On this day in 1603
King James VI of Scotland becomes King James I of England and Ireland
James Charles Stuart was born at Edinburgh Castle on 19 June 1566 and ascended to the Scottish throne on 24 July 1567, upon the abdication of Mary, Queen of Scots. Still just 13 months old, he was crowned five days later, and a series of regents ruled in his place until he gained majority.
He was the great-great-grandson of Henry VII, who had been King of England and Lord of Ireland so, when Elizabeth I died without a child in 1603, he was next in line to the English and Irish throne. Thus, James VI of Scotland simultaneously became James I of England and Ireland and the two kingdoms were ruled within his personal union, while remaining legally distinct states with their own defined borders. Despite his Scottish roots, he moved his court to England where he lived out the remaining 22 years of his life in what became known as the Jacobean period.
The Gunpowder Plot
As a religious man, he funded the King James translation of the Bible into English. He was also a target for assassination in the Gunpowder Plot, led by Robert Catesby and involving Guy Fawkes, who wanted to put James’s nine-year-old daughter, Elizabeth, on the throne in his place so that the country might once again become a Catholic state.
Upon his death in 1625, aged just 58, he was succeeded by his son, Charles, who similarly suffered an early end when he was executed in Whitehall in 1649 at the culmination of the English Civil War.
...and on this day in 1930
Fingerprinting pioneer dies relatively unknown
Henry Faulds was born in North Ayrshire and, after studying at University of Glasgow went to India on missionary work for the Church of Scotland. Two years later, his work took him to Japan.
His work there saw him found schools and stem the spread of infectious diseases while he indulged his interest in archaeology. This interest led to his involvement in fingerprinting when, on an archaeological dig, he noticed that ancient pottery often bore patterns imprinted by their creators’ fingers. Further examination of these, and of the fingers of his fellow archaeologists convinced him that each person’s prints were unique.
A man proved innocent
His idea was proved when one of his colleagues at the hospital where he worked in Japan was arrested on suspicion of theft. Faulds was able to show, upon analysis of his fingerprints and those found at the scene, that he was innocent, but it remained an uphill battle. When Faulds returned to Britain and approached the London Metropolitan Police with his idea, it showed no interest.
Japanese police were quicker to see its benefits, and adopted fingerprinting as a means of ruling out suspects during Faulds’ lifetime. However, upon his death in 1930, aged 86, fingerprinting was still not widely used as a forensic tool, and he would never know how important it later came to solving crime.
Yesterday…
Artist and suffragist Ann Macbeth dies
Artist Ann Macbeth actively participated in action and demonstrations in support of women’s right to vote.
Tomorrow…
Robert the Bruce is crowned King of the Scots
Robert the Bruce was crowned King of Scotland in 1306 after he triumphed in a fight with John Comyn at Greyfriars Kirk in Dumfries.