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TheScottish royal tapestry collection was a group oftapestry hangings assembled to decorate the palaces of sixteenth-century kings and queens ofScotland. None appear to have survived.
Like other European monarchs, the kings and queens of Scotland sought to impress their subjects and diplomatic visitors in costly surroundings.[1] AtChâteau de Fontainebleau in 1540, theKing of France himself helped the English ambassador onto a bench so he could examine and admire the 'antique borders' of the tapestry in his bedchamber, and this was seen as a sign of special favour.[2] In Scotland,James V's tapestries were listed in two inventories, along with the crown jewels and fine clothes. These tapestries were used to hang the best chambers and halls in the palaces, and were transported with the monarch between residences and lined, fixed and hung by specialists on the court pay-roll. The rooms were decorated with a painted frieze at the top of the wall and plain beneath where the tapestries hung.Henry VIII of England had nearly 2000 tapestries and James V had 200.[3]
Eleven pieces of royal tapestry were destroyed in the explosion atKirk o' Field in February 1567 that killed the King Consort of Scotland,Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley.[4] The names of many others were recorded, and the subjects are the same as those listed in other royal collections,[5] and some examples survive in museums around the world. Some of the tapestries showed Biblical themes, or subjects with medieval roots, but most were stories from classical antiquity, reflectingRenaissance taste, and some were scenes from the hunting field.
James IV owned tapestries, which are usually called the "arras" in records of his court, because the city ofArras, now in France, had been a centre of tapestry-weaving. The tapestries were frequently carried between the palaces as the royal family moved. The tapestry was also deployed to impress foreign diplomats. In January 1495, tapestries were put in the king's chamber atHolyrood Palace in Edinburgh for the visit of the Chancellor of Denmark by James Dog. He was a wardrobe servant and was described in two poems byWilliam Dunbar,Of James Dog andHe Is Na Dog, He Is a Lam. Soon after, the tapestries were packed up and taken toStirling Castle, where the king celebrated Easter.[6] In November 1495, the King's cupboard, tapestries, and chapel goods were carted from Edinburgh to Stirling for the reception ofPerkin Warbeck.[7]
Ripped and torn tapestries were mended in 1497 by a priest John Kilgour of Dunblane.[8] In March 1498, James IV ordered a suite of tapestry for his lodging at Stirling Castle from James Makysone, a merchant based in Leith.[9] In 1501, new hangings of damask and scarlet cloth were made for chambers at Stirling byJohn Steel and his workmen.[10]
In preparation for the arrival of his brideMargaret Tudor atHolyroodhouse on 8 August 1503, James IV bought new tapestries.[11] A group was bought from a merchant calledJames Hommyll, who imported textiles from Flanders, which cost £160 Scots. These were a piece with the subject ofHercules, two pieces ofSusanna sewn together, aSusanna bed cover, aSolomon, and aMarcus Coriolanus.[12][13] The total measurement which, combined with quality, dictated the price, was 209 squareells. The tapestries were lined with canvas.[14] A set of six verdure tapestries were bought for hanging in the gallery and on the stairs, each costing £3. Five other smaller verdures of various sizes cost £11-4s. Ten fine verdures were bought from John Stewart; three with 'beasts' cost £4-10s each, seven with no beasts cost £4 each (the 'beasts' may have been unicorns). Four other verdures bought for beds were in quality, 'nocht sa gude', and cost only 40 shillings each.[15]
Before Margaret left England, the tapestry agent ofHenry VII of England,Cornelius van der Strete, had been paid £7-8s (English money) for making or supplying 74 Flemish ells of tapestry for the Scottish Consort Queen.[16] The historian and curatorThomas P. Campbell suggests these may have been simple armorial tapestries or borders to be attached to figural tapestries purchased elsewhere.[17]
James Dog fixed hooks in the rooms of Holyrood Palace for tapestry.[18] The EnglishSomerset Herald, John Young, described some of the tapestry at Holyroodhouse on the two days of celebration. Young noted the hangings in the two outer rooms of the King and Queen's suites where meals were served.[19] The Queen's hall was hung with theHistory of Hercules, and her great chamber with theHistory of Troy Town. The King's hall was hung with theHistory of Old Troy, and his great chamber withHercules and other stories.[20] Possibly some of these tapestries were brought to Scotland by Margaret, perhaps with new borders including Tudor heraldry supplied by Cornelis van der Strete.
The royal treasurer's accounts record payments for carrying tapestry between the palaces: six dozen hooks were bought for hangings in the new Great Hall of Stirling Castle in November 1503;[21] in February 1506, the 'Cloths of Hercules' were taken from Edinburgh toLinlithgow Palace.[22] There was a fire in October 1506 and burnt tapestries were packed in barrels and taken to Leith.[23] The Italian merchantJerome Frescobaldi, who was based inBruges, made arrangements for their repair in Flanders.[24] The merchant James Hommyl hosted the king's African servants includingEllen More in the winter of 1504.[25]
Two inventories of 1539 and 1543 list the tapestries of James V.[26] Some of these had belonged to James IV, thoughGavin Douglas said thatRegent Albany had cut up royal crimson and purple hangings to make clothes for his servants and pages,[27] but many were bought by James V, or were presents fromFrancis I of France on his marriage toMadeleine of Valois.[28] A 1532 contract for the making of a tapestry altar frontal for James V by François van Cralotte of Bruges survives in theNational Library of Scotland.[29]
An inventory of September 1561 made byServais de Condé lists tapestries and other hangings belonging toMary of Guise, and another compiled on 25 November listsMary, Queen of Scots' collection.[30] These lists have marginal notes describing the later locations of the tapestries. Mary Queen of Scots added to the royal collection by confiscating 45 tapestries belonging to theEarl of Huntly atHuntly Castle in October 1562. These included one set of large leaf verdures and other set with leaves and birds. Five of the eleven tapestries destroyed atKirk o' Field were from Huntly, the other were from a suite depicting a "Rabbit Hunt".[31]
After thebattle of Langside in May 1568, theRegent Moray took back fromHamilton Palace rich silk tapestry and beds that had belonging to James V.[32] Packing canvas bought for goods seized from the castle at Hamilton (Cadzow Castle), including some of the royal tapestries. Packages and trunks from Hamilton were carried to Edinburgh by horses supervised by the gunner Harry Balfour.[33] Mary had loaned some tapestry and furnishings toJames Sandilands, 1st Lord Torphichen, which had been taken to Hamilton. Later, he was questioned about these items, he said thatServais de Condé had received, "so many books, and such moveables, which were all dispersed, dimembered, and spoilt by the soldiers, and [by] harling them on sleds through the foul moors and taking no accompt of the keeping of them when they were in Hamilton".[34]
Possibly Regent Moray and his agentNicolas Elphinstone sold tapestries abroad in 1568 along withMary's pearls, selected royal jewels, and a so-called unicorn horn.[35] Mary, now a prisoner in England, complained in August 1570 that Scottish ships had broughtitems of her 'apparel, costly hangings, and jewels' to Hull and other English ports for sale.[36]
An inventory of March 1579 made byGeorge Douglas of Parkhead lists tapestries stored inEdinburgh Castle and those hanging atStirling Castle, whereJames VI was resident. Tapestries at Stirling included eight pieces of theJudgement of Paris, four pieces of theHunt of the Unicorn, four or five pieces ofRoboam, five pieces of the "Triumph of Verity", four pieces of theCount of Ravenna, four pieces of theHistory of Aeneas, a piece of theStory of Tobit, and a hanging with the arms of the Dukes of Longueville. Other furnishings in use at Stirling at this time include a cloth of estate made of alternate strips of gold and crimson velvet, a cloth of estate of "high colour" crimson velvet, a crimson satin cloth of estate, and a cloth of estate of cloth of gold. These cloths of estate were suspended above the chairs and thrones used by James VI. There were three state beds; one of red velvet embroidered with love knots and a "I.I" motif, another bed of cloth of gold and silver embroidered with pots of flowers, and another of "high colour" crimson velvet. These beds and cloths of estate were positioned in the three principal rooms of the king's royal lodging.[37]
Some of the tapestries then displayed in Stirling Castle may have been in place for decades, others had recently been storage in Edinburgh Castle with Mary's goods. In June 1578 "certain great pieces of tapestry" and coffers of furnishings were loaded on a boat at Leith and shipped to Cambuskenneth and the castle.[38]
An inventory of Stirling Castle made on 6 May 1584 records a set of five tapestries hanging in the king's audience chamber in the palace with the red damask or satin "dais" cloth, and seven tapestries in the bedchamber with cloth of estate of gold and the red velvet bed. The other furnishings used in the king's minority years at Stirling were probably taken to Holyroodhouse.[39]
When Mary was moved toTutbury Castle in February 1569, three suites of tapestries and carpets were delivered from the Removing Wardrobe at theTower of London to furnish her rooms. These included six pieces of thePassion, six pieces of theHistory of Ladies, and seven pieces ofHercules; the latter two subjects are found in the earlier Scottish inventories.[40] AtSheffield Manor in February 1577 she had her own tapestries ofAeneas andMeleager.[41] In January 1585, when Mary was again being moved to Tutbury,Queen Elizabeth recalled that Regent Moray had sent plate, hangings and other items to Mary while she was in the custody of theEarl of Shrewsbury. The Earl wrote (toLord Burghley) that this was not the case and Elizabeth was mistaken: "to my knowledge since her commynge she never received any stuff or other things from him."[42]
Mary used tapestry to line her bedchamber at Tutbury against the cold, making a kind of tent. Her requests caused some confusion in the correspondence ofJohn Somers andWilliam Cecil.[43] At Fotheringhay in 1587 she had six pieces ofMeleager and six of theBattle of Ravenna which she wished to be sold to pay for her servants' journeys home.[44]
Tapestries and hangings were carefully repaired in 1594 for the baptism ofPrince Henry at Stirling Castle.[45] In 1595, an exchequer officialJohn Skene noted the expense of transporting and repairing tapestry. He suggested that money could be saved by keeping tapestries in each residence rather than carting them around and causing damage, noting:
becaus the cariage of tapistrie is not onlie costlie bot alsua it weiris and spillis (wears and spoils) the same, thairfoir it is very necessar to let sameikle (so much) of the said tapistrie be put in cofferis and remane within everie ane of the saidis palices as wilbe meitest for hinging the wallis thairof.[46]
After theUnion of the Crowns, King James inherited the tapestries belonging to the English crown, and bought new tapestries from merchants and manufacturers, including Francis Spiring, or Spierincx of Delft (1550-1630) who supplied a suite of three or five pieces for £251-10s sterling in September 1607.[47]
In October 1615 King James orderedJohn Auchmoutie, keeper of the royal wardrobe in Scotland, to provide tapestry toLord Erskine to furnish two rooms in Stirling Castle.[48] Some tapestries remained atDunfermline Palace in 1616, whereAlexander Seton, 1st Earl of Dunfermline, had looked after the infantPrince Charles. There was also tapestry atLinlithgow Palace which had furnished a bedchamber for Prince Henry. It had been cut through by the fool Andrew Cockburn. The Earl of Linlithgow had provided tapestry for Princess Elizabeth's rooms.[49]
Among the remaining contents of the Royal Wardrobe at Holyroodhouse in 1617, three pieces of green velvet embroidered with gold holly leaves and theLongueville arms, which had belonged to Mary of Guise (Duchess of Longueville by her first marriage), were repaired by Nicolas Elsmeere for use during James's return visit to Scotland. These Longueville hangings may have been repaired in 1594 by the embroidererWilliam Betoun for the baptism of Prince Henry.[50] In 1635, Charles I wrote toJohn Stewart, 1st Earl of Traquair,Treasurer of Scotland, insisting on the payment of the wardrobe servants, so that hangings, cloths-of-estate, and beds could be aired.[51] The remaining tapestries at Holyrood would have been seized byCommonwealth troops in 1650. In April 1656, soldiers retrieved and sent to Whitehall four pieces of theLabours of Hercules, perhaps the latest mention of tapestry from the Scottish royal collection.[52]
The six pieces of theTriumphant Dames orCity of Dames were bought in Paris in 1537 or 1538 for 883 francs 10 sous during James V's trip to marryMadeleine of Valois. The pieces varied slightly in size with a total area of 147 squareells, each square ell costed at six francs, to a total of 883 francs 10 sou.[53] The set was finished with canvas, cords, and ribbons, and sent toRouen by boat and then toNewhaven in France for shipping, along with another set called theOld and New Stories. The area of the tapestry which "covers both the stories" was 250 square ells, at 5 francs 10 sou the ell, and cost 1,375 francs. The cost of a new tapestry per unit area is probably a good indication of quality.[54]
The Scottish suite was probably the ten-pieceOld Testament listed in the inventory of 1539. Only one piece was noted in 1542, and none was heard of again in Scotland.[55] A set with a similar name, theNew Law and the Old, was listed amongCatherine of Aragon's effects in February 1536.[56] The English "Old and New Law" tapestries were a subject now usually known as the "Redemption of Man". A set of eleven pieces may have been bought by Henry VII. Wolsey bought another set forHampton Court.[57] TheEarl of Sussex had six pieces of a set of "Old Law and New Law" atNewhall in 1583.[58] Two pieces from a set of theOld and New Law were in the wardrobe ofHampton Court in 1658, taken down from the queen's privy chamber and another nine pieces were listed the king's privy chamber.[59]
James V's servant George Steill was sent to Flanders from Paris on 3 February 1537 to acquire more tapestries. At the same time James V hired a new French tapestry-man, William, and gave him 20 crowns to bring his wife and children to Scotland.[60]
WhenMary, Queen of Scots was a prisoner atTutbury Castle, six pieces of series called theHistory of Ladies were sent from the Tower of London.[61] This was probably one of three sets of theCity of Ladies that had belonged to Henry VIII, listed in theinventory of 1547, which were identical in size piece by piece to the Scottish tapestries. These had decorated the childhood homes ofPrincess Elizabeth andPrince Edward.[62] The subject derives fromChristine de Pizan'sThe Book of the City of Ladies.[63] Other sets of this subject belonged toMargaret of Austria,Mary of Hungary,Anne of Brittany and Francis I.[64]
The other tapestry bought in Paris and packed for shipping to Rouen was theCreation of World, of which nine pieces were at Holyroodhouse in 1561, and in Edinburgh Castle in 1578.[65] In 1616, Alexander Seton had some 'auld and worne' pieces described as theStorie of Mankynd at Dunfermline Palace.[66] The set could possibly have beenThe World series, depicting various moral allegories and including a globe.[67] There was a set of theHistory of the Creation of the World atHampton Court in 1613, in which God was represented as three persons in bishop's costumes with crowns and sceptres.[68] This could have been a design known as theRedemption of Man known to have been owned both by Henry VIII andCardinal Wolsey.[69] There were several weavings.[70]
A list of wedding gifts from Francis I adds four suites of rich Arras hangings, and eight suites of coarser Arras, all 'ret verey good.'[71] These gifts would have been included among the tapestries named in the Scottish inventories mentioned below.
In October 1546, a merchant fromAntwerp orLille, Eustace de Coqueil, wrote to Mary of Guise offering her histories and other tapestries, but it seems unlikely that any were bought during this brief period of peace in thewar of the Rough Wooing.[72] Another member of this family, Ogier de Coqueil, set up as a merchant in Edinburgh and sold silverware.[73] On 20 February 1557, Mary of Guise granted Eustace de Coqueil, his wife Barbara Bullestraitt and several other members of the family trading rights in Scotland.[74]
TheTint Barne, theHistory of the Lost Child, might appear to be the same subject as theHistory of Tobias. However the five-pieceTobias was listed in 1539 and also in 1542, along with the seven-pieceTint Barne.[75] The subject of thetinte barne was probably theProdigal Son, a subject listed many times in the inventory of Henry VIII,[76] andCardinal Wolsey had seven pieces.[77]
These were delivered by a William Schaw in 1539, costing 2466écu au soleil (crowns of the sun) . It was a group of five (or six) sets of seven pieces, and included sevenSundry pieces histories of Chambers in fine stuff listed in 1539. Additions for thisChamber of Antique History were bought by a servant of John Moffet, conservator of Flanders in April 1541.[78] The word 'chamber' referred to the suite of tapestry rather than any actual room in the palaces. Subjects supplied by William Schaw listed in 1539 include; seven pieces ofPoesy; seven pieces ofJason and Golden Fleece; and seven pieces ofVenus,Pallas,Hercules,Mars,Bacchus, andGaia (Mother of the Earth), with the BiblicalHistory of Solomon. Only six pieces of theJason were listed in 1542. Four pieces of theSolomon were listed in September 1561, and noted circa 1568 to be at Stirling. The others are not heard of again. TheLittle Solomon was also noted in September 1561, another set, or perhaps three of the seven scenes pieces bought by William Schaw.[79]
The seven-pieceHistory of Perseus was presumably of this group, though not linked in the inventories of 1539 and 1540 to William Schaw's purchase.James IV had bought one piece of aHistory of Hercules, and nine were listed in 1542. This was a suite separate to theHercules in the ancient god series of theChambers.[80]
Similarly, a three-pieceHistory of Romulus was listed in 1542. TheOld History of Troy of eight or nine pieces listed in 1539 and 1542 was perhaps a Stewart inheritance, old and already described as worn out, so distinguished from theAeneas. The family of Mary of Guise's first husband, Louis II d'Orléans,Duc de Longueville, hadTroy tapestries at theirChâteau de Châteaudun as early as 1468.[81]
The thirteen pieces of theHistory of Aeneas were carried from Edinburgh Castle toSt. Andrews in May 1539, and are listed in the inventory of 1539.[82] Eight pieces described as theSailing of Aeneas are listed in November 1561 at Holyroodhouse, with a note, presumably of c.1568, locating them at Stirling Castle.[83] In 1578 there were eightSailing pieces and four others at Edinburgh Castle.[84] The extra tapestry may have been a piece from theOld History of Troy, or possibly theSailing of Aeneas set, first listed in November 1561, was newly brought from France by Queen Mary and not part of James'sAeneas. Alexander Seton had some of theAeneas andTroy at Dunfermline among his 10 old pieces in 1616.[85] An area of the garden of Holyroodhouse was called theSege of Troy, and there may have been a connection, perhaps only that the tapestries were aired there.[86]
A separate subject from theJason, listed in 1539 as theHistory of Maliasor, this six-piece tapestry ofMeleager was atFotheringhay Castle in 1587 as Mary's own possession. At Fotheringhay, Mary, Queen of Scots, also had the six pieces of theHistory of Count Foix and the Battle of Ravenna, from the Scottish collection,[87] but as this set was only previously listed in November 1561 it might not have belonged to her parents. An eighteenth-century engraving ofGaston de Foix was said to derive from a similar tapestry.Amias Paulet, her gaoler, spent £113-10s in English money on lining, packing, and hanging eight pieces of her tapestry during her move fromChartley toFotheringhay Castle.[88] Mary wished theMeleager andRavenna to be sold after her death, with cloths-of-estate, to fund the return journeys of her physician and Mr Melville.[89] Like theMeleager, the biblicalRoboam which appears in most inventories also dates from 1539. Henry VIII had a six-piece suite and a nine-piece suite of theHistory of Muliager, the latter suitable for a low gallery.[90]
This may have been a copy of the famous tapestry commissioned byFrançois Ier from designs byGiulio Romano, theGestes of Scipion, the story ofScipio Africanus, which includes the sceneSiege of Carthagena. However, like theBattle of Ravenna, the five pieces are first listed in November 1561 and so this too might not have belonged to James and Mary of Guise, unless they were among the unspecified tapestries bought by William Schaw in 1539.[91] However, there are other tapestries with the subjectSiege of a Town in late medieval style which answer the description. Another possibility is that these were scenes of theSiege of Troy, a subject found in Henry VIII's collection.[92] Possibly, this tapestry was in mind when Mary of Guise, according toJohn Knox, remarked that the aftermath of the failed assault onLeith of 7 May 1560 was the fairest tapestry she had ever seen.[93]
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James V's other named tapestries included the six Great and eight LittleUnicorn pieces. TheGreat Unicorn set has been identified as another version of the famous tapestries,The Hunt of the Unicorn, now inThe Cloisters of theMetropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Faithful copies using the original technique are being made for display in the Palace of Stirling Castle. These unicorn tapestries had belonged to his father, James IV, but the subject was still popular in 1540, when Pierre de Clanquemeulle, companion tapestry maker, was hired by Léon Brocart, master weaver in Paris, to complete two pieces ofLa Chasse à la licorne.[94]
Seven pieces of theHistory of the Apis and uther Bestis were recorded in 1539. Six pieces of the History of Apes were recorded in 1561. In January 1563 three pieces of this tapestry with monkeys, thetapisserie des singes, were given by Mary Queen of Scots to Pierre Marnard the court"fruictier", a kitchen officer who took part inmasques.[95]
Listed in the September 1561 inventory, ten pieces ofHistory of Hunting and Hawking may have been a separate item originally belonging to James V, and perhaps distinct from the six-piece set of theHunting of the Sanglier (Wild Boar), and seven-pieceConingars (the Rabbit Hunt), listed in later inventories. One scene from thisRabbit Hunt, otherwise called theL’histoire des Chasseurs de Cogny in an inventory written in French, was said to have been lost atLinlithgow during the 1566baptism of James VI at Stirling. However this loss had already been recorded in 1565, as having occurred at Linlithgow during the keepership ofJames Sandilands, perhaps the one later said to have been cut by "Andro Cockburn fule." The other six pieces were destroyed at the Kirk o'Field explosion. Another tapestry of the "Rabbit Hunt" had been made into bed curtains.[96] TheBurrell Collection in Glasgow has an example of a tapestry of this subject, dated from c. 1475.[97]
James IV bought one scene ofMarcus Coriolanus, which may be theMathiolus tapestry mentioned in later inventories, and aSolomon, which may beJudgement of Solomon noted in September 1561, of worsett with gold.[98] Alternatively, Susan Groag Bell wonders if thisMathiolus was the first scene of theCity of Ladies suite bought in 1538, featuring the name of the authorMatheolus as a protagonist illustrating the works ofChristine de Pisan.[99]
The subject of theHistory of the Shepherds of seven pieces and theHistory of Calveris and Moris of four pieces noted in 1561 may be obscure. The eight-pieceTriumph of Verity also noted in November 1561 may have come to Scotland with Mary in 1561, unless perhaps this was yet another name for theCity of Dames.[citation needed]
Margaret Tudor's English yeoman of the wardrobe was Harry Roper, who made her bed sheets and window curtains, washed clothes, mended her tapestries and scarlet hangings and perfumed them with violet powder. Hooks for hanging tapestry cost two shillings for a hundred, larger hooks called "crochattis" were five shillings the hundred.[100]
James IV built a gatehouse at Holyrood Palace on the street now called Abbey Strand. He installed a glazier,Thomas Peebles, who made windows for the royal palaces, in the rooms above the passageway or pend. In 1537 James V moved the glazier's workshop, and the gatehouse was refurbished for mending tapestry.[101]
A French tapestry worker, Guillaume, moved to Scotland with his wife and children in 1538.[102] When James V moved around Scotland thetapissiers or 'tapestry men' packed up the tapestries and set them up at his destination, and carried out running repairs. George Steill bound up twelve scenes of theHistory of Aeneas with cords and carried them from Edinburgh to St Andrews in May 1539 for the marriage of Joanna Gresmore toRobert Beaton ofCreich.[103] The "tapesar" came with the wardrobe servant Malcolm Gourlay to furnish tents for James V andMary of Guise in Glenartney andGlen Finglas for the hunts in September 1539.[104]
Eight pieces of tapestry were specially repaired for the coronation of Mary of Guise in January 1540, and others were often relined with new canvas.[105] Jacques Habet, William Edbe, and George Steill lined the rough or newly plastered walls of the castle atCrawfordjohn to save wear on tapestries in July 1541.[106] Apart from this work, the men also made up and embroidered state beds with luxury imported silks and taffetas with hanks of gold thread, finished withpassementerie and ostrich feather trimmings.[107] Guillaume, hired in France in 1538, Habet, and the embroiderer Robinet, were doubtless Frenchmen, but William Edbe was Scottish.[108] Habet may have been the "Jacques Hebert" later hired by the Parisian master weaver Girard Laurens in 1564.[109]
There was extra work when the tapestry was taken out of the castles and used on other occasions. In May 1544, when anEnglish army burnt Edinburgh, the tapestries were carried up theRoyal Mile from Holyroodhouse to the Castle for safety and watched byRegent Arran's wardrobe servant Malcolm Gourlay.[110] Regent Arran borrowed the royal tapestry for his daughterBarbara Hamilton's wedding to Lord Gordon in February 1549, and after it had been cleaned by six apprentices it was brought out for the visit of Mary of Guise's brother, theMarquis de Maine.[111]
The best tapestry was brought out to decorate the hall and Chapel ofHolyroodhouse for the ceremonies andmasques in February 1566 whenNicolas d'Angennes, seigneur ofRambouillet, brought theOrder of Saint Michael forHenry Stuart, Lord Darnley.[112] After thebattle of Carberry Hill, whenMary, Queen of Scots was imprisoned inLochleven Castle, the tapestry inHolyrood Palace was taken down and stored in Edinburgh Castle in October 1567.[113] Tapestry remained in place to decorate the rooms at Stirling Castle, where James VI was brought up. In April 1569, tapestry was hung in Glasgow for the French ambassador. When English soldiers came to Scotland in 1570,William Maitland of Lethington orderedServais de Condé to transport the tapestry and furnishings of Holyroodhouse to Edinburgh Castle.[114]
In August 1571,William Murray brought tapestry from Stirling Castle to decorateStirling Tolbooth for theParliament.[115] In April 1572, the Deanery atRestalrig was hung with tapestry for the English ambassadorsThomas Randolph andWilliam Drury, and in September 1572, William Murray, thevarlet ofJames VI's bedchamber hung the tolbooth of Stirling with tapestry.[116]
William Beaton or Betoun was an embroiderer and "tapester". He also repaired the royal tapestries and wall hangings. In October 1580, he was paid for work hanging tapestry during James's progress and visit to Holyrood Palace. He supplied 800 hooks called "cleiks" and cords to pack up the tapestries.[117] In 1594, Beaton made a new cloth of gold to spread as a "tapis" on the chapel floor at thebaptism of Prince Henry, and cushions for the seats of guests.[118]
On 7 October 1584, theMaster of Gray was made Keeper of the Wardrobe, including the tapestry, with all officers of the household commanded to reverence, acknowledge and obey him.[119] George Strathauchin (d. 1604), an embroiderer, was James's "tapiser" with annual salary of £40 and lodgings. In October 1589 Strathauchin packed up tapestries in chests to ship to Norway and Denmark with James VI when he went to meet his brideAnne of Denmark, and travelled with the king to furnish the royal lodgings.[120] Strathauchin and themaster of workWilliam Schaw decoratedSt Giles Kirk with tapestry for thecoronation of Anne of Denmark.[121] He mended wall hangings and tapestries for the 1594 baptism. In September 1598 he was paid for transporting Anne of Denmark's beds and tapestry toFalkland Palace and hanging her bedchamber.[122]
In 1624,John Auchmoutie ofScoughall was Master of the King's Wardrobe in Scotland. He petitioned the king for better pay for the four tapestry keepers and workers in Scotland, and the replacement of the deceased Nicolas Elmar with Martin Leache.[123]
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