John Stewart, Duke of Albany, Lord Governor of Scotland, and his political role in 16th-century France

a reassessment in the light of new information

Abstract

The discovery of three hitherto undocumented letters to John Stewart, Duke of Albany and Lord Governor of Scotland from the French government minister, Florimond Robertet, allows us to glimpse the diplomatic dealings of a powerful 16th-century personage who moved between the courts of Scotland and France. It also reveals something of his close personal relationship with François I’s leading political adviser to whom, for example, he sent the touching gift of a crystal charmstone. Albany, this Scot who had been brought up in France, was indeed a cosmopolitan figure and the letters, recounting the latest news of the momentous Sack of Rome by the Imperial army of Charles V, place the Lord Governor in a wider European context.