Mary, Queen of Scots

For nineteen years, Mary Stuart lived in England as Elizabeth's prisoner. She was also, in the eyes of many Catholics, the rightful Queen of England. Her presence shaped every major crisis of the reign — the Northern Rebellion, the Ridolfi Plot, the Babington Plot — and her eventual execution in 1587 helped trigger the Spanish Armada. This lesson tells Mary's story from her arrival in 1568 to her death in 1587.

Paper 2 frequently asks why Mary was such a problem and why her execution was delayed for so long. The answer lies in the unique combination of her blood claim, her Catholicism, and her foreign connections.

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Who was Mary Queen of Scots?

Fact	Detail
Born	8 December 1542, Linlithgow Palace, Scotland
Parents	James V of Scotland and Mary of Guise (French Catholic noble family)
Claim to English throne	Great-granddaughter of Henry VII through Margaret Tudor
First husband	Francis II of France (m. 1558, d. 1560)
Second husband	Lord Darnley (m. 1565, murdered 1567)
Third husband	Earl of Bothwell (m. 1567) — probably implicated in Darnley's murder
Son	James VI of Scotland (b. 1566); later James I of England
Arrived in England	May 1568, after defeat at the Battle of Langside
Executed	8 February 1587, Fotheringhay Castle

Her claim was dangerous because many Catholics did not accept Elizabeth's legitimacy. If Elizabeth was illegitimate (as Mary I had ruled), then Mary Queen of Scots — as Henry VII's great-granddaughter — was the rightful queen.

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How Mary came to England

Mary's reign in Scotland collapsed in scandal:

1. Her second husband, Lord Darnley, was murdered in February 1567.
2. Within months she married the Earl of Bothwell, widely suspected of Darnley's murder.
3. Scottish Protestant nobles rebelled and defeated her at the Battle of Carberry Hill in June 1567.
4. She was forced to abdicate in favour of her infant son James VI.
5. After escaping imprisonment, she was defeated again at the Battle of Langside in May 1568.
6. She fled across the Solway Firth into England, expecting Elizabeth's help.

Elizabeth did not want Mary in England. But returning her to Scotland meant executing a monarch; sending her to France meant handing a weapon to the Guise family. Elizabeth chose to detain Mary in a series of English country houses — a decision she would regret for nineteen years.

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The Casket Letters

The Scottish government accused Mary of collusion in Darnley's murder. Their evidence was a box of letters — the Casket Letters — supposedly from Mary to Bothwell. They were examined at a conference held at York and Westminster in 1568–69.

• If genuine, they implicated Mary in murder.
• If forged, they were a political smear.
• Modern historians are divided; no surviving original exists.

The conference reached no verdict. Elizabeth used this inconclusive finding to justify keeping Mary in detention — neither free nor convicted.

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The Northern Rebellion, 1569

By autumn 1569, Mary's presence had destabilised the Catholic north of England. The plan was:

1. Free Mary from detention at Tutbury.
2. Marry her to the Duke of Norfolk — England's senior Catholic nobleman.
3. Have Parliament recognise her as Elizabeth's heir.
4. Restore Catholicism if possible.

The leaders were Thomas Percy, Earl of Northumberland and Charles Neville, Earl of Westmorland. In November 1569 they raised around 6,000 men, captured Durham Cathedral, celebrated Mass there, and marched south.

The rebellion failed quickly:

• Elizabeth moved Mary further south (to Coventry), out of reach.
• The Earl of Sussex marched north with a royal army.
• The Earls' support collapsed; many of their own tenants deserted.
• By January 1570 the rebellion was crushed.

The aftermath was harsh: around 450 rebels were executed — a severe reprisal intended to discourage future Catholic revolt. Northumberland fled to Scotland, was captured, and was executed in 1572.

Northern Rebellion	Detail
Dates	November 1569 – January 1570
Leaders	Earls of Northumberland and Westmorland
Rebel strength	c. 6,000
Key event	Mass said in Durham Cathedral
Outcome	Rebellion crushed; c. 450 rebels executed

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The Ridolfi Plot, 1571

Roberto Ridolfi was a Florentine banker and papal agent. His plot combined domestic and foreign Catholic forces:

• The Duke of Norfolk would marry Mary.
• Spanish troops from the Netherlands (led by the Duke of Alba) would invade.
• English Catholics would rise; Elizabeth would be assassinated or deposed.

The plot was uncovered by Cecil and Walsingham. Incriminating letters were found. Norfolk was executed in June 1572 — the only English peer executed during Elizabeth's reign for treason linked to Mary.