ABSTRACT
James VI of Scotland and Henry IV of France were not just contemporaries, for all their differences in personality, the rex pacificus on the one side and the military hero on the other, they had something important in common. As a newcomer to the French crown in 1589, Henry of Navarre had to find ways to create a secure foundation for his own rule and that of his family. Similarly, James was also confronted with the problem of how to make rule by a Scottish dynasty acceptable to the political nation in England. In contrast to the first Bourbon King of France, James VI had governed as a hereditary ruler, and had been crowned a short time after his birth. In many ways, Henry IV's style of kingship was unique. He was a true Roi Connétable who had led his noble followers into battle in many campaigns.
