James IV Stewart , King of Scotland
James IV (1488-1513)
James IV, born on 17 March 1473, was 15 when his father's enemies forced him to ride with them to the Battle of Sauchieburn, and for the rest of his life he wore an iron belt as a penance. For the first time in a century, Scotland had a king who was able to start ruling for himself at once for, as Erasmus once commented, 'He had wonderful powers of mind, an astonishing knowledge of everything, an unconquerable magnanimity and the most abundant generosity.' He spoke Latin (at that time the international language), French, German, Flemish, Italian, Spanish and some Gaelic, and took an active interest in literature, science and the law, even trying his hand at dentistry and minor surgery.
Under James' vigorous rule, he extended royal administration to the west and north - by 1493, he had overcome the last independent lord of the Isles.
© 2001, Saul M. Montes-Bradley. All Rights Reserved