The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-07.
Douglas, Archibald, 5th earl of Douglas
1391?–1439, Scottish nobleman; son of Archibald Douglas, 4th earl of Douglas. He fought in France for the French against the English in 1421 and persuaded his father in 1423 to go to France. Although Douglas was one of the Scottish nobles who accompanied James I home when that king returned (1424) from his long English captivity, James so distrusted the Douglas power and loyalty that the earl was twice imprisoned for short times by royal order. After James’s death in 1437, Douglas was lieutenant general of the kingdom in the minority of James II and the most powerful man in Scotland.
