Callander House, Falkirk

 

Visited Callander House in Falkirk yesterday.

Purpose of the visit not involving Mary at all although the house is one with very many Marian connections.

The is very little of the house which Mary would know remaining but rebuilt as a fine Georgian House built in the French chateau style and well worthy of a visit.

The house is now a museum and art gallery with perhaps the main attraction for many being the fine restored and working Georgian kitchen.

Nonetheless a House very closely interwoven in Marian history.

In Mary’s time owned by Alexander, Fifth Lord Livingston who accompanied Mary’s father James V on his journey to France for the marriage to Princess Magdalene.

Shortly after her birth, Mary was betrothed to the future Edward V1 of England by the Treaty of Greenwich, a union initially promoted by the Regent of Scotland, the Earl of Aran but opposed by others.

It was a Callander House that the two parties became reconciled and determined to resile from the Treaty thereby incurring the wrath of the English King Henry V111 and setting in train the ‘Wars of the Rough Wooing’

Lord Livingston’s daughter was one of the ‘Four Marys ‘ who accompanied Mary to France (although not mentioned in the well-known song of the same title). Lord Livingston and his wife were also in the party and Lord Livingston was to die there in 1552.

His son, Lord William Livingston, although he had converted to Protestantism, played a prominent role in effecting Mary’s return as monarch in 1561.

Mary visited Callander House on several occasions, including in 1565 for the marriage of Mary Livingston to Lord Semple and later for the baptism of one of Lord Livingston’s children.

Mary also stayed at Callander on her return from Glasgow accompanied by Lord Darnley immediately before returning to Edinburgh. It was at Callander that the decision was taken than Darnley should not recuperate at Craigmillar Castle as would appear to have been intended but at the ill fated Provost’s Lodgings at Kirk o’ Field.

How and by whom this decision came to be made and the logistics of getting the house ready and what preplanning would have been required for the packing of the cellars of the house with gunpowder has long been debated and no doubt will again arise when the matter is the subject of the address by John Addiman at out Annual Gathering in April.

Ronald Morrison

Anniversary of Mary's Execution

8th. February 2012

The Execution of Mary, Queen of Scots by Harry Payne 1858-1927

To day is the 425^th. anniversary of Mary’s execution at Fotheringhay Castle in Northhamptonshire in 1587

The lines (gender adjusted) of Malcolm in “Macbeth”   speaking of the Thane of Cawdor spring to mind:

"Nothing in her life

Became her like the leaving of it"

There can be no doubt she died with regal dignity and almost certainly sought to die as a Catholic Martyr.

The following is a contemporary account of her execution by Robert Wynkfield (spelling  modernized)

Her prayers being ended, the executioners, kneeling, desired her Grace to forgive them her death: who answered, 'I forgive you with all my heart, for now, I hope, you shall make an end of all my troubles.' Then they, with her two women, helping her up, began to disrobe her of her apparel: then she, laying her crucifix upon the stool, one of the executioners took from her neck the Agnus Dei, which she, laying hands off it, gave to one of her women, and told the executioner, he should be answered money for it. Then she suffered them, with her two women, to disrobe her of her chain of pomander beads and all other apparel most willingly, and with joy rather than sorrow, helped to make unready herself, putting on a pair of sleeves with her own hands which they had pulled off, and that with some haste, as if she had longed to be gone.

All this time they were pulling off her apparel, she never changed her countenance, but with smiling cheer she uttered these words,'that she never had such grooms to make her unready, and that she never put off her clothes before such a company.'

Then she, being stripped of all her apparel saving her petticoat and kirtle, her two women beholding her made great lamentation, and crying and crossing themselves prayed in Latin. She, turning herself to them, embracing them, said these words in French, 'Ne crie vous, j'ay prome pour vous', and so crossing and kissing them, bad them pray for her and rejoice and not weep, for that now they should see an end of all their mistress's troubles.

Then she, with a smiling countenance, turning to her men servants, as Melvin and the rest, standing upon a bench nigh the scaffold, who sometime weeping, sometime crying out aloud, and continually crossing themselves, prayed in Latin, crossing them with her hand bade them farewell, and wishing them to pray for her even until the last hour.

This done, one of the women have a Corpus Christi cloth lapped up three-corner-ways, kissing it, put it over the Queen of Scots' face, and pinned it fast to the caule of her head. Then the two women departed from her, and she kneeling down upon the cushion most resolutely, and without any token or fear of death, she spake aloud this Psalm in Latin, In Te Domine confido, non confundar in eternam, etc. Then, groping for the block, she laid down her head, putting her chin over the block with both her hands, which, holding there still, had been cut off had they not been espied. Then lying upon the block most quietly, and stretching out her arms cried, In manus tuas, Domine, etc., three or four times. Then she, lying very still upon the block, one of the executioners holding her slightly with one of his hands, she endured two strokes of the other executioner with an axe, she making very small noise or none at all, and not stirring any part of her from the place where she lay: and so the executioner cut off her head, saving one little gristle, which being cut asunder, he lift up her head to the view of all the assembly and bade God save the Queen. Then, her dress of lawn [i.e. wig] from off her head, it appeared as grey as one of threescore and ten years old, polled very short, her face in a moment being so much altered from the form she had when she was alive, as few could remember her by her dead face. Her lips stirred up and a down a quarter of an hour after her head was cut off.

Then Mr. Dean [Dr. Fletcher, Dean of Peterborough] said with a loud voice, 'So perish all the Queen's enemies', and afterwards the Earl of Kent came to the dead body, and standing over it, with a loud voice said, 'Such end of all the Queen's and the Gospel's enemies.'

Then one of the executioners, pulling off her garters, espied her little dog which was crept under her cloths, which could not be gotten forth by force, yet afterward would not depart from the dead corpse, but came and lay between her head and her shoulders, which being imbrued with her blood was carried away and washed, as all things else were that had any blood was either burned or washed clean, and the executioners sent away with money for their fees, not having any one thing that belonged unto her. And so, every man being commanded out of the hall, except the sheriff and his men, she was carried by them up into a great chamber lying ready for the surgeons to embalm her.

Ronald Morrison

Happy Birthday Mary

Today is Mary’s birthday.

Happy Birthday, Mary - 469 year old today.

That said it is possible she may have been born not on the 8^th. but on the 7^th. of December (her close advisor and associate Leslie thought so) and it has been argued that perhaps the date of birth was the 7^th. but the announcement held over until the 8^th. to coincide with the Feast day of the Virgin Mary after whom she was named,

Mary though always however maintained her birthday to be the  8^th.

She was of course born in a second floor chamber at Linlithgow Palace which still exists although now roofless. Her mother was Mary of Guise, the birth was probably premature and initially reports were of a weak and sickly child. .

Her father James V had suffered a humiliating defeat at the Battle of Solway Moss on the 24^th. November. After the defeat James spent a few days with his heavily pregnant wife at Linlithgow but then, for whatever reason  moved on to his palace at Falkland.

There only five days later, no doubt disappointed at the news his wife had given birth to a daughter rather than he a son, he “turned his face to the wall and died” uttering  the words “Adieu farewell it cam wi a lass and it will gang wi’ a lass”. The reference is to the Stuart dynasty which had began with the marriage of Walter Stuart to Marjorie Bruce and which was in course to end with the death of Queen Anne in 1714. James must have seen the dynasty as doomed particularly following the death of two earlier sons James and Robert in infancy.

The birth is commemorated by the Society every year with a short  ceremony at  Mary’s tomb at Westminster Abbey (above) when flowers are laid. The ceremony was again held last Saturday.

National Portrait Gallery Re-opening

Was very interested to note from today’s ‘Scotsman’ that the National Portrait Gallery in

Queen Street

will be reopening after extensive refurbishment on the 1^st. of December next. The refurbishment work has been extensive and many portraits not previously in the public domain will now be on show.

Members will of course recall our guided tour of the gallery shortly before it shut  - it hardly seems three years ago now and a return visit must now be very high on the agenda.

According to the ‘Scotsman’ article the oldest item in the gallery is a portrait of Lord Darnley of 1755 by Hans Ewart.

Also on show is of course is what is known as ‘The Sheffield Portrait’ of Mary (above) probably by Rowland Lockey. The portrait was previously thought to have been based on  one currently in Hardwick Hall painted during Mary’s lifetime and this may or may not be the case. The date 1578 appears  and as Helen Smailes puts it in her book “The Queen’s Image” “the significance of the date is not clear but may represent an aspect of James’ policy of rehabilitating his mother’s reputation”.

Also in the exhibition is a rare woodcut which is believed to be the only image made of John Knox during his lifetime.

I think I am also correct in saying that on the façade of the building, remains a range of statues including the only one in Scotland of Mary. As a Society we presently have in hand a project for the erection of a full size statue to Mary, we hope very much at or in the precinct of Holyrood House.

Ronald

Forthcoming Events

Just received the latest edition of the Historic Scotland Magazine and notice two events which might be of interest.

On Sunday 11^th. December at Stirling Castle from 12.30 to 3.30 pm. there is an event entitled;

“Stewart Christmas”

Historic Scotland Members and others are invited to come along and enjoy a very light-hearted and slightly irreverent return to the period of Mary, Queen of Scots and find out what Christmas would have been like in the Stewart Royal Court of the 16^th. century.

Further information telephone 0131 668 8885.

Earlier on Sunday 27^th November there is an event at Craigmillar Castle entitled;

"Darnley must Die"

This is led by historian Allan Burnett and as advertised “he recreates the atmosphere of intrigue and skullduggery leading up to the Craigmillar Bond, a pact to dispose of Mary’s husband Henry Stuart –judge for yourself whether or not Mary was in on the plot”

This seems to be being repeated at 12 noon, 1 p.m. 2 p.m. and 3 p.m.

The above image is used in the Magazine to promote the event.

Why is Darnley dressed up as Harry Lauder and what is Mary proposing with her tickling stick?

Ronald

Bolton Castle

Just back from a week-end break in North Yorkshire. A revisit to Bolton Castle was very much on the agenda but as rather feared closed for the winter until 11th. February next year.

Bolton Castle absolutely dominates the landscape in this part of Wensleydale and above photograph of the Castle  This was taken at approximately 3.30 on a foggy November afternoon and already darkness is beginning to fall and the arc lights which illuminate the Castle so brilliantly and probably light sensitive are on.

Mary was of course a prisoner at Bolton Castle from 16^th. July  1568  until 26^th of January of the following year.

Mary arrived at Bolton with little but the attire in which she had escaped from Scotland and Bolton Castle was ill fitted and ill furnished to house a regal visitor.

All sorts of furnishings were apparently hurriedly borrowed from neighbouring gentry and Elizabeth  would seem to have ordered provision to be made ‘for pewter vessels, brasspots and pans, racks and spits and a copper kettle  for the boiling of beef as well as garden sauces and other necessities incident to dinners” It is also recorded that Sir George Bowes sent her tapestries and turkey rugs to make her stay more comfortable and that the Earl of Northumberland sent venison

Possibly Mary would be more pleased to receive five cart loads of her personal luggage which the castle owner Lord Scrope had persuaded the Earl of Moray to send from Scotland. These included the Cloth of State which Mary set up in the Great Hall.

With Mary at Bolton were Leslie, Herries, the Livingstons, the Flemings, Gavin Hamilton, John Beaton, Bastian Pages and his wife, Mary Seton and Willy Douglas as well as a corps of loyal supporters.

Initially Mary would seem to have been granted a certain degree of freedom and certainly visited Nappa Hall about five miles away the home of the Metcalfes. A few years back we had the hapchance of spending a night at Nappa Hall which at that time did bed and breakfast – not sure if it now does.

It was perhaps at Bolton that Mary’s religious conviction may just have wavered although she later denied it vehemently. Her gaoler Sir Francis Knollys who was the husband of Elizabeth’s first husband Catherine Gray tried hard to convert Mary to Protestantism and boasted of some success claiming that “Mary was growing to a liking of English Common prayer”. If there was indeed any such waiver on Mary’s part it may of course not been not religiously driven but was rather an attempt by Mary to seek the better to ingratiate herself to Elizabeth’s eyes.

Mary was an accomplished horsewomen and there was one report that when out riding she galloped so far ahead of the party as to raise fears of an escape attempt. There was also a report of a suggested escape organized (as at Lochleven) by Willy Douglas whereby Mary was lowered from a window but the attempt was discovered it might appear by Lord Scrope himself.

Whatever. whether because of the above escape attempts Bolton was judged just too close to the Scottish Borders and the following January in the depth of winter Mary and her train were forcibly moved to Tutbury. It would appear that at the time of the journey both Mary and Lady Livingston were ill and had to be placed on a litter for the journey.

We enjoy breaks in North Yorkshire and hopefully can visit again next year.

Ronald

Threat to Hermitage

I was very disturbed to read a press report of proposals for the building of yet more wind turbines, this time in close proximity to Hermitage Castle. We already have far to many of these in the Borders. The proposal is for 20 turbines on a farm near the Castle each over 400 feet high no less (approximately twice the height of the Scott Monument).

Hermitage Castle in Mary’s time was of course in the ownership of Lord Bothwell and it was here that he got involved in an affray with Little Jock Elliot of the Side coming off very much second best, being badly wounded even having to bargain for readmittance to his own Castle.The event of course remembered in the well know Border Ballad "Little Jock Elliot"

"I have vanquished the Queen’s Lieutenant

And garred her trooper’s flee

My name is Little Jock Elliot

O wha daur meddle wi’ me?

Fully a week later Mary, set out from Jedburgh where she was dispensing justice accompanied by among others, Murray Huntly and Maitland. She returned the same day and it has been calculated that at most she could have spent maybe two hours at Hermitage. So much for Buchanan’s assertion;-

　

"being impatient of delay and not able to forbear, notwithstanding the severity of the season, the difficulty of the way, and the danger of robbers she hastened her journey accompanied by such such a company of men as no honest man even of a mean condition would have adventured his life and his goods"

It was of course on her return from Hermitage that Mary became gravely ill and nearly died.

Hermitage Castle has a stark striking beauty on a bleak landscape made beautiful by the very forcefulness of its impact and the splendour of its isolation .

So little has changed since this grim edifice was built in the thirteenth century by William de Soulis whose descendant suffered death by being rolled up in sheet of lead and placed in a boiling pot and many have shivered on entering its portals or even viewing from a far. There can be few castles anywhere more imposing or forbidding.

All of this could be lost if these proposals are to go through - shibboleths to cheap energy, monstrous obtrusions on the landscape, highly subsidised, forcing on all of us increased fuel bills and of course grossly inefficient, not operating when the winds fails to blow, usually the coldest days of the year or even when the wind blows too strongly.

Historic Scotland has said "Hermitage is of national importance, one of the great mediaeval fortresses of Scotland and the building of the turbines would have a significant impact on its setting".

Clan Armstrong Trut is urging members and supporters to lodge their objections and I personally will be doing so. I hope others will do likewise. See- . Http://www.armstrongclan.org.uk/pdfs/letter.pdf

Ronald Morrison