He was, first and foremost, a nationalist who wanted a strong and independent Scotland. His chief aim was to prevent an alliance with England - Protestant England - because he saw it as the first step to political union. Historians have tended to assume that Bothwell did not exert any significant influence over Mary until But the recent discovery of secret reports from Thomas Randolph, the English Ambassador to the Scottish Court, indicates a much earlier intimacy.
In October , for example, he reported that Bothwell was 'near sybbe unto her grace', which means they were close friends though not necessarily lovers. Moray resented Bothwell's influence and took advantage of his feud with the Earl of Arran to imprison him in Bothwell escaped and fled to France, at which point Moray persuaded Mary to put down a supposed rebellion by Bothwell's friend, the Earl of Huntly, in the Catholic north-west of Scotland.
Because she was determined to succeed Elizabeth I as Queen of England.
Moray had promised her that if she crushed the Huntly rebellion Elizabeth would look favourably on her claim - and she believed him. But even with Huntly dead, Elizabeth refused to meet her. Mary had trusted her older half-brother, but he had simply used her to destroy a personal enemy and, in the process, further the Protestant cause. It was a turning point; Mary no longer trusted Moray and the Protestant lords and now turned, or returned, to the Catholic ticket.
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It is generally believed that Bothwell was absent from Scotland during the crucial next two years when Mary began to take matters into her own hands. But Randolph's reports point unexpectedly to Bothwell's continuing influence. The upshot of meetings such as this one was that Mary chose Henry, Lord Darnley, as her new husband. By marrying Darnley, Mary hoped to strengthen the Catholic cause and enhance her claim to the English throne. The wedding took place at the Chapel Royal at Holyrood on 29 July , Mary wearing black, as befitted a widow.
Moray and some of the Protestant lords rebelled in protest, but were eventually driven into England by royal troops led by the Earls of Lennox and Bothwell, the latter having been recalled from France for the occasion. Bothwell was now at the height of his powers, a leading member of Mary's new - and largely Catholic - council. The only fly in the ointment was Darnley. He spent little time with the Queen and even less on the affairs of state, preferring to hunt, hawk, drink and keep low company.
Gradually the Queen fell out of love. But Darnley had done one thing right: The remaining Protestant lords saw Darnley as the weak link. They told him that Mary's Italian secretary, a former musician named David Rizzio, had too much influence at court.
Because he was Mary's lover. The jealous and gullible Darnley believed them, and agreed to take part in Rizzio's murder. He also agreed to uphold the Protestant religion, and to the return from exile of the other Protestant lords. There has never been any evidence that Mary was having an affair with Rizzio. If she had been, Randolph would have known, yet he does not mention it in any of his reports to Cecil. Nevertheless, on 9 March , Mary was having a small supper party in her private apartments, with Rizzio and five close friends, when Darnley and a group of Protestant nobles burst in.
They dragged Rizzio from the table and into the next room - where they stabbed him 56 times. Bothwell had also been a target, but he managed to climb out of a window and descape to Dunbar.
Alone and defenceless, Mary decided that her only hope was Darnley. Two nights after the murder she went to his room and convinced him that the Protestant lords were using him.
Soon he was begging her forgiveness and together they escaped to Dunbar, where Bothwell was gathering an army. They returned to Edinburgh with the army and forced the murderers to flee. But Mary never really recovered. She spent days in her chamber weeping, close to nervous collapse.
The Mystery of Mary Stuart
She could never forgive Darnley. The only person she now trusted was Bothwell. Darnley was now expendable and everyone wanted to see the back of him: Mary hated him, the Protestant lords had been betrayed by him and Bothwell wanted to replace him as king. To further his ends, Bothwell persuaded Mary to bring back Moray and the exiled Protestants. In November , Bothwell met with nobles from all factions at Craigmillar Castle to discuss the Darnley problem.
They came up with two options: But when Mary was consulted she ruled out divorce because it would make her son illegitimate. As for 'other means', she said that she wanted 'nothing against her honour'. The nobles saw this as carte blanche and, having left Mary's room, signed a bond to murder Darnley. So was Mary in on the plot? It seems likely because, in January , she joined Darnley in Glasgow and was, as he told his father, 'using herself as a most natural and loving wife'.
And yet it was from Glasgow that she sent her famous love letters - known as the Casket Letters - to Bothwell while her husband was just yards away in the next room. And upon my word he will do whatsoever I will, and he will come. Mary was as good as her word. On 1 February she brought Darnley from the safety of Glasgow to the dangers of Edinburgh.
He was taken to Kirk o'Field, a house near the city wall, because he was sick and, Mary said, needed somewhere quiet to convalesce. Mary promised to stay and look after him but on the night of the murder, 9 February, she was at Holyrood attending the wedding masque of a loyal servant. Possibly, but a convenient one. As it happened, Darnley survived the explosion but was strangled and stabbed to death as he tried to escape. Virtually everyone was involved in the plot to murder Darnley, but only Bothwell and Mary got the blame.
We found this book important for the readers who want to know more about our old treasure in old look so we brought it back to the shelves. Hope you will like it and give your comments and suggestions. Normal Hardbound Edition is also available on request. Longmans, Green and Co. Tissued Frontis, 20 Plates. No underlines , tears, chips, etc. Ed Conroy Bookseller Published: Kessinger Publishing, LLC, Meets or exceeds the good condition guidelines.
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Five star seller - Buy with confidence! Longmans, Green, and Co. Blue cloth covers with gold titles, top and base of spine, corners lightly bumped, some marking, including one larger 10 cm white mark at midpoint of front cover, previous owner's name inscribed in ink on ffep, remnants of bookplate on fpdep, endpapers lightly yellowed, several plates coming loose, Good..
The Mystery Of Mary Stuart.. Andrew Lang Nabu Press, Ex-library with typical markings. Five photogravure plates plus 15 other illustrations, including one color map. Illustrations are covered with tissue pages but have created a "ghostly" effect on facing pages. We note two teeny penciled marks on first page; inch tear to tissue over frontispiece at seem.
The Mystery Of Mary Stuart (Classic Reprint)
Edgewear, bumped and worn head and heel of spine, bumped corners. One inch tear to top of spine, partly mended with librarian's tape, two inch tear along spine seem; bright gilt titles on spine and decoration on cover. Bookseller's penciled notations on fep, bookplate inside front cover.
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Heavy volume, extra shipping charges may apply. Thanks for shopping with us! Longman's, Green, and Co.. Tear to cloth near top edge spine with bumped and frayed corners, and age-tanned margin edges. Some pencilling in margins. Clean, tight and strong binding with no underlining or highlighting. Dark blue cloth cover with gilt coin on front and gilt lettering on spine.