Thomas Foulis
Thomas Foulis | |
|---|---|
| Born | Scotland |
| Occupation(s) | Goldsmith, mining entrepreneur, financier |
| Years active | 1580–1628 |
| Known for | Financier to the royal court of James VI; goldsmithing; mining ventures; managing English subsidy funds |
Thomas Foulis (active 1580–1628) was a notable Scottish goldsmith, mining entrepreneur, and financier to the royal court.
Operating out of Edinburgh, Foulis engaged in activities related to minting and coin production, as well as gold and lead mining ventures. Beginning in May 1591, he oversaw the management of funds provided to James VI by Queen Elizabeth, commonly referred to as the English annuity or subsidy.
The son of Henry Foulis of Colinton and Margaret Haldane, he formed a business partnership with Robert Jousie, an Edinburgh cloth merchant who subsequently became Groom of the Chamber. Together they financed mint operations and other crown enterprises.
Craftsmanship
Foulis earned the status of master within the Edinburgh Incorporation of Goldsmiths and was granted burgess rights on 18 June 1581 after presenting a silverwork piece. His mentor was Michael Gilbert, and his own son David later followed him into the trade. In early 1582, he created new coin dies based on designs by the painter employed by Lord Seton. His involvement with the royal mint exempted him from certain taxes, which led to disputes with Edinburgh officials who declined to register one of his apprentices in 1591.
In March 1588, Foulis lodged a complaint with the Privy Council regarding James Acheson’s license to produce counters or jetons, asserting it infringed on his exclusive rights as a die maker. The Council ultimately decided that Acheson's manufacture of pewter counters did not violate Foulis' monopoly.
In 1590, Foulis fashioned a silver-gilt basin and ewer as a christening present from Queen Elizabeth to Elizabeth Stewart, daughter of Francis Stewart, 5th Earl of Bothwell and Margaret Douglas. Additionally, he advanced £20 sterling to English ambassador Robert Bowes for rewarding attendants and musicians at the baptism ceremony held in Edinburgh.
By April 1593, English envoys Lord Burgh and Robert Bowes secured a loan of £300 sterling from Jousie, Foulis, and John Porterfield to aid English diplomatic initiatives in Scotland.
Royal attire and gemstones
Both Michael Gilbert and his former apprentice Foulis supplied rings and jewels for distribution by James VI as New Year's Day gifts. The expenditure escalated from £763 during 1582/3 to £5,100 by January 1588. In June 1589, Foulis provided two gold chains and rings valued at £953 Scots to captains commanding an English fleet under George Beeston, along with a diamond-set gold locket costing £373 and 100 crowns (£266) for sailors. This largesse followed a violent confrontation in Edinburgh between Beeston's men and veterans of the Armada.
In July 1589, James VI dispatched Foulis and Robert Jousie to London to procure garments and decorative items for his wedding to Anne of Denmark. As collateral for payment, James entrusted Foulis with cut rubies set in gold "chatons." Upon James's departure for Norway in October 1589, Foulis returned these royal jewels to the depute-treasurer Robert Melville, including a large table-cut diamond that had been pledged since 1586 for New Year's gifts. Following James's return in May 1590, Foulis supplied gold chains as presents for the Danish Admiral Peder Munk and his retinue.
Foulis was responsible for providing jewels to both James VI and Anne of Denmark, while Jousie supplied fabrics and clothing partially financed through a subsidy from Queen Elizabeth. In August 1594, Foulis acquired eight ruffs in London intended for the queen. He maintained an inventory of textiles until his passing.
In January 1597, payment amounting to £2,765 Scots (equivalent to 790 crowns) was made to Foulis for an assortment of rings and a "carcan" necklace adorned with diamonds, rubies, pearls, and emeralds. Many pieces were distributed as New Year's gifts; one particular ring featuring eleven diamonds was presented to Marie Stewart, Countess of Mar. The value of these rings ranged between 80 and 300 crowns.
Scottish envoy Archibald Douglas noted that James VI gifted Anthony Bacon—a secretary to the Earl of Essex—a valuable ring chosen by Foulis from a London goldsmith. Bacon later attempted to pawn it at half its appraised worth. While this may be anecdotal, it suggests some subsidy money was expended in London. Furthermore, textiles were supplied by London merchant Baptist Hicks to both Foulis and Jousie.
Miner and refiner
In March 1592, Foulis joined forces with Sir William Bowes in London to refine old Scottish silver coinage. He managed a copper mine near Edinburgh on behalf of the king and was granted permission to harvest wood from Torwood forest to produce charcoal essential for refining processes. By January 1594, Foulis had secured a lease allowing him to extract and export minerals from Friarmoor in Lanarkshire, land that had previously belonged to Newbattle Abbey.
In March 1594, Bernard Fechtenburg, Foulis’s mining specialist, was recruited by Lord Menmuir to serve Sir David Lindsay of Edzell, who possessed ore samples with greater potential. The following month, Foulis received official rights to explore and extract gold, silver, lead, tin, and other metals within Lanarkshire, including sites formerly operated by George Douglas of Parkhead.
Referred to as Thomas Foulis of Leadhills, he obtained protection for his lead shipments after a robbery in 1597. The Privy Council authorized his transporters to display badges bearing the royal arms alongside Foulis’s emblem, warning that anyone caught robbing these shipments would face execution.
In 1604, English prospector George Bowes lodged a complaint that Foulis had interfered with his operations by detaining Bowes’s timber worker. Bowes sought intervention from Lord Balmerino, Scotland’s Secretary.
Silver at Hilderston
Silver deposits were uncovered at Hilderston near Bathgate in 1607. Bevis Bulmer and Thomas Foulis jointly developed the "God's Blessing" silver mine. By 1608, ore samples from the site were assayed by Thomas and George Foulis. Bulmer advanced the mine’s development as "knight governor of his majesty's mines underground," while George Bruce of Carnock served as treasurer. In 1613, Foulis secured a mining contract alongside William Alexander of Menstrie and Portuguese associate Paulo Pinto.
Royal finance
Between 1588 and 1590, Foulis oversaw royal financial matters on behalf of Chancellor John Maitland of Thirlestane and his wife Jean Fleming. These funds derived from the English subsidy—a regular payment from Queen Elizabeth to James VI. Records mention a collection of silver plate to which Foulis contributed ten silver trencher plates, possibly intended as diplomatic gifts for James VI during his 1589 journey to Norway.
In June 1591, Foulis traveled to London seeking £14,000 from the subsidy but was granted only £4,000. By July 1592, the requested amount was reduced further to £2,000 as James VI pressed for increased support following the capture of the Irishman Brian O'Rourke.
Foulis returned to London in September 1594 to retrieve silver plate for the king and arranged its transport back to Scotland. At this time, James VI owed him £14,598 Scots and presented him with two gold cups—gifts from Dutch ambassador Walraven van Brederode at Prince Henry’s baptism—which could be exchanged for £5 gold coins if repayment was delayed. A similar arrangement was made for another creditor, John Arnot.
From 1594 to 1596, Foulis accounted for various funds including the English subsidy, revenues from gold mines at Crawford Mure and Robert Mure, coinage produced by Thomas Acheson at the royal mint, and money managed by Secretary Richard Cockburn. Elizabeth specified that Cockburn’s funds were to be sent directly to Scotland rather than spent in London.
Disbursements covered clothing for the king and queen; jewelry for Anne of Denmark and ambassadors attending Prince Henry’s baptism; and New Year's gifts. Master of Work William Schaw received a gold salamander hat badge set with diamonds. Surviving instructions from James VI include orders directed at Foulis in London (May 1594) to procure lead for roofing Linlithgow Palace and alabaster for Stirling Castle’s Chapel Royal. Gold chains intended as ambassadorial gifts were crafted by George Foulis. On 16 August 1595, James instructed Foulis to repair and enlarge silver chandeliers for Prince Henry—a command marked with the prince’s own signature pen.
Despite concerns over his creditworthiness in November 1596, by May 1597 Foulis and Robert Jousie were appointed collectors of a new 12% customs duty on imports, empowered to confiscate ship sails if payments were withheld.
Bankruptcy
Foulis became engaged in managing the Scottish exchequer through the faction known as the Octavians. In October 1597, Thomas Hamilton, a member of the Octavians and the king's advocate, wed Foulis' sister Margaret. Subsequently, on 29 December 1597, Foulis was appointed to supervise royal expenditures. Nevertheless, by 17 January 1598, he was financially ruined due to the arrangement. Roger Aston observed that Foulis, effectively acting as treasurer, "lost his reason" after just twenty days and experienced severe hardship. Aston had anticipated that Foulis and Joussie might loan him funds to purchase land, but since they had not received English subsidies for two years, this was not possible.
An alternative explanation was provided by English envoy George Nicolson, who noted that James VI had reclaimed a jewel pawned to Foulis—the Great 'H' of Scotland. This jewel had been given to Anne of Denmark and later offered as compensation for the demolition of Slains Castle. Foulis had accepted the jewel as collateral for a £12,000 Scots loan made to the king in September 1594. In January 1598, the Privy Council instructed Foulis' brother to return it.
The immediate trigger for Foulis' financial downfall was a legal action initiated by Octavian John Lindsay, Master of Metals, which halted payments by comptroller George Home of Wedderburn. Whether this move was deliberately designed to bankrupt Foulis or if its full impact was anticipated remains uncertain.
In May 1598, James Hudson reported that Foulis had pledged a gold lion adorned with a ruby valued at £400 with London goldsmith Robert Brook; Hudson implied it belonged to James VI. Robert Jousie faced difficulties paying Brook’s interest and other debts and even contemplated having Jousie arrested for debt in London.
Foulis eventually recovered, and on 2 August 1598 he and Joussie obtained a six-year contract to operate the mint as recompense for their losses. The Parliament of Scotland acknowledged their outstanding debts related to royal clothing, jewels, cash advances, and other expenses. Walter Stewart, 1st Lord Blantyre was assigned to grant them authority over the mint to facilitate repayment. Comptroller George Home committed to supplying royal households and repaying Foulis, Jousie, and their creditors in installments.
Foulis and Jousie declared debts amounting to £145,700 Scots plus £33,000 in interest before Parliament. Their creditors included the Edinburgh Company of Tailors, merchant-poet John Burell, courtier Roger Aston, Countess of Cassilis, and Bartholomew Kello (husband of calligrapher Esther Inglis). Kello’s loan totaled £4,000 Scots; merchant Jacob Baron invested £14,822 Scots.
In February 1599, the Privy Council ruled that from then on the Treasurer would oversee the English annuity/subsidy designated for royal clothing and Prince Henry’s household. A 1600 financial report on Scotland described Foulis, Joussie, and their associates as “wrecked and undone.” In November 1601 the Privy Council met with Foulis to evaluate royal jewels he had sold in England.
Foulis passed away in Edinburgh in 1628.
Family
Foulis was first married to Jean Francis, who passed away in 1623, and subsequently wed Rachel Porteous. Jean bore him two sons, Thomas and David Foulis of Glendorch, along with three daughters, one of whom became the spouse of James McMath. Following Foulis's death, the mining assets were inherited by a cousin, Anne Foulis, who was married to James Hope of Hopetoun.