Italian influences at the court of James VI: the case of William Fowler

In this essay the author analyses the role of William Fowler, intellectual, translator, poet and spy, at the court of James VI of Scotland. In the early years of his reign, the King called at his court a literary coterie of Scottish and English writers, encouraging not only original and occasional compositions, but also literary translation. The essay shows that, while the King and most of his poetic followers showed a predilection for the translation of contemporary French works, Fowler turned his attention to Italian classic and contemporary works, translating Petrarch's Trionfi, Machiavelli's Prince, but also a number of minor works such as Giordano Bruno's sonnets or the Lamenti of musical tradition. The essay therefore re-locates Fowler's position in the Scottish early modern literary revival, and his role in Scoto-Italian cultural relations