John Stewart of Baldynneis

John Stewart of Baldynneis (c. 1545–c. 1605) was a writer and courtier at the Scottish Court. he was one of the Castalian Band grouped around James VI.

He was the son of Elizabeth Beaton, a former mistress of James V, and John Stewart, 4th Lord Innermeath.[1] His nephew, John Stewart was 6th Lord Innermeath and Earl of Atholl.

He was known as "John Stewart of Redcastle and Laitheris", and also as "Stewart of Baldynneis".[2]

He was the translator of Ariosto's Orlando Furioso producing an abridgement in twelve cantos in 1590 preceding Sir John Harington's translation the following year.[3] The translation appeared with some of his own poems in a volume bearing the title Ane Abbregement of Roland Fvriovs, translait ovt of Aroist: togither vith sym Rapsodies of the Avthor's yovthfvll braine, and last ane Schersing ovt of trew Felicitie; composit in Scotis meiter be J. Stewart of Baldynneis[3] a copy of which is preserved in the Advocates Library, Edinburgh.

This may well have been the 'propyne' of verse which Stewart gave to James VI as a new year present in 1584. Stewart wrote of the king deserving a "doubill croune and moir", not just referring to the likelihood of James inheriting the English throne, but also to coronation of Petrarch as poet-king in Rome in 1341, or that of Conrad Celtes in 1487.[4]

References
  1. Donna Heddle, John Stewart of Baldynneis Roland Furious: A Scots Poem in its European Context (Leiden, 2007), pp. 1-2.
  2. Balfour Paul, Sir James. The Scots Peerage: founded on Wood's ed. of Sir Robert Douglas's Peerage of Scotland; containing an historical and genealogical account of the nobility of that kingdom, vol. 5 (Edinburgh, 1904), p. 5
  3. Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Stewart, J." . Encyclopædia Britannica. 25 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 914.
  4. Court, Kirk, and Community: Scotland, 1470-1625 by Jenny Wormald (p. 186)


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