in Builders of Our Country: Book I |
James I. and his Queen, Anne of Denmark in The Tudors and the Stuarts |
 The Stuart Kings and Queens in The Tudors and the Stuarts |
|
| Greatest dramatist in the history of the English language. | |
| Chancellor of England, and advocate of the scientific method of experiment and induction. | |
| Religious leader in Scotland who embraced Calvinism, founder of Presbyterian Church. | |
| Queen of Scotland. Deposed and exiled. Held captive and executed by Queen Elizabeth. | |
| Earl of Mar | Raised James as a child, in Stirling Castle. |
| Walter Raleigh | Courtier of Queen Elizabeth. Explorer, mastermind of the Jamestown colony in Virginia. |
| Robert Cecil | Chief minister of James I. Son of William Cecil, chief minister of Elizabeth I. |
| Duke of Buckingham | Notorious favorite of James I and his son Charles I. |