You guys should do a video on Catherine De Medici, since her time was with the French Wars of Religion and had her own interactions with Mary & Elizabeth
"It took three blows from the executioner..." For goodness' sakes, please tell me that the first one severed her spinal cord and she didn't feel pain from thereon?
There're many missed points but I just wanted to make a small correction and addition. Mary actually wore red to her execution, as an homage to Catholicism. She wore a black gown over the red dress and petticoat, but when her ladies removed the black for the execution, Mary was almost entirely dressed in red. The executioner... Didn't exactly hold up her head. He grasped it and lifted it, but didn't get through the "God save the Queen" sentence before Mary's head fell out of his grasp, because she was wearing a wig 😂😭 Side note - she waited 10 days before replying to the Babington plot. She was very much a woman of action and a 10 day wait - in solitary - itself was evidence of deep thought and hesitation on her part. The letter that reached her was actually a trap, and her reply was all that was needed to seal her fate :(
Neat thing I had when I was really little: I had a snowy owl puppet that my dad named Mary Queen of Scots. Its head broke off when we moved so that's how it got its name. I made up a little song for it. "Mary, Mary, Queen of Scots. Won't you sit around and look at your pots," as I surrounded the owl with my play kitchen pots and pans.
Mary, Queen of Scots really does get a bad rap bc of Protestant propaganda. Yeah, her last husband wasnt the best idea, but to use Elizabeth I as a comparison on what she should have done it not done is people greatly misunderstanding that their situations were actually VERY different. The lords had more power and sway to get rid of a monarch compared to a more centralized England. And with Elizabeth being apart of the majority religion vs Mary being apart of the minority religion, there are bound to be differences there too The lords would have turned on Mary no matter what, really. Also, there is more evidence that Mary wasnt involved in her second husband's marriage- she was actually at a point where she was learning to handle her second husband. Bothwell as a husband was more of a decision made out of fear. I'm info dumping, and as someone who studied european history as my major, it's one of my favorite things to do 😂
I find the only valuable sources of historical knowledge to be printed books. I was impressed by Lady Fraser’s 1969 biography of Mary Queen of Scots. Its incredibly detailed and well researched. One page of that book is worth more than hours and hours of useless “documentaries” on RU-vid.
Despite Reign being an extremely inaccurate show I’m happy you all included pictures from the series. I love the show and the actress is my favorite portrayal of Mary
I read some people mistaking bloody mary with mary queen of scots. They are different people, bloody mary is elisabeth 1's older sister and a queen of england, she had no heirs so elisabeth succeeded her.. But this one is another queen, mary queen of scots.
@B M-Y They also used a picture of Henry II, King of England, in place of Henry II, King of France. The King of England died over 350 years before Mary Queen of Scots was born.
Indeed and a lot of these early arrangements fell through. After all, a lot can happen before they reach the proper age. Politics and war could put an end to the plans.
That’s literally the definition of an arranged marriage. Most royals were betrothed to be married before they were off the breast. It was a business transaction; almost all royal marriages were, regardless of the age of the betrothed. People did not marry for love, the married for money, power, political alignments and safety. It was the norm back then and the children thought nothing of it. Remember though, most girls were married off around age 12 and would start having babies immediately. Different times.
when those 2 toddlers are a future king and a queen it definitely is another thing. But that's literally what an arranged marriage is.. I don't think they'd "arrange" a marriage when they're both 25, I think they'd ya know.. get married.
@@lovepower4899 You have to understand the times. I don't think many people would have welcomed Mary as their queen. A large amount of people never wanted to return to the Catholic faith. The Catholics, especially the Jesuits, would stop at nothing to bring the "old faith" back. They stirred people into many assassination plans and attempts. The Babington Plot was the final straw that broke the camel's back. What is sad is that nobody wanted Mary. She spelled trouble with a capital "T", even if not of her own doing. Even France, where Mary grew up and was married, made no serious attempt to help her and certainly didn't want her back
@@Cissy2cute Mary Tolerated both Faiths--as showin in Scotland and in her own council. She was successful as queen and did a great Job before the lords disapproved of her marriages and rebelled against her due to that.
@@Cissy2cute I don't think thats true, I think People did want to help her but Elizbaeth and Cecil killed many of her supporters in Scotland and made it a point to anyone that no Catholic would rule that isle. They were in the wrong, they aren't Gods. She should have tolerated mary and restored her like she promised but LIz was always lying and a mass murderer and manipulator. Her death was fitting. Seeing people you killed over the years and demons taking you home I'm sure wasn't ideal lmao.
@@leslieangela9114 You’re acting like Mary was a saint lmao. She wanted Englands throne and would even commit treason for it. Thats what lent her to losing her head lmao.
If it wasn't 80% a soap opera it would have been good. Such an interesting time period and 2 of the most interesting women in history. The soap opera parts were just so unnecessary
I'm Scottish, and it's true that we, of course, love Mary. For a lot of people she is a symbol of Scottish independence. On another interesting note, Elizabeth did not actually want Mary to be executed. She signed the papers for it but did not submit them. Her secretary secretly took them and submitted them (for which he was jailed). She apparently cried after Mary was executed and then wrote to her son (King James of Scotland) apologising for his mother's death.
She’s asked her retainers to poison Mary lmao and if she didn’t want Mary to die she would’ve never signed it . Oh she wanted her dead and shifted the blame as “queens” do to proclaim their innocence .
I read elizabeth signed it and asked for it back, then this went back and forth. She still did imprison her, like Elizabeth had been for years in her youth.
Queen Mary was a warrior. She is gorgeous in her portraits. Pretty hard luck she had being a six day old queen. Francis was so nice to her but he died just months into their wedding. I hope they had a lovely long blissful life.
@@jenniferpoland8886 despite the fact that royals were always flattered, there is much contemporary evidence to suggest that she was indeed very attractive. Don't forget that they had a different idea of what was beautiful back then (much as our own tastes have changed dramatically over the decades...just look at old Hollywood movies). Wellborn people would have had the distinct advantage of nutritious food and pampered living conditions...fresh air and exercise would have helped their appearances too, no ?
Well what a tragic end. Well Mary Queen of Scots would have the last laugh kinda because her son would be the next King due to Elizabeth 1st not baring any heirs. All the Kings and Queens of England after Elizabeth 1st descended from her including the current Queen of England.
Alex V yes I know that but the present monarch is still a descendant of Mary Queen of Scots despite the name changes or the different names of the House. Even though there’s a name change and Stuart’s died out when Queen Anne died and the current queen belongs to the house Windsor. The Current Queen is a descendant of Mary Queen of Scot. King James 1st is the son of Mary Queen of Scots. King James 1st was the great grandad of George 1st. King George 1st was the grandad of King George 3rd. King George 3rd is the Grand Father of Victoria and Queen Victoria is Great great Grand mother of the current Queen.
Light of Faith Christian Bible Study Sorry but your wrong Most of the kings and queens were all related by blood so whose to say whose blood is more prominent than another
You missed that when they picked up her head, it fell out of the wig she was wearing... all the stresses of her life made Mary Queen of Scots a little bald.
I was born in the same town as Mary, Linlithgow in West Lothian. I was a palace guide for a couple of years and had to dress as her to take tourists round Linlithgow Palace. I am a direct descendant of one Queen Mary’s “four Mary’s”.
Technically the “trial” would be invalid because, she was a queen... (back then they believed) anointed by god.... set above men and the laws of men..... she had What we call today FULL diplomatic immunity so you can’t find her guilty of anything..... but the English court broke more rules than the Catholic Church so why not Also under catholic law divorced persons could not marry if there former wife/husband be living... so how she married him I dunno..... again the Catholic Church breaks more rules again lol interestingly during this time many Scottish people did not speak English and spoke gaelic.
Well, she wasn't Queen anymore, she had been replaced by her son. Further more, as a deposed monarc she had lost a lot of power, Scottish allies would not act in her favor given there was already a male legitimate king on the throne. Even now, when you ask for political asylum you are supposed to follow the laws of the country you are in. Mary claimed she had a right to the English throne bc she was a desendant of Henry VIII older sister and there for English by blood, her son refused to help her, implicitly saying she was no Scott and the French weren't her fans either. If she wanted the throne as a supposed English noble, they had all the right to put her on trial as any other English subject. Even Elizabeth was almost put on trial by her sister, and she was the heir apparent.
Fernanda Escobar I wonder how things would have played if she wasn’t executed and Mary outlived Elizabeth she would have been queen Mary 2nd of England, and probs tried to retake the Scottish crown.
Love Reign, by the way, I think Mary was misunderstood. Many sources depict her as some Queen, but her rule kinda extraordinary, and bravery was the key part. I always think if people let Mary have the chance to do something, she could have had a great impact. And I believe that it would have been a good impact.
@@munirabagasarawala6532 They never met besides that moment is what he meant. Mary's last days alive were the only time she met Elizabeth. Yet they were always feuded against each other and very involved in each other's lives despite never meeting
Queen Elizabeth was a great Queen who left behind a great legacy for future Queens like Queen Victoria. Queen Mary left behind a dynasty that is sitting on the throne today her blood is in every royal today
@@leo-rs3cj in her defense there are several queens with the name Elizabeth I was confused and there are 2 with the name Mary if not more maybe not queens but 2 named Mary or more and yes I am American and did not always pay close attention in school LOL
SO much information is left out of this video - she was IMPRISONED when she was in England and the people communicating with her to "get her out" of jail were actually setting her up. They communicated with her through secret coded letters, and she became so desperate to escape prison that when they dangled a plot in front of her to overthrow Elizabeth as one of the options, she said yes if it meant she'd be saved. In addition to that, not only did those "conspirators" fool Mary, they also fooled Elizabeth into believing it. Both queens were deceived
@@masterk5372 elizabeth was brutal. Hungry for power and prestige and cunningly schemed her way through. Mary was a good queen and there were other good queens like Queen Margaret of Scotland.
Apparently my ancestors are from Spain. We found out that our ancestors were from the time the Di Borbone's were around (they still are btw). Quite interesting ngl
I enjoyed this video, especially after living in Scotland for a year and reading Antonia Fraser's biography of Mary. She was definitely a tragic character.
Fraser's biography is a masterpiece. Though slightly tinged by Fraser being Catholic and living in Scotland, it is still probably the best. All of her books are well worth a read.
Cissy2cute Why is it slightly tinged by Fraser’s Catholicism? Do you think a shared religion precludes someone from being an impartial historian? By that same note, we should treat biographies on Elizabeth I written by protestants with the same caution.
@@elijahsackville-glucksburg most in Europe and even half of England thought Mary Queen of Scots to be the rightful heir to the throne in England because Elizabeth was technically illegitimate. Oddly enough Henry the 8th married Anne Boleyn in January 1533 when she was pregnant with Elizabeth but his annulment from Catherine of Aragon did not go through finalized in the Church of England until June 1533. Back then and even in this day and age that kind of birth would result in an illegitimate child that wouldn't be heir to the throne. That was the whole rivalry thing even though Mary Queen of Scots was a much nicer person and Elizabeth was Vain and paranoid just like her father Henry the 8th. Elizabeth was a monarch for a long time but I don't necessarily think that she was one of England's greatest ruler because she did not fulfill her duties as a monarch. Mary Queen of Scots' second husband was a jerk, and was murdered by several councilmen in Scotland that hated him. Yet, they tried to put the blame on somebody else... Her! she was even tried in England for the death of her second husband and she was found innocent because despite the guy being a jerk, she still nursed him when he was Ill with syphilis. chances are her husband got syphilis when she was pregnant with James and once it was discovered Mary wasn't having anything to do with him anymore- not sexually. Ha!!
Montre' Louise Bohon-Harris How would you behave If catholic conspirators Wanted you dead So say that Mary was a nicer person than Elizabeth But Mary didn’t have to deal with been queen for as long as Elizabeth Who became paranoid because of these circumstances
As much as I enjoy your videos , you need to be careful with certain images- the image supposed to represent Henri II of France was actually Henry II of England who lived centuries before. Be careful !!
I absolutely love and am obsessed with Mary Queen of Scots and Catherine de Medici i watch reign over and over again even if it is inaccurate thanks for this
She is such a beloved historical figure because even though she was a queen from birth her whole life was a tragedy, I think the happiest and only moment of her life was giving birth to her son, but even then she wasn’t able to see him grow. There’s just so much tragedy in her life.
Mary was outclassed by Elizabeth 1 all the way. Elizabeth was a full-on Tudor, and they weren't down for no play-play with their rivals. Dealing with them was an intense contact sport, and you either won or didn't. Mary was pampered in her early life; Elizabeth had to scrap, scheme, chin and grin to survive and get to the throne and stay there. She was raised in a far harder school than Mary, and it showed.
1:10 What is Queen Mary I (Bloody Mary) doing in this video??? For God's sake, Mary I or famously known as Bloody Mary isn't Mary Stuart! How many times should people tell you that? Mary I or Bloody Mary is Mary TUDOR and the subject of this video is Mary STUART!
Bloody Mary is shown as she was next in Line to the throne if her brother Edward Vl died, which he did of course leaving the Catholic Mary Tudor to Reign. The picture of them together is shown as the proposed marriage of the Catholic Scots Queen to the Protestant Prince Edward Vl would affect his sister, Mary Tudor if they had children. She (Mary Tudor) would not have been Queen.
The David Starkey documentaries discussing this case are worth watching because they go into the domestic violence that Mary suffered at Darnley's hands. Her desperate actions make a lot more sense once you realise she was a DV victim
I still don’t understand why Mary of Guise married her daughter, a sovereign in her own right, to the heir to another throne. Like, I get the alliance part, but did she really expect the Scots to be content with being ruled from afar by a stranger? Although relatively close geographically, frequent travel between the 2 realms would have been far too dangerous for a sovereign to attempt so she would’ve likely lived in France all her life had Francis lived. So many extremely questionable choices were made by herself and her mother that her ultimate end was not so surprising. Did she really expect Elizabeth to allow her to move freely in her own realm?
It was also for her daughter's own safety. Scotland was at war with England and there were plots to kidnap the young Mary. She was safer in France than in Scotland.
I think it would be interesting to hear more detailed information about Henry the eighths other wives, not necessarily Boleyn but she could be included
Apprantly the execution was rushed by her counsellors (Walsigham amd Cecil in particular) because they knew Elizabeth would most likely revoke the execution warrant as she had done with Norfolk. They needed to get rid of her and quick before Elizabeth caught on to what was going to happen
Perhaps you could do a video about Kleopatra? I always found her incredibly fascinating since the way she is pictured as in films and books is mostly of a seducer but actually she was so much more than that. I'd be curious to see your take, @WeirdHistory ! ;)
So glad you guys decided to make this video I asked a few years ago after watching Reign (despite some parts being historically unaccurate). Could you guys do a video on Zinga Bande (probably didn't spell it correctly). She is an Angolan Queen and Warrior who for a while kept the Portuguese troops at Bay from colonizing Angola and some parts of Congo.
Mary was always the rightful Queen . She just needed the French support by her side. She was all alone , but still made it a long. She still reigned through her son . Long may she reign
rightful queen, only on paper and some prude people like yourself! if she would become queen, England would've been still bowing down to catholic church for years and would never turn into the powerful country which it is! even James, Mary's son, looked up to Elizabeth and respected her roles and legacy to reign England, not Mary! Mary was just a queen by name, which she lost that as well by her foolishness in Scotland. the fact that not even her own people supported her says a lot
Please do not base your understanding of history on anything produced by the entertainment industry. Truth is far more interesting than anything that can be made up.
When Mary returned to Scotland, she was uneducated in matters of the crown. She mishandled the treasury and spent way to much on clothes. Gave away lands castles that she had no ideas what she was doing. Then she would have temper tantrums. The Nobel's became upset with her. They hated Lord Darnley, because he was homosexual and had contracted syphilis. In the drawing you showed, he is depicted with his lover, naked from the waste down. This was meant to draw scorn from the good citizens of Scotland. Even though, homosexuality was punishable by death, this looks more like a murder than an open flame or candle that was placed to close to a barrel of gun-powder.
Might I add, because some are giving Elizabeth grief, Elizabeth didn’t want to execute Mary, her councillors, especially Sir William Cecil, didn’t trust Mary and knew that Catholic conspirators would keep plotting for the throne. When Mary’s death warrant was eventually signed, Elizabeth would later retract it, but it was already too late. Whether this was for political or personal reasons, Elizabeth was not out for Mary.
she took everything from that woman and her councilors and even her own english embassador to scotland paid some protestant nobles in scotland to depose their queen. She was more crafty and snake like than you know. She was calculating and even killed the rest of Mary's supporters in Scotland when she imprisoned Mary. She also lied to her countless times promising her aid but imprisoned her instead. A terrible person and crafty queen. Idk why should she couldn't just help her cousin , she was smart enought o know religion was just a tool that people used. Liz didn't even practice her christianity with the amount of sexual relationships she had with men and how many people she murdered and catholics she persecuted.
@@Lakate91 when you read it's not hard to make your own conclusions. People don't talk about it because it goes against the popular thought but I'm not a sheep, I'm an independent thinker. I read alot and am also a journalist by trade. Research, reading both their letters, and not subscribing to protestant propaganda helped me form my conclusions. Read for yourself :)
So many Marys, Catherines, Annes, Elizabeths and Henrys in so many stories of kings and queens. I guess people back then couldn't think of any other names.🙄
