Jackie Cosh

The King with the Iron Belt Jackie Cosh

King James IV of Scotland was a king of firsts and a king of lasts. He was the first king to practise amateur dentistry, the last king of Scotland to speak Gaelic. He was the first king to build a Scottish navy to match any European country's and the last king to die on the battlefield. The impact of his reign was monumental, both in what he did for the country and his role in the formation of the United Kingdom. Meet the Renaissance king heavily influenced by the part he played in his father's death. Find out about the positive changes he made to the running of the country and how he strived to make Scotland a world leader in several respects. Follow us, as we separate the fact from the fiction and discover why, when he died, it is said that Scotland never recovered. Was his lover Margaret Drummond poisoned because they had secretly married? Did he actually die at Flodden or, as some believe, fake his own death? Read more about the 500 year old mystery surrounding his skull.