Parliament and Convention in the Personal Rule of James V of Scotland, 1528-1542

This book provides the first study of Scottish governmental records during a period of revived royal authority, highlighting the power of consultation and the use of various groups to craft policies. It emphasizes the importance of specialized, frequent consultation and shifts the debate surrounding the development of state and administrative structures in Scotland to the 1530s. It also addresses topics of European-wide concern, such as the use of early modern Parliaments to impose or resist religious change, the pace of state formation, monarchical power, and relations between monarchs and their subjects.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 361 pages
Publication date: 19 February 2023
Publisher: Springer Nature Switzerland AG

This groundbreaking book, based on a profound new understanding of Scottish governmental records derived from extensive archival research, presents the first comprehensive study of these crucial institutions during a period of renewed royal authority. The regime that emerges from these records is one that grasped the power of consultation, skillfully employing a diverse array of groups, ranging from full parliaments to conventions of specialists and experts chosen to address the specific matter at hand. Policies were not formulated through a solitary meeting but rather through a series of gatherings, including small groups where secrecy was of utmost importance or complex details required meticulous refinement, to elaborate large gatherings where the regime employed a performative strategy to disseminate information or legitimize its policies. Remarkably, much of this was accomplished even in the absence of the King, with James maintaining a distance from many of these gatherings, relying on key officials such as the Chancellor or Clerk Register to convey counsel and the royal will. This emphasis on specialized, frequent consultation aligns with concurrent developments in the council, shifting the debate surrounding the development of state and administrative structures in Scotland traditionally situated in the late sixteenth century into the 1530s. By tackling the development of parliament in Scotland and contextualizing it within the broader landscape of various consultative meetings, this book also addresses subjects of international significance: the extent to which early modern parliaments were employed to impose or resist religious change, the pace of state formation, monarchical power, and the dynamics between monarchs and their subjects.

Weight: 493g
Dimension: 210 x 148 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9783030893798
Edition number: 1st ed. 2022