Scottish Diplomatic Attention: The Baptism of Prince Henry Frederick Stewart by Beth Cowen

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My doctoral research examines the reign of James VI of Scotland through the lens of the English succession, exploring how far James VI’s determination to succeed Elizabeth I consumed his personal rule. It has often been assumed that James did all he could to please Elizabeth in the hope of gaining her recognition of his claim but the baptism of James and Anna of Denmark’s son and heir, Henry Frederick, shows that James did not merely seek to flatter Elizabeth in his pursuit of the English crown. 

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  James VI of Scotland

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  Henry Frederik, Prince of Wales

Henry Frederick was born in Stirling Castle on 19 February 1594. The news of Henry’s birth was celebrated with cannon fire at Edinburgh Castle and “dancing and playing” across the country but the celebration of Henry’s birth culminated with his baptism on 30 August 1594. The baptismal celebrations strategically proclaimed the strength of the Stewart house and aligned it closely with the English succession. For example, during the baptismal service, David Cunningham, Bishop of Aberdeen gave a speech which emphasised Henry’s descendance from the Kings of England – which caused the resident English ambassador Robert Bowes to complain that Henry’s place in the English succession played too great a role in the service. 

Furthermore, although Elizabeth I’s ambassador played a prominent role in the baptismal proceedings as her proxy, this treatment took place in the context of an absent French ambassador. During the baptism, a seat for the absent French ambassador, recognisable by the rich decoration and Henri’s coat of arms hanging above it, was placed directly to the right of James in the chapel. The order of seating is detailed in various sources, always the same: with James sat in the middle, with the French ambassador’s empty seat to his immediate right. To his immediate left were the English ambassadors’ seats, followed by the King of Denmark’s ambassadors. This layout would make the position of the French seat heraldically superior.

During the baptism, James’s son was baptised “Henrie Fredericke” which has led to the perception amongst some historians that Henry was named in honour of Elizabeth’s father, Henry VIII, in a bid for English favour. This argument is enhanced by the fact that James and Anna’s second child and first daughter was baptised “in the name of Elizabeth queene of England”. Yet in a report from the ambassadors from the United Provinces, the name Henry Frederick was not chosen to flatter Elizabeth. Instead, the name was “all in common resolved, with respect to the kinship… Frederick in respect of the grandfather on the mother’s side the late King of Denmark, and Hendrick in respect of the Duke of Brunswick…” It was also noted that “the King of France is also named Hendrick, so also is the father of the Queen of England.” Thus, the choice of the name Henry also had the advantage of linking Scotland with Denmark and France.

James also used the baptism as an opportunity to cultivate Scotland’s foreign relations and discuss the matter of a new European league against the growing power of Philip II of Spain. According to the ambassadors of the United Provinces: “His majesty indicated the right to the crown of England that was due to him, and therefore the more desired to strengthen himself against the King of Spain through whose tyranny his kingdom was agitated…” Such discussion preceded and succeeded the baptism. Yet just because Henri of France had recently converted to Catholicism (in 1593) he was not excluded from the negotiations. The proposed alliance was phrased as a “contra-league” (as opposed to a Protestant league) to include Henri. In the end, negotiations would fizzle out and the “contra-league” never materialised, but the discussions positioned James at the centre of European diplomacy and even though the baptism helped further Scotland’s Protestant relations, it seems it was not to the detriment to, or omission of, relations with France.

This brief example of one event on the European diplomatic calendar hopefully helps to show that James made the most of an opportunity to create a platform for the development of a Stewart marketing campaign to a wide audience, enhancing Scottish relations across Europe, as well as with England.