Chapter 15
The feud between Mary and Elizabeth I began with the latter's father, Henry VIII.
Henry VIII had six wives and three children.
When he was young, the king married Catherine of Spain. At first, the couple had a good relationship, but as time went by, because Queen Catherine had not given birth to a son and only had a daughter, Princess Mary, Henry VIII became increasingly dissatisfied with the marriage. In the end, he divorced the aging and fading Queen Catherine and married his second wife, Anne Boleyn.
Henry VIII's second queen, Anne Boleyn, also bore him only one daughter, who is now Queen Elizabeth I.
At the time, the marriage was not recognized by the Roman Catholic Church. In other words, if Anne Boleyn had any children, they would be illegitimate and would not be eligible to inherit the English throne. After several unsuccessful negotiations with the Roman Catholic Church, Henry VIII simply issued the Act of Supremacy, which sparked the Protestant Reformation in England, and then declared his marriage to Anne Boleyn legal in a Protestant manner.
This second marriage lasted only three years. Anne Boleyn was abandoned by Henry VIII because she could not bear a son. Her fate was even more tragic than that of Catherine from Spain. Henry VIII threw her into the Tower of London and beheaded her. The young Elizabeth was also declared illegitimate by Henry VIII.
Immediately afterwards, the already very old Henry VIII, in order to have a son, quickly married his third wife, Jane Seymour.
This woman did give Henry VIII the son he had always dreamed of, Edward VI, who reigned a few years ago, but her fate was not much better; she died of postpartum infection just a few days after giving birth.
In addition, Henry VIII had a fourth wife who divorced him because of his ugly appearance, a fifth wife who was beheaded for having an affair, and a sixth wife who survived Henry VIII but later died from postpartum infection.
Now, of Henry VIII's three children, Edward VI and Mary I have both passed away without leaving any children, leaving only Elizabeth. However, because her parents were Protestant and Henry VIII declared her illegitimate, the legitimacy of her throne has never been recognized by the Roman Catholic Church, and even European countries have had an ambiguous and distant attitude.
James IV of Scotland—Mary's grandfather—gained the right of his descendants to the English throne by marrying Margaret Tudor, the sister of Henry VIII.
According to the law of succession, if Henry VIII's legitimate descendants were to die out, then Mary would undoubtedly succeed him, making her the most legitimate heir, and no one could find fault with her.
This is why Elizabeth I regarded Mary as an enemy and suppressed her in every way.
As long as Mary lived, she could potentially claim the English throne at any time, posing the greatest danger to Elizabeth.
It's important to understand that when Elizabeth I first ascended the throne, King Henry II of France, an enemy of England, immediately declared Mary the rightful Queen of England and began allowing her to use the English royal coat of arms. If France hadn't been depleted by war at the time, it's likely they would have sent a large army to overthrow the illegitimate Elizabeth, then "helped" Mary obtain the English throne, and then legitimately annexed the British Isles to France through marriage.
She and Elizabeth I became enemies from that time onward, and with the unsuccessful signing of the Treaty of Edinburgh last year, their relationship has completely reached a freezing point.
...
Now, Mary decides to break this ice herself, taking the initiative to reconnect with Elizabeth and at least maintain a facade of friendliness with England.
Dear Cousin Elizabeth:
Cousin, as your neighbor and closest relative, I have always held sincere feelings for you in my heart. However, I used to live in France, and the long distance and communication difficulties caused many misunderstandings between us sisters.
Our biggest disagreement stems from the fact that I was once called Queen of England and Ireland.
But God is my witness, at that time I lived in the French court. Although I had the status and position of a crown princess, I had no real power and was under the control of France.
When my father-in-law, Henry II, for his own selfish desires, ordered me to use the coat of arms of the British crown and to call me Queen of England, I was equally helpless and powerless.
I know that his actions not only hurt your dignity, but also damaged the innate kinship between us, causing me to lose an important cousin.
Now, with the successive deaths of Henry II and Francis II, fate has brought it all to an end.
You may not know this, but when my husband passed away, I had already ordered the removal of the English royal insignia from my coat of arms and used only the Scottish royal insignia that I was entitled to. In all correspondence, I referred to myself only as Queen of Scotland.
I only hope that from now on, we can restore the harmony that should exist between relatives and the friendship between nations. God knows that in my daily prayers to the Lord, I wish you good health and prosperity for the nation.
—Your dear sister Mary
In this overture letter, Mary did not even refer to herself as Queen of Scotland, but instead spoke of their kinship, referring to Elizabeth I as her sister.
Aside from that, the letter conveyed only one important message—Mary would no longer covet the English throne.
Therefore, for the sake of national development, let's end this Cold War.
In fact, according to the way relatives are addressed in later generations, given the generational gap between Mary and Elizabeth I, Mary should have called Elizabeth her cousin. However, according to the customs of England at that time, they should have addressed each other as sisters.
After writing the letter, Mary read it several times to make sure there were no sentences that needed to be changed. Then she picked up her quill pen again and began writing to the Duke of Guise and his two other uncles, wishing them good health, inquiring about the well-being of her cousins, and at the end mentioning the difficulties she had encountered in Scotland, asking for money, supplies, or mercenaries.
Because of her lifelong thirst for power, the Earl of Maurice had become unreliable. Therefore, it was necessary to quickly find a powerful patron to intimidate the Scottish nobility while her position was still unstable.
Duke Giuseppe was such a worthy patron.
...
When the Queen summoned England’s ambassador to Scotland, Randolph, to Holyrood Palace, he was filled with trepidation.
He served as Queen Elizabeth's mouthpiece and eyes and ears in Scotland, a position that was extremely unpopular due to the cold relations between the two countries. He never gained a place in the Scottish court, and even the lords avoided associating with him (although they were quite friendly when it came to bribing these lords with money in private).
Randolph was quite aware of his situation and lived quietly in Edinburgh, never requesting an audience with Mary, Queen of Scots, lest he become disliked.
Randolph imagined many scenarios in his mind: Queen Mary's sarcastic remarks, her harsh rebukes, or even a more serious declaration of war.
But Randolph did not expect that Queen Mary would ask him to deliver a letter from Elizabeth I that signified reconciliation, as well as a diamond ring representing the Queen of Scots' deep affection.
This is truly a stroke of good luck.
If relations between the two countries improve, his life as the ambassador to Scotland will be better, and he won't have to endure people's disdain every day.
Upon realizing what was happening, Randolph immediately bowed deeply and said, "Your Majesty, I am deeply impressed by your kindness and grace. I believe that His Majesty will be equally moved upon reading this letter and will restore our friendship."
“Of course, Your Excellency, I believe that my cousin Elizabeth is just as magnanimous and, like me, eagerly desires the restoration of peace and friendship between our two countries. Please convey to your Queen that from this day forward, I value her favor more than anything else in the world,” Mary nodded and said.
“I will certainly relay his words to His Majesty,” Randolph promised.
The ambassador left Holyrood Palace with great excitement and sent the letter and ring by fast horse to Whitehall Palace in London, where they were delivered to Queen Elizabeth I.
Meanwhile, on the Scottish side, after Randolph left, Mary was immediately greeted by another person who brought bad news into her study.
"The doctors have done everything they can to treat Madam Anna, but she still hasn't escaped death. Her lungs seem to be severely damaged; she's constantly coughing up frothy blood. The doctors suspect a bone spur might have pierced her lung. There's nothing they can do about such an injury; we can only leave it to fate. Her life will end in the next day or two," Albert said.
Suppressing a sigh, Mary asked, "Did the servants call a priest to give her a last confession?"
In this era, if a person does not receive sacraments from a priest before dying, they will believe that they cannot go to heaven and can only fall into hell, thus dying with regrets.
“Yes, the Catholic priest in the chapel heard about this poor lady and personally went to give her a final confession, but this did not bring Lady Anna peace…”
At this point, Albert hesitated, as if he wanted to say something but then stopped.
"Could it be that Mrs. Anna is a Protestant and therefore cannot accept Catholic priests?" Mary asked.
“The old man is indeed a Protestant… but I don’t think that’s the reason. Lady Anna has been struggling to see Your Majesty again, which is very offensive, but I still want to report this to you and ask you to make the decision,” Albert said.
Mary placed the quill on the desk and then went with Albert to the lower rooms of Holyrood Palace, where two maids were taking care of the old woman.
Upon entering the room, a wave of stuffiness and foul odor hit you.
The old woman, who had been tortured, lay motionless in thick blankets.
She looked worse than Albert had described; she was feverish and swollen, and instead of scabbing over, her wounds were festering, giving the room a strange smell.
Two maids sat by the bed. One carefully used gauze to wipe away her sweat and grime. Foam and blood kept gushing from her mouth and nose. Even after wiping it away, it would slowly flow out again, and there was no way to stop it. The other picked up a spoon, put it in her mouth, and fed the old woman a few sips of water.
“Lady Anna, Her Majesty the Queen has arrived,” Albert said reassuringly as he approached.
Upon seeing the Queen arrive, the old woman immediately raised her head and made "ah ah" sounds.
Mary dismissed the maid, then sat down beside the old woman and took her hand.
“You are not a witch. I have declared this to everyone in the name of the King. The people of Edinburgh understand your innocence. Death is the end, but it is also a new beginning. I swear in the name of the Lord, you will go to Heaven, where angels will judge and reward your diligence throughout your life, and allow you to enjoy eternal happiness in Heaven,” Mary said calmly.
As the Queen recounted her story, the old man's expression remained calm for a few seconds before he began to struggle again, his face contorted in pain, even more desperate than before.
Seeing her like this, Mary said, "How about this, I'll say it, and if I'm right, madam, just blink."
"Do you wish to be buried with your husband and son? If so, I will instruct the palace steward to arrange for you to be placed together."
"Are you worried about your other poor relatives? I can give them money so they can live a life free from want."
"If you need a Protestant pastor to give you last confession, I can be lenient and bring one over from Edinburgh."
...
Because she was a Catholic, there were only Catholic priests in the palace, but Mary was willing to fulfill the dying wish of an old man who had been slandered.
The Queen asked several questions in a row, but the old man did not blink. Instead, he became more anxious and pained, but could only utter meaningless cries.
Mary thought for a moment, then considered a possibility and asked, "Are you seeking revenge against John Knox?"
The old man's fingers twitched suddenly, and then he blinked rapidly, his aged eyelids fluttering with tears in his cloudy eyes.
Mary fell silent.
“Then, I swear in the name of the King…” Mary bent down and whispered in the old man’s ear, “...I will make John Knox suffer the punishment he deserves, strip away his hypocritical facade, and make him disgraced and die a painful death.”
Two streams of murky tears finally flowed from the old woman's eyes. She stared at the ceiling for a long time, lost in thought, as if gazing at heaven.
Mary felt her tightly clenched hands lose their grip and then slowly slip away.
...
This is the story of a humble, ordinary person's life and death amidst the grand tides of history and the intertwining of countless brilliant figures.
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