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Mary Tudor 's Bloody Mary

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“Mary Mary quite contrary. How does your garden grow? With silver bells and cockleshells. And pretty maids all in a row.” This is a nursery that is believed to be associated with Mary Tudor, most commonly known as “Bloody Mary”. Sounds like an innocent nursey rhyme, right? But really, according to Gillies, the garden in the nursery rhyme is a reference to graveyards which were increasing in size, with those who dared to continue to follow the Protestant faith. The silver bells and cockleshells were said to be used as torture devices and the pretty maids mentioned in the nursery rhyme were in rows for guillotines. There are stories out there that dig deeper into the nursey rhyme and tell about the history and background of this nursery rhyme. Mary “Bloody Mary” Tudor failed her duties as queen, due to the forces- some of which were not in her control- effecting her life. Mary Tudor, according to Hope, has been known as a catholic dictator who killed nearly three hundred Protestants, all including men, women, and even children, during her short reign that lasted five years. Jessica Hope states that historians tried to re-evaluate Mary’s reputation and they have argued that Mary deserves more appreciation for her work than previously thought. This shows that Mary Tudor was not a bad person, but she did good things throughout her lifetime. Mary Tudor was born February 18, 1516 in a palace- Palace of Placentia- located in Greenwich, England. Mary was born to King Henry VIII

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