Hercules Stewart of Whitelaw (died 1595) was a Scottish landowner and outlaw supporter of

Francis Stewart, 5th Earl of Bothwell Francis Stewart, 5th Earl of Bothwell (c. December 1562 – November 1612), was Commendator of Kelso Abbey and Coldingham Priory, a Privy Counsellor and Lord High Admiral of Scotland. He was a notorious conspirator who led several uprisings aga ...

Early life

He was a son of John Stewart, Prior of

Coldingham Coldingham is a village and parish in Berwickshire in the Scottish Borders. It lies a short distance inland from Coldingham Bay, three miles northeast of the fishing village of Eyemouth. Parish The parish lies in the east of the Lammermuir ...

(d. 1563), who was an illegitimate son of

James V of Scotland James V (10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was List of Scottish monarchs, King of Scotland from 9 September 1513 until his death in 1542. He was crowned on 21 September 1513 at the age of seventeen months. James was the son of King James IV a ...

by his mistress Elizabeth Carmichael. Hercules Stewart was a half-brother of Francis Stewart, 5th

Earl of Bothwell Earl of Bothwell was a title that was created twice in the Peerage of Scotland. It was first created for Patrick Hepburn in 1488, and was forfeited in 1567. Subsequently, the earldom was recreated for the 4th Earl's nephew and heir of line, F ...

, son of

Jean Hepburn Jean Hepburn, Lady Darnley, Mistress of Caithness, Lady Morham (died 1599) was a Scottish noblewoman and a member of the Border clan of Hepburn. Her brother was James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell, the third husband of Mary, Queen of Scots. Jean's ...

. His half-sister Christiane Stewart was appointed as one of the ladies to rock the cradle of James VI in March 1568.

Career as a rebel

A letter from an English soldier at Berwick denouncing a Captain Carey in 1588 claimed that he frequently allowed Hercules Stewart and the Earl of Bothwell access to the garrison town. Hercules Stewart supported his brother, the rebel earl, against

James VI of Scotland James VI and I (James Charles Stuart; 19 June 1566 – 27 March 1625) was King of Scotland as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the Scottish and English crowns on 24 March 1603 until ...

. In 1591 Stewart and the younger Hamilton of Samuelston executed a man called Purdy without trial. In March 1592 he was thought to be in hiding in

Northumberland Northumberland ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England, on the Anglo-Scottish border, border with Scotland. It is bordered by the North Sea to the east, Tyne and Wear and County Durham to the south, Cumb ...

with the earl, the younger Laird of Niddry, and others who had tried to access the king's presence by force at

Holyroodhouse The Palace of Holyroodhouse ( or ), commonly known as Holyrood Palace, is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. Located at the bottom of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, at the opposite end to Edinburgh Castle, Holyrood has s ...

. In June 1592 he was declared guilty of treason in the

Parliament of Scotland In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

. In November 1592 Hercules and a number of Bothwell's supporters, including

John Wemyss of Logie John Wemyss younger of Logie, (1569-1597), was a Scottish courtier, spy, and subject of the ballad "The Laird o Logie", beheaded for plotting to blow up a fortification at Veere in the Netherlands. Life John Wemyss was a son of Andrew Wemyss, L ...

, were pardoned for their treasons. In April 1594 Bothwell's supporters dug in at

Leith Leith (; ) is a port area in the north of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith and is home to the Port of Leith. The earliest surviving historical references are in the royal charter authorising the construction of ...

, repairing the old fortifications. They withdrew to Niddrie where, on 5 April 1594 Hercules Stewart was given command of a section of Bothwell's troops and fought and defeated the king's soldiers under the Master of Glamis and the

Earl of Home Earl of Home ( ) is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1605 for Alexander Home of that Ilk, 6th Lord Home. The Earl of Home holds, among others, the subsidiary titles of Lord Home (created 1473) and Lord Dunglass (1605) in t ...

, who split into two groups and retreated towards

Edinburgh Castle Edinburgh Castle is a historic castle in Edinburgh, Scotland. It stands on Castle Rock (Edinburgh), Castle Rock, which has been occupied by humans since at least the Iron Age. There has been a royal castle on the rock since the reign of Malcol ...

and

. This engagement is sometimes known as the "Battle of Leith". Hercules Stewart wrote letters for the Earl of Bothwell, although the English agent George Nicholson and the courtier

Roger Aston Sir Roger Aston (died 23 May 1612) of Cranford, Middlesex, was an English courtier and favourite of James VI of Scotland. Biography Aston was the illegitimate son of Thomas Aston (died 1553), Thomas Aston (died 1553). Scottish sources spell his n ...

suggested that Hercules Stewart was not in the earl's confidence. Stewart was denounced by the

Privy Council of Scotland The Privy Council of Scotland ( — 1 May 1708) was a body that advised the Scottish monarch. During its existence, the Privy Council of Scotland was essentially considered as the government of the Kingdom of Scotland, and was seen as the most ...

for conspiracy with Bothwell on 9 January 1595. The other conspirators were Alexander, Lord Spynie, Archibald Wauchope younger of Niddry, Gilbert Pennycuke, William Chirnsyde, Sym Armstrong of Whitehaugh, and Josias Stewart, brother of Andrew, Lord Ochiltree. Josias's mother and sisters were ladies in waiting to

Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I. She was List of Scottish royal consorts, Queen of Scotland from their marriage on 20 August 1589 and List of English royal consorts, Queen of Engl ...

. Stewart and William Trotter were captured by William Hume on 6 February 1595 at West Houses near Newbattle who tried to get him pardoned. It was suspected that Trotter incriminated Stewart. John Colville was at the arrest, and promised that he would be spared. Hercules and Josias Stewart was interrogated and revealed information about a band or league between Bothwell and the Catholic rebel Northern earls. Stewart and a man called Sym (Sym Armstrong, younger of Whitehaugh) were hanged on 18 February 1595 in the market place of Edinburgh.

Family

Hercules married Mary Whitelaw or Quhytlaw, daughter and co-heiress of Patrick Whitelaw of Whitelaw. They were divorced in 1592. In February 1593 she married William Hume, who worked in the king's stable. They had a daughter, Margaret Stewart. In 1620, a French woman, Jacqueline Quenlie, petitioned the

that John Hamilton of Ferguslie was her husband in Ireland, and he had married Margaret Stewart unlawfully and taken two coffers of her belongings to Paisley. Jacqueline then withdrew her claim to be the wife of John Hamilton and received her goods.David Masson, ''Register of the Privy Council of Scotland: 1619-1622'', vol. 12 (Edinburgh, 1895), pp. 207-8, 209: ''Original Letters Relating to the Ecclesiastical Affairs of Scotland: 1614-1625'', vol. 2 (Edinburgh, 1851), pp. 602-5.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stewart, Hercules 1595 deaths People executed by the Kingdom of Scotland by hanging Scottish soldiers 16th-century Scottish people Scottish rebels People of Falkland Palace