[Music]
it is the 8th of february 1587
at fathering gay castle in
northamptonshire
england a noble queen stripped of her
ancestral birthright
faces certain death as she lays her head
upon a chopping block
with the executioner at hand just before
the fatal blow is struck
defiantly she utters immanus tuos domine
commendo spiritum mayhem
into thy hands o lord i commend my
spirit
her name mary queen of scots
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[Music]
the woman known to history as mary
stewart
queen of scots or mary the first of
scotland
was born on the 8th of december 1542
in the lithgow palace weslothian in the
former kingdom of scotland
mary's mother was mary of geese or in
her native french
marie de lorraine who was born on the
20th of november
1515 in france and was the daughter of
claude of lorraine
the duke of geese she served as regent
of scotland from 1554
until her death in 1560 for the then 12
year old mary
mary's father james stewart of rothsay
or james v of scotland was a scottish
king of the house of stuart
and was descended from a long line of
the high stewards of scotland
the traditional royal officers of the
scottish monarchy who themselves had
merged with the house of bruce
sometime in the late 14th century
raised in scotland for only a brief
period of her life mary became queen of
scots at only six days old
on the 14th of december 1542
following the death of her father at
which time her mother became a de facto
regent
supported by cardinal beaton the then
archbishop of saint andrews
who also assumed the role of chancellor
of scotland during her infancy
with james hamilton the second earl of
aaron acting as the true regent
being the governor and protector of
scotland from her birth
until 1554. at the beginning of his
regency
the earl of aaron betrothed mary to
marry edward vi
of england henry viii's only son in a
peace agreement
known as the treaty of greenwich in 1543
which was an attempt to create a
symbolic union joining the opposing
countries
following a number of unsuccessful
attempts made in the middle ages
mary was crowned queen of scots on the
9th of september
1543 at the chapel royal in stirling
castle
at only nine months of age on the 30th
year anniversary of the battle of
flodden the scottish parliament who were
unhappy with this arrangement
took the opportunity to repudiate the
greenwich agreement
this was seen as an act of war against
their english counterparts
ushering in a period of war known as the
rough wooing
a military campaign designed to impose
the marriage of mary to edward
this had significant implications
largely for scotland
with large-scale conflicts taking place
primarily between the borders of the two
kingdoms
king henry ii of france proposed the
marriage of his three-year-old son
the dolphin francis of valois angulem to
five-year-old mary
with the aim of uniting france and
scotland the earl of aaron agreed to the
arrangement
with the reward of a french dukedom for
himself as well as the promise of french
military aid
the arrangement was ratified at the
scottish parliament held near haddington
on the 7th of july 1548.
with war on the horizon and her marriage
plan set
mary's mother smuggled her to france at
just five years old
she set sail from dumbarton on the 7th
of august
1548 and arrived in brittany a week
later
and she spent the next 13 years growing
up living with her grandmother
antoinette deborah duchess of ghees the
matriarch of the most powerful noble
family in france
where she was brought up in the catholic
tradition and learned to speak french as
her primary language
also changing her name from mary stuart
to marie stewart
which was much more suitable for the
french court
mary was a beautiful young girl with a
long graceful neck
bright auburn hair and hazel eyes with
heavy eyelids and arched brows
pale smooth skin and a high forehead and
was considered very attractive as a
young woman
as well as being beautiful mary was also
very intelligent
she was taught french italian latin
greek
and spanish and was an accomplished
young woman learning the loot as well as
horsemanship
falconry poetry prose and needle work
notably tall for the time at five feet
11 inches
as well as eloquent she stood in
contrast to dolphin francis
who was unusually short and stuttered
but the two got on very well from the
moment they met
and young mary became a well-loved
figure for the french people
becoming very popular indeed except with
her future mother-in-law
catherine de medici on the 4th of april
1558 mary signed over her rise to
scotland and her claim to england to the
french crown
should she die without heirs and 20 days
later she sealed her commitment to
francis of valois angulem
at the famous notre dame cathedral in
paris at just 15
becoming queen consort of france upon
his accession to the french throne in
1559
while francis would become king consul
to scotland
upon their marriage taking advantage of
mary's naivety
a number of individuals from the french
aristocracy conspired to join france and
scotland into a single kingdom
albeit making scotland a subservient
addition to the french throne
although their hopes failed to
materialize as she moved home to
scotland
upon the death of her husband in 1560
ending any hope of a union between the
two kingdoms
and resuming her place as the queen of
scots at the age of 18 years old while
also informally terminating their pact
of mutual assistance mary was said to
have become a charismatic and
starry-eyed young lady
he was also known to be rather reckless
but despite this
she still remained one of the most
revered queens in europe at the time
and to this day remains one of the most
popular and loved monarchs in scottish
history
her real-life story of treachery and
murder plots inextricably linked
with her grace and her love for her son
as well as for her people
throughout mary's childhood and even
before her time europe had been engulfed
in the italian wars
in which mary's french family played a
prominent role the wars only came to an
end in 1559 after ravaging europe for
approximately 65 years
and were essentially a fight for the
european balance of power between the
french and the king of spain
charles v the holy roman emperor who
spent the majority of his life defending
the holy roman empire from protestant
reformation
the french fought for domination over
the habsburg family
and over the continent of europe which
if successful would have had
wide scale repercussions as those who
controlled italy under the pope
would wield considerable influence over
both western and southern europe
mary's reign covered a chaotic period in
european history
her kingdom had gone through a series of
wars impacting on every aspect of the
continent
with many prominent figures dying as a
result coming to grips with the
aftermath of the italian wars and the
protestant reformation
would create a very turbulent situation
one that has had repercussions in great
britain
ever since king henry viii transformed
his beloved england
into a protestant nation despite the
rapid changes in the religious landscape
on the continent
western and southern europe remained
largely catholic
if france had won the italian wars its
supremacy would have posed a significant
threat to the protestant countries in
the converted regions of
northern europe this was a situation
that england was desperate to avoid
especially because scotland's support
for france and the conflict
would have spelt disaster for the tudors
however it was a war that the french
ultimately lost despite their best
efforts
resulting in a win for the spanish
empire
earlier in the conflict mary's
grandfather king james iv of scotland
had invaded england in 1513 to honor his
country's relationship with france
the invasion brought an end to the
so-called treaty of perpetual peace
signed just 11 years earlier by james iv
and henry viii
however the invasion proved a disaster
for the scots
they suffered a major defeat at the
battle of flodden field
on the 9th of september king james iv
himself was amongst the scottish dead
leaving the throne to his one-year-old
son young james v
who did not assume kingly duties until
he turned 16
in 1528. he would also
go on to be defeated by an english force
failing to avenge his father
at the battle of solway moss in 1542
james v died shortly after the battle at
the age of 30
said to have been crushed by the defeat
he was succeeded by his baby daughter
mary at the age of just six days it was
an appropriate start to a life
that would come to be dominated by drama
turbulence
triumph and disaster
with the new queen still a babe in arms
scotland was overseen by a regent
it was during this time in 1543 that the
catholic revival began in the country
as a counter-movement to the protestant
reformation notable figures in the
revival included george gordon
the fourth earl of huntley and a
grandson of james iv
matthew stewart the fourth earl of
lennox and patrick hepburn the third
earl of bothwell who was the father of
the man who become mary's third husband
james hepburn the scottish parliament's
decision to annul the treaty of
greenwich in 1543
led to the period known as the rough
willing which saw the english ravage
much of the southern scottish lowlands
from 1543
until 1551. the english forces were
under the command of edward seymour
the earl of hartford by may of 1543
they had attacked edinburgh and burned
down most of the city
including hollyrood palace and abbey
this period saw a flurry of battles
between the two kingdoms
with one of the most notable the battle
of ankara moore
in february 1545 resulting in a victory
for scotland over the army of the mighty
henry viii
following this scottish triumph cardinal
beaton had the well-known protestant
reformer
george wishart burned at the stake for
heresy in 1546
although this led to beaton's own
assassination in may of the same year
at the hands of conspirators led by
norman leslie a scottish nobleman and
soldier the killers hanged the mutilated
corpse of the cardinal from a window
at saint andrews castle for all to see
the death of beaton a fierce fighter for
the catholic cause
was perceived to be in the interest of
henry viii struggled to promote
protestantism
throughout britain however the english
king did not have long to take advantage
of beaton's death
just eight months later on the 28th of
january 1547
henry viii also died obese covered in
painful sores and possibly suffering
from scurvy
he left the throne to his nine-year-old
son edward vi
as the boy was too young to rule lord
hartford now the first duke of somerset
governed in his place irrespective
of the king's death the rough ruin
continued somerset engaged scotland at
the battle of pinky clue
on the 10th of december 1547 it was the
last great battle of the anglo-scottish
conflict
and is also considered the first battle
of the early modern era
to be fought in the british isles in the
battle a renaissance english army
commanded by hartford confronted a
medieval scottish army
led by the earl of aaron it ended in a
resounding english victory it had been
estimated that up to 10
000 scots lost their lives while many
more were taken prisoner
in the aftermath of the battle mary was
ushered to inch my home priory
near sterling to be kept safe
the english forces soon returned in 1548
attacking dunbar castle in musselburgh
near edinburgh
before focusing their attention on dal
keith and haddington
in present-day east lothian in the
meantime the five-year-old mary was
transferred to dunbarton castle
as french troops returned to retake
haddington with their scottish
counterparts
meanwhile in france king henry ii began
his pursuit of mary as a marriage
prospect for his young son francis
this resulted in the treaty of
haddington signed on the 7th of july
1548 which led to the young mary leaving
scotland for her new home
on the continent mary boarded a french
ship upon the clyde estuary
at dumbarton castle on the 7th of august
1548
escorted by john erskine the fifth lord
erskine
and alexander livingstone the fifth lord
livingstone
she arrived on the french coast at
roskoff following six days at sea
seven months later in march 1550 mary of
geese visited her daughter
in her native france seeking support to
help her replace the earl of aaron as
regent
however her plans were thwarted as
england and france
signed the treaty of bologn leading to
peace between the two countries
this was followed shortly afterwards by
a similar pact between scotland and
england in june 1551.
the treaties brought the rough wooing to
an end with victory for the
franco-scottish forces
and not long after it was signed tragedy
again struck in england
as the teenage edward vi fell ill and
died on the 6th of july
1553 he was succeeded by his half-sister
mary the daughter of henry viii and
catherine of aragon
a year later north of the border the
earl of aaron stepped down as regent
after being bribed with the dukedom of
chatelairo and a handsome pension
mary of geese took his place ruling
scotland in the place of her young
daughter
however in 1557 the protestant cause
took a great step forward in scotland
as in that year a number of prominent
scottish nobles
signed the covenant a formal
proclamation detailing their intentions
to uphold protestant teachings in the
country
these men included alexander cunningham
the fifth earl of glencairn
archibald campbell the fifth earl of
argyll james douglas the fourth earl of
morton
and john erskine have done all of whom
had supported both mary and her mother
during previous conflicts
and had helped her escape to france but
now they were taking a stand in
opposition to mary's marriage links with
the dophan of france
which was in the process of being
negotiated by mary's half-sibling
lord james stewart in 1558
mary was formally betrothed to francis
at the great hall of the louvre palace
in paris
in an agreement known to history as the
treaty of edinburgh they were married on
the 24th of april
1558 when mary was 15 and france is 14.
the marriage contract stated in a hidden
clause that should mary die without a
child
both scotland and her claim to the
english throne would pass to the french
crown
which was a dire prospect for england
and scotland alike
however within seven months of the
wedding the question of mary's claim to
the english throne would again become a
live
issue with the death of mary the first
of england
mary the first had briefly restored
catholicism to england
earning herself the nickname bloody mary
in the process
for her zealous persecution of
protestantism however
her marriage to philip ii of spain had
produced no children
therefore as a granddaughter of henry
vii the first tudor king
mary queen of scots was regarded by some
as the rifle heir to the english throne
the catholic church backed mary's claim
because in its eyes
the other claimant henry the eighth
daughter elizabeth was the illegitimate
child of an illegal marriage
this was because henry viii had
controversially divorced his first wife
catherine of aragon to marry elizabeth's
mother and berlin
breaking away from the catholic church
in the process
the catholic argument in favor of mary
was one that the church of england
of course rejected in favor of elizabeth
they did so with the support of the
majority of the english aristocracy
who under the guidance of the third
succession act of 1543
designated the protestant elizabeth as
the successor to her half-sister and
because elizabeth the first
or the virgin queen as she came to be
known had produced no
heir any children born to lord darnley
who was second in the line of succession
or mary who was first would have a very
strong claim to the throne
shortly after mary the first death the
explosive italian wars
came to a final halt with england france
and spain
each committing to the treaty of cattle
cambrasis in
april 1559 the piece was cemented
through the marriage of mary queen of
scots sister-in-law
the princess elizabeth de valois to
philip ii of spain
who was the son of charles v as well as
the widower of mary the first of england
the treaty brought a period of much
welcome stability to europe
but indefinite peace was never an option
and the fight for italy would resume
in the following century in september
1559 king henry ii of france
died taking part in a jousting
tournament allowing francis and mary to
step
up to become king and queen consort
immediately after their coronation
french troops were sent to scotland to
aid mary of geese in her conflict with
the duke of chateau laurel who had been
supporting the protestant nobles in
their struggle against catholicism
elizabeth the first however soon threw
her weight behind the scottish
protestant nobility stand
against catholic influence in the region
signing the treaty of beric
in february 1560 and starting the siege
of leith
in march in response to these attacks
mary of geese fled to edinburgh
at the beginning of april the year 1559
had also seen the return to scotland of
john knox
who had been in geneva studying the
genevan bible
also known as the calvinist doctrine
under john calvin
back in his native land knox spearheaded
the reformation crises of 1560
and was successful in persuading the
scottish parliament to formally sever
ties with rome
and under knox's influence scotland
became a protestant nation
following the calvinist tradition
shortly after her move to edinburgh
mary of geese died on the 11th of june
1560
forcing the franco scottish alliance to
agree to the treaty of edinburgh
by the terms of the treaty queen
elizabeth the first was formally
recognized as a legitimate queen of
england
and the french withdrew their troops
from scotland and relinquish their claim
to the lucrative crown
at this moment of chewed triumph it
would have been hard to predict that
in a mere 43 years their dynasty would
be over
and the stewards would rule both north
and south of the border
however long before that another dark
period in mary's life
was about to shatter her entire
existence
in november 1560 mary's husband the king
of france
became seriously ill with some reports
suggesting he had been poisoned and by
the 5th of december
he was dead mary's mother-in-law
catherine of medici
secured the regency on behalf of her son
charles ix
no longer queen of france mary still
aged only 18
was forced to return to her ancestral
home almost 700 miles away
leaving behind a country very much
intertwined in her identity
she was escorted by her brother the lord
james stewart
who agreed terms with the french she
made her way to scotland via calais and
into leith harbour
near to edinburgh mary returned to a
largely
unstable scotland the country had
already gone through the theological
restructuring of the reformation crises
and so resisting increasing pressure
from france and the catholic church
to reject protestant influence in her
courts mary allowed individuals from
opposing fates
into her government this ensured the
survival of protestantism in scotland
but it came at a personal cost to mary
she became the focus of much criticism
especially from religious leaders from
the conflicting factions
some saw mary's decision as being
motivated by her desire to take the
english throne
giving birth to a conspiracy that would
come to play a major role in mary's life
as well as her death in fact
mary never disguised her desire to sit
on the english throne
she even made a direct appeal to
elizabeth herself asking the english
queen to select her as
heir presumptive under the condition
that she take an english nobleman as her
husband
however any chance of being nominated as
the successor to the throne
soon faltered as the man she was
supposed to marry turned down the
request
rejected she returned to her role as
queen north of the border
her reign was to prove brief and
turbulent generating controversies that
are still debated
to this day from august to november
1562 mary embarked on a tour of scotland
stretching from lindithgow to sterling
and including
inverness and aberdeen meanwhile during
this journey
her brother lord james now the earl of
moray met the leaders of the huntley
rebellion
the gordons and accepted hostages from
them following which
the son of the earl of huntley sir john
gordon was summarily executed
for his part in the opposition to the
queen of scots and mary would soon
embark on further travels to assert her
authority in scotland
visiting even more of the country in a
series of tours between july 1563
and february 1565.
following her return to scotland the
young widow married for a second time
her new husband was henry stewart better
known as lord darnley whom she had met
in february
1565 darley was the grandson of margaret
tudor and her second husband
archibald douglas the sixth earl of
angus this meant that mary and darnley
were cousins
they were also both cousins of elizabeth
the first it was also margaret trudeau's
granddaughter
darnley however did not bring any honor
to his illustrious family
being vain arrogant and a notorious
drinker with a violent temper
proving to be a liability to his new
wife and the country she ruled
prior to mary's marriage to darnley a
number of prominent scottish lords
declared their displeasure with the
relationship
but mary perhaps blinded by love was
undeterred
and despite the opposition of lords
moray morton
glenn ken and chatealeru she married
darnley on the 29th of july
1565 and her new husband now the duke of
albany
assumed the role of king consort of
scotland
by august 1565 mary's own half-brother
the earl of moray
had turned against her in protest at her
marriage to darnley
as well as alleged plans to restore
roman catholicism in scotland
moire's rebellion set in motion to chase
about raid which saw his forces and
mary's pursuing each other around the
kingdom
without ever fighting a significant
battle but ultimately
moire failed to draw up significant
support and retreated into england
in the face of mary's superior army
further drama followed shortly
afterwards in march 1566
as david rizzio mary's italian private
secretary was shockingly murdered
rizio was a close friend of mary's
allegedly her lover
and this appears to have stirred the
jealousy of her violent husband lord
darnley as on the 9th of march
1566 while mary died with rizio a group
of men
led by patrick ruthven the earl of
ruthven accompanied by the earl of
morton
burst into the room mary was held at
gunpoint while the italians suffered 57
dagger wounds
and died soon afterwards
mary and darley set off for dunbar
castle with the help of the earl of
bothwell
and arthur erskine an officer of the
scottish monarchy
upon arriving at the castle she offered
to pardon those responsible for the
chase about raid
allowing both maury and glenn ken back
into her trusted circle of councillors
but she stops short of offering terms of
peace to those involved in rizio's
killing
with morton and ruth fenn both escaping
to england
rizzo was killed because of how close he
was to mary the queen was six months
pregnant at the time of the murder
and some speculated that rizzio was the
real father of the child she was
carrying
was it possible that the shock of murder
had also been intended to induce a
miscarriage
well if that was the plan it didn't work
as on the 19th of june
1566 at edinburgh castle mary gave birth
to her son james
she always maintained that darnley was
the boy's father further strengthening
the infant's claim to the english throne
which he would one day inherit after the
birth
mary remained in edinburgh castle
nursing her infant child
she left in november to travel to craig
miller castle
where some of her advisors proposed the
idea of a plot to assassinate darnley
but mary rejected the notion however it
would not be long before she was facing
accusations of involvement
in her husband's untimely death
on the 17th of december 1566
james was baptized at sterling chapel in
a catholic ceremony with both the king
of france and the duke of savoy
as well as elizabeth the first all named
as his godparents
darnley missed the ceremony however a
month later
mary traveled to see him in glasgow
having already pardoned the risio
plotters
and convinced him to return to her court
he arrived in edinburgh in february
taking up residence at kirker field
currently the site of edinburgh
university
before she agreed to allow him to return
to hollywood shortly after
on the 9th of february 1567 mary
attended the wedding of a french servant
of her court at hollyrood
she left to return to darnley after
promising she would rejoin the wedding
guest later in the evening
and so at 10 p.m she left her husband's
side
to return to the wedding on a cold
edible night but around 2am
there was an explosion at darnley's
residence and he was later found dead
outside his home in an orchard
mary the apparently grieving widow would
soon be accused of his murder
alongside her husband-to-be the earl of
bothwell
in remembrance of her late husband mary
visited seton castle
near longnidry on the firth of fourth
and whilst there
darnley's father matthew stewart the
earl of lennox
accused bothwell of murder which led him
to be put on trial in edinburgh perhaps
out of fear
lennox himself did not attend and in the
absence of witnesses
bothwell was found innocent the
acquitted lord sought the support of
other scottish nobles for his proposed
marriage to the queen
producing the 29 pledges that made up
the ainsley tavern bond
the protestant reformer john knox a
fierce opponent of mary
accused her of her husband's murder by
strangulation
the claim of strangulation was never
confirmed nor ever recorded as a cause
of death
and the accusations against mary would
follow her for the rest of her life
it is unlikely that the true
circumstances will ever be known
but in the aftermath of the murder mary
was imprisoned at the palace of
hollyrood house
until she was rescued by her future
husband the earl of bothwell
together they soon mustered up an army
with the help of those scottish nobles
who supported her cause
mary visited her infant son at sterling
in late april but sadly
this would be the last time she ever set
eyes on james soon afterwards
she was met by bothwell who allegedly
adopted her
and took her to dumbar castle he then
took her possibly against her will
to edinburgh where on the 6th of may he
divorced his wife lady gene gordon on
the 15th of may
bothwell and mary were married but the
honeymoon period was to be brief
they left edinburgh for bothwick castle
but hearing word of an army moving
against them by opposing scottish lords
they moved on during the night to seek
safety at dunbar
with the support of lords huntley and
thomas crawford of jordan hill
mary and her husband confronted the
protestant lords at the battle of
carberry hill
near musselbra in present-day east
lothian on the 15th of june
little fighting took place before mary
surrendered and she was taken as a
prisoner to lord provost's house in
edinburgh
before being taken to lochleven castle
in perth and kinross
just north of edinburgh there she was
denounced as a murderer and an
adulteress
and spent close to a year imprisoned at
the castle
on the 24th of july 1567
mary was forced to abdicate adding the
throne to her young son james
the new james vi aged only one was taken
from his mother to be raised by
protestant nobles
to ensure he grew up following the new
faith and his uncle
the earl of moray was appointed as
regent charged with ruling over scotland
until the boy king came of age
however this did not stop mary from
trying to regain power
dressing herself as a serving mate she
attempted to escape from imprisonment in
loch levan castle
the failure of her first attempt did not
deter the ever determined
mary and during the mayday festivities
in 1568
she again disguised herself as a maid
and this time escaped successfully with
the intention of fighting to reclaim her
throne
following her dramatic escape mary
allied with the catholic scottish nobles
and quickly raised an army of 6 000 men
but on the 13th of may
1568 she was defeated at the battle of
langside
a village just south of glasgow after
the battle mary fled to dunder in an
abbey
near the solway firth and from that she
rejected the advice of her nobles
and crossed the water into england
throwing herself in the mercy of her
cousin
queen elizabeth escaping to england
however would bring only temporary
respite for the troubled former
queen within a week of entering cumbria
mary was imprisoned in the wardens tower
in carlisle castle
under the supervision of sir francis
nollies initially
imprisonment in england was not all bad
as a noblewoman
mary was accommodated in some luxury and
attended upon
by up to 50 servants a secretary and a
personal doctor
however in mid-july mary was moved to
bolton castle
where she was accused of having plotted
the murder of her former husband
lord darnley the evidence against her
was the mysterious casket letters
allegedly sent by mary to her new
husband bothwell
which seemingly proved her involvement
in the assassination
mary maintained that the letters were
forgeries but because of the accusations
queen elizabeth refused to meet with
mary until the issue was resolved
and she was found innocent by january
1569 the conference of westminster
inquiry concluded that the casket
letters were insufficient evidence to
prove mary's involvement with the murder
but despite that judgment mary's
circumstances became worse
unable to prove that the scottish lords
campaigned against her unjustly
she remained in custody and in early
february she was moved again
this time to tuck break castle and
staffordshire where she was put in the
care of the earl of shrewsbury
in tubbury she was not accommodated in
the luxury to which she had become
accustomed as the castle was run down
and in the damp and squallied conditions
mary developed arthritis
in june 1569 mary wrote to pope pius v
asking for permission to divorce
bothwell her intention was to marry the
catholic duke of norfolk
thomas howard however the plans were
discovered by queen elizabeth who
in july obstructed mary's attempts to
divorce and remarry
a second blow came in the same month as
the earl of moray oversaw the rejection
of mary's bid to be restored to the
scottish throne mary had continued to
argue that she was the legal queen
but in a vote on the issue at the perth
convention her claims were opposed by an
overwhelming majority
who firmly rejected the idea of mary
ever becoming queen of scotland again
also in 1569 england witnessed yet
another rebellion
this time by elizabeth's opponents
charles neville
the sixth earl of westmoreland and
thomas percy the seventh earl of
northumberland
the two led the rising of the north in
an attempt to oust the new queen from
her position
and the conflict lasted through to
january 1570
even receiving support from pius v who
excommunicated elizabeth but his
response was too late
and the rebellion was crushed many of
the leaders of the rising fled to
scotland
while the earl of westmoreland moved to
the court of king philip ii of spain
charles v successor on the iberian
peninsula the earl of northumberland was
ultimately executed in 1572
for his part in the uprising but mary
always claimed that she had never
approved of the action against her
cousin
on the 23rd of january 1570 the earl of
moray was shot dead in lynn lithgow
by one james hamilton of bothwell hall
and wood housley the assassination had
the dubious distinction
of being the first ever committed by a
firearm in recorded history
so estranged was married from her
brother at this time that she even
rewarded the murderer and hamilton
escaped into self-imposed exile in
france
to serve under the geese family however
his uncle
dr john hamilton the archbishop of saint
andrews
was subsequently hanged for his part in
the conspiracy
by may 1570 mary was the subject of
another escape plan
this one was devised by sir thomas
gerard a local catholic squire
working with other supporters of mary
but his ill-conceived plan
unsupported by mary herself soon failed
mary was then involved in a murder plot
once again this time
the plot was led by one robert rodolfi a
florentine nobleman
rodolfi also planned to arrange the
marriage of the duke of norfolk to mary
and realising that she was unlikely to
be allowed her freedom or her power back
mary agreed but the plan was uncovered
before it could take place
and rodolfi fled to spain whilst mary
was imprisoned
indefinitely at sheffield castle she was
to spend nearly 14 years locked up there
almost a third of her lifetime and in
1572
her co-conspirators including the duke
of norfolk
were executed for their roles in the
plot
following the rodolfi plot scotland's
former monarch was confined in yet
another cold and damp castle
this time she was treated with greater
contempt than she'd ever faced before
her freedoms were further restricted and
the poor conditions in which she was
kept
caused her joint pain to become worse
however although mary was restricted
mainly to the castle and the nearby
sheffield manor house
she did on occasion visit other towns in
the vicinity
although only ever under the watchful
eye of her guards
while in sheffield mary was able to read
books and write
composing over 2 000 letters during this
time
she was also tasked with embroidery work
working beside the countess of
shrewsbury
otherwise known as better hardwick but
much of her time was spent with her
animals as she was allowed to keep birds
and dogs
even keeping an avery with a barbary
foul partridges
and doves no doubt she invested a lot of
attention in the animals she loved
knowing that any day she could find
herself in an even worse situation
or even facing execution
despite being a prisoner of the earl of
shrewsbury mary was the most senior
member of the royal family after queen
elizabeth
this meant that if her cousin died mary
would have had a strong claim to be
recognized
as the new queen many plotters seeking
her favor saw to plan her escape
and her embroidery partner bess of
hardwick also became involved in
scheming concerning the succession
promoting the claims of her
granddaughter lady arabella stewart
as a prospective queen hardwick's
scheming was much to mary's displeasure
and would ultimately prove to be of no
avail meanwhile
hardwick's husband was rumored to be
having an affair with mary
mary's husband bothwell ended up
spending his final days in a danish
prison
at draxholm castle near copenhagen where
he died in april
1578. the year before his death mary had
been involved in another marriage
proposal but because her marriage to
bothwere was still valid
she was unable to secure her freedom her
intended husband
had been king philip of spain's
illegitimate sibling don john
of austria mary made it clear at the
time that she wished her son
james to marry into the spanish monarchy
and convert to catholicism
but as history would show her wish never
came true
perhaps not recognizing the grave
mistakes of her past
or the impact that her supporters
schemes had had on elizabeth
mary attempted to resolve the problems
with her enemies and persuade the
aristocracy
to allow her to reign jointly with her
son in what was to be known as the
association
but the plan was redirected by one of
her representatives
patrick gray who persuaded james to side
with elizabeth instead
gray believed that an alliance between
james and elizabeth would prove more
profitable for himself
swelling his own fortunes in 1581
in the face of elizabeth's opposition to
mary's scheme the english government
passed
the active persuasions bill this made it
against the law to deny that elizabeth
was the rifle queen of england and also
hindered reconciliation with the
catholic faith
using further restrictions to try and
force obedience and conversion to
anglicanism
but despite increasing her legal power
the queen soon faced another threat to
her life with the throckmorton plot in
1583
a scheme which had been given the
blessing of the spanish ambassador to
england
bernardino de mendoza the representative
of king philip ii
the plot leader nicholas throck morton
was executed for his part in the planned
assassination
and his cousin francis throttle morton
was also arrested
and he claimed that mary was one of the
plotters the aftermath of the scheme led
to the bond of association
a statutory instrument that sanctioned
the execution of anyone who attempted to
usurp the throne or kill
elizabeth the implication of this new
legislation was that mary would lose her
life
for any plot carried out in her name
by september 1584 mary finally left
sheffield
due to the earl of shrewsbury's
declining health she herself was barely
able to walk
due to her own deteriorating condition
aging before her time
and she was soon to witness her hope of
freedom slip away from her when in march
1585
james rejected the implementation of the
bond of association with mary
and she was subsequently condemned to
prison for the rest of her life
however as it transpired that was not to
be such a long time
after all in june 1586
mary received correspondence introducing
her to anthony babington
who forthrightly declared his intention
to kill the queen of england
mary mistakenly replied agreeing with
the scheme
but babington was arrested on the 14th
of august and
executed four days later mary herself
was soon to be martyred in the name of
the catholic cause
as elizabeth the cousin whom she had
never met began preparations for her
execution
in september mary arrived at fathering
gay castle
where she would live out the rest of her
life she refused to admit to any crimes
and on the 8th of october
the government's commissioners met at
westminster and agreed that
under the act of association mary should
be tried with plotting the assassination
of the queen
her trial was scheduled to take place in
the great hall over two days
but elizabeth decides to pro-row
proceedings attempting to extract a
confession
but when one was not forthcoming the
queen issued the sentence of death
and signed the warrant informed of the
execution
on the day before her death mary spent
the evening of the 7th of february
in prayer and distributing her
belongings she even wrote to the king of
france
expressing her wish for james to live
under his care on the morning of the 8th
of february
1587 charged with high treason mary lay
her head on the chopping block
she was decapitated shortly after 9 am
in a brutal execution
that required more than one blow to the
neck she was aged only 44
at the time mary was initially buried at
peterborough cathedral
but later in 1612 she was moved at the
request of her son to westminster abbey
ironically her final resting place was
next to that of queen elizabeth the
cousin she never met in life
and who had ordered her death her son
who was by this time
king james the first and his successors
would rule over england and scotland
during one of the most important periods
in european history following mary's
premature death
elizabeth would die in 1603 with james
the first succeeding her
the union of the crowns did not however
bring peace to the island
as the 17th century was to subsequently
witness the english civil war
the beheading of james's own son charles
the first the formation of the english
republic under oliver cromwell and the
restoration of the monarchy under
charles ii
charles's brother and heir james ii was
then deposed in the so-called glorious
revolution
by prince william of orange stadtholder
of the dutch republic
who was invited to become king alongside
his wife mary ii
a descendant of mary queen of scots this
was a destructive period in british and
european history
but one which would also give birth to
the modern era we now know
without a doubt mary's story is one of
the most captivating of the early modern
period
leaving an indelible imprint on the
minds of the people who followed her it
was revisited in the 19th century
discussions
about queen victoria's succession to the
throne when mary and her cousin
elizabeth were used as examples with
which to compare or critique their
descendant
who would go on to become one of the
longest serving monarchs of all time
and in victorian eyes mary was cast as
the tragic heroine
and elizabeth as the moral heroine
perhaps if mary had been a more ruthless
figure she may have not met her end
the way she did her approach to gaining
the english throne
by first of all declaring her interest
and then trying to appease the
protestant lords
show that she could be manipulated
some took advantage of mary and played
her for their own gains
ultimately leading to her downfall her
life was a succession of failures
both when she tried to use diplomacy and
when she tried to use force
and it ended with her facing the sharp
end of an axe for her treachery against
a tudor monarch
and so the question arises was mary an
innocent party
or was she wholly complicit to answer
this question
we must analyze the evidence she was
never actually convicted of her
husband's death
in fact when the protestant nobles
rushed against her they had detained the
queen of scotland
unlawfully forcing her abdication for a
crime
for which there was no evidence whilst
in england her cousin's unwillingness to
offer a reprieve in the uprising against
her
offered her no way out it appears that
the ruling classes were suspicious of
her
but perhaps they were right to feel so
she truly was a threat to elizabeth
and for her actions and the actions of
others she paid the ultimate price
what do you think of mary queen of scots
was she simply a tragic heroine
or was she a machiavellian schemer like
many of those who came before her
please let us know in the comments
section and in the meantime
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