Mary Queen of Scots, Lord Darnley, and Anglo-Scottish Relations in 1565

In the confused and ultimately tragic story of Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots, the year 1 565 usually appears merely as a prologue. Its events are speedily rehearsed while the audience waits impatiently for the main drama to begin. The celebrated episodes of the Rizzio murder, Kirk o' Field, and Carberry Hill in 1566-7 have all but monopolized the attention of later writers, as they mark the downfall of Mary Stuart, an event of undeniable importance in British history. Too exclusive an emphasis upon this denouement, however, obscures the significance of the events of 1565 and, in particular, the implications of Mary's marriage to Lord Darnley on 29 July.* This episode sharply focused the basic ambiguity within English policy towards Scotland, an ambiguity which had been present ever since Mary's return to her kingdom in August 1561. The Darnley marriage forced the English government to decide between the two attitudes to Scotland which had previously coexisted, albeit uneasily. Faced with this choice, Elizabeth Fs Scottish policy collapsed and English diplomacy was reduced to little more than a series of expedients. This was the central component in a revolution in Anglo-Scottish relations which took place in 1565. The extent of this transformation was considerable. At the beginning of the year, England and Scotland seemed on the point of concluding a marriage alliance designed to bring the two countries together through a future dynastic union; by the closing months of 1565, this state of affairs had been replaced by a deep hostility and, for a moment in the autumn, there had been the danger of war. The harmony which had characterized relations since 1560 was destroyed and English influence at the Scottish court, hitherto dominant, was eclipsed as the diplomatic initiative moved decisively from London to Edinburgh. In the long struggle between England and France for control over Scotland, the revolution of 1559-60 had given the English a major victory

Alliance · Art · Diplomacy · Drama · Economic history · Literature · Political science · Politics · Prologue · Queen (butterfly · Scots · Classics · History · Irish and British Studies · Law · Scottish History and National Identity

• Le Genethliacon Jacobi Sexti Scotorum Regis de George Buchanan

  Aline Smeesters•Renaissance and Reformation•2014

  Add to list