Execution of Mary, Queen of Scots (1587) – What Happened and Why It Mattered

On February 8, 1587, one of the most famous and tragic figures in British history met her end. Mary, Queen of Scots was executed at Fotheringhay Castle in England after nearly nineteen years of imprisonment. Her death marked the end of a turbulent life shaped by power struggles, political intrigue, and the rivalry between Scotland and England. It also set in motion events that would ultimately unite the crowns of the two kingdoms a generation later.

Mary’s execution remains one of the most dramatic and debated events in Scottish and British history. To understand why it happened, it is necessary to look at the extraordinary life that brought her to that moment.

Mary’s story began in 1542, when she became Queen of Scotland at only six days old after the death of her father, James V of Scotland. Scotland was a divided and often unstable kingdom, and the infant queen was quickly sent to France for safety. There she grew up in the French royal court, receiving an education rare for women of her time. She learned languages, music, diplomacy, and the refined customs of European royalty.

In 1558, Mary married the Dauphin of France, who soon became King Francis II. For a brief time, Mary was Queen of both Scotland and France. But her fortunes changed quickly. Francis died in 1560, leaving Mary widowed at only eighteen. With her position in France uncertain, she returned to Scotland in 1561 to rule a country very different from the one she had left as a child.

Scotland had undergone the Protestant Reformation during her absence. The country was now deeply divided along religious and political lines. Mary herself remained Catholic, which made her rule difficult in a largely Protestant nation. Yet for several years she governed with a degree of moderation, attempting to maintain stability despite the tensions surrounding her.

Her personal life, however, would bring crisis. In 1565, Mary married Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley. The marriage quickly deteriorated, and Darnley became unpopular and unstable. In 1567, he was murdered in mysterious circumstances after an explosion destroyed the house where he was staying. Suspicion fell on James Hepburn, Earl of Bothwell, and many believed Mary herself may have known more than she admitted.

Soon after, Mary married Bothwell, a decision that shocked the Scottish nobility and led to open rebellion. The nobles rose against her, and Mary was forced to abdicate in favor of her infant son, who became James VI of Scotland. She was imprisoned but managed to escape in 1568. After a failed attempt to regain her throne, Mary fled south into England, hoping her cousin, Elizabeth I of England, would support her.

Instead, Elizabeth saw Mary as a threat. As a Catholic claimant to the English throne with royal blood, Mary became a focal point for plots against Elizabeth. For nearly two decades, Mary lived under house arrest in England, moved from one guarded residence to another.

During this time, numerous conspiracies emerged in which Mary’s name appeared, whether she was directly involved or not. The most significant was the Babington Plot of 1586, a plan to assassinate Elizabeth and place Mary on the English throne. Letters intercepted by Elizabeth’s spymaster, Sir Francis Walsingham, appeared to show Mary’s approval of the plot.

This evidence sealed her fate. Mary was put on trial in October 1586, accused of treason against a country in which she had never ruled. She defended herself forcefully, arguing that as a foreign queen she could not legally be tried under English law. Nevertheless, she was found guilty and sentenced to death.

Elizabeth hesitated for months before signing the execution warrant. Executing a fellow monarch was unprecedented and dangerous, setting a political and moral precedent that troubled many rulers across Europe. Eventually, however, the warrant was signed, and the order was carried out.

On the morning of February 8, 1587, Mary was led into the great hall of Fotheringhay Castle. Witnesses later described her composure and dignity. She wore a black gown, symbolizing mourning, but beneath it was a crimson petticoat, the color of martyrdom in the Catholic tradition. This choice reinforced how she wished to be remembered.

Mary spoke calmly, prayed, and forgave her enemies. When the moment came, she laid her head upon the block. The execution itself was grim and imperfect, requiring more than one blow to complete the task. Those present were deeply affected, and many later recorded the scene as one of solemn tragedy rather than triumph.

News of Mary’s death spread quickly across Europe. Catholic nations condemned the execution, and even Elizabeth reportedly expressed anger at how the warrant had been carried out, perhaps to distance herself from the political consequences.

In Scotland, Mary’s son James VI reacted cautiously. He formally protested his mother’s execution but avoided open conflict with England. This decision proved politically wise. In 1603, upon Elizabeth’s death, James inherited the English throne as James I of England, uniting the crowns of Scotland and England under one ruler for the first time. In this sense, Mary’s long struggle ultimately led to the dynastic union she had once hoped to achieve.

Mary, Queen of Scots has remained a powerful figure in history, literature, and popular imagination. Some view her as a tragic martyr, others as a flawed and politically naïve ruler, and still others as a capable queen undone by circumstances beyond her control. Historians continue to debate her role in the events that led to her downfall.

What is certain is that her life and death changed the course of British history. Her execution marked the end of one chapter of dynastic rivalry and helped set the stage for the eventual political union of Scotland and England in the following century.

Today, Mary’s story continues to draw visitors to historic sites across Scotland and England, from Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh to the ruins of Fotheringhay Castle. Her life reflects the turbulence of the sixteenth century, a time when religion, politics, and personal ambition were inseparable, and when the fate of nations could rest on the decisions of a single ruler.

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