John Erskine Mar, 1st (or 6th) earl of d. 1572, regent of Scotland. As Lord Erskine he was keeper of Edinburgh and Stirling castles, a source of much political strength. In the struggle between the regent Mary of Guise and the Protestant nobles, Erskine intervened to a limited degree on both sides, and on the approach of the English (1559) he received the regent into Edinburgh Castle. When Mary Queen of Scots returned from France in 1561 he was made a member of her privy council, and in 1565 he was created earl of Mar. (There is still dispute as to whether this constituted a restoration of the...
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