A NEW book has been published on Mary, Queen of Scots, focusing on the time she spent in captivity in England after being forced to abdicate.
It follows the captive Scots queen all the way to the executioner’s block, through 19 years of “sewing and sedition”, looking for the first time at the lives and loves of those English courtiers responsible for guarding Mary during the period 1568-87.
Imprisoning Mary Queen of Scots: The Men Who Kept the Stuart Queen, published by Pen & Sword Books, was written by Mickey Mayhew, who wrote his PhD thesis about Mary and Anne Boleyn, and is the author of multiple books for both Pen & Sword and The History Press.
Mary’s claim to the English throne made her a mortal enemy of her cousin Elizabeth and set them on a collision course only one would survive.
Mary’s calamitous personal life, encompassing assassinations, kidnaps and abdications, sent her careering into England and right into the lap of Henry VIII’s shrewd but insecure daughter.
Having no choice but to keep Mary under lock and key, Elizabeth entrusted this task to some of the most capable and richest men and women in England – Sir Francis Knollys, Ralph Sadler (prominently featured in Wolf Hall), the Earl of Shrewsbury and his wife Bess of Hardwick, and finally, the puritanical Sir Amyas Paulet.
Pen & Sword says that until now, these nobles have been mere bit-players in Mary’s story.
From Carlisle Castle to Fotheringhay, these loyal subjects all but bankrupted themselves in keeping the deposed Scots queen imprisoned, while fending off countless escape plots – which Mary herself often orchestrated.
With the sort of twist history excels at, it was actually a honeytrap escape plot set up by Elizabeth’s ministers that finally saw Mary brought to the executioner’s block.
The book explains how Shrewsbury and Bess saw their marriage wrecked by Mary’s legendary charms, and how Paulet ended up making a guest appearance on Most Haunted, some several hundred years after his death.
In that theme, the book also covers the appearances of these men and women on film and TV, in novels and also the various other Mary-related media that keeps the legend of this most misunderstood of monarchs so perfectly simmering.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel