10th February 1587
Dear Emily,
I am writing to inform you about the chaos that has occurred in England.
Before I begin, I would like to take the time in asking about your well being of course the well being of your dear beloved sister Patricia. I hope that you are all well and having a great time living in France!
So, as I was saying, all the havoc is about, this Scottish queen called Mary. As you have been living in France, I would not expect you to understand what is happening here in England, so I will try to explain the situation as much as I can.
Mary became queen of Scotland at a tender age of only a couple of weeks old, can you believe! She succeeded her father James V of Scotland who died shortly after she was born. Mary’s mother, Mary of Guise, was from your homeland and as a result, Mary spent most of her childhood years in France. Mary became a Queen of two countries i.e. France and Scotland, because she married Francis II. Unfortunately for her, he died back in 1560, due to an ear infection. When Mary was eighteen, Mary decided to return to Scotland, as the queen. Can you believe this? Not only did she have the nerve to return to Scotland after all this time she also happily took the throne! Oh, how wrong was she, if she thought that this was going to go along smoothly! She was a measly Catholic who had to face the Scottish nobility, many of whom had changed for the better and converted to Protestantism. Mary also had to confront John Knox, who like ourselves despised the Catholics. Some may say that he was formidable but I think that he just said, what all of us were thinking. Don’t you agree?
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Mary later married Lord Darnley, I am sure that the marriage had taken place so that they could plot against, Her Royal Highness, Queen Elizabeth. But as they say, what goes around comes around. Since Darnley apparently turned out to be a stupid, vain and boastful drunkard. I suppose she got what she deserved! That stupid fellow had convinced himself that, Mary was having an affair with her secretary9 David Rizzio) and he had him killed in front of her. I would not be surprised if she had, had an affair. After all Mary was not a woman who would stay single for long, because she hardly, waited a few weeks before she married her second husband Lord Darnley.
Lord Darnley was killed the following year, he had been found strangled and that was the end of him! That woman has marital problems, as soon as one of her husband’s dies; she jumps the gun and marries the first man who catches her eye, in this instance being the Earl of Bothwell. The Scottish nobles had, had enough, well wouldn’t you if you were them?
Showing their anger, the Scots defeated Mary at the battle of Carberry Hill. He son had been taken away from her and was proclaimed to be King James VI of Scotland, by the Scots. So why was Mary, then interfering with political matters in England. You may ask? Well I can tell you, it is because she is an avaricious woman who tries to grab everything that she can get her grimy hands onto! As the cousin of Mary, queen of Scots, Elizabeth obviously had to weigh up the threats that Mary had posed. Elizabeth made a wise decision to keep Mary in England so that she could keep a close watch on her! However, Mary could not keep herself out of trouble, the Ridolfi was uncovered in 1571, it aimed to murder Elizabeth, free the duke of Norfolk from the tower and from Mary’s house arrest so that they could be King and Queen. Can you believe this outrageous plot against our Queen?
But the Privy Council’s quick wit had a solution to this problem. They drew up a Bond of Association that stated if Elizabeth was murdered, anyone who benefited from the death would also be killed. This was rightfully aimed at Mary, ex queen of Scots.
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Elizabeth I was born in Greenwhich on September 7, 1533, the daughter of Henry VIII and his second wife, Anne Boleyn. Her early life was full of uncertainties, and her chances of succeeding to the throne seemed very slim when her half-brother Edward was born. She was then the third in line behind her half-sister, Princess Mary. Elizabeth succeeded to the throne at the age of twenty-five after her ...
Emily, the word that I am about to write my shock you may shock you, so be warned!
Mary sent coded messages to Antony Babington, he was a Catholic, living in Paris and together they planned to recruit six men who would murder Queen Elizabeth. These treacherous people had to be stopped. Luckily, Francis Walsingham uncovered the messages that she had hidden in beer barrels and he had collected the messages as evidence against her to use in trial.
Elizabeth then decided to have Mary tried in a special court which consisted of specially selected commissioners. Mary was on trial ‘for imagining and encompassing Her Majesty’s Death.’ After having heard all the evidence against her, the poor woman could only think of to insignificant excuses. These were that the court had no right to try her and that none of the letter were in her own hand writing and so her secretary could have written anything, just to make her appear guilty.
Mary was found guilty! (And rightly so!) Mary’s sentence had been execution. Mary had clearly committed treason, so why did it take Queen Elizabeth so long to write a death warrant? This is completely beyond me!
Eventually, Elizabeth saw sense and she sent the death warrant to Fotheringay. Emily, I must say, I was a proud spectator at the execution where Mary did not have the most gracious of ending because it took three might blows to her neck before her head, had been sliced off! Also, when the executioner, went to hold up her head, in order to show everyone, he only got hold of her wig! What a poor old Hag. I suppose she got her just desserts!
Kind regards,
laura
