Patrick Hamilton (poet)
Scottish poet (1575-1658)
Patrick Hamilton (c. 1575 – May 1658) was a minister of The Church of Scotland during a turbulent period in Scotland’s history. He seems to have chosen the wrong side in the dispute between King Charles I and the Scottish Covenanters. He was also a poet, writing in a straightforward English (as opposed to Scots) style, expressing his religious and political beliefs, and longing for a period of peace.
In 1596 he was Minister at Lochwinnoch then in 1607 he moved to Paisley. In 1626 he was presented to the Parish of Cambuslang by James, Marquis of Hamilton, a significant player in Scottish politics. Patrick may not have been related to the family, but his connection to the Marquis of Hamilton was to cost him his career and he was to die in obscure poverty.
Hamilton sets out his religious position in a poem called "A Schort Description of the Trew Properties of a Faithful Sheiphard of Christes Flock". It is unapologetically a Protestant Calvinist position.
I doe believe in God alone
Noe Saviour but that I know
No way to Heaven is but one,
Noe ruell of Faith but God’s pure law.
“Patrick Hamilton (poet)” enters the record as scottish poet (1575-1658). Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Patrick, Hamilton and poet can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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Chronology provides the most reliable spine for this subject; interpretation should follow only after identities and dates are secure. The source revision retrieved here is dated Dec 15, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q7146644. VIAF identifies the subject as 19038383. The Library of Congress control number is n2002024980. 2 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1575, 1658, 1596 and 1607.
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This entry incorporates text from “Patrick Hamilton (poet)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.