George Buchanan (; February 1506 – 28 September 1582) was a
Scottish historian and
humanist scholar. According to historian Keith Brown, Buchanan was "the most profound intellectual sixteenth century Scotland produced." His ideology of resistance to royal usurpation gained widespread acceptance during the
Scottish Reformation. Brown says the ease with which
King James VII was deposed in 1689 shows the power of Buchananite ideas.