by Susan Flantzer
© Unofficial Royalty 2020

On February 20, 1437, 42-year-old James I, King of Scots was assassinated by conspirators including his uncle Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl, the son of Robert II, King of Scots and his second wife Euphemia de Ross, who wanted to be on the throne instead of James.  James I was the first of five Stewart monarchs to die a violent death.  His son James II was accidentally killed when a cannon nearby where he was standing exploded. The violent deaths continued with the deaths in battle of James III and James IV and the beheading of Mary, Queen of Scots.

James I, King of Scots

James I, King of Scots was born on July 25, 1394, at Dunfermline Abbey in Fife, Scotland. He was the second surviving son of Robert III, King of Scots and Anabella Drummond. James’ father Robert III was the eldest child of Robert II, King of Scots and his mistress Elizabeth Mure. The couple married in 1346, but the marriage was not in agreement with the Canon Law of the Roman Catholic Church. After receiving a papal dispensation, the couple remarried. The children born before their marriage were legitimized. Despite the legitimization of Elizabeth’s children, there were family disputes over her children’s right to the crown.

At the time of his birth, James’ much older brother David Stewart, Duke of Rothesay was the heir to the throne of Scotland. However, serious problems began to emerge between David and his uncle Robert Stewart, 1st Duke of Albany, who was the third in line to the throne after David and James. Through the machinations of Robert Stewart, 1st Duke of Albany, David was accused unjustifiably of appropriating and confiscating funds and was arrested in 1402. He was imprisoned at Falkland Palace and died on March 26, 1402, at the age of 22, probably of starvation.

Eight-year-old James, now heir to the throne, was the only one in the way of transferring the royal line to the Albany Stewarts. Eventually, fearing for the safety of his only surviving son James, Robert III, King of Scots decided to send him to France. However, the ship 12-year-old James was sailing on was captured on March 22, 1406, by English pirates who delivered James to King Henry IV of England. Robert III, King of Scots, aged 68, died at Rothesay Castle on April 4, 1406, after hearing of his son’s captivity. 12-year-old James was now the uncrowned King of Scots and would remain in captivity in England for eighteen years. While in England, James was more of a guest than a hostage.

While in England, James met his future wife Lady Joan Beaufort. She was the third of the six children and the first of the two daughters of John Beaufort, 1st Earl of Somerset and Margaret Holland. Joan’s father was the eldest of the four children of John of Gaunt, son of King Edward III, and his mistress and later his wife, Katherine Swynford. Joan was a great grand-daughter of King Edward III, a first cousin once removed of King Richard II, a niece of King Henry IV, and a first cousin of King Henry V. Her paternal uncle Henry Beaufort was a Cardinal, Bishop of Winchester and Chancellor of England.

The English considered that a marriage to a Beaufort gave the Scots an alliance with the English instead of the French. James and Joan were married on February 12, 1424, at St. Mary Overie Church, now known as Southwark Cathedral in Southwark, London, England. James was released from his long captivity on March 28, 1424, and the couple traveled to Scotland. James and Joan had eight children including James’ successor James II, King of Scots.

For more information about James I, King of Scots, see Unofficial Royalty: James I, King of Scots

What caused a conspiracy to assassinate James I, King of Scots?

Upon his return to Scotland in 1424, James found that there were still doubts about the validity of the first marriage of his grandfather Robert II and this raised questions about James’ own right to the throne of Scotland. James found himself facing challenges from descendants of his grandfather’s two marriages. Those descendants included:

• Murdoch Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany – son of Robert Stewart, 1st Duke of Albany and the heir to the throne until James had children. Murdoch had three sons who also would have a claim on the throne: Walter Stewart, Alexander Stewart, and James Stewart.
• Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl – the only surviving son of Robert II and his second wife Euphemia de Ross. Walter had two sons who would also have a claim on the throne: David Stewart, Master of Atholl (died 1434) and Alan Stewart, 4th Earl of Caithness (died 1431) but as both had died Walter’s grandson Robert Stewart, Master of Atholl then became his heir.

James knew he had to crush the power of his cousin Murdoch Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany to strengthen his power. He also could not forget that it was Murdoch’s father who had caused the death of his elder brother David Stewart, Duke of Rothesay. In 1425, Duncan, Earl of Lennox, Murdoch’s father-in-law,  raised his men of Lennox in a revolt against  James I in support of Murdoch.  A Parliament held in Perth, Scotland in 1425 issued orders for Murdoch’s arrest and in May 1425 a trial was held at Stirling Castle where Murdoch, his sons Alexander and Walter Stewart, and his father-in-law Duncan, Earl of Lennox were all found guilty of treason and executed at Stirling Castle. Murdoch’s third son James Stewart fled to Ireland, where he would spend the remainder of his life in exile.

The Albany Stewarts were no longer a problem but his uncle, the only surviving son of Robert II and his second wife Euphemia de Ross, Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl, now had a stronger claim to the throne. In 1425, James I had only one infant child, a daughter. His only surviving son, the future James II, would not be born until 1430 and the remaining five children of James I would be all daughters.

Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl had been instrumental in negotiating James I’s release from captivity in England in 1424. Atholl also served as a member of the jury that tried and executed his nephew Murdoch Stewart, 2nd Duke of Albany. Atholl’s elder son David, Master of Atholl had been one of the hostages sent to England as a condition of James I’s release and had died there in 1434. Atholl’s younger son Alan died at the Battle of Inverlochy in 1431. Atholl’s grandson Robert, the son of David, was now Atholl’s heir and both were in line to the throne after James I’s son who had been born in 1430.

James I showed his uncle Atholl favor by appointing him Great Justiciar of Scotland, basically equivalent to a modern Prime Minister, and giving him an additional earldom, the Earldom of Strathearn. In addition, James appointed Atholl’s grandson Robert as his personal chamberlain. However, the true nature of Atholl’s loyalty to his nephew James I is unclear. Atholl was upset with issues with the lands he held and how they would and would not be inherited by his grandson. Some historians think that the imprisonment and subsequent death of his son David in England turned Atholl against James. Other historians think that Atholl’s efforts to return James to Scotland from his English captivity and support him against the Albany Stewarts was a well-thought-out plan for those two branches of the House of Stewart to destroy each other and clear Atholl’s own way to the throne because of the claims of the illegitimacy against his half-brother Robert III.

The Assassination

Whatever the cause of Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl’s issues with his nephew James I, King of Scots, he decided to assassinate the king and take the throne for himself. Some disaffected supporters of the Albany Stewarts joined in the conspiracy. The number of conspirators is thought to be around thirty but the main conspirators were:

• Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl – the only surviving son of Robert II and his second wife Euphemia de Ross
• Robert Stewart, Master of Atholl – Atholl’s grandson and heir and personal chamberlain of James I
• Sir Robert Graham – a former supporter of the Albany Stewarts
• Thomas Graham – son of Sir Robert Graham
• Christopher and Robert Chambers – former supporters of the Albany Stewarts, Robert was a member of the royal household

James I, King of Scots and his wife Joan Beaufort were staying at the Blackfriars Priory in Perth, Scotland. They had spent Christmas there and stayed on for a general council held in Perth in February 1437. On the evening of February 20, 1437, Robert Stewart, Master of Atholl, the personal chamberlain of James I, let about thirty conspirators into the Blackfriars Priory.

While James, his wife Joan, and her ladies were in their chambers, they heard a great noise and became fearful. It was discovered that the chamber door had been tampered with and would not lock. Unbeknownst to them, Robert Stewart, James’ chamberlain, had broken the locks. James asked the women to guard the door while he searched for a means of escape.

James was unable to open any windows so he grabbed iron tongs from the fireplace and managed to open a plank of the chamber’s floor. He crawled under the floorboards and put them back in their place. He was in the passage that led to a large drain but because the drain had been blocked, James could not escape.  James had played a lot of tennis while at the Blackfriars Priory and had hit many balls off the court and down the large drain. Just three days before his assassination, James had ordered the drain blocked up with stones so that he would not lose any more tennis balls.

Catherine Douglas, one of Queen Joan’s ladies, used her arm to bar the door closed against the assassins. Eventually, the assassins forced their way into the chamber, breaking Catherine’s arm. Catherine’s story has been retold over the centuries and she has been nicknamed Kate Barless.  James I was eventually discovered and hacked to death by Sir Robert Graham. Queen Joan had been a target of her husband’s killers, and although wounded, she escaped.  James I, King of Scots was only 42 years old when he was killed and left a 7-year-old son to succeed him as James II, King of Scots.  Some people were glad to see James I dead. They considered him a tyrant who without reason attacked the nobility by imposing forfeiture on their estates and who failed to deliver justice to his people.

James I, King of Scots was buried in the Carthusian Charterhouse in Perth, which he had founded. On May 11, 1559, following a sermon by John Knox, a leader of the Scottish Reformation and the founder of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland, a mob of Protestant reformers attacked the Carthusian Charterhouse in Perth. Everything was destroyed including the tombs and remains of James I, his wife Joan, and Margaret Tudor, the wife of James IV, King of Scots and the daughter of King Henry VII of England.

What happened to the conspirators?

There was no strong support for the conspiracy and James I’s assassins were soon captured and brutally executed on March 26, 1437. They were dragged naked through the street and stabbed with red-hot irons. Then they were beheaded, torn limb from limb, and quartered. Their heads were placed on iron spikes and their limbs were hung on gates in towns and cities throughout Scotland as a warning to other would-be traitors.

The would-be King of Scots, Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl, had the most brutal torture and execution. He was tortured for two days and then killed on the third day. On the first day, he was put in a cart with a crane, pulled up, and then violently dropped. He was then put in a pillory and a crown of burning iron was placed upon his head with the inscription King of all Traitors. On the second day, Atholl was dragged naked through the streets. On the third day, he was disemboweled while still alive. His entrails and heart were torn out and burned. Finally, he was beheaded and quartered. Like the other assassins, his head and the quarters were displayed throughout Scotland.

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Works Cited

• Abernethy, S. (2013). The Assassination of King James I of Scotland. [online] The Freelance History Writer. Available at: https://thefreelancehistorywriter.com/2013/05/24/the-assassination-of-king-james-i-of-scotland/ [Accessed 24 Nov. 2019].
• En.wikipedia.org. (2019). James I of Scotland. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_I_of_Scotland [Accessed 24 Nov. 2019].
• En.wikipedia.org. (2019). Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl. [online] Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Stewart,_Earl_of_Atholl [Accessed 24 Nov. 2019].
• Flantzer, Susan. (2017). James I, King of Scots. [online] Unofficial Royalty. Available at: https://www.unofficialroyalty.com/james-i-king-of-scots/ [Accessed 24 Nov. 2019].
• Scotsman.com. (2015). How King James’ love of tennis sealed his murder. [online] Available at: https://www.scotsman.com/news-2-15012/how-king-james-love-of-tennis-sealed-his-murder-1-4367436 [Accessed 24 Nov. 2019].