‘The Last Letter of Mary, Queen of Scots’ at the Perth Museum
- Wee Walking Tours
- 3 hours ago
- 14 min read
“En ma fin gît mon commencement.”
“In my end is my beginning.”
-Mary Queen of Scots
A woman sits in a room and awaits her judgement from the English court who has imprisoned her for nearly twenty years. Her weary body has suffered due to the rheumatism that now affects her limbs. As a result, she cannot walk without assistance. Yet, despite her suffering, this woman has never given up on her faith and asserting who she is. Her name is Mary Stuart, and she was once the Queen of Scotland. However, even she can’t stop the tragedy that is about to befall her.
The Trial of Mary Queen of Scots
Mary, Queen of Scots, has just been transferred to Fotheringay Castle. Upon her arrival, she is told that she is to stand trial for attempted assassination of her cousin, Elizabeth, the Queen of England. Mary tries to prevent the sham trial, but to no avail. Ultimately, she accepts the trial because she knows that if she dies without witnesses, the English will do everything they can to ruin her name- including putting her loyalty to her Catholic faith in question. Therefore, she finally relents to a trial. It is October 1586.
Situated in the great hall of Fotheringay Castle, numerous English lords, nobles, and counsellors make up her ‘trial’. Elizabeth is represented symbolically with her royal dais adorned with the arms of England and her empty throne. In a clear slight to Mary (who was born of noble birth and once the queen of France and Scotland), her chair is placed outside the dais and in a lower position than the throne.
The room is filled with various nobles, lords, representatives of the Crown, commissioners, and spectators. One thing is perfectly clear- there is no one to represent, counsel, or assist Mary. She is accused of sanctioning the assassination of Elizabeth, plotting to overthrow the English throne, and conspiring to replace Elizabeth with herself as the monarch.
Over the two-day trial, Mary maintains her composure and defends herself by pointing out that she should have legal counsel, is not English, and not a subject of Elizabeth. As such, she cannot be tried for treason in an English court. Furthermore, she has not been allowed to review the evidence against her (i.e. the supposed letters sent from her to arrange the assassination). In fact, she states, “my innocence does not depend on the reputation, or on the memory, of my secretaries, although I hold them to be honest and sincere. It is possible for letters to be sent to other persons than those to whom they were written, and several things have been inserted in those letters which I did not dictate. If my papers had not been taken from me, and if I had a secretary, I could better refute the accusations brought against me."
Mary also does not refute her claim to the English throne but does make it clear that she has never and never would arrange for Elizabeth to be assassinated. She says, “"I know nothing of any murder or attempt against any one, nor of any plot or invasion of the kingdom. As I have already said, I gave you sufficient warning to beware of some such enterprise, for I was sure that something was in preparation, though I knew not what. It was always hidden from me, as it was well known I should not consent to it, and also because they feared that it would injure me. These conspirators may have used my name to authorise their proceedings and strengthen their cause, but there is no letter written or signed by me; there is no one who has seen such a thing or received it, or who has communicated or spoken with me, and such a thing has been far from my intentions.”
At the end of the trial, Mary demands to be heard in full Parliament and to confer personally with Queen Elizabeth- “who would show more regard to any other queen.” She adds, “"I am ready and willing to give pleasure and do service to the Queen, my good sister, and to employ myself for her and for the good of the kingdom in all that I can, as I love both. I protest that after all that has taken place I desire no evil to any one in this assembly, that I pardon all that you have said or done against me, and that there is not one here to whom I do not desire good, and would willingly give pleasure."
Mary prepares to leave the room and with an air of dignity and grace, she closes by saying to those present that her “cause is in the hands of God.” As she leaves the room, she passes the tables where the lawyers are seated and addresses them with a smile- “you have shown little mercy in the exercise of your charge, and have treated me somewhat rudely, the more so as I am one who has little knowledge of the laws of quibbling; but may God pardon you for it, and keep me from having to do with you all again."
Mary’s Last Days
Mary is surprisingly calm and content during the weeks after the trial while she waits to hear the judgement of her trial. She is joined by her loyal physician, Dr. Bourgoing is surprised by her “cheerful countenance” and comments that he had not “seen her so joyous, nor so constantly at ease, for the last seven years”. Mary provides some context for this during a conversation she has with her keeper (appointed by Elizabeth), Amyas Paulet. Queen Elizabeth has given Paulet instructions to “under semblance of an ordinary conversation, his object was, if possible, to discover some sign of weakness or relenting in his prisoner’s sentiments.”
At one point, Paulet says to Mary, “…every one else is astonished, to see you so calm, under the circumstances in which you find yourself. No living person has ever been accused of crimes so frightful and odious as you are." Mary responds, "I have no occasion to feel troubled or disturbed, my conscience is at rest and I have already answered my accusers. God and I know that I have never attempted nor connived at the death or murder of any one. My conscience is perfectly free and clear on this point, and being innocent, I have rather occasion to rejoice than to be sad, having my confidence in God, the protector of the innocent."
She goes on to say, “In the present matter I am not guilty, as you well know, and I cannot therefore confess it. You will accuse me of what you like, having long had this in view; as I am a Catholic, you wish to treat me as you do the others. I am quite prepared and resolved to die for my religion, and ask for nothing better. I am ready to suffer and endure for the name of God, all unworthy as I am, as have done many holy saints and martyrs, of whom I have read to-day, and whose feast we celebrate."
Paulet tries to deny that Mary’s trial was due to her religion and Mary wisely says, "It is nothing else, but it was necessary to find some other disguise for the measures which had led to this position; but I shall not fare the worse for that. Do not spare me." Paulet declares that he knows nothing of what the lords have done, but that they have found the facts so clear and evident that it is reported that they have given sentence, but he does not know of it. Nothing is certain. And he again urges the Queen to confess.
Mary replies that she knows that she had already been condemned by her judges before the trial and that all they did “was merely for form's sake, to give a colouring of truth to the proceedings, and to gain their ends, in which I am not bound to acquiesce, and I care nothing for what they have done; it is very easy for brigands and robbers, when they are the strongest, to overcome by force those who pass their way. My enemies keep me in prison, and it is very easy for them to dispose of me as they will. They have strength on their side, while I am weak and alone. I would that every one knew how I am treated and how my affairs are managed."
After weeks of waiting, the Commissioners of the trial find Mary guilty of “the hurt, death, and destruction of the Queen of England." A few days later, both Houses of Parliament present an address to Elizabeth asking for the “execution of the sentence against the Queen of Scots.” After what can only be deemed theatrics and knowing the optics of the situation, Elizabeth presents herself as hesitant and sends Lord Buckhurst to Fotheringay to tell Mary the verdict, but that Elizabeth still hasn’t signed the death warrant. Mary believes that her hours and numbered. Unfortunately, she is left to languish for a few more months.
During those last months, her keeper, Paulet, audaciously states that Mary should be thanking Elizabeth for the favours she has bestowed upon her ever since she came to England and especially “in this last affair, in which, he said, she had much to be thankful for."
Mary replies, “For my part, if I have received any favours, I thank her, but I do not see in what they consist. I came into this country under her promise (of assistance). She has kept me a prisoner for eighteen years, and now makes me die, which is the worst that can be done to me."
Undaunted, Paulet goes on to boast of the Queen of England’s ‘kindness’ by saying that she has been a good mother to Mary’s son, James. In what must have been disbelief, Mary says, “I marvel within myself," continued Mary, "how the Queen of England can consider herself a good mother to my son, having always kept him apart from me, and prevented his having friendship with me.” Paulet eventually leaves, frustrated with Mary.
On the 12th of January 1587, Mary writes her last letter to Elizabeth. At one point, Mary writes, “Well, then, I pray God grant you as much happiness in this world as I expect in leaving it, through His mercy, which I beg for myself and for all those who persecute me, and this happiness, of being freed from so many miseries by an innocent death; and I desire to forgive any who otherwise calumniate me and mine, if there be any.... And I hope that by my death, which is so much wished for, you and several others will experience what may be of use, and serve to clear up many things in which God may be glorified.”
She closes the letter to Elizabeth as follows, “I am useless, nor of the special good I wish you, being so near you in blood—seeing that, on the contrary, I serve for a pretext to others who discharge their malice against me and mine for certain reasons, which, as well as my own intentions, I leave to the judgment of the just Judge.—Your sister and imprisoned cousin,
Marye.” Elizabeth never sees the letter as Paulet refuses to send it.
During her last weeks, Mary’s health takes a turn for the worse and she is further crippled by her rheumatism. Her request to have her papers returned so she can write her will is denied as is a visit from a priest to help her prepare for what knows is her impending death.
On the 7th of February 1587, Mary is roused from her sick bed to listen to the commissioners read her death warrant. She is to die the next day at 8:00am. Mary again asks for her own priest to help her prepare for her execution, but Elizabeth has given the commissioners strict orders to deny that request. Mary’s attendants beg the commissioners to hold off on the execution until a time later in the day (rather than morning) so that she has more time to put her affairs in order, but they deny any reprieve.
Mary and her loyal attendants have a quick dinner, and she then sets about arranging for the few items she has left to be given to them in gratitude. After writing a letter to her priest, and with only hours left to live, she writes her very last letter to her former brother-in-law, Henri III, King of France. She heartbreakingly tells him what has transpired and says she is to die a martyr as she is being executed for her loyalty to the Catholic faith. Mary then concludes the letter by asking that Henri provide a pension for her servants and to organise a mass in her name.
The last hours of Mary’s life are spent in prayer.
Closing Remarks
At the end of the day, what needs to be acknowledged is that, yes, Mary was famous for being the Queen of Scotland, but, more importantly, we must remember that she was a human being. That is why we have provided so much of Mary’s last days in this post. We want to convey a bit of how it must have felt for Mary, the person, to have undergone such an ordeal. It also provides context for her last letter.
For this article, our story began upon Mary’s arrival at Fotheringay. However, her direct struggle with Elizabeth started in 1568, when Mary fled the Lords of the Congregation in Scotland who had imprisoned her at Lochleven Castle and forced her to abdicate. She managed to escape Lochleven but was eventually faced with the knowledge that she was not safe in Scotland. In desperation she turned to her cousin, Elizabeth, who had promised her ‘assistance’.
Unfortunately, this was a trap as Elizabeth was paranoid about the fact that Mary had direct Tudor bloodline (she was the granddaughter of Margaret Tudor- Henry VIII’s sister) whereas she came from a marriage that many considered illegitimate. Henry VIII was Elizabeth’s father, but he had ‘married’ her mother, Anne Boleyn, in multiple secret marriages while still married to his previous wife (basically that marriage was what caused Henry to break from the Catholic Church and proclaim himself the head of the Church of England- so he could do what he wanted).
All of that created a woman who constantly felt like her position of power was under threat and not exactly a loving relative to Mary. Elizabeth pretended to promise her help, but the reality was that she wanted to neutralise Mary as a potential threat. Therefore, she imprisoned Mary for nineteen years and claimed that she was doing it as ‘protective custody’. Eventually, the threat of Mary somehow being rescued by the French or Spanish became too much for Elizabeth and her court.
In the years since Mary’s trial and execution, historians believe that Queen Elizabeth’s ‘spymaster’, Francis Walsingham, and his cryptographer, Thomas Phelippes, forged some or all of the alleged letters used as evidence against Mary Queen of Scots. It’s also important to point out that none of the original alleged documents were presented at Mary’s trial- just supposed copies. Ultimately, Walsingham wanted ‘concrete’ evidence to implicate Mary in a plot against Elizabeth, and the forgeries were part of an elaborate entrapment scheme. However, as we heard above, Mary never fell for it and proclaimed her innocence until the very end.
Some like to point out that Elizabeth had hesitated for weeks to sign the death warrant- as if she didn’t want to have her killed. However, the reality is that, as mentioned in Paulet’s conversation with Mary above, Elizabeth was trying to get Mary to confess her guilt so that she could have ‘justification’ for executing her because she didn’t want to look bad. In the end, what Elizabeth really wanted was for Mary put to death in “some secret manner, in which she herself should not be implicated, and without her signing the warrant of execution.” Nevertheless, she eventually signed the warrant and smiled as she handed it over to her secretary, Davison.
Elizabeth also made it clear to Davison that she wanted the warrant to be delivered as secretly as possible. Furthermore, she told him that “the execution could not be in public; it must not be even in the courtyard at Fotheringay, she said, but must take place in the great hall on the ground-floor, and added that she would be troubled no more about the matter. She desired to hear nothing more till all was over.”
However, even at this point (after signing and handing over the death warrant), she still asked Davison, “Would it not be better for me to risk personal danger than to take the life of a relation? But if a loyal subject were to save me from the embarrassment by dealing the blow, the resentment of France and Scotland might be disarmed.” Clearly, she was worried about how it would look for her to kill her own cousin and was looking for someone else to do her dirty work. So, Davison wrote a letter to Mary’s keeper, Paulet, asking him to kill Mary for Elizabeth. While Paulet did want Mary to die by execution, he did not want it to be by his hand and is horrified that he was asked to do so. He refused.
In the end, Mary was provided some consolation as she was finally vindicated in her knowledge that she was being executed because of her religion as she was directly told this by the Earl of Kent after her death warrant was read. Yet, while the words being said out loud most likely provided some solace, Mary had known this to be true the entire nineteen years of her imprisonment. This explains Mary’s motto that opened this post and is what she embroidered on her Cloth of Estate - “In my end is my beginning.” She knew that she would live on in death and become a powerful martyr.
The Last Letter of Mary, Queen of Scots at the Perth Museum
While it is a tragic chapter in history, it is an important one that should be remembered. It is amazing to think that Mary’s last letter still survives all these centuries later and is in the care of the National Library of Scotland. National Library around Scotland is celebrating 100 years of the National Library of Scotland by sharing treasures from its collection with communities around the country, including in Perth. We are fortunate that they have partnered with Perth Museum. In fact, according to Perth Museum, it is “the first time the precious letter has left the National Library in a generation and believed to be the first time it has been seen north of Edinburgh.” Therefore, if you are in the Perth area, we highly recommend that you make sure to visit Perth Museum and their exhibition- ‘The Last Letter of Mary, Queen of Scots’.
The exhibition does a wonderful job of setting the scene with some context of the players of the ‘game’ as seen by the playing cards that identify key historical figures in Mary’s life.
There are also some lovely, embroidered panels that were done by local needleworkers who were inspired by the Marian Hanging- embroidery Mary did while in captivity.
However, the most moving part of the exhibition was, of course, to see the last letter written in Mary’s own hand to her former brother-in-law, King Henri III of France.
You can listen to the letter in its original French. It’s also available to hear in English or Scots. Additionally, they have written copies in those languages for visitors to read. It is nice to see that the Museum has made sure to make the letter accessible in a variety of formats for visitors.
Finally, we want to acknowledge that, in addition to the exhibition itself, another main source for this article was the book, ‘The Tragedy of Fotheringay’ by Mary Monica Maxwell-Scott (the great-granddaughter of Sir Walter Scott and an author in her own right) first published in 1895. Maxwell-Scott wrote the book based on the journal of Dr. Bourgoing, the personal physician to Mary Queen of Scots. All quotes and information about the trial and Mary’s last days were sourced from this book. The eBook is part of the public domain and available on The Project Gutenberg website.
If you would like to read more about Mary, we have also written articles about her birth at Linlithgow Palace, her time at the Palace of Holyroodhouse- in good and bad times, and her harrowing escape from Lochleven Castle. Despite the brief time that Mary was in Scotland, she left a lasting legacy. We are grateful for Dr. Bourgoing, the National Library of Scotland, and Perth Museum for their efforts in making sure that current and future generations know of this.
Until next time- Explore & Discover!
