On 19 August 1561, the 18-year-old Mary, Queen of Scots, returned to Scotland from France following the death of her husband King Francis II of France the previous winter. On 2 September the town of Edinburgh organised a celebration of royal entry for her. [1]
Tailors and "boys" made black mourning "dule" riding cloaks and skirts for Mary, Queen of Scots, and her 15 ladies. Mary wore black Florence serge, the other costumes were made from 50 ells of cheaper black stemming. [2]
On the day, Mary rode from Holyrood Palace to Edinburgh Castle where she had dinner. After the meal, she went to the Castlehill on the High Street and joined an escort of 50 young men from Edinburgh who were dressed as "Moors", a disguise representing imagined African people, [3] with rings in their mouths and gilded chains about their necks and arms. The costumes of some of this "Convoy of Moors" were made of white taffeta. [4] A 16th-century chronicle called the Diurnal of Occurents describes their costume, black face, and chains in Scots language:
thair bodeis and theis [thighs] coverit with yeallow taffiteis, thair armis and leggs from the knee doun bare, cullorit with blak, in maner of Moris, upon thair heidds blak hattis, and on thair faces blak visouris, in thair mowthis rings, garnessit with intellable [set with innumerable] precious staneis, about thair nekkis leggs and armes infynit of chenis of gold. [5]
Mary made her progress under a "paill" or canopy of purple velvet with gold fringes held up by twelve townsmen dressed in black velvet. [6] At the Butter Tron (where dairy products were weighed for sale) at the head of the West Bow there was a pageant stage. A boy dressed as an angel emerged from a globe and gave her the keys to the town, a bible, and a psalter. At the Tolbooth, on a double stage, four damsels (male actors) represented Fortitude, Justice, Temperance, and Prudence. At the Cross, wine poured from a fountain, and four maidens performed an allegory. [7] At another stop at the Salt Tron a pageant representing the Scottish Reformation was abandoned in favour of the destruction of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. [8]
At the Netherbow, the boundary between Edinburgh and the Canongate, the queen was addressed by a dragon which was then burnt. At Holyrood Palace, a cartload of school children spoke in favour of the Reformation and sang a psalm. [9] A cupboard of gilt plate, bought by the town council from the Earl of Morton and Richard Maitland of Lethington, was presented to the queen in her outer chamber in Holyrood Palace, by the "honest men" who had carried and walked beside the canopy. [10]
A Royal Entry was a negotiation and affirmation of the values and meanings of a city and the royal court. [11] Some aspects of the 1561 Entry were controversial. The English diplomat Thomas Randolph mentioned the substitution and negotiation of content alluding directly to the Scottish Reformation. John Knox wrote that Mary seemed dismissive when she was presented with the Bible in vernacular, and this is repeated in a chronicle attributed to the Catholic Lord Herries. [12] It is thought that the presentation of the triumph of the Reformation during the Entry was displeasing to the Catholic queen. A month later, after burgh council elections, she required the dismissal of the Provost and four bailies of the town council. [13] The new Provost, Thomas McCalzean, proved to be a supporter of the queen. [14]
This Entry included features differing from other Edinburgh Entries, with no mention of a ceremony at the West Port, an actual entry to the town, and the presentation of the gilt plate within the royal palace. These differences may suggest interventions in the theatrical programme and conflict between civic and royal authority. [15]
The town council had met on 26 August and resolved to hold a banquet for the queen and her cousins, and a "triumph" of "her grace's entry within this town". The Provost of Edinburgh, Archibald Douglas of Kilspindie, discussed methods of funding the event, countering objections raised by the goldsmith Thomas Ewyn who spoke on behalf of the town's craftsmen. [16] The treasurer, Luke Wilson, was appointed to organise the banquet and the "triumph". Wilson also supplied the costumes for the men bearing the canopy and town's sergeants. A carpenter Patrick Schang made the stages for the "triumphs and farces" at the Over or Butter Tron, Tolbooth, Cross, Salt Tron, and Netherbow. The stages were painted by Walter Binning. The young men (playing the "Moors") were expected to devise their own costumes to wear while they made "convoy before the cart triumphant". The banquet was held in Cardinal Beaton's house in the Cowgate. [17]
The verses spoken when the boy appeared out of a globe to give gifts of books to the queen survive. [18] The English diplomat Thomas Randolph sent a copy to William Cecil. [19] According to John Knox, Mary smiled at verses in her praise but passed the Bible to her attendant Arthur Erskine of Blackgrange. [20]
The events staged at the Edinburgh Entry were closely paralleled in other festivals, including: [22]
Royal baptisms also included elements of masque, drama, and formal processions:
The Royal Mile is a succession of streets forming the main thoroughfare of the Old Town of the city of Edinburgh in Scotland. The term was first used descriptively in W. M. Gilbert's Edinburgh in the Nineteenth Century (1901), describing the city "with its Castle and Palace and the royal mile between", and was further popularised as the title of a guidebook by R. T. Skinner published in 1920, "The Royal Mile (Edinburgh) Castle to Holyrood(house)".
Mary Livingston was a Scottish noblewoman and childhood companion of Mary, Queen of Scots, one of the famous "Four Marys".
William MacDowall was a Scottish priest and Master of Works to Mary, Queen of Scots, her mother Mary of Guise, and James VI of Scotland. The title 'sir' was used in Scotland by a priest without a master's degree. The name appears variously as McDowgall, McDougall, McDowall etc., in printed records, he signed accounts MAKDOUELL.
Margaret Carwood, was a maid-of-honour at the court of Mary, Queen of Scots. Her wedding to John Stewart of Fincastle was celebrated at the time of the murder of Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley, the Queen's consort.
Servais de Condé or Condez was a French servant at the court of Mary Queen of Scots, in charge of her wardrobe and the costume for masques performed at the Scottish royal court.
The Great 'H' of Scotland was a jewel belonging to Mary, Queen of Scots comprising a large diamond, a ruby, and a gold chain. It was broken up in 1604 and made into the Mirror of Great Britain for James VI and I.
Nichola or Nicolle was a fool or jester to Mary, Queen of Scots.
On 17 May 1590, Anne of Denmark was crowned Queen of Scotland. There was also a ceremony of joyous entry into Edinburgh on 19 May, an opportunity for spectacle and theatre and allegorical tableaux promoting civic and national identities, similar in many respects to those performed in many other European towns. Celebrations for the arrival of Anne of Denmark in Scotland had been planned and prepared for September 1589, when it was expected she would sail from Denmark with the admirals Peder Munk and Henrik Gyldenstierne. She was delayed by accidents and poor weather and James VI of Scotland joined her in Norway in November. They returned to Scotland in May 1590.
Magdalen Livingstone was a Scottish courtier. She was a favoured lady-in-waiting to Mary, Queen of Scots, and later belonged to the household of Prince Henry.
The jewels of Mary, Queen of Scots (1542–1587), are mainly known through the evidence of inventories held by the National Records of Scotland. She was bought jewels during her childhood in France, adding to those she inherited. She gave gifts of jewels to her friends and to reward diplomats. When she abdicated and went to England many of the jewels she left behind in Scotland were sold or pledged for loans, first by her enemies and later by her allies. Mary continued to buy new jewels, some from France, and use them to reward her supporters. In Scotland her remaining jewels were worn by her son James VI and his favourites.
John Mosman or Mossman was a Scottish goldsmith based in Edinburgh who served the royal court and was involved in gold mining.
Archibald Stewart was a Scottish merchant and Provost of Edinburgh.
Mademoiselle Rallay or Madame Raylie was a Scottish courtier. She served as chamberwoman and then lady-in-waiting to Mary, Queen of Scots. She was described as one of Mary's favorites. She should not be confused with her niece Renée Rallay, also known as Beauregard, who also served Mary, Queen of Scots.
The baptism of James VI was celebrated at Stirling Castle in December 1566 with a masque, fireworks, and a staged assault on a mock fortress. The entertainment was devised by George Buchanan and Bastian Pagez.
James Inglis was a Scottish tailor who served James VI of Scotland.
The wardrobe of Mary, Queen of Scots, was described in several contemporary documents, and many records of her costume have been published.
Fremyn Alezard was a French shoemaker based in Edinburgh who worked for Mary, Queen of Scots and subsequently her political rivals.
Guyonne de Breüil was a French lady-in-waiting at the court of Mary, Queen of Scots in France and Scotland.
Jean de Compiègne or Jehan de Conpiegne was a French tailor who served Mary, Queen of Scots, in Scotland and England. He is frequently mentioned in her accounts and in her letters. He was also known as "Jehan Poulliet", and signed his name as "Jehan Poullyet".
A number of people of African origin were recorded as servants at the Royal Court of Scotland during the 16th-century, forming a notable African presence at the Scottish royal court. The accounts include gifts of clothing. The American scholar Kim F. Hall has characterised these people as "dehumanised alien curiosities", and their histories, roles at court, and their relationships with communities, are the subject of continuing research and debate.