Basilikon Doron (The Royal Gift)
First of all things, learne to know and loue that God, whom-to ye haue a double obligation; first, for that he made you a man; and next, for that he made you a little GOD to sit on his Throne, and rule ouer other men.
What it is
Written by James VI of Scotland as a private letter of instruction to his eldest son Prince Henry, this treatise on Christian kingship combines practical political counsel with deliberate spiritual formation. Its first book describes a king's primary duty to God as a Christian believer — to pray, read Scripture daily, and live a personally godly life before ruling others. Seven copies were privately printed in Edinburgh in 1599 by Robert Waldegrave before public release in 1603; the text is held in the Royal Collection (RCIN 1145597). After Henry's death in 1612, James gave the text to his second son Charles, making it the primary devotional-formation document for Stuart heirs.
Why it still matters
The first book's guidance on private prayer, daily Scripture reading, and the moral accountability of those in authority over others offers still-practical counsel for Christian leaders and parents seeking to form children in faith-rooted responsibility.
Kept alongside
The Authorized (King James) Version of the Bible
James I personally commissioned this translation at the Hampton Court Conference of 1604, set the translators' rules, and ensured publication in 1611; 47 of the 54 appointed scholars are documented as having participated. Lancelot Andrewes headed the First Westminster Company, responsible for Genesis through 2 Kings. The KJV became the Bible of the entire Stuart and Windsor dynasties in royal chapel worship, public proclamations, and coronation ceremonies, with the Bible presented at Queen Elizabeth II's coronation being the KJV. Her Christmas broadcasts routinely quoted from it, extending royal identification with this translation across more than four centuries.
Preces Privatae (Private Devotions)
Andrewes was James I's most admired court preacher and served as Dean of the Chapel Royal from 1618, reputedly spending five hours each day in prayer. The Preces Privatae were written in Greek, Hebrew, and Latin for his own private use across several decades; the manuscript was described as 'slubbered with his pious hands, and watered with his penitential tears.' On his deathbed in 1626 Andrewes gave the manuscript to William Laud, who succeeded him as Dean and brought it into the Caroline court circle. First published in 1647/1648, the prayers draw on Scripture, patristic sources, and the Eastern liturgical tradition to structure an entire week of morning and evening devotion.
A Summarie of Devotions
Laud succeeded Andrewes as Dean of the Chapel Royal in September 1626 and became Archbishop of Canterbury under Charles I in 1633, shaping court worship toward what he called 'the beauty of holiness.' The Summarie of Devotions was written in his own hand for personal use and preserved in the archives of St John Baptist's College, Oxford; it was published posthumously in 1667. A prayer from this collection, lightly adapted, entered the American Book of Common Prayer in 1928 and was retained in the 1979 BCP, giving Laud's private devotion an unexpected liturgical afterlife. The prayers reflect Laudian high-church theology — ordered confession, intercession for the Church Universal, and care for those in affliction.