But nothing could remove the king's aversion to his
nobility, or diminish his jealousy of their power. He
would not even intrust them with the command of the
forces which they had assembled; that was reserved
for Oliver Sinclair, his favourite, who no sooner ap-
peared to take possession of the dignity conferred upon
him, than rage and indignation occasioned an universal
mutiny in the army. Five hundred English, who hap-
pened to be drawn up in sight, attacked the Scots in
this disorder. Hatred to the king, and contempt of
their general, produced an effect to which there is no
parallel in history. They overcame the fear of death,
and the love of liberty ; and ten thousand men fled be-
fore a number so far inferior, without striking a single
blow. No man was desirous of a victory, which would
have been acceptable to the king, and to his favourite ;
few endeavoured to save themselves by flight ; the Eng-
lish had the choice of what prisoners they pleased to
take ; and almost every person of distinction^ who was
engaged in the expedition, remained in their hands f .
This astonishing event was a new proof to the king of
the general disaffection of the nobility, and a new dis-
covery of his own weakness and want of authority.
Incapable of bearing these repeated insults, he found
himself unable to revenge them. The deepest melan-
f According to an account of this event in the Hamilton manuscripts,
about thirty were killed, above a thousand were taken prisoners ; and
among them, a hundred and fifty persons of condition. Vol. ii. 286. The
small number of the English prevented their taking more prisoners.
62 THE HISTORY BOOK i.
choly and despair succeeded to the furious transports
of rage, which the first account of the rout of his army
occasioned. All the violent passions, which are the
enemies of life, preyed upon his mind, and wasted and
consumed a youthful and vigorous constitution. Some
authors of that age impute his untimely death to poison ;
but the diseases of the mind, when they rise to an
height, are often mortal ; and the known effects of dis-
appointment, anger, and resentment, upon a sanguine
and impetuous temper, sufficiently account for his un-
happy fate. " His death," says Drummond, " proveth
his mind to have been raised to an high strain, and
above mediocrity ; he could die, but could not digest a
disaster." Had James survived this misfortune, one of
two things must have happened : either the violence of
his temper would have engaged him openly to attack
the nobles, who would have found in Henry a willing
and powerful protector, and have derived the same as-
sistance from him, which the malecontents, in the suc-
ceeding reign, did from his daughter Elizabeth ; in that
case, a dangerous civil war must have been the certain
consequence : or, perhaps, necessity might have ob-
liged him to accept of Henry's offers, and be reconciled
to his nobility ; in that event, the church would have
fallen a sacrifice to their union; a reformation, upon
Henry's plan, would have been established by law ; a
great part of the temporalities of the church would
have been seized ; and the friendship of the king and
barons would have been cemented by dividing its spoils.
Such were the efforts of our kings towards reducing
the exorbitant power of the nobles. If they were not
attended with success, we must not, for that reason
conclude, that they were not conducted with prudence.
Every circumstance seems to have combined against
the crown. Accidental events concurred with political
causes, in rendering the best-concerted measures abor-
tive. The assassination of one king, the sudden death
of another, and the fatal despair of a third, contributed,
BOOK r. OF SCOTLAND. 63
no less than its own natural strength, to preserve the
aristocracy from ruin.
Amidst these struggles, the influence, which our The extra-
kings possessed in their parliaments, is a circumstance flu^e^f""
seemingly inexplicable, and which merits particular at- the Scottish
tention. As these assemblies were composed chiefly H^errt. 1 ""
of the nobles, they, we are apt to imagine, must have
dictated all their decisions ; but, instead of this, every
king found them obsequious to his will, and obtained
such laws, as he deemed necessary for extending his
authority. All things were conducted there with de-
spatch and unanimity ; and, in none of our historians,
do we find an instance of any opposition formed against
the court in parliament, or mention of any difficulty in
carrying through the measures which were agreeable
to the king. In order to account for this singular fact,
it is necessary to inquire into the origin and constitution
of parliament.
The genius of the feudal government, uniform in all The reasons
its operations, produced the same effects in small, as ll '
in great societies ; and the territory of a baron was, in
miniature, the model of a kingdom. He possessed the
right of jurisdiction, but those who depended on him
being free men, and not slaves, could be tried by their
peers only ; and, therefore, his vassals were bound to
attend his courts, and to assist both in passing and exe-
cuting his sentences. When assembled on these occa-
sions, they established, by mutual consent, such regu-
lations, as tended to the welfare of their small society ;
and often granted, voluntarily, such supplies to their
* superior,' as his necessities required. Change now a
single name ; in place of baron, substitute king, and we
behold a parliament, in its first rudiments, and observe
the first exertions of those powers, which its members
now possess as judges, as legislators, and as dispensers
of the public revenues, Suitable to this idea, are the
appllations of the 'king's court 8 ,' and of the 'king's
t Du Cange, voc. curia.
64 THE HISTORY BOOK i.
great council,' by which parliaments were anciently dis-
tinguished ; and suitable to this, likewise, were the con-
stituent members of which it was composed. In all the
feudal kingdoms, such as held of the king in chief were
bound, by the condition of their tenure, to attend and
to assist in his courts. Nor was this esteemed a pri-
vilege, but a service 11 . It was exacted, likewise, of
bishops, abbots, and the greater ecclesiastics, who,
holding vast possessions of the crown, were deemed
subject to the same burthen. Parliaments did not
continue long in this state. Cities gradually acquired
wealth, a considerable share of the public taxes were
levied on them, the inhabitants grew into estimation,
and, being enfranchised by the sovereign, a place in
parliament was the consequence of their liberty, and of
their importance. But, as it would have been absurd
to confer such a privilege, or to impose such a burthen,
on a whole community, every borough was permitted to
choose one or two of its citizens to appear, in the name
of the corporation ; and the idea of ' representation 1
was first introduced in this manner. An innovation,
still more important, naturally followed. The vassals
of the crown were, originally, few in number, and ex-
tremely powerful ; but, as it is impossible to render
property fixed and permanent, many of their posses-
sions came, gradually, and by various methods of aliena-
tion, to be split and parcelled out into different hands.
Hence arose the distinction between the ' greater' and
the * lesser barons.' The former were those who re-
tained their original fiefs undivided ; the latter were the
new and less potent vassals of the crown. Both were
bound, however, to perform all feudal services, and, of
consequence, to give attendance in parliament. To the
lesser barons, who formed no inconsiderable body, this
was an intolerable grievance. Barons sometimes denied
their tenure, boroughs renounced their right of elect-
h Du Cange, voc. placitum, col. 519. Magna Charta, art. 14. Act.
Jac. I. 1425. cap. 52.
BOOK i. OF SCOTLAND. 65
ing, charters were obtained, containing an exemption
from attendance ; and the anxiety, with which our an-
cestors endeavoured to get free from the obligation of
sitting in parliament, is surpassed by that only with
which their posterity solicit to be admitted ther?. In
order to accommodate both parties, at once, to secure
to the king a sufficient number of members in his great
council, and to save his vassals from an unnecessary
burthen, an easy expedient was found out. The obliga-
tion to personal attendance was continued upon the
greater barons, from which the lesser barons were ex-
empted, on condition of their electing in each county,
a certain number of 'representatives,' to appear in their
name. Thus a parliament became complete in all its
members, and was composed of lords spiritual and tem-
poral, of knights of the shires, and of burgesses. As
many causes contributed to bring government earlier to
perfection in England than in Scotland ; as the rigour
of the feudal institutions abated sooner, and its defects
were supplied with greater facility in the one kingdom
than in the other; England led the way in all these
changes, and burgesses and knights of the shire ap-
peared in the parliaments of that nation, before they
were heard of in ours. x Burgesses were first admitted A. D. 1326.
into the Scottish parliaments by Robert Bruce'; and in
the preamble to the laws of Robert the third, they are
ranked among the constituent members of that assembly.
The lesser barons were indebted to James the first for A.D. 1427.
a statute exempting them from personal attendance, and
permitting them to elect representatives : the exemption
was eagerly laid hold on ; but the privilege was so little
valued, that, except one or two instances, it lay neglect-
ed during one hundred and sixty years ; and James the
sixth first obliged them to send representatives regularly
to parliament 11 .
1 Abercromby, i. 635.
k Essays on Brit. Antiq. Ess. ii. Dalrymp. Hist, of Feud. Prop. ch. 8.
VOL. I. F
GG THE HISTORY BOOK i.
A Scottish parliament, then, consisted anciently of
great barons, of ecclesiastics, and a few representatives
of boroughs. Nor were these divided, as in England,
into two houses, but composed one assembly, in which
the lord chancellor presided 1 . In rude ages, when the
science of government was extremely imperfect among
a martial people, unacquainted with the arts of peace,
strangers to the talents which make a figure in debate,
and despising them, parliaments were not held in the
same estimation as at present ; nor did haughty barons
love those courts, in which they appeared with such
evident marks of inferiority. Parliaments were often
hastily assembled, and it was, probably, in the king's
power, by the manner in which he issued his writs, for
that purpose, to exclude such as were averse from his
measures. At a time, when deeds of violence were com-
mon, and the restraints of law and decency were little
regarded, no man could venture with safety to oppose
the king in his own court. The great barons, or lords
of parliament, were extremely few ; even so late as the
beginning of the reign of James the sixth" 1 , they amount-
ed only to fifty-three. The ecclesiastics equalled them in
number, and, being devoted implicitly to the crown, for
reasons which have been already explained, rendered
all hopes of victory in any struggle desperate. Nor were
the nobles themselves so anxious, as might be imagined,
to prevent acts of parliament favourable to the royal
1 In England, the peers and commons seem early to have met in separate
houses ; and James the first, who was fond ofimitating the English in all
their customs, had probably an intention of introducing some considerable
distinction between the greater and lesser barons in Scotland ; at least
he determined that their consultations should not be carried on under the
direction of the same president, for by his law, a. d. 1327, it is provided,
" that out of the commissioners of all the shires shall be chosen a wise and
expert man, called the common speaker of the parliament, who shall propose
all and sundry needs and causes pertaining to the commons in the parlia-
ment or general council." No such speaker> it would seem, was ever
chosen; and, by a subsequent law, the chancellor was declared perpetual
president of parliament.
m And. Coll. vol. i. pref. 40.
BOOK i. OF SCOTLAND. 67
prerogative; conscious of their own strength, and of the
king's inability to carry these acts into execution, with-
out their concurrence, they trusted that they might
either elude or venture to contemn them ; and the sta-
tute revoking the king's property, and annexing alie-
nated jurisdictions to the crown, repeated in every reign,
and violated and despised as often, is a standing proof
of the impotence of laws, when opposed to power. So
many concurring causes are sufficient, perhaps, to ac-
count for the ascendant which our kings acquired in
parliament. But, without having recourse to any of
these, a single circumstance, peculiar to the constitu-
tion of the Scottish parliament, the mentioning of which
we have hitherto avoided, will abundantly explain this
fact, seemingly so repugnant to all our reasonings con-
cerning the weakness of the king, and the power of the
nobles.
As far back as our records enable us to trace the con-
stitution of our parliaments, we find a committee distin-
guished by the name of ' lords of articles.' It was their
business to prepare and to digest all matters, which
were to be laid before the parliament. There was rarely
any business introduced into parliament, but what had
passed through the channel of this committee ; every
motion for a new law was first made there, and approved
of, or rejected by the members of it; what they approved
was formed into a bill, and presented to parliament ; and
it seems probable, that what they rejected could not
be introduced into the house. This committee owed
the extraordinary powers vested in it, to the military
genius of the ancient nobles ; too impatient to submit to
the drudgery of civil business, too impetuous to observe
the forms, or to enter into the details necessary in con-
ducting it, they were glad to lay that burthen upon a
small number, while they themselves had no other labour
than simply to give, or to refuse, their assent to the bills
which were presented to them. The lords of articles,
then, not only directed all the proceedings of parlia-
G8 THE HISTORY BOOK r.
merit, but possessed a negative before debate. That
committee was chosen and constituted in such a man-
ner, as put this valuable privilege entirely in the king's
hands. It is extremely probable, that our kings once
had the sole right of nominating the lords of articles n .
They came afterwards to be elected by the parliament,
and consisted of an equal number out of each estate,
and most commonly of eight temporal and eight spiritual
lords, of eight representatives of boroughs, and of the
eight great officers of the crown. Of this body, the
eight ecclesiastics, together with the officers of the
crown, were entirely at the king's devotion, and it was
scarce possible that the choice could fall on such tem-
poral lords and burgesses, as would unite in opposition
to his measures. Capable either of influencing their
election, or of gaining them when elected, the king com-
monly found the lords of articles no less obsequious to
his will, than his own privy council ; and, by means of
his authority with them, he could put a negative upon
his parliament before debate, as well as after it; and,
what may seem altogether incredible, the most limited
prince in Europe actually possessed, in one instance, a
" It appears from authentic records, that a parliament was appointed to
be held March 12, 1566, and that the lords of articles were chosen, and
met on the 7th, five days before the assembling of parliament. If they
could be regularly elected so long before the meeting of parliament, it is
natural to conclude that the prince alone possessed the right of electing
them. There are two different accounts of the manner of their election, at
that time, one by Mary herself, in a letter to the archbishop of Glasgow :
" We, accompanied with our nobility for the time, past to the Tolbooth of
Edinburgh, for holding of our parliament on the 7th day of this instant, ami
elected the lords articulars." ]f we explain these words according to the
strict grammar, we must conclude, that the queen herself elected them.
It is, however, more probable, that Mary meant to say, that the nobles, then
present with her, viz. her privy counsellors, and others, elected the lords of
articles. Keith's Hist, of Scotland, p. 331. The other account is lord
Ruthven's, who expressly affirms that the queen herself elected them. '
Keith's Append. 126. Whether we embrace the one or the other of these
opinions, is of no consequence. If the privy counsellors and nobles, attending
the court, had a right to elect the lords of articles, it was equally advan-
tageous for the crown, as if the prince had had the sole nomination of them.
BOOK i. OF SCOTLAND. 69
prerogative which the most absolute could never at-
tain .
Having deduced the history of the committee of lords of articles as low
as the subject of this preliminary book required, it may be agreeable, per-
haps, to some of my readers, to know the subsequent variations in this sin-
gular institution, and the political use which our kings made of these.
When parliaments became more numerous, and more considerable, by the
admission of the representatives of the lesser barons, the preserving their
influence over the lords of articles became, likewise, an object of greater
importance to our kings. James the sixth, on pretence that the lords of
articles could not find leisure to consider the great multitude of affairs laid
before them, obtained an act, appointing four persons to be named out of
each ' estate,' who should meet twenty days before the commencement of
parliament 1 , to receive all supplications, etc. and, rejecting what they
thought frivolous, should engross in a book what they thought worthy the
attention of the lords of articles. No provision is made in the act for the
choice of this select body, and the king would, of course, have claimed that
privilege. In 1633, when Charles the first was beginning to introduce
those innovations which gave so much offence to the nation, he dreaded
the opposition of his parliament, and, in order to prevent that, an artifice
was made use of to secure the lords of articles for the crown. The temporal
peers were appointed to choose eight bishops, and the bishops eight peers;
these sixteen met together, and elected eight knights of the shire, and eight
burgesses, and to these the crown officers were added as usual. If we can
only suppose eight persons of so numerous a body, as the peers of Scotland
were become by that time, attached to the court, these, it is obvious, would
be the men whom the bishops would choose, and, of consequence, the whole
lords of articles were the tools and creatures of the king. This practice, so
inconsistent with liberty, was abolished during the civil war; and the sta-
tute of James the sixth was repealed. After the restoration, parliaments
became more servile than ever. What was only a temporary device, in the
reign of Charles the first, was then converted into a standing law. " For
my part," says the author from whom I have borrowed many of these par-
ticulars, " I should have thought it less criminal in our restoration parlia-
ment, to have openly bestowed upon the king a negative before debate,
than, in such an under-hand artificial manner, to betray their constituents,
and the nation." Essays on Brit. Antiq. 55. It is probable, however,
from a letter of Randolph's to Cecil, 10 Aug. 1560, printed in the appen-
dix, that this parliament had some appearance of ancient precedent to
justify their unworthy conduct. Various questions concerning the consti-
tuent members of the Scottish parliament ; concerning the aera at which
the representatives of boroughs were introduced into that assembly ; and
concerning the origin and power of the committee of lords of articles, occur,
and have been agitated with great warmth. Since the first publication of
1 Act 222. Parl. 1594.
70 THE HISTORY BOOK i.
State of Eu- To this account of the internal constitution of Scot-
^ an( l> ^ will not be improper to add a view of the po-
of the six- litical state of Europe, at that period, where the follow-
tury. ' l ~ ing history commences. A thorough knowledge of that
general system, of which every kingdom in Europe forms
a part, is not less requisite towards understanding the
history of a nation, than an acquaintance with its pecu-
liar government and laws. The latter may enable us to
comprehend domestic occurrences and revolutions ; but,
without the former, foreign transactions must be alto-
gether mysterious and unintelligible. By attending to
this, many dark passages in our history may be placed
in a clear light ; and where the bulk of historians have
seen only the effect, we may be able to discover the
cause.
The subversion of the feudal government in France,
and its declension in the neighbouring kingdoms, occa-
sioned a remarkable alteration in the political state of
Europe. Kingdoms, which were inconsiderable, when
broken, and parcelled out among nobles, acquired firm-
ness and strength, by being united into a regular mo-
narchy. Kings became conscious of their own power
and importance. They meditated schemes of conquest,
and engaged in wars at a distance. Numerous armies
were raised, and great taxes imposed for their sub-
sistence. Considerable bodies of infantry were kept in
constant pay ; that service grew to be honourable ; and
cavalry, in which the strength of European armies had,
hitherto, consisted, though proper enough for the short
and voluntary excursions of barons, who served at their
own expense, were found to be unfit either for making
or defending any important conquest.
It was in Italy, that the powerful monarchs of France
and Spain and Germany first appeared to make a trial
of their new strength. The division of that country into
this work, all these disputed points have been considered with calmness
and accuracy in Mr. Wight's Inquiry into the Rise and Progress of Par-
liament, etc. 4to. edit. p. 17, etc.
BOOK i. OF SCOTLAND. 71
many small states, the luxury of the people, and their
effeminate aversion to arms, invited their more martial
neighbours to an easy prey. The Italians, who had
been accustomed to mock battles only, and to decide
their interior quarrels by innocent and bloodless victo-
ries, were astonished, when the French invaded their
country, at the sight of real war ; and, as they could
not resist the torrent, they suffered it to take its course,
and to spend its rage. Intrigue and policy supplied the
want of strength. Necessity and self-preservation led
that ingenious people to the great secret of modern po-
litics, by teaching them how to balance the power of
one prince, by throwing that of another into the oppo-
site scale. By this happy device, the liberty of Italy
was long preserved. The scales were poized by very
skilful hands ; the smallest variations were attended to,
and no prince was allowed to retain any superiority,
that could be dangerous.
A system of conduct, pursued with so much success
in Italy, was not long confined to that country of poli-
tical refinement. The maxim of preserving a balance
of power is founded so much upon obvious reasoning,
and the situation of Europe rendered it so necessary,
that it soon became a matter of chief attention to all
wise politicians. Every step any prince took was ob-
served by all his neighbours. Ambassadors, a kind of
honourable spies, authorized by the mutual jealousy of
kings, resided almost constantly at every different court,
and had it in charge to watch all its motions. Dangers
were foreseen at a greater distance, and prevented with
more ease. Confederacies were formed to humble any
power which rose above its due proportion. Revenge
or self-defence were no longer the only causes of hos-
tility, it became common to take arms out of policy ;
and war, both in its commencement and its operations,
was more an exercise of the judgment, than of the
passions of men. Almost every war in Europe became
general, and the most inconsiderable states acquired
72 THE HISTORY BOOK i.
importance, because they could add weight to either
scale.
Francis the first, who mounted the throne of France
in the year one thousand five hundred and fifteen, and