James Stewart, the Black Knight of Lorne

James Stewart, the Black Knight of Lorne (c.1399–c.1451) was a Scottish nobleman.

The Black Knight of Lorn was born at Innermeath, Scotland. His father, Sir John Stewart (d. 26 Apr 1421), was ambassador to England and was married to Isabel MacDougall (d. 21 Dec 1439), heiress to the House of Ergadia, the senior line descending from Somerled, King of Mann and the Isles. He was a direct male line descendant of Alexander Stewart, 4th High Steward of Scotland, through his second son Sir John Stewart of Bonkill, who was killed at the Battle of Falkirk. His mother was also a descendant of Robert I of Scotland through his second marriage to Elizabeth de Burgh.

James was a younger brother of Robert Stewart, 1st Lord Lorne (1382-1449), whose descendants bore this title. He was an ally of the Black Douglases, Earls of Douglas. After the murder of James I of Scotland in 1437, power was held by Archibald Douglas, 5th Earl of Douglas as regent for the underage James II of Scotland. The Stewarts of Lorne were amongst his most trusted supporters, and their power greatly increased while the Douglas family controlled Scotland and the king was a mere 7 years of age. However the unexpected death of the 5th Earl of Douglas from a fever in 1439 saw power now being uneasily shared between William, 1st Lord Crichton, Chancellor of Scotland and Sir Alexander Livingston, Governor of Stirling Castle.