Charles James Stuart was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, the first son of Mary and Henry Stuart. He was raised in Stirling, Scotland, and entered the business of his family at a young age. However, due to circumstances beyond his control, he got swept up in a political plot against some powerful people in Scotland, and Jim was imprisoned for a time. Eventually, he managed to get out of jail, and, with the financial assistance of a wealthy relative down in England who had taken a liking to him, he was able to continue working in Scotland in the family trade for some years.

Then, upon the death of his benefactress, Jim learned that he had been chosen to become the sole heir to her large estates and her position. However, he knew that with great wealth and position came great responsibility. And–and this was a big “and”–it also meant that he would have to move to London to oversee things there. And that was a large ask. Jim loved Scotland, and he knew that he would miss it if he had to spend most of his time in the English capital city. Besides, Jim had managed to fall for a Danish girl named Anne, and the couple were married. Jim even traveled from Leith over to Norway to get Anne and bring her home. The couple’s marriage was not terrible by most accounts, and three children were produced by the pair.

Meanwhile, Jim still had to decide if he would accept the transfer to the work of his deceased relative in London. He said that he would try it; after all, he could always return to Scotland if things didn’t quite work out, right? When he and Anne arrived in London, Jim decided that it was the right move. He told a friend that, in a sense, he’d traded a stone chair for a feather bed, meaning that his life in London was easier because of the wealth he’d inherited and the power that came with the wealth.

But not everything was roses in his new job. Jim soon found that, along with the money, there were some issues. While the woman herself had been wealthy, her businesses had debts, and he had to work hard to address those. And then there were those workers and advisors who had been around and been close to Jim’s dead relative. Some of them questioned whether or not this Scottish “rube” could handle all the affairs he had taken on in the inheritance. Two of the old hands at the job pretty much handled the day-to-day, and that left Jim free to deal with the big-picture stuff. People wondered if Jim could do that, because, while he had experience in the family business, he’d never run an operation this large before.

But Jim was wise for his years. He knew better than to come into a situation and make radical changes from the first. He was careful to learn who did what and how, and, once he found out who was capable and who was not, Jim dismissed the baggage and promoted the ones who were capable. He oversaw some trade agreements, arranged for the sale of some assets that weren’t producing and the acquisition of some that became good producers for him. Soon, the debt was erased. The people who worked for him largely loved his oversight.

Sadly, Jim’s health wasn’t great. He complained sometimes, wistfully, that he would feel better “back home” in Scotland, although by this time, Jim had been in the south for over two decades. He kept his Scottish accent throughout his life, although his children spoke with a London one. Jim had a stroke and died at the young age of 58. And, when he died, people in both Scotland and England mourned him. And you know about Jim Stuart because your house probably has something in it that was commissioned by him.

The King James Bible.