Elizabeth: MQS

• Mary, Queen of Scots

  Had a legitimate claim to the English throne, was Catholic, and was at the centre of many plots designed to overthrow Elizabeth
• Mary was Henry VIII's great-granddaughter and Elizabeth's second cousin
• Mary was descended from Margaret Tudor, Henry VIII's sister
• Mary was married to the French king, Francis I, and inherited the Scottish crown when she was only six days old
• While Mary was in France, her mother, Mary of Guise, ruled Scotland
• Why Mary was important

  • She was Catholic, so Catholics, including members of the nobility, would be prepared to support her claim to the throne
  • Her claim was strengthened by the fact there were no concerns about her legitimacy, unlike Elizabeth's
• Mary would always be at the centre of Catholic plots and conspiracies against Elizabeth, involving both English plotters and foreign powers
• Mary leaves Scotland


  1. On the death of Francis II in 1560, Mary returned to Scotland and married Henry Stuart (Lord Darnley), producing an heir

  2. Darnley was subsequently murdered (possibly with Mary's involvement)

  3. Mary then married the Earl of Bothwell
• Protestant Scottish lords rebelled against Mary, imprisoned her and forced her to abdicate (give up her throne) in favour of her son, James
• Mary escaped and raised an army, but this was defeated at Langside near Glasgow
• Mary subsequently fled to England, seeking her cousin Elizabeth's help against the Scottish rebels
• Mary's imprisonment in England, 1568

  • Mary was held in England in comfort but under guard while Elizabeth decided what to do with her
  • The Scottish rebels demanded that Mary be handed over and tried for the murder of Darnley
  • Mary's arrival in England created a problem for Elizabeth, as she could encourage rebellion, but taking action against her as an anointed monarch would reduce Elizabeth's own status, power and authority
• Relations between the two monarchs remained tense, as Elizabeth became increasingly concerned about the threat Mary posed to her throne
• Elizabeth's options with Mary, Queen of Scots, in 1568-69


  • Help Mary to regain her throne
  • Hand Mary over to the Scottish lords
  • Allow Mary to go abroad
  • Keep Mary in England
• The Casket Letters Affair

  • A meeting was set up at York to hear the case against Mary, where the Scottish lords brought love letters supposedly written by Mary to the Earl of Bothwell, showing she had plotted to murder Lord Darnley
  • Mary said she could not be tried because she was an anointed monarch, and would not offer a plea unless Elizabeth guaranteed a verdict of innocence
  • The conference did not reach any conclusions, so Mary remained captive in England
• By not handing over Mary, Elizabeth ensured the Scottish nobility would not imprison or execute Mary, the French would be satisfied, and her subjects did not punish an anointed monarch
• Mary remained a threat to Elizabeth, because any plots against her, especially those involving Catholics, would seek to replace Elizabeth with Mary
• Elizabeth did not make Mary her heir, as this would upset English Protestants, including those on her Privy Council, and the prospect of a Catholic heir would result in civil war in the event of Elizabeth's death
• 1560 - Mary, Queen of Scots marries Francis II
• 1562 - Elizabeth's cousin, Mary Stuart (Mary, Queen of Scots) gives birth to James VI