Scottish Queen Mary Stuart lived a bright life. Her tragic fate still attracts attention.
Childhood and adolescence
Mary Stuart - Queen of Scots from infancy, ruler of France (as the wife of Francis II) and one of the contenders for the throne of England, was born on December 8, 1542 in Linlithgow Palace, the favorite residence of the rulers of the Stuart dynasty.
Daughter of Princess Mary of Guise and Scottish King James V, the little heiress lost her father a few days after birth. He died young, at the age of 30. The reason for such an early death was the heavy and extremely humiliating defeat of Scotland in a military conflict with England, the betrayal of the barons who went over to the side of the enemy, and the death of two sons.
Since there were no direct and legitimate heirs after Jacob, only when he was born, his daughter was declared the new ruler of Scotland.
Because Mary, Queen of Scotland, could not rule herself due to her age, a regent was appointed. It was her closest relative, James Hamilton.
Military conflict with England
The story of Queen Mary of Scotland is full of unexpected twists and turns. Her father sought an alliance with France, and was at war with the English state. Regent James Hamilton, on the contrary, began to pursue a pro-English policy. An agreement was reached on the marriage of Mary with the heir to the English throne, Edward. By this time, her coronation had taken place.
Against these plans was the Queen Mother, speaking with a group of Scottish nobles for a new alliance with France. Their actions, as well as the demand of Henry VIII to immediately send little Mary to him, led to a sharp change in the situation in the country. Supporters of France came to power, and England immediately reacted to this. British troops began to invade Scotland. They ravaged villages and cities, destroyed churches. Supporters of Protestantism also became more active, advocating rapprochement with England. All this led to the fact that the Scottish authorities turned to France for help. An agreement was signed on the marriage of Mary and the heir to the French throne, Francis. After that, the five-year-old Queen of Scots was taken to France.
Life at the court of Henry II
In the summer of 1548, little Mary arrives in Paris with a small retinue. She was given a very warm welcome at the court of the French king. Here she received an excellent education: she learned several languages, learned to play the lute and sing.
10 years after arriving in France, Queen Mary of Scotland and Francis were married. This alliance, one of the conditions of which was the transfer of FranceScotland in the case of the queen's childlessness caused discontent in her homeland.
Queen Mary of Scotland and Francis were together for only two years. After his accession to the throne in 1559, the country was actually ruled by Catherine de Medici, the mother of the king. Francis died in ill he alth in 1560. His death marked the return of Mary Stuart to her home.
Mother Regency
The story of Queen Mary of Scotland is like a tragic romance. From infancy, she was drawn into the political games of thrones, lived out of her homeland for many years and ruled herself for a short six years.
During the years when she lived in France, her mother, Marie de Guise, ruled the country instead. It was a difficult time for Scotland. The aristocrats were dissatisfied with the conditions of the marriage of their queen, the Protestants increasingly strengthened their influence, which led to a split in society. Even more problems came with the accession to the English throne of Elizabeth I. She was illegitimate, and Mary, Queen of Scotland, had more rights to inherit the crown of England. She does the following: she does not prevent Elizabeth from ascending the throne, but she does not officially renounce her rights to it. But at the same time, Mary commits a rash act that forever spoils the relationship between the two rulers. She places the crown of England on her coat of arms, hinting that she is the rightful heir.
The Protestant revolution that began at that time in Scotland forced its supporters to turn to England for help, and Elizabeth I introducedtroops. Mary, the Scottish queen, could not help her mother in any way, since she had no influence, and Catherine de Medici, who actually ruled France, did not want to go into conflict with England.
In the summer of 1560, Mary of Guise dies - she was the last obstacle to the final victory in Scotland of Protestantism. Soon after, Francis II dies.
Homecoming
In 1561, Mary Stuart returned to Scotland. The situation in which the 18-year-old queen found herself was extremely difficult. Supporters of an alliance with France were ready to support her in everything. The moderate wing would have come over to her side only if Protestantism was preserved and oriented towards rapprochement with England. The most radical part of the Protestant aristocrats demanded an immediate break with the Queen's Catholic faith and her marriage to one of their leaders, the Earl of Arran. In such conditions, it was necessary to act very carefully.
Governance and Politics
Queen Mary of Scotland, whose biography is unusually interesting, during the years of her reign was cautious. She did not accept Protestantism, but she did not try to restore Catholicism in the country either. She relied on the moderate bloc, introducing William Maitland and James Stewart, her half-brother, to key posts in the state. The radicals tried to conspire against her, but he failed. The queen officially recognized the Protestant religion, but did not break ties with Rome. This policy brought positive results - during the reign ofMary Stuart in the country was relatively calm.
If it was possible to deal with problems within the country without bloodshed, then foreign policy brought much more difficulties. The Queen of Scots resolutely refused to recognize Elizabeth I as the legitimate heir, hoping to exercise her rights to the English throne. None of them were going to reconcile.
Private life
Any portrait of Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland, suggests that she was a charming woman. There were many applicants for her hand. After the sudden death of Francis II and the return of the queen to her homeland, the question of her new marriage was especially acute. Having met the young Henry Stuart in 1565, she fell in love with him at first sight, and in the same year they were married. This caused strong dissatisfaction not only with the Queen of England, but also with the closest supporters of Mary Stuart. Her marriage meant the collapse of the policy of rapprochement with England. James Stewart started an uprising against the queen, but she managed to find support and was able to expel the conspirator from the country.
The second marriage was unsuccessful. Being a mediocre ruler, Henry tried to take control of the country in his own hands, which Mary opposed. Gradually they moved away from each other. The queen increasingly relied on the help of her secretary, David Riccio, and Henry, in retaliation, became close to the Protestants and took part in a conspiracy against his wife's favorite. Riccio was killed right in front of the queen. She had to make an effort and even reconcile with her husband in order todestroy the plot against her. But relations with Heinrich were already spoiled completely. This was facilitated not only by the brutal murder of Riccio, but also by the new passion of the queen - the courageous Earl Bothwell. And her husband stood in the way of her happiness. He could recognize their newly born son Yakov as illegitimate, but this could not be allowed.
Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley, died in a powder keg explosion in the house where he was staying on the night of 8/9 February 1567. He was found dead in the garden while trying to escape.
In history, Mary's involvement in a conspiracy against her husband is still considered a controversial issue. Darnley had other serious enemies, but popular rumor blamed the queen for everything. And for some reason, she did nothing to prove to Scotland that she was not involved in the crime. On the contrary, teasing everyone, less than a month after the death of her husband, she marries Bothwell.
Overthrow
This hasty marriage was the Queen's tragic mistake. She instantly lost support, and her opponents immediately took advantage of the situation. Gathering their strength, they marched against Mary and her new husband. The royal troops were defeated, the queen surrendered, before that she managed to clear the way for her runaway husband. At Lochwelen Castle, she was forced to sign a renunciation in favor of her little son.
Escape to England. Failed attempt to regain power
Not all nobles agreed with the forced removal of their ruler. Unrest began in the country. Mary, the Scottish queen, managed to take advantage of this and escaped from prison. The attempt to regain power failed. The opposition army was defeated and the deposed queen had to flee to England.
Intrigue against Elizabeth I
The Queen of England is in a delicate position. She could not help with military forces, send a relative to France too - Maria would immediately begin to put forward claims to the English throne. Elizabeth launched an investigation into the death of Mary's second husband and her involvement in this.
Opponents of the queen presented letters (except for her poems, they were fake), from which it allegedly followed that she knew about the conspiracy. As a result of the trial and the unrest that broke out again in Scotland, Mary finally lost hope of regaining power.
While imprisoned, she acted extremely carelessly, starting a correspondence with other royal houses. Attempts to remove her from the throne did not stop against Elizabeth, and Mary remained the main contender for him.
Trial and execution of Mary Queen of Scots
Her name was attributed to several uncovered conspiracies against Elizabeth, but she hesitated, not daring to take extreme measures. Only when her rival's correspondence with one of the leaders of the conspirators fell into her hands did the Queen of England decide on a trial. He sentenced Mary Stuart to death. Elizabeth waited for a tearful request for mercy from her cousin, but in vain.
Mary Stuart, Queen of Scotland, whose life story beforestill excites the minds of historians and representatives of art, she ascended the scaffold and was publicly executed in the early morning of February 8, 1587 at the age of 44. She kept herself surprisingly courageous, and climbed onto the chopping block, holding her head high. Stefan Zweig brilliantly described the execution of the queen in his work dedicated to this amazing woman.
Scottish Queen Mary Stuart in art
Her tragic fate and cruel execution have been the source of many works of art. Stefan Zweig, Friedrich Schiller and other writers dedicated their works to her. The execution of Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, has become the motif of many paintings by artists.
Cinematography also did not stand aside. A life of ups and downs, love and treachery, hope and betrayal, is reflected in feature films and documentaries.
There are many fictional stories associated with the name of this outstanding woman. In the new series "Kingdom", the scriptwriters went to the distortion of historical rights - Queen Mary of Scotland and Sebastian, the illegitimate son of Henry II and Diane de Poitiers, are presented here as lovers. In fact, there has never been such a historical character.
In 2013, the film "Mary - Queen of Scots (Scotland)" was created, which told about the amazing fate of this ruler, wearing three crowns on the banner.
