Archibald Ruthven
Archibald Ruthven was son of Patrick Ruthven, 3rd Lord Ruthven, and Janet Douglas, daughter of the Earl of Angus. His father had instigated the murder of Cardinal Riccio in 1566 and died in exile in the same year. Archibald was the fourth son, the eldest died and another was murdered in 1571. His brother William Ruthven, 4th Lord Ruthven, had also taken part in the murder of Riccio, but returned to Scotland. He was Lord Treasurer from 1571. In 1581 he was created Earl of Gowrie. The statement, sometimes to be found, that he visited Sweden is probably false.
Archibald signed himself "of Forteviot and Master of Ruthven". In 1572 he was recommended to John III by the Regent, Mar. In the autumn of 1572 he stayed at John’s court in Vadstena for five weeks with an escort of eleven men and three extra horses. He was commissioned on this occasion to go over to Scotland to enlist 2000 men. He travelled via Denmark where he met Dancay in March. The latter wrote (2nd June) to Catherine of Medici: "In Denmark all is calm, not so in Sweden. Those who come from that country have strange tales to tell. About four months ago there came a Scottish nobleman, Master Rewen, brother to My Lord Rewen, passing through Denmark on his journey from Sweden to Scotland to enlist soldiers for the King of Sweden. I have now heard from those coming from Scotland that he has enlisted a number of men which he hopes soon to take over to Sweden." At the written request of, among others, the King’s Court Commissioner, Anders Keith, enlistment was made on a larger scale than had originally been planned, and the total number enlisted was in the end probably around 4000 men.
The troops enlisted were of the Reformed Church and many of them had just taken part in the siege of Edinburgh Castle. Archibald Ruthven himself took part in this siege which led to the capture of the castle on 28th May. According to a letter from the Earl of Morton to John III, dated June 19th, he was then still in Scotland but arrived in Elfsborg in Sweden already on the 18th and was immediately ordered to proceed to the King.
Later on in the summer Archibald Ruthven arrived in Stockholm with his force, and a number of complications immediately arose. The direct cause of the trouble appears to have been that the pay of the Scottish troop was missing. The Scottish officers were accused of having embezzled the same, and in a tight corner they made the accusation a question of honour. They held a countryman, Hugh Cahun, who had been five years in the service of John III, responsible for the accusation, and refused to sail to the fighting in Livonia until he had been executed. The King gave way, and Hugh Cahun’s head fell in the Great Square in Stockholm. The Scots then set sail. This situation reflects the terror felt by the Swedish authorities for the numerous foreign soldiery. John III’s bad conscience was eased by a generous pension to Cahun’s widow.
In the late winter of 1574 the main Swedish force was camped outside the Russian fortress of Wesenberg in Livonia. Pontus de la Gardie was in command and tried three times to storm the town, suffering great losses. The besieging force included Swedish and Scottish foot soldiers and Swedish and German cavalry. There was much ill-feeling between the Scottish infantry and the German cavalry and on the 15th March fighting broke out between them. German cavalry attacked Scottish soldiers and Colonel Ruthven, who tried with De la Gardie and other officers to intervene, was badly wounded. One of the troops of Scottish cavalry (Wilhelm Moncrieff’s) joined in on the side of their countrymen and several hundreds (some sources give 1500) were killed. A number of Scots fled to the besieged Russians in Wesenberg. At the trial that was held in Stockholm the Scots — probably unjustly — were given the chief blame for what had happened. The Scottish force had been broken. Ruthven, who had been wounded, and Gilbert Balfour were sent in irons to Stockholm. There, cut off from the remainder of their forces, they were accused of having played a leading role in Charles de Mornay’s conspiracy to replace Eric XIV on the throne. For six years Eric XIV had been kept imprisoned by his brother and successor, and the risk of his being liberated by his followers had been a continual and predominant problem for John III. Twice during the previous autumn, apparently, Archibald Ruthven and Gilbert Balfour — experienced in such matters since the murder of Lord Darnley — had plotted the murder of the King, under the supervision of Charles de Mornay. On the first occasion certain Scottish captains were to rush to the King’s bedchamber and the minutes of the trial inform us that he was saved only by chance. On the second occasion it was planned that the murder should take place in grand style at the farewell banquet that was held at Stockholm Castle, after payment had finally been made and the departure of the Scottish force to Livonia agreed. A Scottish sword dance was a natural feature of the festivities and gave the conspirators their chance to bare weapons. The murder was to be the climax of the dance — but de Mornay’s nerve failed him at the decisive moment and he never gave the agreed sign.
It is impossible to distinguish facts from false accusation in this story. What is certain is that Charles de Mornay was led to the block in Stockholm in September 1574. "Today" he is reputed to have said, "dies Carolus, by whose good service King John is alive." It is also a fact that Archibald Ruthven died imprisoned in Vasteras Castle, in February 1578, after a number of petitions from prominent countrymen in Scotland had been ignored. Gilbert Balfour was condemned to death in the autumn of 1574 but long succeeded in avoiding execution by claiming knowledge of the legendary treasure of Eric XIV. After belief in this story had waned, following repeated interrogations, Balfour gained a further respite by an offer of 800 golden nobles. The King raised the demand to around 1000, and when the prisoner was unable to raise this amount, the axe fell in August 1576.