SCOTLAND. 



the forfeiture of the earl of Douglas, with his mother and 

 brothers, was folemnly decreed. In another parliament 

 held in the fame year, feveral important and interelUng 

 enaftments were made, tending to confirm the paramount 

 power of the king, and to fap the foundation of the feudal 

 fyftem. 



He next turned his attention to the fubjefts of foreign 

 polity : enraged at the conduft of England for fupporting 

 the Doaglafes, he invaded that kingdom, and fpread de- 

 folation throughout the northern counties. Meanwhile 

 Douglas was admitted to the titles of an Englilh fubjeft, 

 and continued in that allegiance till his death. 



Not long after this invafion, a truce was negociated with 

 England, and James returned to his favourite occupation, 

 the enaftment of laws for the improvement and tranquillity 

 of the country. In the feveral parliaments held at Edin- 

 burgh, meafures were taken to reform the coinage, and to 

 regulate the internal commerce of the kingdom ; a regular 

 militia was eltablilhed for the national defence ; and feveral 

 laws were made to promote agriculture, and to fix the con- 

 ftitution of parliament. But the mod important aft pafled 

 in this reign relates to the eftablifhment of a fupreme court 

 of jullice, independent of the king's council. This court 

 confiftcd of three eminent clergy, three bai'ons, and three 

 commiiTioners of burghs, to be changed each month. It 

 was, in fact, a committee of parliament, the members 

 having been taken in rotation from that allembly ; and no 

 appeal lay from its decifions. 



While thefe matters were under confideration in Scot- 

 land, England was diltrafted by the rivalfhip of the houfes 

 of York and Lancafter. James feems to have inclined to 

 favour the former, but took no aftive part on either fide 

 till the captivity of Henry VI., when he commenced hof- 

 tilities, by laying fieg« to the caftles of Berwick and Rox- 

 burgh. The latter enterprife he condutted in perfon ; and 

 here he unfortunately met his death, by the accidental buril- 

 ing of a cannon, on the 3d of Auguft, 1460. The nobi- 

 lity who were prefent concealed his death, from the fear of 

 difcouragiiig the foldiers ; but the fpirited conduft of the 

 queen foon rendered this precaution unneceflary. Her 

 young fon, James, having arrived in the camp a few hours 

 after, Ihe prefented him to the army as their king, and de- 

 clared (lie would aft the part of fheir general herfelf. 



AccorAngly (he ailumed the reins of government, and 

 pulhed the fiege of Roxburgh caltle with fo much vigour, 

 that the garrilon was obliged to capitulate in a few days ; 

 after which the army took and difmantled the caftle of 

 Werk. In 1466, negociations were begun for a marriage 

 between the young king and Margaret, princefs of Den- 

 mark ; and in 1468, the following conditions were itipu- 

 lated ; itt, that the annual rent hitherto paid for the northern 

 ides of Orkney and Zetland fhould be for ever remitted 

 and extingnilhed : 2dly, that Chridicrn, then king of Den- 

 mark, (hould give 60,000 florins of gold for his daughter's 

 portion, whereof 10,000 (hould be paid before his departure 

 from Denmark ; and that the iflands of Orkney (hould be 

 made over to the crown of Scotland, by way of pledge for 

 the remainder ; with this provifo, that they (hould return to 

 that of Norway after complete payment of the whole fum : 

 3dlv, that king James (hould, in cafe of his dying before 

 the faid Margaret his fpoufe, leave her in podclTion of the 

 palace of Linlithgow and caftle of Down in Mentieth, with 

 all their appurtenances, and the third part of the ordinary 

 revenues of the crown, to be enjoyed by her during life, in 

 cafe (he (hould choofe to refide in Scotland : 4thly, but if 

 (he rather chofe to return to Denmark, that in lieu of the 

 faid hfe -rent, palace, and calUe, (he ihould accept of i20,coo 



florins of the Rhine ; from which fum the JOjOOO due for 

 the remainder of her portion being dedufted and aUcwed, the 

 iflands of Orkney (hould be re-annexed to the crown of 

 Norway as before. When the completion of thefe articles 

 became necelTary, Chriltiern found himfelf unable to fulfil 

 his part of them. Engaged in an unfuccefsful war with 

 Sweden, he could not advance the 10,000 florins, as agned 

 to. He therefore applied to the plenipotentiaries to ac- 

 cept of 2000, and to take a mortgage of the ifies of 

 Zetland for the other 8000. This treaty led to the fii;al 

 annexation of Orkney and Zetland to the Scottilh crown. 



In 1476 thofe misfortunes began to aflail James, which 

 afterwards terminated in his ruin. He had made his brother, 

 the duke of Albany, governor of Berwick ; and had en- 

 trufted him with very extenfive powers upon the borders, 

 where a violent propenlity for the feudal habits ftill con- 

 tinued. The Humes and the Hepburns could not brook 

 the duke of Albany's greatnels, efpecially after he forced 

 them, by virtue of a late aft, to part with fome of the ellates 

 which had been granted them in the preceding reign. The 

 pretended fcience of judicial aftrology, by which James 

 happened to be infatuated, was the eafied, as well as the 

 mod efFeftual engine that could work their purpofes. One 

 Andrew, an infamous impodor in that art, had been 

 brought over from Flanders by James ; and he and Schevez, 

 then archbifhop of St. Andrews, concurred in perfuading 

 James that the Scotch lion was to be devoured by his own 

 whelps. 



Ill 1482, the king began to feel the bad confequences 

 of taking into his councils men ot worthlefs charafter. His 

 great favourite at this time was Cochran, whom he had 

 raifed to the dignity of the earl of Mar. All hidurians 

 agree that this man made a mod infamous ufe ef his power. 

 The other minions of the king were James Hommil, a 

 taylor ; Leonard, a blackfmith ; and Torfifaw, a dancing- 

 mader, whofe profellions rendered them wholly unworthy of 

 the royal countenance. The favour (hewn to thefe men gave 

 fuch offence to the nobility, that they refolved to remove 

 the king, with fome of his lead exceptionable domedics, to 

 the cadle of Edinburgh, and to hang all his favourites over 

 Lawder bridge, both which meafurcs were accompli(hed 

 with the mod fpirited refolution. During his confinement, 

 James condufted himfelf with great firmnefs, refufing all 

 terms of compromife with thofe who had feized his perfon, 

 or were engaged in the execution of his favourites. Having 

 been liberated by his brother, the duke of Albany, he im- 

 mediately repaired to Holyrood Houfe, whither mod of his 

 nobles came to pay their refpefts to him ; but fo much was 

 he exafperated by their conduft, that he imprifoned no 

 fewer than fixteen. Albany was appointed chief mmifter, 

 and became a great favourite ; but this cordiality did not 

 lad long ; for in lefs than three years we find Albany fo- 

 lemnly denounced a traitor by aft of parliament. During 

 all this period, hodilities were carried on with the Englifh 

 government; but a truce was agreed to in 14S4; and James, 

 linding himfelf in tranquillity both at home and abroad, 

 infenfibly relapfed into his former impolitic fydem. The 

 refult was, an affociation of feveral of the mod powerful 

 barons, who feized the perfon of the heir apparent, and in- 

 duced him to put himfelf at their head. James at this 

 period was making progrefs and holding courts in the 

 North ; but immediately on hearing of the infurreftioa he 

 hurried to Perth, which he appointed as the place of ren- 

 dezvous for his army. When the whole were alTembled, he 

 marched to Stirling, where he fird learned that his fon com- 

 manded the rebel forces who were advancing from the ead. 

 Both armies drew up in battle array, neai-ly on the fame 



9 ground 



