Mary of Guise
Mary of Guise stood tall by the standards of her time, reaching a height that made her memorable to those who met her. She was born at Bar-le-Duc in Lorraine on the 22nd of November 1515, the eldest daughter of Claude, Duke of Guise, and Antoinette of Bourbon. Her family belonged to the House of Guise, one of the most powerful noble families in France. When she was five years old, she became godmother to her younger sister Louise. Not long after, she joined her grandmother Philippa of Guelders in the convent of the Poor Clares at Pont-à-Mousson.
Her uncle Antoine, Duke of Lorraine, and aunt Renée of Bourbon visited her when she was about fourteen. They were impressed by her qualities and stature, so they took her away from the convent to prepare her for life at the French court. In 1531, Mary made her first appearance at the wedding of Francis I and Eleanor of Austria. There she established a friendship with the king's daughters Madeleine and Margaret. Her mother mentioned that she suffered from bad colds, yet she grew into a woman of significant presence.
On the 4th of August 1534, at the age of eighteen, Mary became Duchess of Longueville by marrying Louis II d'Orléans, Duke of Longueville, at the Louvre Palace. Their union turned out to be happy but brief. On the 9th of June 1537, Louis died at Rouen and left her a pregnant widow at the age of twenty-one. For the rest of her life, Mary kept the last letter from her husband, which mentioned his illness and explained his absence at Rouen.
In December 1537, Henry VIII of England asked for Mary's hand in marriage after his third wife Jane Seymour had just died. He told Castillon, the French ambassador in London, that he was big in person and had need of a big wife. Allegedly, Mary refused the offer by saying: "I may be a big woman, but have a very little neck." This reference alluded to Anne Boleyn, who had joked before her death that the executioner would find killing her easy because she had "a little neck".
King Francis I of France accepted James V's proposal over Henry's. The proxy wedding of James V and Mary of Guise was held on the 9th of May 1538 in the Sainte Chapelle at the Château de Châteaudun. Some two thousand Scottish lords and barons came from Scotland aboard a fleet of ships under Lord Maxwell to attend. Lord Maxwell brought a diamond ring and stood as proxy for James V at the ceremony.
James V himself died six days after their daughter Mary was born on the 8th of December 1542. The infant became Queen of Scots at the age of six days old, making her the youngest ever monarch in Great Britain. Following James V's death in 1542, the government of Scotland was first entrusted to James Hamilton, 2nd Earl of Arran, as regent. Mary of Guise stayed at Linlithgow Palace while Ralph Sadler visited her on the 22nd of March 1543 to see the infant Mary for the first time.
In April 1543, Arran heard a rumour that Henry VIII now wished to make Mary of Guise his sixth wife. He confronted Mary with this, and she prevaricated, learning from him that he told everything to Sadler. She then sent her confidant Lord Fleming to Sadler to report the conversation. In July 1543, after a standoff near Linlithgow, she moved with the infant Mary to Stirling Castle.
Mary herself became regent on the 12th of April 1554 at a meeting of Parliament. Henri Cleutin is said to have placed the crown on her head, although the nature of any ceremony is uncertain. Celebrations included a play written by William Lauder and a procession called the "Convoy of the Moors" on the 10th of June.
After a Scottish defeat at the Battle of Pinkie in September 1547, French military aid weakened English resolve and increased the power base of Mary of Guise, who remained in Scotland. Equipped with a newly painted spear for her royal standard, Mary came to view the progress of the siege of Haddington in July 1548. On the 9th of July her party came in range of the English guns and sixteen of her entourage were killed around her.
Following this terrifying incident, Mary gave one of her gunners at Haddington, Andro Straitoun, a reward of a month's wages, four pounds Scots. After negotiating on Christmas Day 1549 at Stirling Castle for more French guns for the siege of Broughty Castle, she showed more prudence by watching the successful assault on Wednesday the 6th of February 1550 from a vantage point across the Tay. Paul de Thermes led the French troops, two hundred forty were injured and fifty killed.
In October, when she went south to Hume Castle and sent an army towards England, the Scottish lords held their own council at Eckford and returned home. The Treaty of Boulogne of the 24th of March 1550 included Scotland, and as part of the treaty, Mary's brother Claude, Marquis de Mayenne, was one of six French hostages sent to England.
In 1557, a group of Scottish lords who became known as the "Lords of the Congregation" drew up a covenant to "maintain, set forth, and establish the most blessed Word of God and his Congregation." This was followed by outbreaks of iconoclasm in 1558 and 1559. At the same time, plans were being drawn up for a Reformed programme of parish worship and preaching, as local communities sought out Protestant ministers.
In January 1559, the anonymous Beggars' Summons threatened friars with eviction in favour of beggars. Fearing disorder and now determined by circumstance to show less tolerance, the Regent summoned the reformed preachers to appear before her at Stirling on the 10th of May. Insurrection followed. The men of Angus assembled in Dundee to accompany the preachers to Stirling, and on the 4th of May they were joined by John Knox, who had recently arrived from France.
Stirred by Knox's sermons in Perth and Dundee, the mob sacked religious houses including the tomb of James I in Perth. In response, the Regent marched on Perth but was forced to withdraw and negotiate when another reformed contingent arrived from the west at Cupar Muir. Among the Regent's ambassadors were the Earl of Argyll and Lord James Stewart, Earl of Moray, both professed Protestants.
While continuing to fortify Edinburgh Castle, Mary became seriously ill, and over the course of the next eight days her mind began to wander; on some days she could not even speak. On the 8th of June she made her will. She died of dropsy on the 11th of June 1560. Her body lay in state in the castle for a time, wrapped in cerecloth and covered with a white sheet, on a bed hung with black satin, attended by her ladies-in-waiting.
Her body was then wrapped in lead and rested in a coffin on a bier in St Margaret's Chapel in Edinburgh Castle for several months. The chapel was hung with black cloth with a white taffeta cross above the body. On the 18th of March 1561, it was secretly carried from the castle at midnight and shipped to France. Mary, Queen of Scots attended her funeral at Fécamp in July 1561.
The Regent's death made way for the Treaty of Edinburgh, in which France and England agreed they would each withdraw their troops from Scotland. Although the French commissioners were unwilling to make a treaty with the insurgent Lords of the Congregation, they offered the Scots certain concessions from King Francis and Queen Mary, including the right to summon a parliament according to use and custom.
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Common questions
When was Mary of Guise born and where did she grow up?
Mary of Guise was born at Bar-le-Duc in Lorraine on the 22nd of November 1515. She grew up in a convent of the Poor Clares at Pont-à-Mousson before joining her grandmother Philippa of Guelders.
Who were the husbands of Mary of Guise and when did they die?
Mary of Guise married Louis II d'Orléans, Duke of Longueville, on the 4th of August 1534. He died at Rouen on the 9th of June 1537 leaving her a pregnant widow at age twenty-one.
Why did Henry VIII of England propose to Mary of Guise in December 1537?
Henry VIII of England asked for Mary of Guise's hand in marriage after his third wife Jane Seymour had just died because he told the French ambassador that he needed a big wife.
How did Mary of Guise become regent of Scotland and when did this happen?
Mary of Guise became regent on the 12th of April 1554 at a meeting of Parliament following the death of James V. Henri Cleutin is said to have placed the crown on her head during an uncertain ceremony.
When and how did Mary of Guise die and where was she buried initially?
Mary of Guise died of dropsy on the 11th of June 1560 while fortifying Edinburgh Castle. Her body lay in state in St Margaret's Chapel in Edinburgh Castle before being secretly shipped to France on the 18th of March 1561.