The United Kingdom（Period 2 Reading）
king james believed in the divine right of kings and the monarch’s duty to reign according to god’s law and the public good.in order to pass on his kingly instruction to his eldest son, prince henry, king james wrote basilicon doron which means, “the kingly gift”.basilicon doron was not meant for general publication, but for the instruction of the young prince in the likely event that his father would not survive to instruct him—king james was sickly and survived a number of assassination attempts.the king bound his printer robert waldegrave to secrecy and ordered an edition of only seven copies.somehow, however, intelligence of the book and its contents got abroad.subsequently, there was so much demand for basilicon doron that forged（穩步前進）, corrupted copies were being distributed.with these pressures, the king then had it published for the general public and it became a bestseller.it was published in english, welsh, latin, french, swedish and german for a period of over 50 years.basilicon doron is a short treatise（論文）, only 153 pages long.it consists of three short volumes, the first of which is “a king’s christian duetie towards god.”james d’israeli said, “james had formed the most elevated conception of the virtues and duties of a monarch.”in basilicon doron, king james’ understanding of christian discipleship, style and prose are at their best.he skillfully intertwines sacred scripture with godly and christian advice.the king offers his son this important advice on knowing god: diligently read his word, & earnestly...pray for the right understanding thereof.search the scriptures saith christ for they will bear testimony of me.the whole scriptures saith paul are profitable to teach, to improve, to correct, and to instruct in righteousness, that the man of god may be perfect unto all good works.“the whole scripture contayneth but two things: a command and a prohibition.obey in both...the worship of god is wholly grounded upon the scripture, quickened by faith.”basilicon doronby king jamesthe king unites scotland and england.king james’ great aspiration to be the first king of both scotland and england was realized in 1603 upon the death of queen elizabeth.when he ascended to the english throne that year he had already been king of scotland for 36 years.he was now known as king james vi of scotland & i of england. the king played a masterly political game and kept his kingdom out of war.for the first time a scottish monarch wielded effective authority over the more far-flung areas of the realm（領域）.he supported literature both through his own writing and his patronage（贊助）.there was peace during his reign—both with his subjects and foreign powers.