Called Mary of Guise, Queen of Scotland (1515–1560)
British (English) School
Category
Art / Oil paintings
Date
circa 1600 - 1699
Materials
Oil on panel
Measurements
528 x 360 mm
Order this imageCollection
Anglesey Abbey, Cambridgeshire
NT 515570
Caption
Mary of Guise was the Queen of James V of Scotland, and after his death, she became Regent. She married her daughter, Mary, to the dauphin of France which angered the English, who had hoped for a marriage with Edward VI. Shecontinually favoured the French and Catholic parties over the English and the Protestants. There are portraits of Mary of Guise in the National Portrait Gallery and at Hampton Court, but both are different from each other. This version resembles neither of these portraits, and in itself does not really suggest a royal image.
Summary
Oil painting on panel, Called Mary of Guise, Queen of Scotland (1515–1560), British (English) School, 17th century. A nearly three-quarter-length portrait, facing slightly left, gazing at spectator, wearing a white ruff and while lace/linen cap, black coat over a red velvet long-sleeved robe with small white ruffs at the cuffs; her hands crossed in front holding a pair of pale brown leather gloves, a gold chain and medallion buckle at her waist rings on the forefinger and third finger of her right hand; arched top. Label on frame 'Mary of Lorraine, Queen of James V of Scotland and Mother of Mary Queen of Scots, 1515-1560. From the Collection of Sir John Twisden Bart, Bradbourne, Kent'. Mary was born at Bar-le-Duc, Lorraine, the eldest daughter of Claude of Lorraine, Duke of Guise, head of the House of Guise, and his wife Antoinette de Bourbon, herself the daughter of Francis, Count of Vendome, and Marie de Luxembourg. Among her 11 siblings were Francis, Duke of Guise, Claude, Duke of Aumale, Charles, Cardinal of Lorraine, and Louis I, Cardinal of Guise. On 4 August 1534, at the age of 18, she became Duchess of Longueville by marrying Louis II d'Orléans, Duke of Longueville (born 1510), at the Château du Louvre. Their union turned out to be happy, but brief. On 30 October 1535, Mary gave birth to her first son, Francis, but on 9 June 1537, Louis died at Rouen and left her a widow at the age of 21. After much negotiatin, on 18 May 1538, at Notre-Dame de Paris, James V of Scotland and Mary of Guise were married with Lord Maxwell acting as proxy. Accompanied by a fleet of ships sent by James, Mary left France in June, forced to leave her little son behind. She landed in Fife on 10 June and was formally received by James. They were married in person a few days later at St Andrews.James and Mary had two sons. James Stewart, Duke of Rothesay, was born 22 May 1540 at St Andrews. Robert was born and baptised on 12 April 1541, but both died on 21 April 1541, when James was nearly one year old and Robert was eight days old. The third and last child of the union was a daughter Mary, later Mary Queen of Scots, who was born on 8 December 1542. King James died six days later, making the infant Mary queen regnant of Scotland. In 1560 Mary became seriously ill. On 8 June she made her will and died of dropsy on 11 June 1560. Her body was wrapped in lead and kept in Edinburgh castle for several months. In March 1561 it was secretly carried from the castle at midnight and shipped to France. Mary, Queen of Scots attended her funeral at Fécamp in July 1561. Finally Mary of Guise was interred at the church in the Convent of Saint-Pierre in Reims, where Mary's sister Renée was abbess. A marble tomb was erected with a bronze statue of Mary, in royal robes holding a sceptre and the rod of justice with a hand. The tomb was destroyed during the French revolution. Of Mary's five children, only her daughter Mary survived her.
Provenance
According to the label, from the collection of 'Sir John Twisden Bart, Bradbourne, Kent' [..];bequeathed to the National Trust by Huttleston Rogers Broughton, 1st Lord Fairhaven (1896-1966) with the house and the rest of the contents.
Credit line
Anglesey Abbey, The Fairhaven Collection (National Trust)
Makers and roles
British (English) School, artist