He was a son of Murray of Woodend, and uncle of
William Murray, 1st Earl of Dysart. He was early attached to the court of
James VI of Scotland. In 1587 he presented a Latin poem to the King, which describes him as ruler of a northern British kingdom, both
North Star and
Morning Star; :Scote Britannaeae sidus Boreale coronae :Pene sub Arctoo qui regis arva polo ::O Scot, O North Star of the Britannic Crown, you who rule the lands that lie almost under the Arctic sky. Soon after James's accession to the English throne at the
Union of the Crowns in 1603 he was appointed tutor to
Prince Charles, then duke of York. On 26 June 1605 he was granted a pension of two hundred
marks for life, and in July was presented, through the intervention of the
Bishop of Durham, to the mastership of
Christ's Hospital, Sherburn, near
Durham. From that time he received numerous grants, and was in constant communication with
Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury,
Sir Albertus Morton,
Sir Dudley Carleton, and others, many of his letters being preserved.
Andrew Melville, when he sought his liberty in November 1610, placed the management of his case in the hands of Murray, to whom he refers as his special friend. In 1615
George Gladstanes,
Archbishop of St. Andrews, made an unsuccessful attempt to get Murray removed from the tutorship of Prince Charles as for his religious views. On 13 March 1617 Murray was appointed a collector of the reimposed duty on 'northern cloth,' and allowed one-third of the profits. In August of the same year the king promised him the provostship of Eton, but his appointment was opposed on suspicion of his
puritanism, and he received the post of secretary to Prince Charles instead. In October 1621 he was confined to his house for opposing the
Spanish match. In February 1622 he was elected provost of Eton, but fell seriously ill in February 1622-3, and died on 9 April, aged 59. He left behind him five sons and two daughters, one the writer
Anne Halkett. His widow, Jean, and a son received a pension for their lives. Murray was author of some Latin poems, printed in
Delitiae Poetarum Scotorum, ed. 1637. He was eulogised by
John Leech in his
Epigrammata, ed. 1623, and by
Arthur Johnston in his
Poemata, ed. 1642. One of his brothers was at court as a servant of Prince Charles in March 1625. He was involved in a duel with
Humfrey Tufton, after having an argument at a stage play. They went to
St George's Fields to fight. Tufton noted the presence of Gibson, a Scottish armourer, although they had agreed not to have "seconds" present. Tufton objected and left the field. The events offended Gibson's sense of honour, and he fought with Murray. Both were injured. Gibson died and Murray successfully pleaded self-defence. Some accounts say that both men died of their injuries. ==Family==