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| Portrait by Peter Lely (c. 1678) |
Birth name: Mary Stuart
Gaelic name: Màiri Stiùbhart
Born: 10 May 1662, Westminster, Middlesex, Kingdom of England
Father: King James II & VII of England, Scotland and Ireland
Mother: Anne Hyde
House: Stuart
Nationality: English
Religion: Protestantism
Claim: Child of James II & VII and Chosen by Parliament
Co-monarch: William III & II
Reign: 13 February 1689 - 28 December 1694 (5 years)
Coronation: 11 April 1689
Predecessor: James II
Successor: William III
Died: 28 December 1694 (aged 32), Kensington, Middlesex, Kingdom of England
Cause: Smallpox
Burial: Westminster Abbey
Motto: I will maintain
Spouse(s):
- King William III of England, Scotland and Ireland, Prince of Orange (m. 1677 - 1694)
Children:
- With King William III of England, Scotland and Ireland, Prince of Orange
- *Unnamed Prince/Princess* (1678 - 1678)
- *Unnamed Prince/Princess* (1678 - 1678)
Appearance:
Mary possessed a very tall and athletic build, standing at around 180cm (5'11'') in height. She was described as beautiful and graceful, and enjoyed styling herself in the French fashions. She had brown, curly hair and dark eyes.
Character:
Throughout her life, Mary was described as physically fit, particularly enjoying walking. She was known to be charming and quickly became popular wherever she went.
Devoutly Protestant, religion was extremely important to her, even causing her rebel against her own Catholic father, which she would feel guilty of for the rest of her life. She was very morally driven and stubborn, streaks that would cause her close relationship with her sister to deteriorate.
Though outgoing and wise, she often took a passive role, especially alongside her husband, and ultimately left most matters of state in his care. However, she did effectively rule as regent during his absence, demonstrating that she was a very capable ruler when she allowed herself to be. She was also very devoted to her husband, despite her initial objections
to the marriage arrangements. The pair grew very close, and Mary
despaired at her inability to have children, which would often depress
her.
One of her favourite hobbies was playing card games, as well as landscape gardening and interior design. She was also known to not favour extravagance, desiring a simple funeral, and hated all the pomp of her coronation ceremony.
Biography:
Mary was born in the spring of 1662 in London, England. She was the second eldest child of James, Duke of York and Albany (the future King James II & VII), and his first wife, Anne Hyde. She would go on to have twenty-six siblings from her fathers two marriages and various mistresses.
She had been born during the reign of her uncle, King Charles II, just after he had been restored to the throne during the Monarchy Restoration, where Britain had briefly become a republic for nearly a decade. Unfortunately, most of her siblings from her parents' marriage would die while young, leaving her and her younger sister Anne, as the only ones to survive into adulthood.
Despite her father and mother controversially converting to Catholicism, Mary was raised a staunch Protestant. She was brought up alongside her sister by her governess, and although she received a decent education, it was limited compared to other members of her family, with subjects more focused on activities acceptable for women during this time period.
Tragically, her mother would die from cancer in 1671 when she was just 9 years old. Her father would soon re-marry to Lady Mary of Modena, who was also a Catholic. It's possible that during her teenage years, Mary may have experienced issues with her own sexuality, and she may have developed a crush on one of her female friends, but was rejected.
By 1677, possible marriage candidates were being considered for her. Originally, the plan was to have her marry the heir to the French throne, Prince Louis, in order to create an Anglo-French alliance. This was also likely considered in the hopes of restoring the British royal family back to Catholicism, but Parliament intervened to prevent this from happening. Instead, Mary was betrothed to her first cousin, William of Orange, Stadtholder of Holland, who was a Protestant. Mary was devastated by this news, and was reported to have cried all day and night.
Regardless of Mary's feelings about the arrangement, she and William were married later that same year in London; Mary was in tears through the majority of the ceremony. Their marriage made Mary the Princess of Orange. She then joined her husband on the journey back to the Dutch Republic, a journey that would be very rough due to bad weather.
Upon her arrival, Mary became immediately popular with the Dutch people, and despite her initial qualms with the marriage, she completely devoted herself to their union. The couple grew quite close, bonding over shared interests, and Mary would quickly become pregnant. Unfortunately, Mary would suffer two miscarriages, and it's possible she suffered long-term health complications from this, and she would never have any more children, much to her devastation.
In 1685, her uncle, Charles II died, and her father became King James II & VII of England, Scotland and Ireland. Thus, Mary became the next in line for the throne, as James and his wife remained without any surviving male heirs. Their reign was immediately unpopular within England due to their Catholicism, and the country grew alarmed when Mary of Modena finally gave birth to a living male heir, James, Prince of Wales. This meant that the royal family's return to Catholicism was assured.
The matter became a lot more personal to Mary when her father refused to provide her husband with support when the Catholic French invaded the Protestant Netherlands. She was also against her father's policy of religious freedom within Britain.
Never having liked her Protestant husband, King James II & VII began having Mary's staff spy on her and instigate rumours that William was having an affair. It's possible that these rumours may have been true, as William and Mary's friend, Elizabeth Villiers were often seen alone together, but William assured his wife that nothing adulterous was going on between them. Whether these allegations were true or not, Mary believed him, and became even more dismayed when she realised that her father was trying to turn her against her own husband.
After just one year into his reign, prominent Protestant figures within Britain kept in touch with Mary and William regarding her father's rule. Rumours also circulated that James' son and heir was not actually his biological child, and that the true child had been stillborn and switched at birth. Mary believed these rumours and surmised that it was a Catholic plot to take over the British monarchy.
A Protestant conspiracy began to depose King James and install Mary to the throne instead. William was invited to launch an invasion, but was hesitant, likely due to not wanting his own wife to outrank him. Mary herself was also not interested in the role of monarch, as she did not care for politics, and assured her husband that she would never desire to outrank him. Eventually, William agreed to invade on the grounds that he would co-rule alongside his wife. As a descendant of King Charles I, William technically did have a legitimate claim to the British throne, so the idea was not too outlandish.
The invasion began in 1688, originally on the supposed objective of assembling Parliament to give the British people a chance to voice their concerns regarding James' rule. Mary stayed behind in the Dutch Republic while her husband led the rebellions. Most of the people of Britain immediately flocked to William's side, and James found himself with very little support. James was quickly defeated, and William eventually allowed him to flee into exile. This incident became known as the Glorious Revolution.
Mary found the whole ordeal very upsetting, and she was wrecked with guilt over going against her own father. She felt torn between her duty as a daughter and her duty as a wife. Her allegiance to the Church of England is what further swung her decision towards supporting the revolution against her father, though she would remain worried about him and his wellbeing.
She joined her husband back in England, and was happy to be home, despite the circumstances. Parliament was assembled to decide what would happen next. With James in exile in France, it was decided that his decision to flee was a declaration of his abdication. Once again, Mary was proposed as the next monarch, while William disagreed and refused to take on the role of a mere consort.
By 1689, Parliament agreed to recognise both Mary and William as joint monarchs, and the two of them became Queen Mary II and King William III & II of England, Scotland and Ireland. It was declared that no Catholic could ever inherit the thrones of England and Scotland again. There were still some who believed James to still be the true ruler, and an uprising occurred in Dundee, Scotland, but this was quickly defeated by William.
Despite his desire to rule in his own right, William was often away from the kingdom on campaign, leaving Mary to rule as regent. Mary was not happy with this situation, and could not even find comfort in her sister, Anne, who she had always possessed a close relationship with. Her relationship with her sister disintegrated when Mary and William refused to grant Anne financial independence, as they wished to maintain tight control of her, especially as their recognised heir.
Mary's and Anne's relationship would then break down completely when John Churchill, the husband of Anne's best friend and possible lover, Sarah Churchill, was embroiled in a plot to restore James to the throne. When Anne continued to invite Sarah to court with her, it was viewed as demonstrating support to their disgraced father. Mary ordered Anne to dismiss her closest friend, but she refused.
While Anne recovered from a traumatic labour and the death of another of her children, Mary offered little sympathy and instead once again lectured Anne on her friendship with Sarah. Anne burst into tears, and Mary left, with the two sisters never seeing each other again. Mary believed her fall out with Anne was divine punishment for going against her father.
In 1692, Mary suddenly fell ill with smallpox. She quarantined herself, and it initially appeared that she would make a full recovery when her rash quickly receded. However, this was a sign that Mary had contracted the much deadlier form of smallpox, and her health rapidly deteriorated once again. The disease would ultimately claim her life.
Rule:
For the most part, Mary expressed little to no interest in ruling the country, and left the majority of these aspects to her husband. Through her though, William was able to become a monarch in his own right rather than simply a consort, show casing that Mary always technically was the true power behind their joint rule.
Despite insisting he conduct most of the ruling affairs, Mary would often be left to govern on her own while her husband was away on frequent military campaigns, predominantly against rebellions over their reign. Even though she disliked it, Mary was a very capable and wise ruler in her own right (though still often relied on William's advice), and was very popular with the people of Britain.
Her acceptance of the crown and role in the Glorious Revolution ensured a firm Protestant monarchy, as was now the dominant religion of the kingdoms within Great Britain. Staunch in her Protestant beliefs, she supported church reforms and ecclesiastical affairs.
She also oversaw the re-design of numerous famous royal palaces, including Hampton Court.
Despite their achievements in ensuring Protestant rule and deposing of an unpopular monarch, they are not that well remembered in today's age.
Trivia:
- During her joint coronation with her husband, a new orb and sceptre had to be made to accommodate the fact that Mary and William were joint monarchs. These items have not had to be used since.
- William would be completely devastated by her death and was noted to have been inconsolable for over a month. For the rest of his life, he would secretly wear a ring containing a lock of her hair.
Quotes:
"I love you more than my life, and desire only to please you."
A declaration to her husband
Timeline of Reign:
| 1689: Williamite War begins - Ireland refuses to acknowledge William and Mary as monarchs.
| 1689: Siege of Derry - Protestants in Derry, Ireland, refuse to surrender to former King James II.
| 1689: Battle of Killiecrankie - Scottish Jacobite rebellion is victorious.
| 1689: Battle of Dunkeld - Scottish supporters of William defeat Jacobite rebels.
| 1689: Bill of Rights - Monarch must now be approved by Parliament.
| 1690: Battle of Boyne - William is victorious against Jacobite forces.
| 1691: Treaty of Limerick - Catholics granted religious freedom in Ireland and Jacobites surrender.
| 1691: Williamite War ends - William is victorious against Irish Jacobite supporters.
| 1692: Massacre of Glencoe - Scottish clans who took part in Jacobite rebellions are murdered.
| 1692: Battle of Barfleur - Anglo-Dutch victory against France.
| 1692: Battle of La Hougue - Anglo-Dutch victory against France.
| 1692: Battle of Steenkerque - Anglo-Dutch battle against France ends in a stalemate.
| 1693: Battle of Landen - French victory against the Britain and its allies.
| 1693: College of William and Mary founded - Established in colony of Virginia.
| 1694: Bank of England founded - Centralised bank for the English government is created.
Sources & Further Reading:
1662 Mary II.jpg - Wikimedia Commons. (2016). Wikimedia.org. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1662_Mary_II.jpg
Cartwright, M. (2022). Mary II of England. World History Encyclopedia. https://www.worldhistory.org/timeline/Mary_II_of_England/
Mary II | Biography & Accomplishments. (n.d.). In Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mary-II
Mary II | Westminster Abbey. (n.d.) Westminster Abbey. https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/royals/mary-ii
William III and Mary II. (n.d.). Historic Royal Palaces. https://www.hrp.org.uk/kensington-palace/history-and-stories/william-iii-and-mary-ii/
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