GUTHRIE, JAMES [SSNE 3126]

Surname: GUTHRIE, GUTHRAEUS, CHYTRAEUS, SCOTUS
First name: JAMES, JACOB, JACOBUS, JAKOBUS, MAGNUS
Title/rank: PASTOR
Nationality: SCOT
Region: MONTROSE, ANGUS
Education: UNIVERSITY
Religion: LUTHERAN

Text source

James Guthrie (1602-1661), was born in Montrose in Scotland. He came to Sweden c.1614 with his father. Apparently his brother Walter[SSNE 6446] [or perhaps William Guthrie, SSNE 798] was already settled and trading there. James lived for a while with another Scottish merchant, Johan Finlou (Finlay) who had persuaded James' father to let him teach his son to become a merchant. However, friction with Finlay saw James move to take up studies, first in Hedemora, then in Orebro where he was taught by Jacob Rudbeckius. In 1623, Guthrie left Orebro to attend Vasteras gymnasium where, in 1625, he was ordained. On 12 February the same year he matricualted at Uppsala University as Jacobus Chytraeus Scotus and was later known simply as Jacob Scotus and Magnus Scotus. (The name Chytraeus is perhaps a tribute to the earlier German cleric David Chytraeus). He graduated with a masters degree in 1630 after which he made a visit to Scotland where he remained for two years. In 1632, Guthrie became a lector in logic at Vasteras gymnasium, gained promotion to 'capitularis' and by 1636 was also lector in Greek. References to him can be found in 1638 refering to him as prost (priest?) in Sala and in 1640 as "magister, kyrkoherde i Sala", alluding to his clerical position. On 9 April 1640, Abo Academy's foundation charter was signed, and on the same day Guthrie was considered by the council as a replacement for the Department of Theology (and Greek) in Uppsala as they had sent staff to Abo. Guthrie went on to live until 1661. Among his other talents, Guthrie composed poetry. One of these was added to the 1637 printed collection of funerary oration dedicated to Archbishop Petrus Kenicius and given by Johannes Rudbeckius. He was perhaps the father, or grandfather of Andrew [SSNE 754]?

Andersson et al, Uppsala Universitets Matrikel, (Uppsala, 1900-1911); Kullberg, N. A. et. al., eds., Svenska Riksrådets Protokoll, 1621-1658 (vols. 1-18, Stockholm, 1878-1959), VII, p.148 [22 January 1638] and VIII, p.62 [9 April 1640]; T. Fischer, The Scots in Sweden (Edinburgh, 1907), Supplement, pp.192-3; T. Kleberg, 'Engelsksprakig diktning i Stormaktstidens Sverige' in 'Lychnos' (Annual of the Swedish History of Science Society), (Uppsala and Stockholm, 1942), p.140; Steve Murdoch, Network North: Scottish Kin, Commercial and Covert Associations in Northern Europe, 1603-1746 (Brill, Leiden, 2006), pp.117-118.

Service record

SCOTLAND, SWEDEN, VASTERAS GYMNASIUM: Arrived 1623-01-01; Departed 1625-01-30; Capacity STUDENT, purpose ACADEMIC
SCOTLAND, SWEDEN, UPPSALA: Arrived 1625-02-12, as PASTOR; Departed 1630-12-31, as PASTOR; Capacity STUDENT, purpose ACADEMIC
SWEDEN, SCOTLAND: Arrived 1630-01-01; Departed 1632-12-31; Capacity UNKNOWN, purpose MISC.
SWEDEN, SALA, UPPSALA: Arrived 1632-01-01; Departed 1648-12-31; Capacity CLERIC, THEOLOGIAN, ACADEMIC, purpose ECCLESIASTICAL, THEOLOGICAL, ACADEMIC
SWEDEN, TUNA: Arrived 1649-01-01, as PASTOR; Departed 1661-12-31, as PASTOR; Capacity PASTOR, purpose ECCLESIASTICAL