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The Abdication of a Queen

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On July 24, 1567, an imprisoned Mary Queen of Scots was forced to sign the instrument of her own abdication, thereby handing over the throne of Scotland to her 13-month-old son, James, and his regents. She was only 24 years old and had been queen of Scotland since the first week of her life. She was forced to abdicate as a consequence of having taken as her third husband the man who allegedly murdered her second husband.

Mary’s life had already been eventful. When she was a toddler, Henry VIII of England had sought her as a bride for his son, Edward VI. However, the Scots were unenthusiastic about this match. Instead, when Mary was five, she had been sent to France and raised at the French court as the intended wife of the French dauphin, Francois . She was 17 when Henri II, her father-in-law, died. She and her husband reigned as king and queen of France for a brief 18 months until Francois died in December 1560.

Mary Queen of Scots. Currier & Ives. New York : Published by Currier & Ives, c1870. Library of Congress, Prints and Photograph Division. http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pga.09431

Mary had returned to Scotland the following year at the age of 18.  She had been on the market for a second husband since returning to Scotland, and, in 1565, married Henry, Lord Darnley, who was related to Mary through their common grandmother, Margaret Tudor. Though initially happy, the marriage quickly deteriorated. Less than a year after their wedding, Darnley participated in a plot to murder the queen’s secretary, David Riccio, and gain control of the government by seizing and imprisoning the queen. Mary had managed a bold escape while six months pregnant and convinced Darnley to abandon his co-conspirators, who included James Douglas, the Earl of Morton. Over 70 people were exiled as part of this