John Stewart | |
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| 1st Earl of Traquair | |
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| Died | 27 March 1659 Edinburgh, Scotland |
| Spouse(s) | Lady Catherine Carnegie |
| Issue | John Stewart, 2nd Earl of Traquair Margaret Douglas, Countess of Queensberry Elizabeth Murray |
| Father | John Stewart of Traquair |
| Mother | Margaret Stewart |
John Stewart, 1st Earl of Traquair (died 27 March 1659) was a Scottish statesman who was created Baron Stewart of Traquair in 1628 and Earl of Traquair in 1633.
He was the son of John Stewart, the Younger, of Traquair in Peeblesshire, of a branch, originally illegitimate, of the house of Buchan. His mother was Margaret Stewart, a daughter of Andrew, Master of Ochiltree, and Margaret Stewart. [1] She was a lady-in-waiting in the household of Anne of Denmark. [2]
He was appointed Treasurer-depute of Scotland and an Extraordinary Lord of Session in 1630. In February 1633 Traquair visited building and repair works at Linlithgow Palace, Dunfermline Palace, and Stirling Castle. [3] In 1633 Charles I was crowned in Edinburgh, and Traquair was involved in repairing the Scottish crown jewels and the royal wardrobe. [4]
Traquair is said to have given the casting vote against John Elphinstone, 2nd Lord Balmerino at his trial in 1634, but afterwards obtained his pardon. From 1636 to 1641 he held the office of Lord High Treasurer of Scotland, and aided Charles I in introducing the liturgy. [5]
He endeavoured to prevent a conflict by impressing on the king the necessity of caution and the danger of extreme measures against the rioters. He was, however, compelled to publish Charles's proclamation enforcing the use of the liturgy and forbidding hostile demonstrations on pain of treason (1638). This was followed by military measures in which Traquair assisted by secretly conveying munitions of war to Dalkeith Palace. He was, however, obliged to surrender the place with the regalia to the Covenanters (March 1639). [5]
After the Treaty of Berwick he was appointed the king's commissioner to the assembly at Edinburgh (August 1639), and he assented in writing to the act abolishing episcopacy, but prevented its ratification by adjourning the opening of parliament. [5]
His apparent double-dealing made him suspected by both parties, and in 1641 the Scottish parliament issued a warrant for his arrest. In his absence he was sentenced to death, but, although the king secured the remission of this penalty, he was dismissed from his office of treasurer, and in 1644, for repairing to the court and opposing the covenant, he was declared an enemy to religion and fined 40,000 marks. [5] Stewart was accused of being a freemason. [6]
His son, Lord Linton, whom he had sent to Montrose with a troop of horse, withdrew on the eve of the Battle of Philiphaugh (September 1645) and it has been supposed that Traquair betrayed Montrose's plans to David Leslie. He was readmitted to parliament in 1646, raised cavalry for the "engagement" between the king and the Covenanters, and was captured at Preston (1648). He was released by Oliver Cromwell in 1654, and died on 27 March 1659. He was succeeded by his only son John (c. 1622–1666), whose descendants held the title until 1861, when on the death of Charles, the 8th earl, it became dormant or extinct. [5]
He married Lady Catherine Carnegie, daughter of David Carnegie, 1st Earl of Southesk and had three children:
John Campbell, 1st Earl of Loudoun was a Scottish politician and Covenanter.
William Douglas, 1st Duke of Queensberry PC, also 3rd Earl of Queensberry and 1st Marquess of Queensberry, was a Scottish politician.
The Privy Council of Scotland was a body that advised the Scottish monarch. In the range of its functions the council was often more important than the Estates in the running the country. Its registers include a wide range of material on the political, administrative, economic and social affairs of the Kingdom of Scotland. The council supervised the administration of the law, regulated trade and shipping, took emergency measures against the plague, granted licences to travel, administered oaths of allegiance, banished beggars and gypsies, dealt with witches, recusants, Covenanters and Jacobites and tackled the problem of lawlessness in the Highlands and the Borders.
Earl of Traquair was a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created on 23 June 1633 for John Stewart, Lord Stewart of Traquair.
James Stewart, 1st Earl of Buchan (1442–1499) was a Scottish noble. He was the uncle of James III of Scotland who granted him the Earldom of Buchan. Buchan repaid his nephew by fighting for his cause against rebellious southern barons. Through his marriage to Margaret Ogilvy he acquired the title Lord Auchterhouse.
Archibald Napier, 1st Lord Napier, the 9th Laird Napier of Merchiston, was a Scottish politician and judge. In 1627 he was created Lord Napier of Merchiston and Baronet of Nova Scotia.
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William Douglas, 1st Marquess of Douglas and 11th Earl of Angus (1589–1660) was a Scottish nobleman.
John Leslie, 6th Earl of Rothes was a Scottish nobleman, one of the main leaders of the Covenanters.
James Livingston, 1st Earl of Callendar, was a Scottish army officer who fought on the Royalist side in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms.
John Elphinstone, 2nd Lord Balmerino was a Scottish aristocrat, convicted in a celebrated trial of the 1630s which became a crux of the religious issue of the time.
James Home, 2nd Earl of Home was a Scottish nobleman.
Simon Fraser, 6th Lord Lovat (1570–1633) was a Scottish courtier and landowner.
James Douglas, 2nd Earl of Queensberry was a Scottish noble, politician and Covenanter.
Margaret Stewart, Mistress of Ochiltree was a courtier in the household of Anne of Denmark in Scotland and looked after her children Prince Henry, Princess Elizabeth, and Charles I of England
John Stewart of Traquair was a Scottish landowner.
Dorothea Stewart, Countess of Gowrie was a Scottish aristocrat. The dates of the birth and death of Dorothea Stewart are unknown.
John Campbell of Lundy or Lundie was a Scottish lawyer and courtier.
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