Alexander Scott c.1520-c.1582
Alexander Scott was a Scottish court poet or makar. Little is known of his life but he is believed to have lived in or near Edinburgh. Thirty five short poems, contained in the Bannatyne Manuscript (1568), are attributed to him, written between 1545 and 1568. These include A Rondel of Love, warning of the dangers of love, and Justing at the Drum and Debait Betuix William Ananstone and Johine Sym. He also wrote Ane New Yeir Gift to Quene Mary Quwen Scho Came First Hame 1562 (a New Year Gift to Queen Mary When She First Came Home), a laudatory poem to Mary Queen of Scots following her arrival in Scotland from France the previous year.
His poems deal principally with female character and his reputation rests on his love lyrics, from the tender to the coarse and erotic, as expressed in Ane Ballat Maid to the Derisioun and Scorne of Wantoun Women. His first collected edition was published in 1821 and his work gives an interesting depiction of early Reformation Scotland.