The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-08-05
TODAY IN HISTORY
The Gowrle Plot.
FRIDAY, AUGUST s, 1910.

served as a holiday in England, for Il
VI. OF Scotland and / OF England, then
king OF Scotland only. narrowly escaped
death at the hands OF two OF his coun-
trymen, the Earl OF Gowrie and his
brother. Alexander Ru,hven.
on the morning OF the 5th OF August
as James was starting on hunting trip
from Falkland palace, he met alexander
Ruthven. the younger brother of the Earl
OF Gowre who told him. with great
air OF mystery, that he had discovered a
man burying a pot OF money on held
picious that he had taken him prisoner
and begged the king TO come TO Gowrie
house in Perth TO see him.
James went. taking with him Mar
LennoX and about twenty other gentle
men, After dinner Alexander took the
king aside. and when his attendants
missed him they were, told that he had
The story runs that when The king and
Alexander withdrew the latter conducted
his majesty through bewidering maze
boy locked behind him, until they had
reached a small turret closet connected
With witn an upper room at the END OF tn, the
not the Highlander. but a completely
armed servant OF the earl.
Ruthven clapped hat on head. snatched
dagger from the, servant; and. alluding
TO the execution Of his father for A sim
liar treason sixteen years before. shouted,
Sir. We maun be my prisoner Remem-
ber my fathers deid!'
James was scared. lie protested that
he was a minor at the time referred 20,
that he had restored the family estates
and that he could not imagine what
Ruthven wanted. The lad replied that
he would fetch his brother to tell that.
He enjoined the king TO quietness during
ms absence. but as soon as he was gone
James managed TO induce the servant TO
open window looking on street. Then,
just as the second window was ben"
raised, Ruthven returned. and, crying
out, attempted To bind the king with a
the servant, who afterwards swore that
he had been placed there without warn
ing, aided the king, and James was able
hand closed upon his throat. Sir John
Ramsey got upon the scene, and releas-
Ing James, stabbed Ruthven. who was
speedily despatched by others of the royal
following.
II appeared that shortly after the king
left the dining hall Il servant of the
house announced that he had started
follow him, that n porter had awakened
their suspicious by saving that the king
had not gone out and that they there
upon returned. divided into several par
ties and proceeded TO search the house,
The earl of Gowrie, with several OF his
retainers, met them in the turret room,
James was tossed for safety into a closet
and the fight followed, ending in the
death OF Gowrie. while the king and HIS
friends knelt upon the bloody floor and
thanked heaven for their deliverance.
Gowrie and his brother were both
young men OF prominence. popular at
court and apparently with brilliant fu-
lures ahead of them. They had just re-
turned from the University OF Padua and
were looked upon as in every way above
committing so cruel or attempting so
| rash an act The proba bility is that
they did not intend murder, but rather
the possession of the royal person. The
whole affair was very mysterious, the
only witnesses being the king himself and
Henderson, the man in armor.
Some Of the ministers thought it so
suspicious that they refused to return
thanks for the kings safety. as they
thought the whole affair was an inven-
ton of his own. Eight years later, how
ever. some letters were discovered which
seemed TO prove that there had really
been a plot to seize III kings person