(1566–1625)
the king of England from 1603 to 1625 and of Scotland (as James VI) from 1567 to 1625. His mother was Mary Queen of Scots . As a relative of Elizabeth I he became King of England after she died, uniting Scotland and England under one government. He was not a popular king, however, and Roman Catholic opposition led to the Gunpowder Plot (1605). His son Charles I became king after he died. James I is associated with the Jacobean period in literature and the arts.