Talk:James Hamilton (assassin)

Source
This article has been improved significantly, but (like some other articles) it relies largely on one very dated source (from 1835!). The period is not an obscure one, have we nothing more recent than this? In particular, it the story about the death of Hamilton's wife based on reliable sources?

Also, is the drawing here actually by Cattermole, the one referred to later in the article? If so, I have seen 2 other versions of this. He appears to be about to shoot the regent, not actually in the act. PatGallacher (talk) 20:03, 6 July 2009 (UTC)
 * According to this reference from 1834 (!) there is some doubt that Hamilton was the actual assassin. Should this be added?The Hack 11:07, 9 July 2009 (UTC)

I doubt it. We need to find what any competent compartively recent history of the period (there are surely a few) says about the incident. PatGallacher (talk) 11:14, 9 July 2009 (UTC)

As, according to Fraser, this story about the wife being thrown out in the cold was exploded some time ago, and I see Ritchie also states that is was Moray's son and heir who was killed by the Earl of Huntly, in fact it was his son-in-law, he seems like a very unreliable source. This page needs expert attention. PatGallacher (talk) 17:47, 9 July 2009 (UTC)

The (1835) source, Leitch Ritchie Scott & Scotland is not even a history book, but a historical travelogue written as a vehicle for Cattermole's history picture engravings, and introduces novel circumstancial detail, so I have noted where this fiction intrudes into the 'Preparation' section.Unoquha (talk) 09:04, 16 June 2012 (UTC)

DYK?
..... the first assassination using a firearm.[3][4].... This seems hardly possible given the date. Do we really believe that firearms had been around for several centuries before anyone was assasinated, using one? Amandajm (talk) 14:02, 16 July 2009 (UTC)

I believe this claim is accurate. There was a book published recently about the assassination of William the Silent which claims that he was the first head of state to be assassinated with a handgun, although it has been questioned whether he was a head of state. The assassination of Moray took place a few years before this. Relatively small personal firearms capable of killing someone in a way which involved an element of stealth were a comparatively recent development. Of course cannon had been around for a few centuries, there had probably been a few rulers killed by them in battle before this, one example was Moray's great-great-grandfather, James II of Scotland, killed by the accidental explosion of his own cannon. PatGallacher (talk) 01:50, 18 July 2009 (UTC)


 * I thought that the Turks or Chinese might have managed anassassination or two! Amandajm (talk) 07:20, 23 July 2009 (UTC)

Who was the assassin
After a further web search it seems fairly secure that James Hamilton was the assassin. An Ayrshire tradition is that it was a David Hamilton of Bothwellhaugh.Rosser Gruffydd 23:27, 11 December 2009 (UTC)

How come Hamilton wasn't apprehended
Surely, he wasn't far from his victim and he must have been seen —Preceding unsigned comment added by 95.92.144.45 (talk) 00:24, 23 January 2011 (UTC)

Now there is a clue to how he got away in the article. (1) witnesses saw him get on the fast horse in plain view helped by his brother; (2) he first rode to Neidpath-head, Neidpath Castle is well south of Edinburgh, the opposite way to Hamilton country.Unoquha (talk) 12:43, 16 June 2012 (UTC)

Extreme pro-Scotland, pro-Hamilton bias
The article is heavily biased toward Hamilton's viewpoint. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Dkendr (talk • contribs) 08:24, 23 January 2012‎

I can't see any problems here. The article is about James Hamilton; most readers might share a general presumption that killing people is wrong. Posterity agrees: there is a picture of a Moray memorial window not a "James Hamilton window." Moray is still known as the "Good Regent." The weapon used seems to have been lost, but was treasured as a curiosity of the assassination not to celebrate the deed. The article doesn't seem to have any content regarding Scotland's international relations.Unoquha (talk) 16:11, 24 January 2012 (UTC)

As the writer - and English - I was not aware of any bias creeping in! Rosser Gruffydd 18:15, 5 February 2012 (UTC)

Dkendr, can you elaborate on your argument for POV? I see nothing to warrant it. The article does spend more time on Hamilton's motives but it does not assert they were right, and this balance is perfectly reasonable for what is after all an article about Hamilton. --Saforrest (talk) 11:07, 28 April 2012 (UTC)

omission
This article does not say when or how James Hamilton, the assassin, died.