'He is not factious but simple and well disposed to justice': John Graham, Third Earl of Montrose and the Stewart Revolution in Government

TY - CHAP

T1 - 'He is not factious but simple and well disposed to justice'

T2 - John Graham, Third Earl of Montrose and the Stewart Revolution in Government

AU - MacDonald, Alan

N1 - © editorial matter and organisation Martha McGill and Alasdair Raffe, 2025, under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International licence © the chapters their several authors, 2025, under a Creative Commons AttributionNonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International licence

PY - 2025/6

Y1 - 2025/6

N2 - Discussion of the impact of the 1603 union on Scottish government has focused on the privy council, and historians have shared the credit for the smooth transition between James VI himself and his officers of state, notably Alexander Seton, later earl of Dunfermline, and George Home, later earl of Dunbar. Less attention has been paid to John Graham, 3rd earl of Montrose, president of the privy council from 1598 and chancellor from 1599. In 1598, when the privy council underwent significant reform, Montrose took the lead in steering its course for the next six years. When he was replaced as chancellor by Seton in 1604, he was appointed to the unprecedented role of the king's ‘commissioner general’ in Scotland. By examining the role of the earl of Montrose, this chapter uncovers a largely disregarded intensification in government years before union, and highlights an abortive experiment in how absentee monarchy might be made to work.

AB - Discussion of the impact of the 1603 union on Scottish government has focused on the privy council, and historians have shared the credit for the smooth transition between James VI himself and his officers of state, notably Alexander Seton, later earl of Dunfermline, and George Home, later earl of Dunbar. Less attention has been paid to John Graham, 3rd earl of Montrose, president of the privy council from 1598 and chancellor from 1599. In 1598, when the privy council underwent significant reform, Montrose took the lead in steering its course for the next six years. When he was replaced as chancellor by Seton in 1604, he was appointed to the unprecedented role of the king's ‘commissioner general’ in Scotland. By examining the role of the earl of Montrose, this chapter uncovers a largely disregarded intensification in government years before union, and highlights an abortive experiment in how absentee monarchy might be made to work.

KW - Scotland

KW - James VI

KW - Privy council

KW - Union of 1603

KW - government

UR - https://edinburghuniversitypress.com/book-the-scottish-state-and-the-experience-of-government-c-1560-1707.html

UR - https://doi.org/10.1515/9781399526722

U2 - 10.1515/9781399526722-007

DO - 10.1515/9781399526722-007

M3 - Chapter

SN - 9781399526708

SP - 50

EP - 67

BT - The Scottish State and the Experience of Government, c. 1560-1707

A2 - McGill, Martha

A2 - Raffe, Alasdair

PB - Edinburgh University Press

CY - Edinburgh

ER -