Mary Queen of Scots and the Murder of Lord Darnley [Paperback]

Alison Weir (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2005

On the night of 10 February 1567 an explosion devastated the Edinburgh residence of Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley, second husband of Mary, Queen of Scots. The noise was heard as far away as Holyrood Palace, where Queen Mary was attending a wedding masque. Those arriving at the scene of devastation found, in the garden, the naked corpses of Darnley and his valet. Neither had died in the explosion, but both bodies bore marks of strangulation. It was clear that they had been murdered and the house destroyed in an attempt to obliterate the evidence. Darnley was not a popular king-consort, but he was regarded by many as having a valid claim to the English throne. For this reason Elizabeth I had opposed his family's longstanding wish to marry him to Mary Stuart, who herself claimed to be the rightful queen of England. Alison Weir's investigation of Darnley's murder is set against one of the most dramatic periods in British history. Her conclusions shed a brilliant new sight on the actions and motives of the conspirators and, in particular, the extent of Mary's own involvement.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Mary, Queen of Scots (1542-1587), has for centuries fascinated historians and the general public, her life the stuff of Hollywood myth, involving murder, rape, adultery, abdication, imprisonment and execution. In bestselling historian Weir's (Henry VIII, etc.) able hands, we see the young Catholic queen ruling over Protestant Scotland and a group of unruly nobles. Mary's second husband, Lord Darnley, participated in the 1566 murder of Mary's favorite adviser, David Rizzio, after which Mary and Lord Darnley became estranged. Darnley himself was murdered the next year, and some historians have claimed that Mary plotted his death so she could marry her lover, Bothwell. But Weir argues convincingly that the evidence against Mary is fraudulent, part of a coverup initiated by rebellious lords. Weir tells how and why Darnley was killed, and, shockingly, reveals that Bothwell, whom Mary did marry, was one of the murderers. Mary's lords took up arms against her, and she was forced to abdicate, fleeing to England, where she expected her cousin Queen Elizabeth to help her regain her throne. Instead, Mary was held captive for 16 years and finally beheaded for plotting Elizabeth's assassination. Mary could not hope for a better advocate than Weir, who exhaustively evaluates the evidence against her and finds it lacking. Mary's ultimate sin, according to Weir, was not murder but consistently "poor judgment," especially in choosing men. This is entertaining popular history that will satisfy fans of Weir's previous bestsellers. 16 pages of color illus.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

*Starred Review* Weir, a popular British historian and the author of, most recently, Henry VIII: The King and His Court (2001), visits one of the most intriguing murder mysteries in European history. Mary, Queen of Scots, failed as sovereign of her realm and even failed to save her own life--eventually sent to the executioner's block by her much more practical second cousin, Queen Elizabeth I of England. Married as a child to the dauphin of France, Mary was widowed early and, while still only a teenager, returned to rule over her Scottish kingdom, which she had inherited as an infant. Mary then married her cousin Lord Darnley, who was also a cousin of Queen Elizabeth. Handsome but dissolute and insufferably arrogant, Lord Darnley alienated nearly everyone in Scotland, including, very quickly into his marriage, Queen Mary herself. In a plot that was "ill-conceived, careless and staggeringly amateurish," Lord Darnley was murdered, "but the identity of the person or persons responsible is surrounded by great mystery." To this day, establishing the identity of the perpetrator proves difficult, but Weir goes to great lengths to isolate the clues and marshal them into a convincing indictment. No stone is left unturned in her investigation, and despite its detail, her book is as dramatic as witnessing firsthand the most riveting court case. Naturally, much of Weir's focus is on the question of Queen Mary's complicity in her husband's death. The author concludes that the "bulk of evidence against Mary is flawed," and ultimately Mary, Queen of Scots, is to be regarded as "one of the most wronged women in history. " Brad Hooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 640 pages
• Publisher: Pimlico; First edition & printing in this form edition (September 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0712664564
• ISBN-13: 978-0712664561
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,987,328 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Alison Weir is the New York Times bestselling author of the novels Innocent Traitor and The Lady Elizabeth and several historical biographies, including Mistress of the Monarchy, Queen Isabella, Henry VIII, Eleanor of Aquitaine, The Life of Elizabeth I, and The Six Wives of Henry VIII. She lives in Surrey, England with her husband and two children.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 47 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Mary, Mary Quite Contrary, May 20, 2003

By 

P A Brown (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mary, Queen of Scots and the Murder of Lord Darnley (Hardcover)

Alison Weir's "Mary Queen of Scots and the Murder of Lord Darnley" is not the best of her popular histories, but it is still a well-written, copiously researched piece that despite its length goes along at a brisk pace. Weir defends her decision to write a detailed set-up to the murder of Darnley from the outset, and does so in great detail, most of it truly pertinent to the case.

However, what it comes down to -- as it so often does with Mary -- is the question of the Casket Letters. Weir discounts their authenticity vehemently and exonorates Mary of any complicity in her husband's death. This begs the big issue of Mary's character as a ruthless schemer, brought up in Machiavellian France, losing her head over plots against Elizabeth. Weir makes a case here, but does not convince nor provide new interpretations of old evidence.

If you are a Marian, this book will add ample fuel to your fire. If you are not, the last sentence will make you gasp in righteous indignation.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Balanced and thorough, but a little dry, October 4, 2003

By 

Mark Snegg (Boone, NC USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mary, Queen of Scots and the Murder of Lord Darnley (Hardcover)

This is not an introductory-level book. I would only recommend it for those who already have a reasonably good knowledge of the period. The book more-or-less assumes that you are already familiar with the issues surrounding the succession to the English throne in the 16th century, that you already know the royal family trees, that you understand something of the Catholic-Protestant conflicts of the time, that you know who William Cecil and Robert Dudley were, etc. It's not light reading, and it focuses in depth on only one specific issue.

The general impression of Scottish politics at this time is of dozens of ruthless, power-seeking noblemen all changing sides, lying, scheming, and double-crossing each other at a rapid rate. The numerous documents relating to Darnley's murder (of which the Casket Letters are only a small, though vital, part) are almost all filled with contradictions, inconsistencies, blatant omissions, deliberate distortions, and attempts to blame or clear specific individuals; and are closely tied to political, religious or financial interests. To try to find the truth in this whole mess is like cleaning the Augean stables. Weir has done about as good a job as anyone could, in analyzing everything logically and looking at it in the light of common sense. I think that this book makes a real contribution to the topic.

Weir says about her conclusion, "Even after extensive research, I believed, as I began to write this book, that Mary was guilty. But when I came to analyse the source material in depth, it became increasingly obvious that such a conclusion was not possible." She makes a good, clear, well-reasoned, consistent case, always referring back to the original sources and weighing them carefully.

Mary comes across as politically naive and prone to major errors of judgment. On many occasions she was also physically very ill and mentally close to a nervous breakdown. She was often at the mercy of the 'wolf-like earls' surrounding her, but it must also be said that she tried (unsuccessfully) to play a double game on various occasions, saying one thing to one person and the opposite to someone else.

I have to say that, even though the book is well written, I didn't find it all that enjoyable. There wasn't a single person in it that I could really identify with or sympathize with - not even Mary. I think that this is not so much a reflection on the author, as on the unappealing people and circumstances she has chosen to write about. I've thoroughly enjoyed several of Alison Weir's other books and the writing and scholarship here is up to the same high standard. It's just that the subject matter is a bit dull.

I found myself not really caring whether Morton was lying to Maitland, or whether Moray was manipulating Mar and Morton, or whether Maitland was trying to betray Mary and Moray, or whether it was all the other way round this particular month. After chapters of this kind of thing, it became a bit much. Like the Earl of Sussex, I was disgusted by "the inconstancy and subtleness of the people with whom we deal."

Darnley himself was an extremely unpleasant character - arrogant, spoiled, stupid, self-centered, superficial, devious, and untrustworthy - and his death left most people cold. Elizabeth I, Darnley's relative, wrote to Mary after his murder, "I cannot conceal that I grieve more for you than for him."

Unless you have some special interest in the issue of Darnley's murder, I would recommend that you rather try 'The Life of Elizabeth I' or 'Henry VIII, the King and his Court', or one of the other excellent books by Weir.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another Fine Weir History, May 13, 2003

By 

Ricky Hunter (New York City, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mary, Queen of Scots and the Murder of Lord Darnley (Hardcover)

Mary, Queen of Scots and the Murder of Lord Darnley by Alison Weir is exactly what the title promises. That should not be a surprise but, as the book is almost six hundred pages long, it is a bit suprising. I was expecting much more tangential information to fill out the story but the author has kept the focus sharp and drives the narrative forward in a clean straight line. This is everything one will ever need to know about the murder of Lord Darnley and in that respect the book is entertaining, informative and will be a wonderful addition for all Alison Weir fans. The only caveat is that the book could have used a little more editing in spots, particularly where the author drives home her points repeatedly. This is not the best Tudor-period history book that Alison Weir has written , of which there are many and all are recommended highly, but is still much better than most out there.