page_title: James Hamilton of Finnart
section_title: Master of Work for building royal palaces and castles
hierarchical_section_title: James Hamilton of Finnart / Rise / Master of Work for building royal palaces and castles
caption_attribution_description: English: Blackness Castle South East View
context_page_description: Sir James Hamilton of Finnart was a Scottish nobleman and architect, the illegitimate son of James Hamilton, 1st Earl of Arran, and Mary Boyd of Bonshaw.
  Although legitimated in 1512 while still a minor, he continued to be known as the "Bastard of Arran". As a key member of the Hamilton family, and second cousin of James V, King of Scotland, he became a prominent member of Scottish society.
context_section_description: He was appointed Steward of the Royal Household and Master of Works to King James.   King James granted Hamilton with the Draffan estate in Lanarkshire, on which he built Craignethan Castle in 1530. He probably also built Cadzow Castle near the South Lanarkshire town now known as Hamilton. In Linlithgow, Hamilton acquired the site of a large townhouse from his cousin James Hamilton of Kincavill in January 1531.
  In 1536, Hamilton supplied James V with equipment for hunting horses, hounds and hawks, and the King ordered Patrick, Lord Gray, who was indebted to the crown, to pay him 850 Scottish merks.
  As Master of Works, he was responsible for restorations to the royal palaces of Linlithgow, Blackness Castle and possibly Falkland Palace. His major work was creating the renaissance palace at Stirling for which he was richly rewarded.
  In 1537, the treasurer allowed Finnart the composition fee for the Wardship of the heir of Patrick Butter of Gormo against £133-6s-8d he had spent at Linlithgow and Blackness Castle. This pattern of financing continued, and at Stirling Castle on 22 September 1539,  Finnart was given a substantial gift of lands in recompense for his service in completing works at Stirling Palace and Linlithgow Palace, including; Strathaven Castle, Crawfordjohn, Gorgie in Renfrewshire, and other lands made into a barony of Avondale. Finnart's building work continued at Stirling Palace with an advance of £4000 Scots in October 1539, and £300 for works at Linlithgow and Blackness Castle in April 1540.
  A later historian, William Drummond of Hawthornden, mentioned an advance of 3000 Crowns in April 1540 for rebuilding a castle on the Isle of Bute, meaning Rothesay Castle, but this is not recorded in the royal accounts. After his execution in August 1540, Finnart left debts for the building work at Stirling Palace. The royal blacksmith, William Hill, was paid for the ironwork and yetts he had made in August 1541. As late as January 1542, Edward Lytall's wife was paid £487 for the ironwork and timber she had supplied. A priest, sir James Nycholsoun, finished off the work at Stirling, which Finnart had begun in May 1538, spending £1459-15s-10d before Christmas 1540, and a carpenter Robert Robertson was appointed master of work to complete the palace.
caption: Some gunloops at Blackness Castle date from Finnart's works
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