Bodleian Library

The manner of the Scottish Queen's execution performed the 8th of February 1586 [1587] in the great hall within the Castle of Fotheringham.

The said Scottish Queen being attended by the sheriffs and supported by two of Sir Amias Paulet's gentlemen, came out of her chamber down into an entry next to the hall about 10 of the clock, at which place the Earl of Shrewsbury, the Earl of Kent, commissioners for the execution, with the two governors of her person, and divers knights and gentlemen, justices of the peace within the County of Northampton, going out of the hall did meet her, where they found one of her servants named Melvin kneeling on his knees uttering these words, "Madam, it will be the sorrowfullest message that ever I carried when I shall report that my Queen and mistress is dead." Then the Queen of Scots weeping answered him, "You ought to rejoice rather than weep, for that the end of all Marie Stuard's troubles is now come; thou knowest, Melvin, that all this world is but vanity and full of troubles, but carry thou this message unto my son, and tell my friends that I die a true woman to my religion, true Scottish and true French. God forgive them that have long desired my end, but God, the true Judge of all secret thoughts, knoweth my mind, how that ever it hath been my desire to have Scotland and England united together. But commend me to my son once again, and tell him that I have not done anything that can be prejudicial to his state, and say unto him from me that he trust not too much to practices and policies, for practices and policies will have an end. Farewell." And kissing him she bade him pray for her. Then she turned her face to the Lords, the commissioners, and told them she had certain requests to make unto them, one was for a sum of money to be paid to one Curle her servant; secondly, that all her poor servants might enjoy that quietly which by her will and testament she gave them; next, that they may be all well entreated and sent home safely and honestly into their countries. "And this as I crave so do I conjure you, my Lords, to do." Answer was made by Sir Amias Paulet. "Your grace need not to make any doubt of the not performance of your request, for I am sure they shall be well used." "I have," said the Queen of Scots, "another request to make unto you my Lords, which is that you would suffer my poor servants to be present about me at my death, that they may report when they come into their countries how I died a true woman to my religion." Then my Lord of Kent, one of the commissioners, answered, "Madam, it cannot well be granted, for that it is feared lest some of them would with speeches both trouble and grieve your grace and disquiet the company of which already we have some experience, or seek to wipe their napkins in some of your blood, which is not convenient." "My Lord," said the Queen of Scots, "I will give my word and promise for them that they shall not do any such thing as your lordships have named. Alas! poor souls, it will do them good to bid me farewell. I hope your mistress, being a maiden Queen, in regard of womanhood will suffer me to have some of my own people about me at my death, and I know she hath not given you so straight a commission but you might grant me more than this if I were far meaner than I am." And then seeming to be much grieved, with some tears, uttered these words: "You know that I am cousin to your Queen, and descended from the blood of Henry the 7th, and have been a married Queen of Scotland." Where upon some consultation they granted that she might have some of her servants according to her request, and therefore they desired her to make choice of some 6 of women and men. Who presently said that of her men she would have Melvin, her apothecary and physician, and one other old man beside; and of her women, those two that did lie in her chamber. After this she being supported by the two gentlemen aforesaid, and accompanied with the lords, knights, and gentlemen above named, and the sheriffs going before her out of the entry into the great hall, her countenance careless, importing rather mirth than mourning, and so with silence she went up to the scaffold which was prepared for her in the hall, being two foot high and twelve foot broad, with rails round about hanged and covered with black cotton. Then having the stool brought her she sat her down, by her on the right hand on two stools the Earl of Shrewsbury and the Earl of Kent, her majestie's commissioners; on the left hand stood Mr. Thomas Andrewes, sheriff, and before her the two executioners; round about the rails stood the knights and gentlemen and the halberdiers, and without the rails directly before her stood Mr. Doctor Fletcher, Dean of Peterborough. Then silence being made the Queen's majesty's commission for the execution of the said Queen of Scots was openly read by Mr. Beale, clarke of the county, and after that these words pronounced by the assembly, God save the Queen. During the reading of which commission the said Queen of Scots used silence but listed unto it with small regard, as if it had not concerned her at all, and with a cheerful countenance using as much strangeness in word and deed as if she had never known any of the assembly or had been ignorant of the English language. Then Mr. Dean of Peterborough, bending his body with great reverence, began to utter his exhortation, beginning thus, "Madam, the Queen's most excellent majesty," etc., as it is before written; and uttering these words three or four times, she said, "Mr. Dean, Mr. Dean, trouble me not; I am settled and persuaded in the Catholick Roman faith and mind to spend my blood in defence of it." Then Mr. Dean said, "Madam, lay aside those unclean dregs of superstition which you have about you, and repent you of your sins and settle your faith only on Jesus Christ by him to be saved." Then she answered again and again, "I am settled and resolved in the Catholick Roman faith, and am purposed therein to die." Then the Earls of Shrewsbury and Kent, perceiving her so obstinate, told her that since she would not hear the exhortation began by Mr. Dean, we will pray for your grace that if it stand with God's will you may have your heart lightened even at the last hour with the true knowledge of God. Then she answered: "If you pray for me, my Lords, I will thank you, but to join in prayer I will not, your prayers will do me no good, for that you and I am not of one religion." The Lords called for Mr. Dean, who, kneeling upon the scaffold staires, began this prayer:—

A Prayer

All the assembly except the Queen of Scots and her servants saying after him, during the time of which prayer the Queen of Scots, sitting upon her stool, having about her necke an Agnus Dei, in her hand a Crucifix, at her girdle a pair of beads with a medal at the end of them, and a Latin primer in her hand, began with loud and fast voice to pray in Latin, and in the midst of her prayers she slided off her stool, and kneeling said divers Latin prayers, and after the end of Mr. Dean's prayer she kneeling prayed in English to this effect—for Christ's poor afflicted Church, and for an end of all their troubles, for her son that he might prosper and fear God, and for the Queen that she might prosper and serve God aright; she confessed that she hoped to be saved by the blood of Christ, at the foot of whose crucifix she would shed her blood. Then said my Lord of Kent, "Madam, settle Christ Jesus in your heart and leave these trumpery things." She prayed that God would avert his wrath from this Island, and that God would give her grief and forgiveness for all her sins. These with other prayers she made in English, saying she forgave her enemies with all her heart that had long sought her blood, and desired God to convert them to the truth, and in the end of her prayer she desired all the company of heaven to make intercession for her, and so kissing her crucifix and crossing herself said these words, "Even as the arms of Jesus are spread here upon the cross, so receive me unto thy mercy and forgive me all my sins." Her prayer being ended the two executioners, kneeling on their knees, desired her grace to forgive them, who answered, "I forgive you with all my heart, for now I hope you shall make an end of all my troubles." Then they, with her two women keeping her up, begin to disrobe her of her apparel. Then she letting fall her crucifix, one of the two hangmen took from her neck the Agnus Dei, which she, laying hand on, gave it to one of her women, and told one of the executioners that he should be answered money for it. Then she suffered her two women to disrobe her of her chain of pomander beads and all other her apparel most willingly, and with joy rather than with sorrow helping to make unready herself, putting on a pair of sleeves with her own hands which they had pulled off, and that with some haste, as though she longed to be gone; all the time they were putting off her apparel she never changed her countenance, but with smiling cheer she uttered these words—That she never had such women to make her unready, and that she never put off her clothes before such a company. Then she being stripped of all her apparel saving her petticoat and kirtel, her two women began to cry and lament, then she turned her to them, and embracing them, said these words in French: "Ne cry point pour moi. Ja promys pour vous." And so crossing and kissing them both she told them that they had more cause to rejoice than to weep, for that now they should see an end of their mistress's troubles. Then she with a smiling countenance turning to her men-servants, as Melvin and the rest standing upon the bench near the scaffold, crossing them with her hand bade them farewell, and bade them pray for her until the last hour. This done she went alone to the block and kneeled down, then one of her women, having a corpus cloth lapped three-corner-wise, kissing it, put it over her face and pinned it fast to the caul of her head, and so kneeling upon the cushion most resolutely and without any token of the fear of death she spake aloud certain verses of the Psalms in Latin. "In te, Domine, confido, non confundes in eternum." Then groping for the block she laid down her head, putting her chin over the block with both her hands under it, which had been cut off had they not been preseen. Then lying upon the block and stretching out her body, she cried aloud, "In manus tuas Domine," etc., three or four times, then one of the executioners kneeling held her down by the middle and the other gave the stroke, missing her neck cut into the bone of the head behind, but she moved not, and at the second time he cut off her head save only one sinew, which, being sawed asunder with the axe, lifted up the head to the view of all the standers by and bid God save the Queen. And the Dean said, "And so perish all her enemies." Her head was grey as one of 70 years of age, polled very short, her face being so much altered immediately from the form she had when she was alive as few could remember for her dead face; she gasped after her head was cut off by the space of half a quarter of an hour, and after, the body lying there headless bleeding, my Lord of Kent standing by it said with a loud voice, "This be the end and reward of all that hate the gospel and her Majesty's government." Then one of the executioners putting off her stockings, her little, waiting dog was got under her clothes, which could not be gotten forth but by force, which afterwards came and lay betwixt her head and her shoulders, which being imbrued with her blood was carried away and washed, and the executioners departed with money for their pains, and not having any one thing that belonged to her, either of her apparel or any other thing that was hers. And so the dead body and the head was carried by the Sheriff and his men into the great chamber, lying there ready for the chirurgeons to embalme her. Finis.

8th February 1857. The manner of the execution of Mary Queen of Scots, anno 1586 [1687], the 8th of February, in the presence of such whose names be underwritten.

First, after she was brought down by the Sheriff to the place prepared in the hall for the purpose, by the command of us the Earls of Shrewsbury and Kent, her Majesty's commission was openly read, and then, according to a direction given before to Mr. Doctor Fletcher, Dean of Peterborough, he was willed to use some short and pithy speech which might tend to admonish her of the dreariness of her death and the only means of salvation in Christ Jesus. As soon as he began to speak she interrupted him, saying she was a Catholick, and that it was but a folly, being so resolutely determined as she was, to move her otherwise, and that our prayers would do her little good. Nevertheless a prayer was read by the said Dean, which was pronounced (sic) by all the assembly, That it would please God if it were His will to send her His Spirit and true repentance to bless her Majesty and confound her enemies. During which time of prayer she, being come down with many superstitions, crosses, and a pair (praier) of beads, prayed also aloud. When the Dean had done then she openly pronounced a prayer to this effect: To beseech God to send her His Holy Spirit, and that she trusted to receive her salvation in His blood, and of His grace to be received into His kingdom. She besought God to forgive her enemies as she forgave them, and to turn His wrath from this Island, to bless the Queen's Majesty that she might serve Him, likewise to be merciful to her son, and to have compassion of His afflicted Church, and though she was not worthy to be heard, yet she had a confidence in His mercy, and prayed all the saints to pray unto her Saviour to receive her. After this, turning aside towards her servants, she desired them to pray for her that her Saviour would receive her. Then upon petition made by the executioners, she pardoned them, and said she was glad that the end of all her sorrows was so near, then she misliked the whining and weeping of her women, saying that they ought rather to thank God for her resoluteness, and so kissing them willed them to depart the scaffold, and again with a cross, with her hands towards her said servants, she bade them farewell, and so resolutely kneeled down, and having a kerchief bound over her eyes, laid down her neck, whereupon the executioners proceeded, she repeating these words, "In manus tuas Domine commendo spiritum meum," and certain other verses of the Psalms.

The names of them that were present at the execution:—

Ea. Shrewsbury

Ea. Kent

Am. Paulett

R. Knightley

R. Wingfeild

R. Beale

Th. Andrewes

Th. Montague

Jo. Wingfild

Jo. Crues

Finis.