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Mary Queen of Scots
- Mary spent much of her childhood in France
- Returned to Scotland when she was in her late teens
- Born in 1542 she was the only child of James V of Scotland; she became when she was
a week old, leaving the country at war with England
- Scottish nobles ruled the country on behalf of the infant Queen
- If Edward VI lived longer that he did he may have married Mary
- 1548: Mary was taken to France to be educated at court by her mother, Mary of Guise-
she was brought up as a Catholic
- 1558: Married Francis II
- 1559: King Francis II of France
- 1560: Francis died. His sudden death left Mary a widow at 18 and her mother died the
same year. The situation in France was chaotic - beginning of the French Wars of
Religion between Catholics and the Huguenots
- 1561: Returned to Scotland to assume the role as Queen. Since the Treaty of Edinburgh
peace had been restored between England and Scotland and the government was
supportive of Protestantism
- Rival groups of nobles threatened a situation of civil war
- Mary was not allowed any power or influence
- Mary probably saw more of a future with England than Scotland
- 1565: Married Lord Darnley (great grandson of Henry VII) prompting speculation that
she intended to claim the English throne- either as the Catholic heir or from Elizabeth’s
death
- Darnley had a strong claim to the English throne as well as a more distant one to the
Scottish throne
- The marriage was a disaster
- Mary became pregnant, but it was speculated to be David Rizzio, her secretary and
lover
- Rizzio was murdered in 1566 in front of pregnant Mary by henchmen under the
direction of Lord Darnley
- Mary gave birth to a boy, James
- 1567: Darnley had been recovering from an illness
- Mary had taken another lover, the Earl of Bothwell
- In February Darnley and his Valet were killed in an explosion at Kirk-o-field - evidence
suggests that Darnley had actually been strangled before the explosion suggesting
murder
- Bothwell was suspected of the plot and rumours circulated that Mary had knowledge
of it
- Mary and Bothwell ran away together and were married
- She later miscarried twins but by then the marriage had ended as Bothwell fled to
Denmark
- Few people thought that Mary was a suitable ruler after the 1560s
Mary Queen of Scots
- Mary spent much of her childhood in France
- Returned to Scotland when she was in her late teens
- Born in 1542 she was the only child of James V of Scotland; she became when she was
a week old, leaving the country at war with England
- Scottish nobles ruled the country on behalf of the infant Queen
- If Edward VI lived longer that he did he may have married Mary
- 1548: Mary was taken to France to be educated at court by her mother, Mary of Guise-
she was brought up as a Catholic
- 1558: Married Francis II
- 1559: King Francis II of France
- 1560: Francis died. His sudden death left Mary a widow at 18 and her mother died the
same year. The situation in France was chaotic - beginning of the French Wars of
Religion between Catholics and the Huguenots
- 1561: Returned to Scotland to assume the role as Queen. Since the Treaty of Edinburgh
peace had been restored between England and Scotland and the government was
supportive of Protestantism
- Rival groups of nobles threatened a situation of civil war
- Mary was not allowed any power or influence
- Mary probably saw more of a future with England than Scotland
- 1565: Married Lord Darnley (great grandson of Henry VII) prompting speculation that
she intended to claim the English throne- either as the Catholic heir or from Elizabeth’s
death
- Darnley had a strong claim to the English throne as well as a more distant one to the
Scottish throne
- The marriage was a disaster
- Mary became pregnant, but it was speculated to be David Rizzio, her secretary and
lover
- Rizzio was murdered in 1566 in front of pregnant Mary by henchmen under the
direction of Lord Darnley
- Mary gave birth to a boy, James
- 1567: Darnley had been recovering from an illness
- Mary had taken another lover, the Earl of Bothwell
- In February Darnley and his Valet were killed in an explosion at Kirk-o-field - evidence
suggests that Darnley had actually been strangled before the explosion suggesting
murder
- Bothwell was suspected of the plot and rumours circulated that Mary had knowledge
of it
- Mary and Bothwell ran away together and were married
- She later miscarried twins but by then the marriage had ended as Bothwell fled to
Denmark
- Few people thought that Mary was a suitable ruler after the 1560s
