He was the son of
Adam Bothwell, a
Lord of Session and
bishop of Orkney. His mother was Margaret Murray, daughter of John Murray of
Touchadam. His uncle
Richard Bothwell served as Provost of Edinburgh during the reign of
Mary Queen of Scots. His grandfather
Francis Bothwell had also been a
Senator of the College of Justice since its foundation in 1532 and a
Lord of Session in the
Edinburgh courts. Francis was
Provost of Edinburgh 1523/24. His aunt, Janet Bothwell, was mother of the mathematician,
John Napier. In early life he was styled "John Bothwell of Alhammer". In May 1595 James VI gave him a diamond ring worth £180
Scots. In September 1595 James VI sent him to be his representative at the christening of a child of
Elizabeth Douglas, Countess of Erroll. He was an ally of the
Laird of Buccleuch. His correspondence with
Anthony Bacon in England in 1596 mentions his relation or distant kinsman, "Mr Kello", the husband of the calligrapher
Esther Inglis. Bartilmo Kello was his clerk and messenger in the 1590s, described as his "servitor" in legal records. At the
Union of the Crowns, in 1603, King James sent him to fetch the keys of
Berwick-upon-Tweed. With other Scottish courtiers he was admitted to
Gray's Inn on 22 May 1603. In December 1607 the king elevated the title from a non-hereditary legal title to a hereditary title. He died on 26 November 1609. He is thought to be buried in
Holyrood Abbey adjacent to his home. If so, he may share the grave of his parents at the second column from the main east window. ==Family==