Nicolas or Nicoll Elphinstone was a Scottish courtier and diplomatic messenger. He was the son of Lawrence Elphinstone of Selmys, 1435-1515. He worked for James Stewart, Regent Moray and was involved in attempts to sell the jewels and pearls of Mary, Queen of Scots in 1567 and 1568. Moray needed to raise money to govern Scotland and subdue Mary's supporters by force.
Mary Queen of Scots, with ropes of pearl, and pearls embroidered on her bonnet
Confluence of the Gore and South Esk, on the former Elphinstone Schank property
Elizabeth of Bohemia, wearing the "Medici pearls"
Nicholas Elphinstone gave the young James VI a copy of a French comic book, Les songes drolatiques de Pantagruel, Paris, 1565
James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray
James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray was a member of the House of Stewart as the illegitimate son of King James V of Scotland. At times a supporter of his half-sister Mary, Queen of Scots, he was the regent of Scotland for his half-nephew, the infant King James VI, from 1567 until his assassination in 1570. He was the first head of government to be assassinated with a firearm.
The Earl of Moray, a detail from a wedding portrait by Hans Eworth
Statue of James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray, Scottish National Portrait Gallery
James Stewart (c. 1531–1570), 1st Earl of Moray (1562), Regent of Scotland (1567–1570), 1568
Assassination of the Regent Moray. Victorian stained-glass window in St Giles' Kirk, Edinburgh
