Unknown
James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, c 1535 - 1578. Third husband of Mary Queen of Scots
1566On 19 June 1566 Mary gave birth to Prince James at Edinburgh Castle. Darnley had served his purpose by providing an heir and the Lords were already plotting to remove him from power for denying his role in the murder of Rizzio.
On 10 February 1567 an explosion took place in the house at Kirk o’Field where Darnley was recuperating from an illness. Darnley was found dead in the garden and appeared to have been strangled. Despite a lack of real evidence, the person generally held responsible was James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell. He was a swashbuckling military man who had gained Mary’s trust, although his motives were questionable. He was tried for the assassination but was cleared and within months he and Mary were married.
This tiny portrait is one of a pair commemorating the wedding of James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, and Lady Jean Gordon in 1566. His marriage into the Huntly family made Bothwell one of the most powerful Lords in Scotland. He soon gained influence at the court of Mary, Queen of Scots, who trusted him over other Lords. Yet Bothwell was primarily a swordsman and an adventurer, and his charm only partly veiled his coarse and violent nature. He was part of the conspiracy to kill the queen?s husband, Lord Darnley, and later divorced his wife in order to marry Mary. Instead of stabilising Mary?s position, this marriage unified the other Scottish Lords against her and was the beginning of her downfall. After Mary?s imprisonment Bothwell fled to Norway and died a prisoner in Denmark.
- Credits Purchased 1917
- Medium Oil on copper
- Size Diameter: 3.70 cm
Did you know?
Following her death Mary’s body was embalmed, sealed in a lead coffin and left at Fotheringhay for a five months to prevent loyal Catholics retrieving relics of her as a martyr.
