Sir David Lindsay, courtier and herald, is the most notable Scottish poet of the reign of James V (1513-1542) and the regency of James Hamilton, Earl of Arran (1543-1554). From John Barbour's national epic The Bruce (1376) to the achievements of Robert Henryson, William Dunbar, and Gavin Douglas, Lindsay's native literary heritage was diverse and vigorous. In the new climate of post-Reformation Scotland, he became the most palatable (certainly the most popular) representative of this tradition. Although capable of a wide satiric range from farce to irony, Lindsay wrote as an adviser, first to his prince and then to the civil and religious governors of his nation. Much of his work--light, occasional pieces as well as longer, weightier poems--is exemplary, setting up models of good and bad governance.

For generations Lindsay's family had owned an estate (called the Mount) near the town of Cupar in the county of Fife...