Bloody Mary Research Paper

Mary I was the daughter of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon. She was claimed illegitimate by her father and was forced to sign papers saying that he had never married her mother (Catherine of Aragon). Mary wasn’t allowed to see her mother and was sent away by Henry VIII. She followed the Catholic ways of her mother and became quite religious. Mary was angered that her father was turning Britain into Protestants. When her father finally died, at the age of 55, Mary tried to convince her 10-year-old brother- Edward- to

In July 1559, Mary and Francis assumed the royal titles of King and Queen of France since Henry II had died. Her happiness was short, after she learned the death of her mother in June 1560. Six months later, her husband King Francis II was also dead. Mary was devastated and extremely depressed. In spite of these personal tragedies, Mary chose to return to Scotland although it was a different country from the one she had left 13 years ago. In Mary’s absence the Protestant party had gained power in Scotland by abolishing the authority of the pope and forbidding the celebration of the Mass.

At the beginning of her reign, she made the Church of England the official religion of England and she fashioned her court after that of her fathers. For a woman during that era, Elizabeth was a very daring and smart ruler. For example, she secretly encouraged sailors such as Francis Drake to make raids on Spanish shipping and challenge their naval superiority. When she was a little girl, she was well educated and was able to speak several languages, including French, Spanish, and Latin. In addition, throughout Elizabeth's reign, there was always the threat of hostilities in some form or another. Elizabeth kept the peace between rival leaders of different religions by dominating her court so she could keep the balance of power.2 She was smart enough to come up with a plan which kept the church at bay with their questions of marriage.3 She also calmed the Spanish and the French by entertaining suitors of each respective country; Philip II of Spain and Duke of Anjou of France, but she never married either of them and was therefore known as " the Virgin queen".4 Elizabeth was a Protestant queen who was not always on good terms with most Catholic rulers of Europe. Because of that, there were several assassination plots against her so the Catholics could put Mary, Queen of Scots, in her place. During the 1580's, Elizabeth began to bring her full weight onto the catholic rebels. Hundreds of Catholics died at the stake just as the

Mary's death also had an impact on the diplomatic relationship between England and Spain. The unrest with Spain escalated into full-scale conflict, largely instigated by Mary's execution, which angered king Phillip II of Spain.

England, too, experienced political upheaval. When King Edward VII died in 1553, Protestant ministers sought to prevent his Catholic sister Mary I from succeeding him, and so crowned his cousin, Lady Jane Grey. Nine days later, however, Mary and her supporters gained power and Jane was executed. Mary sought to re-establish Catholicism through the executions of many Protestants, giving her the infamous title of "Bloody Mary." In 1558 her Protestant sister Elizabeth would succeed her, and Protestantism and stability would return to

Introduction: Provides background on Mary Queen of Scots and explains why her execution was controversial

The Elizabethan Era took place from 1558 to 1603. The Elizabethan era is also known as the Golden age and was during Elizabeth I reign. This epoch in English history witnessed many threats and changes in the tide of social, political and artistic life in England. This epoch was during the time of the Renaissance and was an age of exploration and expansion abroad. This was the last period before England joined a union with Scotland.

When Mary was the monarch of Scotland, the Calvinist nobles deposed of her, and she fled to England for safety (Spielvogel 408). Since she was the daughter of Henry VIII’s sister, Mary held a legitimate claim to the throne after Elizabeth. In fact, many Catholics saw Henry’s second marriage to Anne Boleyn as improper, making Mary the more fitting queen for England (Sifakis 1). Seeing opportunity in this woman who “had no intention of altering her faith,” the Catholics plotted to place her on the English throne (Black 68). They took part in many failed assassination plots on Elizabeth, one of them being the Babington Plot of 1586. This nefarious plan held Mary’s controversial involvement, leading to her trial, conviction, and execution (Sifakis 2). With a resolve “to end the threats to her regime,” Elizabeth ended her cousin’s life through a beheading (Spielvogel 408). Both Elizabeth’s decision to get rid of Mary and the construction of religious compromise were Machiavellian because of her pragmatic way of thinking to ensure a successful reign.

Mary Ward was born on January 23, 1585 in North Yorkshire, England to a catholic family. Four years after she was born, in 1589 her family home was burned down in an anti-Catholic attack but she and her sisters were saved by her father. She entered the religious life at the age of 15 by entering the Poor Clare Convent in Saint- Omer in France after feeling a call to a religious life. After a few years, when Mary Ward turned 24 she gathered companions and formed a religious community. However, Church authorities were opposed to the idea because before Mary Ward had gathered women to be active outside of enclosed walls, women would only work in cloistered communities if they wanted to pursue a religious life. Mary was also imprisoned by the English

After Edwards’s death in 1553 his half-sister Mary I (1516-58) became Queen. Mary who was a devout Catholic began to undo the changes that Edward and Henry had started and set the nation back to the Catholic faith. During her reign (1553-1558) hundreds of Protestants, who refused to turn Catholic, were burned at the stake, this led to Mary acquiring the nickname ‘Bloody Mary’ (Steele & MacDonald, 2007).

The problems that might have been caused in their relationship are for a very depressing view on Mary by the society and culture she came from. She would seem lonely and as a result, she may start to regret the marriage and if she had children, the children would also be strongly affected. Frankly, the loss of her status would change her whole life and it is a big sacrifice especially when she grew up learning about her culture and how she attained the particular status if she had married Peter.

In 1555 Mary began burning Protestants, which earned her the nickname 'Bloody Mary'. However Mary's cruelty simply gained sympathy for the Protestants and alienated ordinary people. She simply drove people away from Roman Catholicism. Mary died in 1558.

Mary immediately started passing acts and reforms to bring back the Catholic religion. She also realized, in order to maintain her power she must get married, and she chose Phillip of Spain to be her husband. Many were apprehensive and upset about her choosing Phillip as a husband, but she argued it would be best not only for her, but also for England. However, in 1554, Sir Thomas Wyatt led a rebellion to prevent their marriage, he thought it would cause England to be controlled by Spain. This rebellion was known as the Wyatt’s Rebellion. During this rebellion, 3000 followers marched from Mainstone to West Minister, but they had to surrender to Mary’s troops. Many of the rebels were arrested for treason and hanged and 300 were burned at the stake. This mass execution is what caused Mary to gain her nickname Bloody Mary. Though Mary thought Elizabeth was involved and came close to executing her half-sister, she instead put Elizabeth in the tower.

Sixteenth century England experienced a phenomenon sometimes referred to as the Age of Queens. The decisive power of the country was placed in women’s hands and their reigns were watched with a reasonable doubt. There is contrast of rule in terms of reigns between Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth of England, both of whom were engaged in a protracted struggle for the English throne. Beside the legitimacy of their claims, there are more significant considerations which predestined them to either increase or lose their power. The rule and attitudes of the two monarchs bore significant influence upon the times in which they lived, including social, political and legal precedents which were being challenged and in some cases reversed. The fact that both Queens encountered situations of striking similarity, serves as a suitable example for a remarkable comparison, helping to analyze the lives of the two Queens and how their lives diverged as a result of such encounters and their actions thereafter. They were both Queens, struggling for the throne, they were women as well as rivals; they both had affairs with married men, however, one managed a narrow escape from the disgraceful situation, while the other failed to do so. Mary grew to hate Anne Boleyn, mother of Elizabeth, because he took the position of her mother Catharine as Queen of England. Before Elizabeth came to the scene, Mary was loved and was the only child of King Henry VIII of

Elizabeth’s older half-sister, Mary Tudor came to the throne. Mary, who was Catholic, earned the nickname "Bloody Mary". During the time that Bloody Mary was at the throne she married Philip of Spain, soon to be Philip the second. However Parliament blocked his accession to the English throne. She burned many Protestants at the stake. When rebels wanted to place Elizabeth on the throne Queen Mary had her arrested and sent to the Tower of London and later on to Woodstock. She remained imprisoned for five years until Mary, near death, named Elizabeth her successor. On March 17, 1558, the last Tudor monarch of England ascended the throne.