James I of Scotland was my 15th great grandfather through the Taylors and Gordons. In this article I will describe briefly the life of James I. As with most royalty, one could write a book on their life, but I will stick to the major events.

As I described in a previous chapter on the Gordons of Birsemoir and Cluny, Alexander Gordon of Strathaven, was my 12^th^ great grandfather, and he was the 5^th^ great grandfather of John Taylor, through John's mother Philadelphia Gordon, the daughter of Governor Patrick Gordon. I will start this story with Alexander and show how he was the descendent of both English and Scottish Royalty.