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Mary Queen of Scots threat - Coggle Diagram
Mary Queen of Scots threat
Who was Mary Queen of Scots
Elizabeth's 1st cousin once removed
Roman Catholic
Daughter of James V, who was the grandchild on King Henry VII
Why was she considered such a big threat to Elizabeth I?
Children
Mary QoS had a child, James, so therefore, she offered more stability for the future monarchy of Englang
Husband
Mary had 3 husbands
King Francis II of France was the most powerful of the three. He was a powerful Catholic ruler and had the potential to attack England
Lord Darnley was dangerous because he also had a decent claim to the throne, he was 3rd in line, after MQoS and his mother. In many Catholic's eyes, he had a better claim to the throne than Elizabeth
Lord Bothwell was a powerful Scottish noble who plotted the death of Lord Darnley, he was the least dangerous out of the three but was the most ambitious for power
Ancestry
MQoS was a direct descendent of King Henry VII, therefore she was the heir to the throne (even though Elizabeth refused so). Mary would attract support from many English Nobles who were keen to gain the favour of the future Queen as Elizabeth hadn't had any childre
Religion
MQoS was a committed Catholic, this meant she would attract support from not only the English Catholics but also all across Europe.
Why did some people think she wasn't much of a threat to Elizabeth?
Husbands
King Francis II was only 14 when they got married and so were unlikely to have children, which they didn't and due to his death at 16, he was never much of a major threat any longer.
Lord Darnley was extremely unpopular amongst many and therefore people thought he wasn't a suitable king of England
Lord Bothwell was not a member of the Royal family and many accused him of forcing Mary to marry him. So his claim to the English throne was quite weak
Ancestry
MQoS's claim was good but it wasn't as strong as Elizabeth's claim to the throne of England as she was a direct child of the previous king, King Henry VIII
Although Mary had children and Elizabeth didn't, people didn't rule out the idea of Elizabeth having children until 1570, which is when it was clear that Mary would not be the heir to the English throne anyway