MAITLAND, Wri.mAm, better known as "secretary Lethington," was the eldest son of sir Richard Maitland of Lethington, and was born about 1525. Like his fattier, lie was educated both at St. Andrews and on the continent, and quickly displayed great aptitude, for a political career. He became a convert to the reformed doctrines about 1555, but could not have been a very violent partisan, since in 1558 he was appointed secretary. of state by Mary of Guise. In the following year, however, he openly joined the lords of the congreeation, and was one of the Scotch commissioners who met the duke of Norfolk atbBerwick, to arrange the conditions on which queen Elizabeth would give them assistance. In 1561, after the arrival of queen Mary frorn France, he was made an extraordinary lord of session. He strongly objected to the ratification of Knox's Book of Discipline, and in 1563 conducted the prosecution raised against Knox for treason: from this time he appears to have split with the reformers. In 1564 lie held a long debate with Knox on the claims of the Reformed church to bc independent of the state. In 1566 he took part in the conspiracy against Rizzi°, after whose assassination lie was proscribed, and obliged to seek shelter for some months in obscurity. Ile was, it is believed, cognizant of Bothweil's scheme for the murder of Darnley; yet, when he saw the hopeless nature of Bothwell's designs, he immediately joined tile confederacy of the lords. While Mary was still a prisoner at Loch Leven, he is said to have written
to her, offering his services, yet he was present at the coronation of king James VI., 1567; and although he secretly aided in the escape of the queen, he fought agaiust her on the field of Langside. In 1568 he accompanied the regent Moray to the conferences held at York regarding the Scottish queen; but even here he tried to further her interests, and is said to have been the first to propose to the duke of Norfolk a union between him and Mary. The Scottish lords now felt that he was a dangerous enemy to the commonwealth, and in 1.569 he was arrested at Stirling, but was liberated shortly aLcr by an artifice of Kirkaldy of Grange. After the murder of the regent Moray, he and Kirkaldy became the soul of the queen's party, in consequence of which he was declared a rebel, deprived of his offices and lands by the regent Morton, and besieged, along with Kirkaldv, in Edinburgh castle. After long resistance, the castle surrendered, and Maitland was imprisoned in Leith, where he died, " some," says Melville, "supposing he took a drink and died, as the auld Romans were wont to do. Buchanan has drawn. his character with a severe pen in his Scottish tract entitled The Chameleon.