Mary,+Queen+of+Scots


 * Mary, Queen of Scots **

Mary Stuart was born at **Linlithgow** Palace in **1542**. Her father James V, the King of Scotland died only  days later. She became Queen of Scots at **six** days old and was crowned at Stirling Castle the following year. Other people, known as **Regents**, ruled Scotland on Mary's behalf until she grew up.

When Mary was a child the English King, Henry VIII and later his son, Edward, repeatedly attacked Scotland. They wanted to force the Scots to agree to a marriage between Mary and Edward. When Mary was five, her French mother sent her to **France** for her own safety.

Mary was brought up by the French Royal family and she married the French Prince or Dauphin, **Francis**, when she was fifteen. When Francis became King, she also became Queen of France. Francis however died from an ear infection the following year. Mary was no longer Queen of France and she returned to rule **Scotland**.

Shortly before her return the Scottish Lords had changed the official religion of Scotland from **Roman Catholicism** to **Protestantism**. Mary was a Roman Catholic and she refused to give up her religion, this annoyed the Lords. They also didn't like Mary being in charge as they wanted power for themselves.

Mary struggled to keep her divided country together and made a very bad choice for her second husband; Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley. Although he and Mary did have a son called **James**, Mary soon decided he was not fit to rule the country and refused to grant him the crown matrimonial. This meant if Mary died he would not remain King. Darnley started to plot against Mary, but Mary's supporters stopped him.. He was blown up in an explosion outside Edinburgh, at a place known as Kirk O'Field. Darnley's murder horrified some of the Scottish Lords.

James Hepburn, the Earl of Bothwell, one of Mary's supporters, then kidnapped Mary and persuaded her to marry him. Mary's marriage to Bothwell further angered the Scottish Lords. They didn't want Bothwell as King. The Scottish Lords raised an army and met Mary and Bothwell's army at Carberry Hill, outside Edinburgh. The Lords demanded Mary give up Bothwell and in return they would allow her to remain Queen. Bothwell disappeared but instead of being treated as Queen, Mary was held prisoner at Loch Leven Castle. At Loch Leven, the Lords forced Mary to abdicate, and she gave up her throne for James. She then escaped from Loch Leven and gathered an army to fight her enemies. Mary's army was badly defeated at Langside, on the outskirts of Glasgow and she fled to England, hoping to get help from Queen Elizabeth I.

Elizabeth didn't know what to do with Mary. Mary had right to the English throne because she was related to the English Royal family. Mary was a Roman Catholic and many, including the Pope, thought she was the rightful Queen rather than Elizabeth who was Protestant. Elizabeth was scared to let Mary go free in case she attempted to take her throne. The new rulers of Scotland also supported Elizabeth, she didn't want to upset them by letting Mary go free. So Mary was held prisoner in England for almost 19 years. Her fate was decided when letters were intercepted revealing Mary was involved in a plot to escape and have Elizabeth killed. Mary was beheaded at Fotheringhay Castle on 8th February 1587. She died aged 44.

learn more about Mary's family and about the relationship between Scotland, England and France at those times.

**Mary Stuart and Elizabeth I **  Elizabeth I was the Queen of England during most of Mary, Queen of Scots' reign in Scotland. Mary was related to the English Royal family, so she had a claim to their throne. Mary believed she was the rightful Queen of England because when Elizabeth was born, her father and mother were not married under the eyes of the Roman Catholic church. In the end Elizabeth didn't have any children, so Mary's son James became the first king to rule both Scotland and England

Although Mary and Elizabeth never met, there was fierce argument and suspicion between them.

A very well known episode which illustrates the nature of their relationship is that Mary invited Elizabeth do the baptism of her son, James. But Elisabeth did’t attend the baptisim herself and, instead, sent the Earl of Bedford as her representative. Then she asked Bedford to report back on his time in Scotland.

**Your task :**

**YOUR TASKS** ** TASK ONE: ****Some questions to think about ** EARLY YEARS:
 * Who was Mary's father? When did he died?
 * Where did Mary's mother sent her to protect her?
 * Who did Mary marry? What happened to her husband? What happened to her?

RELIGION:
 * What was Mary's religion?
 * What changes in religion took place in Scotland?
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Why were most of the Lords annoyed with Mary?
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Why was Scotland a divided country?

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">LIFE IN SCOTLAND:
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Who was Mary's second husband? What happened to him?
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Who was her third husband? What were the consequences of her third marriage?

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">FLEE TO ENGLAND:
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Why didn't Queen Elizabeth like Mary Stuart?
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">What did Elizabeth I decided to do with Mary at first?
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">What was Mary's final fate?

<span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">THE ENGLISH THRONE ** TASK TWO: The Earl of Bedford has represented Queen Elizabeth I at the baptism of Mary, Queen of Scots' son, James, at Stirling Castle in 1566. The Earl of Bedford needs you to help him write a report about his stay in Scotland, which will be sent to Queen Elizabeth I.Complete the report below by searching the information on the internet. **
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">Why did Mary think that she had a claim to the English throne?
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif;">What happened when Elizabeth I died?


 * Elizabeth needs to know about the following: **
 * The Roman Catholic and Protestant religions; the Bible; the Reformation; JohnKnox; James' baptism and the celebrations, the town of Stirling in 1566. **


 * Use the information in [], click //Stirling// in the map and visit the different areas. It will help you!!!!**


 * Click [[file:report queen Elizabeth.pdf]] to find a template to write your report to the queen.**


 * TASK THREE: Queen Elizabeth had to face various problems and decide which was the best policy to follow. Click Elizabeth's PROBLEMS to see what these problems were and to see what you whould have done if you had been in her shoes.**