Mary, Queen of Scots

Lore & Background

The only surviving legitimate child of King James V of Scotland, Mary was six days old when her father died, and she inherited the throne. During her childhood, Scotland was governed by regents, first by James Hamilton, Earl of Arran, and then by her mother, Mary of Guise. In 1548, she was betrothed to Francis, the Dauphin of France, and was sent to be brought up in France, where she would be safe from invading English forces during the Rough Wooing. Mary married Francis in 1558, becoming queen consort of France from his accession in 1559 until his death in December 1560. Widowed, Mary returned to Scotland in August 1561. The tense religious and political climate following the Scottish Reformation that Mary encountered on her return to Scotland was further agitated by prominent Scots such as John Knox. The early years of her personal rule were marked by pragmatism, tolerance, and moderation. She issued a proclamation accepting the religious settlement in Scotland as she had found it upon her return, retained advisers such as James Stewart, Earl of Moray, and William Maitland of Lethington, and governed as the Catholic monarch of a Protestant kingdom. In 1565, Mary married her half-cousin Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley; they had a son, James. Their marriage soured after Darnley orchestrated the murder of Mary's Italian secretary and close friend David Rizzio. In February 1567, Darnley's residence was destroyed by an explosion, and he was found murdered in the nearby garden. James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, was generally believed to have orchestrated Darnley's death, but he was acquitted of the charge in April 1567 and in the following month, he married Mary. Following an uprising against the couple, Mary was imprisoned in Lochleven Castle. In July 1567, she was forced to abdicate in favour of her one-year-old son James VI. After an unsuccessful attempt to regain the throne, she fled southward seeking the protection of her first cousin once removed, Elizabeth I of England. As a great-granddaughter of Henry VII of England, Mary had once claimed Elizabeth's throne as her own and was considered the legitimate sovereign of England by many English Catholics, including participants in a rebellion known as the Rising of the North. Perceiving Mary as a threat, Elizabeth had her confined in various castles and manor houses in the interior of England. After eighteen and

Reader's Guide

Mary was born on 8 December 1542 at Linlithgow Palace, Scotland, to King James V and his French second wife, Mary of Guise. She was the only legitimate child of James to survive him. Through her paternal grandmother, Margaret Tudor, she was the great‑granddaughter of King Henry VII of England. On 14 December, six days after her birth, she succeeded to the Scottish throne following the death of her father. A popular tale, first recorded by John Knox, claims that James, upon learning on his deathbed that his wife had borne a daughter, lamented, 'It cam wi' a lass and it will gang wi' a lass!' The prophecy was fulfilled through her great-great-granddaughter, Anne, Queen of Great Britain. Mary was christened shortly after birth at the nearby Church of St Michael. As Mary was an infant when she inherited the throne, Scotland was governed by regents until she reached maturity. Two rival claims to the regency emerged immediately: one from the Catholic Cardinal Beaton and the other from the Protestant Earl of Arran. Arran assumed the regency until 1554, when Mary's mother succeeded in removing him and took up the position herself. Henry VIII of England proposed a marriage between Mary and his son Edward. On 1 July 1543, the Treaty of Greenwich was signed, promising that at age ten Mary would marry Edward and move to England. The treaty was rejected by the Parliament of Scotland in December. The rejection prompted Henry's 'Rough Wooing'. In May 1546, Beaton was murdered. On 10 September 1547, the Scots suffered a heavy defeat at the Battle of Pinkie. Mary's guardians sent her to Inchmahome Priory for no more than three weeks and turned to the French for help. King Henry II of France proposed to unite France and Scotland by marrying Mary to his son, the Dauphin Francis. In February 1548, Mary was moved to Dumbarton Castle. On 7 July 1548, a Scottish Parliament agreed to the French marriage treaty. With her marriage agreement in place, five-year-old Mary was sent to France. The French fleet sailed with Mary from Dumbarton on 7 August 1548 and arrived a week or more later at Roscoff or Saint-Pol-de-Léon in Brittany. Mary was accompanied by her own court including two illegitimate half-brothers and the 'four Marys'. At the French court, she was a favourite with many people, except Henry II's wife Catherine de' Medici.

Did You Know?

• Mary was six days old when she inherited the Scottish throne.
• She was betrothed to the Dauphin of France at age five and sent to France for safety.
• Mary was the Catholic monarch of a Protestant kingdom during her personal rule.
• After 18.5 years in captivity, she was executed for plotting to assassinate Elizabeth I.

Notable Quotes (Wikiquote)

"Mary, Queen of Scots (December 8 1542 – February 8 1587) was a Roman Catholic queen of Scotland from 1542 until 1567 and a cousin of Elizabeth I." — Mary, Queen of Scots "Look to your consciences and remember that the theatre of the world is wider than the realm of England." — Mary, Queen of Scots "Guy, John (2005). Queen of Scots: The True Life of Mary Stuart. Mariner Books. ISBN 0618619178." — Mary, Queen of Scots "There is but one true kirk and that is the kirk of rome." — Mary, Queen of Scots