"Mary Queen of Scots," by Jacob Abbott, provides a detailed and fascinating biography of an important woman in world history. Mary I (also known as Marie Stuart) reigned as queen of Scotland from 1542 to 1567 A.D. She was the only surviving legitimate child of King James V. She was six days old when her father died and she was crowned nine months later. In 1558, she married Francis, Dauphin of France, who ascended the French throne as Francis II in 1559. Mary was not Queen of France for long; she was widowed on 5 December 1560. After her husband's death, Mary returned to Scotland, arriving in Leith on 19 August 1561. Four years later, she married her first cousin, Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley. Their union was unhappy and in February 1567, there was a huge explosion at their house, and Darnley was found dead, apparently strangled, in the garden. She soon married James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, who was generally believed to be Darnley's murderer. Following an uprising against the couple, Mary was imprisoned in Loch Leven Castle on 15 June and forced to abdicate in favor of her one-year-old son, James VI. After an unsuccessful attempt to regain the throne, Mary fled to England seeking protection from her first cousin once removed, Queen Elizabeth I, whose kingdom she hoped to inherit. Elizabeth ordered her arrest because of the threat presented by Mary, who had previously claimed Elizabeth's throne as her own and was considered the legitimate sovereign of England by many English Catholics, including participants in the Rising of the North. After 19 years in custody in a number of castles and manor houses in England, she was tried and executed for treason for her involvement in three plots to assassinate Elizabeth.
About the Author: Jacob Abbott (1803-1879) was an American writer of children's books. A licensed minister, his career outside of writing included serving as a professor of mathematics and natural philosophy at Amherst College, founding the Mount Vernon School for Young Ladies in Boston in 1829, and founding (with his brothers) Abbott's Institute and the Mount Vernon School for Boys. Jacob Abbott was a prolific author, writing juvenile fiction, brief histories, biographies, religious books for the general reader, and a few works in popular science. His Rollo Books, such as Rollo at Work, Rollo at Play, Rollo in Europe, etc., are the best known of his writings, having as their chief characters a representative boy and his associates. Other works of note include Lucy Books, Jonas Books, Harper's Story Books, Marco Paul, Gay Family, and Juno Books. His brothers, John Stevens Cabot Abbott and Gorham Dummer Abbott, were also authors. His sons, Benjamin Vaughan Abbott, Austin Abbott, both eminent lawyers, Lyman Abbott, and Edward Abbott, a clergyman, were also well-known authors.