29th July 1565

Mary, Queen of Scots, marries her cousin

Mary, Queen of Scots, was born in 1542, and had been promised in marriage to Dauphin Francis, heir to the French throne, before she turned five. The Dauphin himself was just three. The intention had been to unite the Scottish and French thrones, and thus secure French support in Scotland’s ongoing conflict with England.

Mary moved to France after her fifth birthday and married Francis in 1558, when she was still fifteen. At that point, Francis became king consort of Scotland.

Queen Mary widowed

The marriage was not to last. Francis ascended to the French throne in 1559 when his father was killed in a sporting accident. Despite still being a teenager, Francis was in poor health, and he delegated much of his role to his mother and Mary’s uncles.

Then, less than a year and a half after coming to power, he fainted and died. It remains unclear exactly why, and several theories have been proposed, including poisoning, infection and illness. He was succeeded by his brother, and Mary returned to Scotland in late summer 1561.

Queen Mary marries Lord Darnley

She and ruled as a widow until marrying her cousin, Lord Darnley, in 1565, five months after their second meeting. Their first meeting had been four years earlier when she was mourning the death of her first husband.

Mary was widowed for a second time when Darnley was murdered in 1567. Her decision to marry the man accused of his murder ultimately led to her forced abdication in favour of her son, James VI of Scotland and I of England.