Mary Queen Of Scots Research Paper

Mary Queen of Scots was born on 8th of December 1542 and was crowned just one week later after her father, James V, was killed. Mary’s cousin, Elizabeth I, was born on 7th of September 1533. (A copy of their family tree can be found on the handout.) Elizabeth was crowned queen of England in 1558, taking over from her Catholic half-sister Mary I. One of Elizabeth’s first actions when she became queen was to return England to a Protestant state. Elizabeth was faced with little opposition until the return of Mary Queen of Scots from France in 1559. As a devout Catholic Mary soon became the head of the Catholic Cause and had backing from significant religious leaders as shown in the handout. Many English Catholics did not accept the divorce between Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon and Henry VIII’s marriage to Anne Boleyn, consequently believing Elizabeth to be an illegal heir.

After the controversial death of her husband Lord Darnley and equally controversial marriage to the Earl of Bothwell, Mary fled to England, seeking refuge from her cousin. After being imprisoned by her cousin, the main focus of the Catholic uprising in 1569 was to set her free and put her on the English throne where they believed she was the true heir to the English throne. Elizabeth was able to shut this uprising down after executing over seven hundred and fifty rebels. This uprising would be the catalyst for further rebellions involving Mary Queen of Scots and presented itself as the first serious challenge to Elizabeth I’s authority, one which she would not want a repeat of. This was the start of many plots relating to Mary Queen of Scots that threatened Elizabeth I’s queen