Chapter Eleven. Best Of Enemies: Andrew Melville And Patrick Adamson, C.1574-1592

Abstract

This chapter discusses the relationship between Archbishop Patrick Adamson and the presbyterian leader Andrew Melville. The fact that the two men shared an interest in neo-Latin poetry had often been noted without being seen as significant; the chapter shows, that Adamson and Melville were also personal friends. The hero of the second generation of the Scottish Reformation is Andrew Melville, the so-called 'father of Scottish presbyterianism', and Patrick Adamson, archbishop of St Andrews, is undoubtedly his villainous counterpart. Melville and Adamson are seen to embody, on the one hand, principled adherence to presbyterian purity and ecclesiastical independence as the unshakable champion of a cause and, on the other, deceit, self-seeking ambition and treachery against the Church. According to James Melville's account, Morton alleged that the blame for the delay in securing the revenues of the parish of Govan for the University of Glasgow lay with Andrew Melville. Keywords: Andrew Melville; ecclesiastical polity; James Melville; Morton; neo-Latin poetry; parish of Govan; Patrick Adamson; presbyterianism; Scottish reformation; University of Glasgow