Nicknamed and remembered as ‘Bloody Mary’, Mary I’s (1516-1558) reign is often remembered for its turbulent beginning and acts of violence. Yet, Mary herself is so much more than these events. She is classed by many as England’s first Queen Regnant (reigning in her own right).
Born in 1516, Mary was the only child of Henry VIII and Queen Katherine of Aragon to reach adulthood. Her birth, whilst bringing an English Tudor princess to the succession, was overshadowed by her father’s overwhelming desire for a son. Soon, the marriage between her parents deteriorated and Mary was separated from her mother, never to see her again. Yet, values that Queen Katherine had installed in Mary stayed with her throughout her lifetime, particularly Catholicism.
Her adolescence was marked with being sent to and from court, shunned by her father, overshadowed by her siblings and numerous stepmothers. Her relationship with her siblings, Elizabeth and Edward, was often strained, even after their father’s death in 1547, due to religion. Mary was raised a Catholic, whilst the rest of family, and in fact the country, were Protestant. This continued throughout her brother’s reign and was in fact the most likely reason for the succession crisis that followed. Edward was a sickly-king and did not want to hand Mary the crown due to her religious beliefs. When Edward died, the act of succession passed the Crown onto a more distant relative, Lady Jane Grey, famously called the ‘Nine Day Queen.’
Mary’s birth right was being taken from her, surely reminding her of a childhood where this was regularly disputed and overshadowed. This is also largely due to gender and we see here one the first few examples of a female ruler securing an army to seize the capital in defence of her royal lineage. Upon the overthrow of Lady Jane, Mary was crowned Queen in July 1553.
Unusual for both her age and status, Mary was still unmarried upon her accession. As I am sure many of you can guess, this was considered ‘unwomanly’ for the time or ‘not normal.’ Preparations were being made for Mary to marry King Philip II of Spain, although this was a very unliked match in the eyes of the English people. Mary and Philip married in 1554. Despite claims that Mary was very much in love, Philip spent little time in England, often leaving Mary for long periods of time. As Queen she was expected to provide an heir, yet this did not happen. Reportedly, Mary experienced multiple false pregnancies throughout her reign despite her body mimicking signs of pregnancy. This understandably would have left her broken-hearted. It is the things like this that many forget to shed light on Mary.
Her religious policies undoubtedly inflicted a lot of violence throughout England (the burning of many Protestants) and sadly I guess this is what she is mostly remembered for. She died in 1558 leaving no heirs with her sister Elizabeth next in line for the throne. Mary’s life was marked with lots of sadness. She was taken away from her mother, abandoned by her father, in a marriage of unrequited love and had many false pregnancies. Mary is often de-humanised, made out as a monster in a period of extreme religious turmoil and violence. It is my hope that articles like this can help shed some light on the first Queen Regnant and remind people that ultimately, she was a woman struggling too.
For more on Mary’s life check out: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_I_of_England
or Mary Tudor: England’s First Queen by Prof Anna Whitelock