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Edinburgh Town Guide, Mary Queen of Scots, 8K

Mary Queen of Scots is one of the best known, and most romantic figures, of Scotland's history.

Edinburgh Town Guide, The Queen, 1K The Queen came to the throne of Scotland in 1542 when she was just a child. Times were turbulent and so the young Queen faced problems right from the very start of her reign.

The English King Henry VIII had his eye on the Scottish throne, and so he attempted to force a marriage between the young Queen Mary and his son. He did this by sending troops to sack Edinburgh, a period known as the "Rough Wooing".

The Scots responded by sending Mary to France for her own safety. France fully supported Scotland and so sent troops to Edinburgh and as a result Henry's forces retreated.

However, all was still not well for Mary's reign. Scotland was increasingly turning towards Protestantism, whilst the French (and Mary) were staunch Catholics. Scotland subsequently expelled the French and declared itself a Protestant country.

Therefore, when Mary returned to Scotland in 1561 she faced unpopularity because of her Catholic religion. Even her nobles no longer supported her, and so she quickly lost the throne to her infant son, who became the protestant James VI.

It was Mary's heir James VI who in 1603 succeeded to the English throne, thus uniting the crowns of England and Scotland. James subsequently chose to move his court to London thus essentially ending Scotland's autonomy.

As a result Mary was essentially the last of Scotland's own monarchs, hence her affectionate nickname and the importance with which she is held in Scottish history.




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