Mary, Queen of Scots: Linlithgow to Fotheringhay

Mary, Queen of Scots, was born at Linlithgow Palace in December 1542, and she lived there for a time as an infant queen. In March 1543 the English ambassador Ralph Sadler came to see her, and Mary of Guise showed him the baby out of her swaddling. Sadler wrote that she was "as goodly a child I have seen, and like to live". The palace is a ruin today, managed by Historic Environment Scotland, and it is open to visitors all year round, usually for an entrance fee.

Para el visitante: Open all year, usually with an entrance fee for non-members; check Historic Environment Scotland.

Mary lived in the royal apartments of James V's Tower at Holyrood from her return to Scotland in 1561 until her forced abdication in 1567. Here she married Lord Darnley on 29 July 1565. Their marriage soured, and Darnley orchestrated the murder of her Italian secretary and close friend David Rizzio. Rizzio was stabbed in her Outer Chamber, and an alleged bloodstain can still be seen where his body was left. The room now displays Stuart and Jacobite relics.

Para el visitante: The historic apartments of Mary, Queen of Scots, are part of the palace tour.

On 24 April 1567, Mary was brought to Dunbar Castle by the Earl of Bothwell. Earlier that year Darnley had been found murdered, and Bothwell was generally believed to have orchestrated his death. Mary later returned to Edinburgh with him, and they married at Holyrood on 15 May. When their enemies gathered, cannon and pole-arms for Mary's army were brought from Dunbar. Bothwell would flee back here from the field at Carberry Hill with 25 horsemen.

Mary and Bothwell faced the rebel Confederate Lords at Carberry Hill on 15 June 1567, but there was no battle. The stand-off lasted from 11 in the morning until 5 in the afternoon, and Mary's forces dwindled away through desertion. The lords flew a banner showing Darnley dead under a tree beside the infant James VI. Mary agreed to surrender, and William Kirkcaldy led her horse by the bridle down from the hill. Bothwell rode off to Dunbar.

Precisión del lugar: The article places the stand-off near Carberry Tower; the pin marks that area, not the exact field.

After Carberry Hill the lords took Mary to Lochleven Castle, an island fortress in Loch Leven. She was held there from 17 June 1567 until her escape on 2 May 1568, living mostly in Glassin Tower. She signed her abdication on 24 July 1567. On the night she finally got away she dressed as a servant, and Willie Douglas stole the keys. Today the ruin is cared for by Historic Environment Scotland and can be reached by a 12-person ferry from Kinross in summer.

Para el visitante: Reached by a small ferry from Kinross in the summer months only.

Mary was tried at Fotheringhay and attended her own trial in the Great Hall on 5 October 1586. On the evening of 7 February 1587 she was told she would be executed the next morning. She was beheaded on a scaffold in the castle's great hall on 8 February 1587. To her executioner she said: "I forgive you with all my heart, for now, I hope, you shall make an end of all my troubles." Today there is little to see apart from earthworks and some masonry, but the site is open in daylight hours.

Para el visitante: Open to the public during daylight hours; expect earthworks and a few masonry remains.