Reconsidering a source of Sir David Lyndsay's The Monarche and its significance in the early Scottish apocalyptic tradition

Juan Manuel Castro

doi:10.4312/an.58.1.5-16

Authors

Juan Manuel Castro Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.4312/an.58.1.5-16

Keywords:

David Lyndsay, The Monarche, apocalyptic, Scottish reformation

Abstract

Parallel to the distinctive character of Reformation in Scotland, the Protestant apocalyptic tradition in this country showed an original, nationalist-oriented style, defining itself against both English and French tendencies. Among the first texts to ground these differences was Sir David Lyndsay’s Dialog betuix Experience and ane Courteour off the Miserabyll Estait of the Warld, commonly known as The Monarche (1552). Following the main themes of medieval eschatology, The Monarche incorporates key elements that will be characteristic of Protestant apocalypticism in Scotland and shows the influence of Carion’s Chronicle, one of the most significant millenarian treatises in the Renaissance. This article analyzes the apocalyptic dimension of The Monarche and pays special attention to the particular circumstances sorrounding Lyndsay’s reception of Carion’s Chronicle. By examining the connections between this poet and certain Scottish exiles in Eastern Europe, we aim to shed new light on the introduction of apocalyptic thought in Scotland and revise the traditionally accepted relationship between this text and similar treatises, such as The Complaynt of Scotlande or John Knox’s earliest writings.

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