James VI and I after 400 years

This review article assesses recent publications concerning the life and rule of King James VI and I. The quatercentenary of the king’s death in 1625 has stimulated much new work, including biographies by Steven Reid and Alexander Courtney, a study of James’s accession to the English throne by Susan Doran and a collection of essays edited by Alexander Courtney and Michael Questier. The article examines how recent scholars have rehabilitated James’s once-poor reputation, while continuing to express doubts about his effectiveness in the last years of his reign.