Linlithgow’s most famous daughter is coming home.

Mary, Queen of Scots is about to return to the palace where she was born to tell visitors about her life and the struggle for control of her kingdom.

The ill-fated queen grew up at a time when the long-established Catholic faith was increasingly being challenged by the Protestant cause. Mary’s personal life was often chaotic and the performer who plays her will talk about her life and her marriage to the handsome young Lord Darnley.

Sheena Garden, Historic Scotland Interpretation Manager said:
‘These performances are a great way to find out about some of the most colourful characters and diabolical deeds of our past.

Mary lived in difficult times and chose some very unsuitable relationships. Had she been a private citizen, they might have brought her heartbreak, but as the ruler of Scotland, everything she did had far wider effects. And in Scotland during the 1500s disagreements and disputes had a habit of being settled in some very bloody ways.’

Mary was born at Linlithgow in 1542 and married Darnley in 1565 after nursing him through measles. He spent much of his time drinking and carousing with friends in Scotland’s seediest spots. Growing jealous of Mary’s relationship with her Italian secretary Rizzio, Darnley joined in with his murder. At the time of the murder, Mary was pregnant with the future King James VI and I and Protestant nobles were plotting to find a way to remove her from power.

Find out what happened by meeting the Mary, Queen of Scots at Linlithgow Palace [3] on Saturday 4th, 11th, 18th and 25th August between 11.00am and 4.00pm. Performances are included with the normal ticket price to the Palace.

• Linlithgow Palace is in Linlithgow. Admission: Adults £5.00, Concessions £4.00 and Children £2.50.
  
  
• The magnificent ruins of Linlithgow Palace are set in a park beside a loch. All of the Stewart kings lived here, and numerous renovations to the Palace’s grand facades and chambers were carried out as each sought to create the ideal modern palace.
  
  
• The Palace was last visited by the Stewart family in 1745, when Bonnie Prince Charlie stayed. In 1746, the Duke of Cumberland set the Palace on fire as he left to travel north to fight this very same Stewart at Culloden.
  
  
• Linlithgow Peel has been altered by human activity and traces of that activity, from prehistoric times to the present can still be detected. Two of the islands in the Loch, the ‘Rickle’ and ‘Cormorant Island have been identified as Crannogs (ancient loch dwelling found throughout Scotland and Ireland). Built some 5,000 years ago, they were originally timber roundhouses supported on piles driven into the loch bed. They now appear as tree covered islands.
  
  
• The Loch is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) due to the extensive wildfowl population. A well surfaced walkway around the loch gives good views of the abundant water birds including swans, ducks, great-crested and little grebes.