Nicolas Roy (mason)

Last updated

Nicolas Roy was a French stone mason who worked in Scotland for James V and his second wife Mary of Guise. [1]

Antoinette of Bourbon sent French stone masons to Scotland to give her daughter's palaces a makeover Antoinette de Bourbon Limousin.jpg
Antoinette of Bourbon sent French stone masons to Scotland to give her daughter's palaces a makeover

Nicolas Roy may have been the leader of the group of stonemasons recruited by Antoinette of Bourbon, Duchess of Guise, the mother of Mary of Guise. The Duchess wrote that she had found a mason with a high reputation who promised to go Scotland and bring a good companion. [2] The masons travelled to Scotland via Paris. [3] The Duchess also sent expert miners to look for Scottish gold. Mary of Guise wrote to her mother that she was pleased with the masons. [4]

The miners were looked after by the goldsmith John Mosman and sent to Crawford Moor escorted by a messenger to translate for them until they learnt the Scots language. [5]

He was appointed master mason to the king on 22 April 1539 with an annual fee of £6-13-4d over and above any wages for mason work to be paid by the Master of Work, John Scrimgeour. [6] Nicolas Roy was later listed in a household roll of Mary of Guise, and mentioned in her household books. He made some alterations and repairs for Mary of Guise and her infant daughter Mary, Queen of Scots, at Stirling Castle in 1544. The brief account written in French mentions lime for repairing the wall of the park and two carpenters who made wheelbarrows. [7]

Other French craftsmen working at the Scottish royal palaces include the woodcarver and metal-worker Andrew Mansioun and the painter Pierre Quesnel.

Falkland Palace

Carefully executed stonework in the "Francois Ier" style at Falkland Palace is the work of Nicolas Roy and his companions. Falkland Palace South Range from the Courtyard - geograph.org.uk - 3105967.jpg
Carefully executed stonework in the "François Ier" style at Falkland Palace is the work of Nicolas Roy and his companions.

One wage payment calls Roy the principal stonemason at Falkland Palace, in Latin; Nicholio Roy, Gallico, latimo principali in palatio de Falkland. [9] His name appears in the records for building Falkland Palace from June 1539 onwards. He was paid 21 shillings weekly and his three colleagues or "servitours" received the same. [10] There is also a payment in the Treasurer's Accounts for the wages of the "French maister maison in Falkland" since his arrival in Scotland on 20 April 1539 to the end of August 1540. [11]

At this time, James V was building and converting his father's lodgings at Falkland into a palace in French renaissance style. The palace effectively belonged to Mary of Guise as part of her jointure. The accounts do not specify exactly what work Nicolas Roy and his workshop undertook, but they may have carved the portrait medallions or roundels that decorate the internal façades of the courtyard. A sculptor known as Peter Flemishman made the statues of saints for the niches on the entrance façade. [12]

During the works at Falkland, the French masons made two excursions to St Andrews to advise on the building of a new college under the patronage of Cardinal David Beaton. [13]

Another French stone mason, Moyse or Mogin Martin, first employed at Dunbar Castle by the Duke of Albany, worked at Falkland until his death in March 1538. His son also called Moyse Martin continued to work at Falkland. The elder Moyse Martin travelled to France with James V in 1536 and perhaps gained inspiration for the royal works in Scotland at this time. [14] [15]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mary of Guise</span> Queen of Scotland from 1538 to 1542

Mary of Guise, also called Mary of Lorraine, was Queen of Scotland from 1538 until 1542, as the second wife of King James V. She was a French noblewoman of the House of Guise, a cadet branch of the House of Lorraine and one of the most powerful families in France. As the mother of Mary, Queen of Scots, she was a key figure in the political and religious upheaval that marked mid-16th-century Scotland, ruling the kingdom as queen regent on behalf of her daughter from 1554 until her death in 1560.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Linlithgow Palace</span> Ruined palace in Scotland

The ruins of Linlithgow Palace are located in the town of Linlithgow, West Lothian, Scotland, 15 miles (24 km) west of Edinburgh. The palace was one of the principal residences of the monarchs of Scotland in the 15th and 16th centuries. Although maintained after Scotland's monarchs left for England in 1603, the palace was little used, and was burned out in 1746. It is now a visitor attraction in the care of Historic Environment Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Falkland Palace</span> Castle in Fife, Scotland

Falkland Palace, in Falkland, Fife, Scotland, is a royal palace of the Scottish Kings. It was one of the favourite places of Mary, Queen of Scots, who took refuge there from political and religious turmoil of her times.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dunbar Castle</span> Fortress overlooking the harbour of Dunbar, Scotland

Dunbar Castle was one of the strongest fortresses in Scotland, situated in a prominent position overlooking the harbour of the town of Dunbar, in East Lothian. Several fortifications were built successively on the site, near the English-Scottish border. The last was slighted in 1567; it is a ruin today.

Lady Jean Stewart, was an illegitimate daughter of King James V of Scotland by his mistress, Elizabeth Bethune.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul de Thermes</span> French army officer (1482–1562)

Paul de La Barthe de Thermes or de Termes (1482–1562), also Paul de Terme or Maréchal de Thermes, was a French Army Marshal ("Maréchal").

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Scrimgeour of Myres</span>

John Scrimgeour of Myres Castle near Falkland, Fife was Master of Work for royal buildings for James V and Mary, Queen of Scots, and Precentor of the Scottish Chapel Royal.

William MacDowall was a Scottish priest and Master of Works to Mary, Queen of Scots, her mother Mary of Guise, and James VI of Scotland. The title 'sir' was used in Scotland by a priest without a master's degree. The name appears variously as McDowgall, McDougall, McDowall etc., in printed records, he signed accounts MAKDOUELL.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scottish royal tapestry collection</span>

The Scottish royal tapestry collection was a group of tapestry hangings assembled to decorate the palaces of sixteenth-century kings and queens of Scotland. None appear to have survived.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pierre Quesnel</span> French painter

Pierre Quesnel was a 16th-century French artist who worked in Scotland, before returning to Paris with his family after the death of James V of Scotland.

George Seton IV, 6th Lord Seton was a Lord of the Parliament of Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Andrew Mansioun</span> French artist

Andrew Mansioun, or Mentioun or Manschone or Manson, was a French artist who worked at the court of James V, King of Scots. He was the master carpenter of the Scottish artillery for Mary, Queen of Scots and James VI of Scotland.

James, Duke of Rothesay was the first of the two sons and three children born to King James V of Scotland and his second wife, Mary of Guise. From the moment of his birth James was Duke of Rothesay and heir apparent to the Scottish throne.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Mosman (goldsmith)</span> Scottish goldsmith

John Mosman or Mossman was a Scottish goldsmith based in Edinburgh who served the royal court and was involved in gold mining.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walter Merlioun</span> Scottish master mason

Walter Merlioun, was a Scottish master mason based in Edinburgh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Hamilton of Briggis</span> Scottish soldier and military engineer

Robert Hamilton of Briggis was a Scottish soldier and military engineer. He was keeper of Linlithgow Palace and Dunbar Castle and was Master of the Scottish artillery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean Sinclair</span> Scottish nurse of Mary, Queen of Scots

Jean or Janet Sinclair was the Scottish nurse of Mary, Queen of Scots.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas Peebles (glazier)</span> Scottish glazier

Thomas Peebles or Peblis was a Scottish glazier who worked for James IV, Margaret Tudor, and James V of Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Food and the Scottish royal household</span> Expenses made to feed the Scottish royal household

Records survive of the expenses made to feed the Scottish royal household in the sixteenth century, and the remains of royal kitchens can be seen in the ruins of palaces and castles. Archaeologists can recover evidence of diet from deposits including waste from meals and food preparation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Hill (blacksmith)</span> Scottish blacksmith

William Hill was a Scottish blacksmith and fabricator of works in iron for James V of Scotland.

References

  1. ↑ Ian Campbell, 'Franco-Scottish Architectural Exchanges circa 1535-60', Études Épistémè: Marie de Guise et les transferts culturels, 37 (2020)
  2. ↑ Marguerite Wood, Balcarres Papers, Foreign Correspondence with Marie de Lorraine Queen of Scotland, vol. 1 (Edinburgh, 1923), pp. xix, 20, 33.
  3. ↑ James Balfour Paul, Accounts of the Treasurer, vol. 7 (Edinburgh, 1907), pp. 48, 184, 330.
  4. ↑ Marguerite Wood, Balcarres Papers, Foreign Correspondence with Marie de Lorraine Queen of Scotland, vol. 1 (Edinburgh, 1923), p. 33.
  5. ↑ James Balfour Paul, Accounts of the Treasurer, vol. 7 (Edinburgh, 1907), pp. 193-4.
  6. ↑ David Hay Fleming, Register of the Privy Seal, 1529-1542, vol. 2 (Edinburgh, 1921), pp. 445-6 no. 3002.
  7. ↑ John G. Dunbar, Scottish Royal Palaces (Edinburgh, 1999), pp. 52, 228: National Records of Scotland: National Library of Scotland, Balcarres Papers, vol. 5, MS 29.2.5.
  8. ↑ Marcus Merriman, The Rough Wooings (Tuckwell, 2000), p. 109.
  9. ↑ George Powell McNeill, Exchequer Rolls, 1537-1542, vol. 17 (Edinburgh, 1897), p. 291.
  10. ↑ Henry Paton, Accounts of the Masters of Work, vol. 1 (Edinburgh, 1957), pp. 254-5, 277-8.
  11. ↑ James Balfour Paul, Accounts of the Treasurer of Scotland, vol. 7 (Edinburgh, 1907), p. 330.
  12. ↑ Charles McKean, 'Gender Differentiation in Scottish Royal Palaces', Monique Chatenet & Alexandre Gady, Le Prince, La Princesse et Leurs Logis (Picard, Paris, 2014), p. 95: John G. Dunbar, 'Palace of Holyroodhouse', Archaeological Journal (1963), p. 253.
  13. ↑ Robert Kerr Hannay, Rentale Sancti Andree (Edinburgh: SHS, 1913), pp. 68, 125.
  14. ↑ John G. Dunbar, 'Some Sixteenth-Century French Parallels for the Palace of Falkland', Review of Scottish Culture, 7 (1991), p. 5.
  15. ↑ Bryony Coombs, 'Drawing Blood: The Visual Patronage of Robert Stuart d'Aubigny, Maréchal of France, in Relation to James V's French Sojourn of 1536', Études Épistémè, 37 (2020). doi : 10.4000/episteme.6622
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.