William Ruthven, Earl of Gowrie, who had led the Ruthven Raid of 1582, was arrested and executed at Stirling in May 1584 on James VI's orders. Gowrie had briefly reasserted his Protestant faction's hold on Scottish politics but was caught attempting another coup. His execution was an armed political act — carried out by the king's guards at the castle — and was preceded by considerable military preparation to ensure the Ruthven faction could not intervene. James VI's personal involvement in ordering Gowrie's death stored up the blood feud that would explode in the Gowrie Conspiracy of 1600.
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