Esme Stewart, Duke of Lennox — James VI's French favourite — was the principal target of the Protestant lords who organised the Ruthven Raid of 1582. Before the Raid, Lennox had effectively controlled Scottish government through his dominance of the young king. Protestant lords feared a French Catholic influence at court. In the months before the Raid, Lennox and his opponents exchanged armed threats in Edinburgh, with both sides mustering men in the city. Edinburgh itself was militarised as the factional crisis built toward the seizure of the king.
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