James II (Stewart) King of Scots
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James (Stewart) King of Scots (1430 - aft. 1460)

James (James II) King of Scots formerly Stewart
Born in Holyrood Palace, Edinburgh, Scotlandmap
Ancestors ancestors
Son of and
Brother of , , , , , , , [half], [half] and [half]
Husband of — married 3 Jul 1449 in monastery of Holyrood, Edinburgh, Scotlandmap
Descendants descendants
Father of , , , , , , and
Died after after age 29 in Roxburgh Castle, Kelso, Roxburghshire, Scotlandmap
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Profile last modified | Created 18 Feb 2011
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Scottish Nobility
James II (Stewart) King of Scots was a member of Scottish Nobility.
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Preceded by
James I Stewart		 King of Scotland
21 February 1436-7 - 3 August 1460		 Succeeded by
James III

Biography

This profile is part of the Stewart Name Study.
James II (Stewart) King of Scots is a member of Clan Stewart.

James Stewart was born on the 16th of October 1430 at Holyrood, near Edinburgh, the second but oldest surviving son and heir of James I of Scotland and Joan Beaufort, eldest daughter of John Beaufort, 1st earl of Somerset, and Margaret de Holand.[1][2][3] His twin brother, Alexander (the oldest twin), died in infancy.[4] James himself was born with a large red birthmark on his face, which caused him to be later nicknamed "James of the Fiery Face."[5][6] He was six years old when his father was murdered, and he ascended to the throne on 25 March 1437.[7][1] James II was crowned at Holyrood Abbey,[5][8][9] breaking a long tradition of Scottish kings who were crowned at Scone.

The queen initially retained custody of her son, but in 1439 she married (second) James Stewart, knight of Lorne,[10] and was forbidden by law to continue as James's guardian or have any role in the affairs of the government.[6] This brought to a head a long standing conflict between Alexander Livingston, governor of Stirling Castle, and William Crichton, governor of Edinburgh Castle, who had each been vying to control the young king.[6][10] Livingston actually seized the Queen Mother and her new husband and imprisoned them at Stirling Castle for a month, until they signed a formal document giving sole custody of James to himself.[10][11] Crichton responded by kidnapping the king from Stirling Park and removing him to Edinburgh Castle.[10] This rivalry for control over the king continued throughout his minority.[6]

James's chief rivals to the throne of Scotland were William and David Douglas, the sons of his cousin Archibald, 5th earl of Douglas, and his wife Euphemia Graham, a great-granddaughter of Robert II.[6] In November 1440 Crichton, in the king's name, invited the two boys to a feast at Edinburgh Castle where, at the end of the meal, a black bull's head was placed on the table to symbolize death. The brothers were seized, given a mock trial which found them guilty of treason, and immediately executed.[6][12] From that moment on, the Douglases were sworn enemies of both James and Crichton (in James's defense, he was only ten at the time and protested when the boys were seized but was completely overruled by Crichton), and allied themselves strongly with Livingston.[6] The Livingstons continued to grow more and more powerful and by 1449 controlled most of the important offices and castles in Scotland.[6] When, that same year, James II assumed his full powers as king, one of his first acts on 23 September was to arrest almost all Livingstons holding an official position, first imprisoning and then executing most of them.[6] William Douglas (the new earl of Douglas), who had assisted the Livingsons, fled to France. Back in Scotland two years later, on 20 February 1452 he was invited to dinner by James who, at the end of a heated argument, stabbed him fatally in the neck.[13][14] The next earl of Douglas, William's brother James, immediately withdrew his allegiance from James and swore fealty to Henry VI.[6] James retaliated by assembling 30,000 men, marching them south, and wasting many of the Douglas lands.[10]

Significant Events During His Reign

When the English War of the Roses broke out in 1455 its impact was also felt in Scotland, with James supporting the Lancastrians and the Douglases supporting the House of York.[6] James, using cannons (a new form of artillery against which castles had no defense and on which James had a virtual monopoly in Scotland), successfully defeated the Douglases once and for all and they were attainted in June of that year, all of their estates forfeited.[10][15] Over the next several years James began revoking many of the acts and settlements agreed upon during his minority.[6] Threatening the use of military force against all who opposed him, James declared the crown to be the rightful owner of the earldoms of Fife and Strathearn; the castles of Edinburgh, Stirling, Dumbarton, Inverness, and Urquhart; the lordship of Brechin; and a number of highland baronies including several in Ross.[10] By 1459 he held most of Scotland in his grip.[6]

Although he did not hesitate to aggressively use force to acquire more land and control the Scottish nobility, James also was something of a reformist.[10] In the 1450s he oversaw the founding of the University of Glasgow by Bishop William Turnbull.[16][17] On 6 March 1458, he called a parliament in Edinburgh to create a supreme and cental court for civil justice [10] This court, sitting in Edinburgh, Perth, and Aberdeen, was to make annual circuits throughout the kingdom "for the good of the commons" and was an attempt to end abuses previously committed by nobles who had jurisdiction over the common folk and often levied extortionate fines against their own tenants.[10]

Marriage and Children

On 3 July1448/9 at Holyrood Abbey, James II, King of Scots, married Mary of Guelders, daughter of Arnold, Duke of Guelders, and Katherine, daughter of Adolph I, Duke of Cleves.[1][18][19] On the same day, Mary of Guelders was crowned Queen of Scots.[20]

There were at least seven children from this marriage:

  • David Stewart, Earl of Moray; b. bef. 12 Feb1455;[33] d. bef. 18 Jul 1457 (age 3)[5][33]

James II also had a natural son by an unknown mistress:

Death

James II was killed during a siege of Roxburgh Castle on 3 August 1459/60, when a cannon accidentally exploded near him.[39][5] His wife had arrived to witness the fall of the castle, and it is said that James was anxious to fire a special salvo in her honor.[6] Unfortunately, "....more curious than befitted the majesty of a king, [he] did stand too neire the guners quhill the artilierey wer in discharging ....his theighe bone was broken in tuo with a pice of a gun that burst in pices in discharging, quherwith beinge strukin to the ground, he deyed some few houres thereafter." [40] On his death, the queen took command and ordered the seige to commence.[10] When the castle was taken, the body of the king "was conducted...to the monastarey of the Holycrosse, neir Edinbrughe, quher [they] royally interrid the same, with tearres of his people and haill armey."[41] The king was buried in the center of the choir of the chapel at Holyrood in Edinburgh.[42] His queen died three years later, on 1 December 1463, and was buried in the Church of the Holy Trinity.[1][43]

Sources

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Douglas Richardson. Royal Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, 5 vols, ed. Kimball G. Everingham (Salt Lake City: the author, 2013), vol. 1, pp. 662-667 BRUS 13. James II of Scotland.
  2. ↑ Douglas Richardson. Magna Carta Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, 4 vols, ed. Kimball G. Everingham, 2nd ed. (Salt Lake City: the author, 2011), vol. 3, pp.582-587 SCOTLAND 10. James II of Scotland.
  3. ↑ Balfour, Sir James. The Annales of Scotland MCVII-MDCIII. Edinburgh: W. Aitchison (1824), vol. 1, p. 160 (1430).
  4. ↑ Paul, Sir James Balfour. The Scots Peerage. Edinburgh: D. Douglas (1904), vol. 1, p. 19.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7 5.8 Paul, Sir James Balfour. The Scots Peerage. Edinburgh: D. Douglas (1904), vol. 1, p. 20.
  6. ↑ 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 6.11 6.12 6.13 Ashley, Mike. The Mammoth Book of British Kings & Queens. New York: Carroll & Graf (1999), pp. 559-560.
  7. ↑ Acts of Parliament, APS ii.31, 1437/3/2 Coronation of James II.
  8. ↑ Dunbar, Sir Archibald H. Scottish Kings: A Revised Chronology of Scottish History 1005-1625. Edinburgh: D. Douglas (1899), p. 195.
  9. ↑ Balfour, Sir James. The Annales of Scotland MCVII-MDCIII. Edinburgh: W. Aitchison (1824), vol. 1, p. 166.
  10. ↑ 10.00 10.01 10.02 10.03 10.04 10.05 10.06 10.07 10.08 10.09 10.10 Mackay, Aeneas J.G. Dictionary of National Biography Online. James II of Scotland.
  11. ↑ Dunbar, Sir Archibald H. Scottish Kings: A Revised Chronology of Scottish History 1005-1625. Edinburgh: D. Douglas (1899), p. 196.
  12. ↑ Dunbar, Sir Archibald H. Scottish Kings: A Revised Chronology of Scottish History 1005-1625. Edinburgh: D. Douglas (1899), pp. 196-197.
  13. ↑ Balfour, Sir James. The Annales of Scotland MCVII-MDCIII. Edinburgh: W. Aitchison (1824), vol. i, p. 181.
  14. ↑ Dunbar, Sir Archibald H. Scottish Kings: A Revised Chronology of Scottish History 1005-1625. Edinburgh: D. Douglas (1899), pp. 198-199.
  15. ↑ Dunbar, Sir Archibald H. Scottish Kings: A Revised Chronology of Scottish History 1005-1625. Edinburgh: D. Douglas (1899), p. 199.
  16. ↑ Balfour, Sir James. The Annales of Scotland MCVII-MDCIII. Edinburgh: W. Aitchison (1824), vol. 1, p. 184.
  17. ↑ Thomson, Thomas (ed.) The Auchinleek Chronicle. Edinburgh: Library at Auchinleek, Ayrshire (1819), part 2: A Short Chronicle of the Reign of James the Second, King of Scots,p. 184.
  18. ↑ Balfour, Sir James. The Annales of Scotland MCVII-MDCIII. Edinburgh: W. Aitchison (1824), vol. 1, p. 176 (1448).
  19. ↑ Thomson, Thomas (ed.) The Auchinleek Chronicle. Edinburgh: Library at Auchinleek, Ayrshire (1819), part 2: A Short Chronicle of the Reign of James the Second, King of Scots, p. 41.
  20. ↑ Dunbar, Sir Archibald H. Scottish Kings: A Revised Chronology of Scottish History 1005-1625. Edinburgh: D. Douglas (1899), p. 198.
  21. ↑ The Asloan Manuscript, pp. 26, 43, cited in Burnett, George (ed). Rotuli Scaccarii Regum Scotorum (Exchequer Rolls of Scotland). Edinburgh: General Register House (1883), vol. 6 (1455-1460), preface, pp.cxxvi-cxxvii, footnote 1.
  22. ↑ Balfour, Sir James. The Annales of Scotland MCVII-MDCIII. Edinburgh: W. Aitchison (1824), vol 1, p. 177 (1449).
  23. ↑ Burnett, George (ed). Rotuli Scaccarii Regum Scotorum (Exchequer Rolls of Scotland). Edinburgh: General Register House (1882), vol. 5 (1437-1454), preface, p. lxxxviii.
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 Douglas Richardson. Royal Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, 5 vols, ed. Kimball G. Everingham (Salt Lake City: the author, 2013), vol. 1, pp. 667-668 BRUS 14. James III of Scotland.
  25. ↑ Burnett, George (ed). Rotuli Scaccarii Regum Scotorum (Exchequer Rolls of Scotland). Edinburgh: General Register House (1883), vol. 6 (1455-1460), preface, pp.cxxvi-cxxvii, footnote 3.
  26. ↑ Burnett, George (ed). Rotuli Scaccarii Regum Scotorum (Exchequer Rolls of Scotland). Edinburgh: General Register House (1882), vol. 5 (1437-1454), p. 537.
  27. ↑ Biographia Britannica. Boyde. London: W. Innys (1748), vol. 2, p. 875.
  28. ↑ Paul, Sir James Balfour. The Scots Peerage. Edinburgh: D. Douglas (1907), vol. 4, pp. 352-353.
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 29.2 29.3 Dunbar, Sir Archibald H. Scottish Kings: A Revised Chronology of Scottish History 1005-1625. Edinburgh: D. Douglas (1899), p. 201.
  30. ↑ Paul, Sir James Balfour. The Scots Peerage. Edinburgh: D. Douglas (1907), vol. 4, p. 353.
  31. ↑ 31.0 31.1 31.2 31.3 Burnett, George (ed). Rotuli Scaccarii Regum Scotorum (Exchecquer Rolls of Scotland). Edinburgh: General Register House (1886), vol. 9, preface pp. lvi-lix.
  32. ↑ Pitcairn, Robert. Criminal Trials in Scotland. Edinburgh: William Tait (1833), vol. 1, part 1, pp. 16-17, footnote 1.
  33. ↑ 33.0 33.1 Burnett, George (ed). Rotuli Scaccarii Regum Scotorum (Exchequer Rolls of Scotland). Edinburgh: General Register House (1883), vol. 6 (1455-1460), preface, pp.cxxvi-cxxvii, footnote 5.
  34. ↑ Burnett, George (ed). Rotuli Scaccarii Regum Scotorum (Exchequer Rolls of Scotland). Edinburgh: General Register House (1883), vol. 6 (1455-1460), preface, pp.cxxvi-cxxvii, footnote 6.
  35. ↑ Burnett, George (ed). Rotuli Scaccarii Regum Scotorum (Exchequer Rolls of Scotland). Edinburgh: General Register House (1883), vol. 6 (1455-1460), preface, pp.cxxvi-cxxvii, footnote 7.
  36. ↑ 36.0 36.1 36.2 Dickson, Thomas. Compota Thesaurariorum Regum Scotorum (Accounts of the Lord High Treasurer of Scotland). Edinburgh: HM General Register House (1877), vol. 1, appendix no. 1 to preface: The Lady Margaret, p. cclxxxvi-ccxcii.
  37. ↑ Acta Dom Conc. 1482, cited in MacGregor, Gordon. The Red Book of Scotland. Scotland: by the author (2020), vol. 9, p. 47
  38. ↑ Chronicle of Fortingal, cited in MacGregor, Gordon. The Red Book of Scotland. Scotland: by the author (2020), vol. 9, p. 47
  39. ↑ Burnett, George (ed.) Rotuli Scaccarii Regum Scotorum (Exchequer Rolls of Scotland). Edinburgh: General Register House (1883), vol. 6 (1455-1460), preface p. lxiv.
  40. ↑ Balfour, Sir James. The Annales of Scotland MCVII-MDCIII. Edinburgh: W. Aitchison (1824), vol. i, p. 188 (1459).
  41. ↑ Balfour, Sir James. The Annales of Scotland MCVII-MDCIII. Edinburgh: W. Aitchison (1824), vol. 1, p. 189 (1460).
  42. ↑ Dunbar, Sir Archibald H. Scottish Kings: A Revised Chronology of Scottish History 1005-1625. Edinburgh: D. Douglas (1899), p. 200.
  43. ↑ Balfour, Sir James. The Annales of Scotland MCVII-MDCIII. Edinburgh: W. Aitchison (1824), vol. 1, p. 192 (1463).
See Also:
  • Birch, W. de G. Catalogue of Seals in the....British Museum. London: the Trustees (1895), vol. 4, pp. 16-17, James II.
  • Birch, W. de G. Catalogue of Seals in the ....British Museum. London: the Trustees (1895), vol. 4, pp. 38-39, Mary of Guelders.
  • Cawley, Charles. Medieval Lands, Scotland, Kings. Foundation for Medieval Genealogy: Medieval Lands database, chapter 6, Stewart.
  • Johnston, G. Harvey. The Heraldry of the Stewarts. Edinburgh: W. & A.K. Johnston (1908), p. 10 (ped.); p. 16 (arms), available online.
  • Richardson, Douglas. Magna Carta Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, 4 vols., ed. Kimball G. Everingham. 2nd edition. Salt Lake City, UT: the author, 2011. See also WikiTree's source page for Magna Carta Ancestry.
  • Richardson, Douglas. Royal Ancestry: A Study in Colonial and Medieval Families, 5 vols., ed. Kimball G. Everingham. Salt Lake City, UT: the author, 2013. See also WikiTree's source page for Royal Ancestry
  • Weir, Alison. Britain's Royal Families. London: The Bodley Head (1989), pp. 233-236.

Acknowledgements

Click the Changes tab to see edits to this profile. Thank you to everyone who contributed to this profile.

Magna Carta Project

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This profile is in a trail badged by the Magna Carta Project.
This profile was revised by Jen Hutton in November 2020 and approved for the Magna Carta Project by Michael Cayley on 13 November 2020.
James II (Stewart) King of Scots appears in Magna Carta Ancestry in badged Richardson-documented trails from Gateway Ancestor Patrick Houston to Magna Carta Surety Barons Gilbert de Clare, Richard de Clare and Robert de Vere. The trail is set out in the Magna Carta Trails section of the Gateway's profile.
See Base Camp for more information about identified Magna Carta trails and their status. See the project's glossary for project-specific terms, such as a "badged trail".




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DNA Connections
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Images: 4
HOLYROOD CASTLE
HOLYROOD CASTLE
SCOTLAND ROYAL
SCOTLAND ROYAL
James ll Stewart Image 1
James ll Stewart Image 1
James II, 1430-1460
James II, 1430-1460


Comments: 18

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Olar-3 Jared Olar
The latest and best published study of the life and reign of King James II is the 2015 volume "James II" by Christine McGladdery, Teaching Fellow at the School of History, University of St. Andrews. McGladdery shows that King James II certainly died on 3 Aug. 1460 (not "after" that date as this profile erroneously shows). In addition, she shows conclusively and irrefutably from the earliest available sources (chiefly the Auchinleck Chronicle) that -- contrary to the romantic legend found in later Scots chronicles -- the cannon blast that accidentally killed the king was NOT a salvo fired in honour of the arrival of his queen at the Siege of Roxburgh. Rather, the king was killed on 3 Aug. 1450 and THEN the queen was brought quickly to Roxburgh as soon as possible -- partly to maintain the army's morale after the loss of the king, and partly to ensure as smooth a transition after James II's death as could be arranged. After the queen's arrival, the Scottish army took Roxburgh.

The later chronicle sources compressed the events surrounding James II's tragic death, bringing the queen to Roxburgh on the very day of her husband death, and then a romantic tale arose that the cannon blast that killed James was fired in her honour.

posted by Jared Olar
edited by Jared Olar
Hibbs-279 Michelle (Hibbs) May
James (Stewart) Stewart King James II of Scots (1430 - aft. 1460)

He is my 15th great grandfather

posted by Michelle (Hibbs) May
Hunt-21207 AmyLynn Hunt
My Mom's DNA test came back with 57% Scottish. Scot? Anyway, this is definitely not where I guessed that would lead! If the line is right, I'm one of the multitude of James' 17th great granddaughters.
posted by AmyLynn Hunt
Schaeffer-269 David Schaeffer
King James IInd of the Scots is confusing! It should read: King James II of the Scots...nd is proper when following 2nd, but not when following a Roman Numeral.
posted by David Schaeffer
Stevens-17832 Jen (Stevens) Hutton
I am going to be updating this profile on behalf of the Scotland Project and the Magna Carta Project. If anyone knows of additional information and sources which should be added, please message me or post here. Thanks!

Jen

posted by Jen (Stevens) Hutton
Paula (McChesney) Hendrick
Jen,

As a 16th Great Grand Daughter I appreciate all the work you’ve been doing here.

posted by Paula (McChesney) Hendrick
Day-1904 Jack Day
Is the coat of arms displayed here correct? I don't think his coat of arms would have displayed the English as well as Scottish flags in this time period.
posted by Jack Day
Trimbee-2 Sunny (Trimbee) Clark
Please add to categories Forsyth de Fronsac Fraud and Charles Henry Browning Fraud
posted by Sunny (Trimbee) Clark
Timmerman-225 Bea (Timmerman) Wijma
removed Elizabeth Stewart as this couples daughter, according all info they did not have a daughter named Elizabeth
posted by Bea (Timmerman) Wijma
Lancaster-1279 Andrew Lancaster
Illegitimate son is missing see http://www.genealogics.org/getperson.php?personID=I00006045&tree=LEO

(Also mentioned in Royal Ancestry)

posted by Andrew Lancaster
Lancaster-1279 Andrew Lancaster
Why two sons named James? Are they the same?
posted by Andrew Lancaster
Hunt-21207 AmyLynn Hunt
Many people used the same name for another child if a baby passed away. Especially for Kings who wanted their heir to have the same name. 'Guess not in this case though.
posted by AmyLynn Hunt
N.-17 Maggie N.
Lovely !
posted by Maggie N.
Noland-165 Liz (Noland) Shifflett
Nice re-boot Eugene!
posted by Liz (Noland) Shifflett
Quigley-173 Eugene Quigley
Changes were made to this profile because we generally do not encourage copy/paste of complete articles from other sites, but suggest they be linked to instead. Eugene Quigley, WikiTree Supervisor, September 9, 2013
posted by Eugene Quigley

Rejected matches › James Stewart (1646-1686) › James (Stewart) King of Scots (1473-1513) › James (Stewart) King of Scots (1394-1437) › James M. Stewart › James (Stewart) Stewart of Beith (1506-1544)

Featured National Park champion connections: James II is 14 degrees from Theodore Roosevelt, 18 degrees from Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger, 15 degrees from George Catlin, 18 degrees from Marjory Douglas, 23 degrees from Sueko Embrey, 16 degrees from George Grinnell, 18 degrees from Anton Kröller, 16 degrees from Stephen Mather, 20 degrees from Kara McKean, 18 degrees from John Muir, 11 degrees from Victoria Hanover and 25 degrees from Charles Young on our single family tree. Login to find your connection.

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