Books with title Queen of Scots

One of the most controversial characters of Elizabethan era was Mary Queen of Scots, Queen Elizabeth's second cousin once removed. Mary was the granddaughter of Margaret Tudor, Henry VIII's sister, which made Mary a claimant to the English Crown as well. Moreover, her Catholicism made Mary the true and rightful Queen of England in the eyes of many Catholics and The Vatican. Mary's first marriage to the Dauphin of France had made her the queen consort of France, but his early death and their lack of issue had made it untenable for Mary Stuart to remain in France. Upon returning to Scotland, she married her cousin and gave birth to James VI. Mary Stuart, exhorted by her Catholic supporters, had claimed Elizabeth's crown. Eventually she was imprisoned for nearly two decades and subsequently executed for plotting against the Queen, actions that brought about scorn for centuries. As the preface to Abbott's biography puts it: "Of the unfortunates of history, few touch our sympathies so deeply as Mary Queen of Scots, though perhaps in so doing we allow her beauty, her grace and her rare accomplishments to influence us too strongly, for history cannot acquit her of grave error. Half French by birth and wholly French by education, she dazzled the brilliant court of which she became queen, when suddenly her gorgeous diadem vanished, and she was torn from her beloved France to be thrust upon stern and rugged Scotland. A foreigner to the land of her birth, she commenced a series of missteps, followed exultantly by her watchful rival on the English throne; and, at last, driven from her throne by her outraged subjects, she cast herself blindly upon Elizabeth's generosity. That generosity was Fotheringay."

Mary, Queen of Scots (1542 – 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was queen of Scotland from 1542 to 1567 and queen consort of France from 1559 to 1560. Mary, the only surviving legitimate child of King James V of Scotland. She spent most of her childhood in France while Scotland was ruled by regents, and in 1558, she married the Dauphin of France, Francis. He ascended the French throne as King Francis II in 1559 until his death in1560. Widowed, Mary returned to Scotland. In 1567, she was forced to abdicate in favour of James, her one-year-old son. After an unsuccessful attempt to regain the throne, she fled southwards seeking the protection of her first cousin Queen Elizabeth I of England. Mary had previously claimed Elizabeth's throne as her own. Perceiving her as a threat, Elizabeth had her confined in a number of castles. After eighteen and a half years in custody, Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinate Elizabeth, and was subsequently executed.

Although Mary Stuart became Queen of Scotland only a few days after she was born, she lived in her native land for only six years. Six years, however, was long enough for her often tragic life to become the stuff of legends. Mary was both a victim of her times, particularly the religious conflict that was raging across Europe as well as her own bad decisions, and her life story serves as a dramatic contrast to the much more successful reign of her distant cousin Elizabeth Tudor to the south—the woman who eventually ordered her beheading. Mary Stuart was an intriguing woman who lived in a fascinating time and this new biography brings both the biography and the era alive for a new generation of readers.

Queen Mary Stuart was one of the most beloved and controversial women in Scottish history. The granddaughter of King James IV and his wife Margaret Tudor, Queen Mary's status as heiress-apparent to Queen Elizabeth's throne in England paired with the violence of the Scottish Reformation set the stage for one of the most dramatic and poorly understood lives of the 16th century. Mary Queen of the Scots tells Mary's true story, focusing primarily on her reign as queen of Scotland, celebrating her life more than her death and showing us all why she was truly a woman ahead of her time.Features a detailed timeline, a list of Latin prayers with their English translations, and the lyrics to all four featured period songs performed in the book, including "Depairte, Depairte" (1545) written in Old Scot.

As lady-in-waiting to Mary, Queen of Scots, the beautiful Ginette - known as Jenny - is the young queen's closest childhood friend. Growing up in the elegant but ruthless French court, surrounded by enemies and traitors - not least the jealous, manipulative Catherine de Medici, and Mary's own scheming half-brother, James - Jenny has always been fiercely loyal to her mistress. But when she overhears a mysterious whispered plot, closely followed by several unexplained deaths at court, she puts her own life in danger and turns spy for Mary.Jenny quickly realises not a soul at court can be trusted, and when she and Mary return to their Scottish homeland for Mary to claim her throne, they face even greater peril. Desperate to protect her friend from those who would slit her throat to steal her crown, while battling her feelings for the charismatic nobleman Duncan Alexander, Jenny becomes embroiled in a dangerous web of secrets, betrayals and lies.

TRAVELERS who go into Scotland take a great interest in visiting, among other places, a certain room in the ruins of an old palace, where Queen Mary was born. Queen Mary was very beautiful, but she was very unfortunate and unhappy. Every body takes a strong interest in her story, and this interest attaches, in some degree, to the room where her sad and sorrowful life was begun. The palace is near a little village called Linlithgow. The village has but one long street, which consists of ancient stone houses. North of it is a little lake, or rather pond: they call it, in Scotland, a loch. The palace is between the village and the loch; it is upon a beautiful swell of land which projects out into the water. There is a very small island in the middle of the loch and the shores are bordered with fertile fields. The palace, when entire, was square, with an open space or court in the center. There was a beautiful stone fountain in the center of this court, and an arched gateway through which horsemen and carriages could ride in. The doors of entrance into the palace were on the inside of the court. The palace is now in ruins. A troop of soldiers came to it one day in time of war, after Mary and her mother had left it, and spent the night there: they spread straw over the floors to sleep upon. In the morning, when they went away, they wantonly set the straw on fire, and left it burning, and thus the palace was destroyed. Some of the lower floors were of stone; but all the upper floors and the roof were burned, and all the wood-work of the rooms, and the doors and window-frames. Since then the palace has never been repaired, but remains a melancholy pile of ruins. The room where Mary was born had a stone floor. The rubbish which has fallen from above has covered it with a sort of soil, and grass and weeds grow up all over it. It is a very melancholy sight to see.

As lady-in-waiting to Mary, Queen of Scots, the beautiful Ginette - known as Jenny - is the young queen's closest childhood friend. Growing up in the elegant but ruthless French court, surrounded by enemies and traitors - not least the jealous, manipulative Catherine de Medici, and Mary's own scheming half-brother, James - Jenny has always been fiercely loyal to her mistress. But when she overhears a mysterious whispered plot, closely followed by several unexplained deaths at court, she puts her own life in danger and turns spy for Mary.Jenny quickly realises not a soul at court can be trusted, and when she and Mary return to their Scottish homeland for Mary to claim her throne, they face even greater peril. Desperate to protect her friend from those who would slit her throat to steal her crown, while battling her feelings for the charismatic nobleman Duncan Alexander, Jenny becomes embroiled in a dangerous web of secrets, betrayals and lies.