monarch

Three years later, on September 1545, 9.

Although the chapel in Stirling Castle has been repaired, it still looks shabby compared to cathedrals in other countries, especially for such an important day today.

The Prime Minister and Regent, James Hamilton, Earl of Arran, is only 30 years old, but he looks much older than his actual age. In the past three years, his work has been almost difficult, and in order to raise enough funds for today's coronation ceremony, he almost searched for money. The treasury was clean enough to run away rats, but everything still looked so shabby, and he could only comfort himself with the reason that "in Scotland, the price of dignity is not as expensive as in other countries".

A lot of guests came, and the already small church was almost empty. They talked with each other, making this small chapel as noisy as Tyburn Market in London.Many are eager to witness the coronation of a three-year-old queen, a scene that will become the most talked-about news in living rooms across Europe for months to come.A three-year-old queen!She might not even be able to hold the scepter firmly.It is not surprising, therefore, that many of these chattering guests came to watch the ceremony with a mentality of watching jokes and even gloating, and the most obvious among them was the English ambassador Sir Ralph Sadler who stood at the front. The sarcasm was beyond words.

The Earl of Allen glanced at the arrogant English ambassador. The war three years ago had enabled the English to gain a detached position in the Kingdom of Scotland. Not only that, the "Greenwich Treaty" also announced that the little Queen of Scotland, Mary Stuart, will Marrying Prince Edward, the heir to the English throne as an adult, undoubtedly announced the countdown of Scotland's career as an independent country, and the English embassy has almost become Scotland's second power center since then, where Sir Ralph is everywhere Colluding with the nobles who are dissatisfied with the Regency Council, they are committed to weakening the authority of the Kingdom of Scotland. During the period before the coronation ceremony, the ambassador became particularly active. Earl Allen slightly closed his eyes. There is no doubt that the English are brewing What, maybe it won't be long before it's time to see Tu Qiongdagger.

There was a noise outside the door. It was the Queen's mother, the Queen Regent, Marie de Guise, a noblewoman from the famous French Menguis family, wearing the black gown of a widowed woman. This is the second time she has been widowed. .Her first husband was Louis d'Orléans, Duke of Langeville in France, and she bore two boys during their three-year marriage.When her first husband died, the Scottish king happened to choose a successor wife for himself, and she, the symbol of the union between France and Scotland, became Queen of Scotland.She fulfilled her duties as queen and gave birth to an heir for Scotland, but the heir was not perfect because she was a girl.

Marie de Guise walked to Earl Allen, and the earl noticed that she looked a lot older, and there seemed to be a few wrinkles on her well-maintained face. "Your Majesty." He bowed slightly.

"Your Earl." The Queen Mother nodded slightly, showing her exhaustion.She approached the earl and whispered, "The English ambassador asked to see me after the coronation ceremony." She looked a little unhappy, "What does this mean?" The Queen Mother was really frightened by the English ambassador. He will arrogantly make all kinds of unsatisfactory demands to her, as if Scotland is already a puppet of England. Some time ago, he even asked England to station [-] soldiers in Edinburgh, and he kept saying that it was to protect her and her daughter. safety.The queen mother originally wanted to refuse the English ambassador's request for an audience with the excuse of being busy after the coronation ceremony, but she thought it would be better to communicate with the regent.

Earl Allen frowned, is this really the case? "I got some news." He couldn't hide the worry on his face, and leaned into the Queen Mother's ear, and said something softly.

The Queen Mother's face turned pale all of a sudden, "This... how can this be..." Her hands unconsciously twisted the handkerchief in her hand, "Is what you said true?"

"That's just my guess, and I hope it's not true, ma'am."

"Then what should I do?" The queen mother panicked, "I'm going to reject the ambassador of England, saying that I... just say that I'm unwell and can't see him..."

The count smiled wryly, "It's nothing to delay." He watched the queen mother become a little confused, "But I may have found a solution..." He looked at the ashen face behind the queen mother, and there was hope again , great, a few more times like this and she will obey him like a savior.The count leaned close to the queen mother's ear and whispered a few words.

"Really?" The Queen Mother looked very surprised.

"Yes, everything has been negotiated..." The count pondered for a moment, "It just needs your approval."

"Approve, I approve!" Her voice was a little loud, and several people around were alarmed. The Earl gave her a warning look, and the Queen Mother immediately lowered her voice, "I grant you full authority, Earl." Shining, as if the Earl was an angel descending from the world.She nodded to the earl, stopped talking, but turned around and stood beside the earl.

The horn sounded on the castle tower, and the noise of the guests stopped abruptly, and they all returned to their proper positions one by one.Earl Allen looked out along the corridor of the church, and a carriage decorated with red lions of the Stuart family slowly stopped in front of the church.The servants opened the door of the carriage, and a man with gray hair stepped out of the carriage. He turned around, stretched out his hand into the carriage, and carried a little girl out.

Mary Stuart was only three years old this year, but she became Queen of Scotland at the age of six days, but war and the ensuing financial crisis forced her coronation to be postponed until three years later. this day.Sir Linston, the steward of the court, walked into the hall of the chapel with the little queen who could not go too far.Mary Stuart was dressed in a small gown, and around her neck was a crimson velvet cloak with a hem of ermine that looked unusually heavy.Her small neck was so slender that it looked as if it would be snapped by the straps of her cloak.

Sir Linston carefully held the queen in his arms. He tried his best to straighten his back, trying to make himself look more dignified, but he was afraid of accidentally letting the queen slip off, which made him look a little timid and ruined. The solemn atmosphere he tried to create.He came to the altar and gently put the little queen on the throne. He straightened up, but did not leave, but still stretched out his hand to support the queen so that she would not fall off the throne.

The bowing nobles straightened up, sizing up their king with curious eyes.Queen Mary was a beautiful little girl, with fair skin and dark blonde hair, she looked like an angel.Now she was sitting on the throne where her ancestors had sat, and she watched curiously, trying to climb to the other side of the throne, which was too big for her.Sir Linston stretched out his hand at the side and tried his best to hold the little queen, "Your Majesty, it will be over soon." He moved closer to the queen and whispered into her ear.

The little queen pouted, as if she was even more dissatisfied. She opened her mouth and was about to burst into tears. Sir quickly took out a few candies from his pocket and put them in the queen's palm.The little queen looked at the candy in her hand, finally calmed down, and began to eat the candy. Sir Linston also breathed a sigh of relief, but he still looked at the little queen nervously, ready to reach out to support her at any time.

Seeing this situation, the nobles couldn't help showing weird expressions, a queen sitting on the edge of the throne, who may fall down at any time!Isn't this a true portrayal of the Kingdom of Scotland today?If the person holding her is not careful, she will fall.A fall from a chair would only make the girl weep for a while, but a fall from a throne might break her to pieces.

Cardinal David Beaton stepped forward, and he glanced at Earl Allen inquiringly. The Earl nodded slightly, signaling that the ceremony could begin.The cardinal began to read the coronation oath. Since the queen was too young, Sir Linston took over her role throughout the whole process, and she just sat on the throne, staring at her two big eyes, watching curiously, and occasionally shaking slightly. In a flash, Sir Linston, who was taking the oath, was nervous.

After taking the oath, the archbishop stepped forward, untied Queen Mary's cloak, and began the anointing ceremony.Sent from Rome, the holy oil personally consecrated by the pope was lightly anointed on the queen's back, chest and palms by the archbishop.The weather was a bit cold, and the coldness and discomfort from the oil on her body made the little queen start to cry. Sir Linston quickly took out a few more candies, but this time the sugar alone seemed not enough to appease the little queen. To Marie de Guise, standing in the first row, "Mother!" she cried.

The queen mother looked at Earl Allen with some embarrassment. The earl shook his head slightly, but the queen mother bit her lip and did not move.The Earl of Lennox stepped forward and tried to put the heavy scepter in the queen's little hand, but the queen pushed it away, and Sir Lindston had to do it for him.The Earl of Argyll walked up to the queen holding the national sword, and the archbishop tied the three-foot-long sword around the queen's waist at the risk of being hit by the queen waving his hands.

Earl Allen stepped forward, holding the crown in his hand, and gave the queen a majestic look. The little girl seemed to be choking, and stopped crying all of a sudden. Her two red eyes looked at the earl with tears in her eyes. The earl sighed. He took a deep breath and smiled at the little queen comfortingly.The archbishop took the crown from the earl, which was too large for the queen, so a velvet wreath had been placed on Mary's head, and all the cardinal had to do was to fasten the crown to the ring.Lord Linston straightened the Queen upright, and this time the Queen made no struggle, and the Earls of Lennox and Arran stepped forward and kissed the Queen on the cheek.

"God bless the queen." They got down on one knee and pledged allegiance to the queen.

"God bless the queen!" The nobles and priests put the little crowns in their hands on their heads, and the bells rang outside, and then all the big bells in Edinburgh's churches were rang. "God bless the queen!" the cheers outside were deafening.

……

Queen Marie de Guise returned to her bedroom. She sat tiredly on the armchair, and the maid hurriedly poured her a glass of mulled wine, which she drank from a silver cup.It was a long day, the coronation ceremony and the subsequent parade. For four hours, she wore a heavy dress, the smile on her face was stiff because of the time, and her waving right hand was already sore.She looked out the window, the sun was still very bright, but it looked westward, and she looked at the hourglass opposite, it was three o'clock in the afternoon, and there were still four hours before the evening palace banquet, and she could still rest for a while.The Queen Mother stretched out her hand, and was about to ring the bell to call the servants to come in to help her change her clothes and take off the heavy tortoise shell on her body, but suddenly there was a knock on the door.

"Come in." The Queen Mother was a little suspicious, what could be going on at this time?

The Majesty of the Queen Mother entered the room and curtsied to her a French court. "Your Majesty," she said in French, "the Ambassador of England requests an audience."

"Ambassador?" The queen mother was a little confused, but she quickly remembered that the English ambassador had indeed expressed his wish to meet the queen mother after the coronation ceremony, but she did not approve, but he came anyway.The queen mother sneered, "It seems that Sir Sadler really thinks he is the master of this place." Her two hands tightly gripped the armrests of the chair, and the blue blood vessels were exposed.

The female officer lowered her head, not daring to answer the queen mother's words.

"Ambassador, please come in." The queen mother sounded extremely tired, "Go tell Earl Allen that everything is as he expected, and ask him to do his best." The female officer looked at the queen mother with some doubts, what does this mean?However, the queen mother just sat on the chair with a blank expression, and seemed not interested in continuing to explain, so the female officer could only walk out resentfully.

After a few minutes, a guard's announcement came from outside: "His Excellency, Ambassador of England, Sir Ralph Sadler!"

The door of the room opened and Sir Ralph Sadler entered.He is a dark-haired middle-aged man with a serious expression on his face, which is quite different from other diplomats who always smile.The fact that he had been serving in the army had also made him more used to giving orders than negotiating as equals, but perhaps that was why King Henry VIII had sent him to Scotland.The ambassador walked up to the empress dowager and gave a military salute. This etiquette always made the empress dowager feel a pain in her throat, but she still managed to smile, "Welcome, Your Excellency the ambassador."

There was no superfluous expression on the ambassador's face, "Your Majesty." He said coldly, "I asked you to see me after the coronation ceremony, but I didn't get a reply, so I thought you approved it." He said As he spoke, he found an armchair on his own, dragged it in front of the Queen Mother, and sat down.

The smile on the queen mother's face froze, "You don't need my approval in Scotland." She said quietly.The female officer standing by the door raised her head and glanced at the Queen Mother. Every time she spoke like this, it meant that she was on the verge of breaking out.

The ambassador did not refute, but acquiesced to this sentence. He stretched out his hand and poured himself a glass of wine.The empress dowager's lips were white with anger, she took a deep breath, "I'm a little tired, Ambassador, there is a palace banquet tonight, if you have nothing urgent, why don't we talk about it tomorrow?"

"Actually, I do have something urgent." The ambassador nodded slightly, "I'm really sorry to interrupt your rest."

"Yes, the affairs of His Majesty the King of England are of great importance." The Queen Mother said coldly. "Then what's your business?" The Queen Mother looked a little impatient.

"As you know, the "Greenwich Treaty" three years ago has established the marriage contract between the queen of your country and the crown prince of our country."

"Yes, I thank God every day for giving my daughter such a good marriage!" said the Queen Mother sarcastically.

"I can understand your excitement and gratitude." The ambassador didn't seem to understand the sarcasm in the Queen Mother's tone, "However, it is not enough to ensure the happiness of the future monarchs of our two countries and the happiness of our two peoples. The ambassador took a sip of the wine in the glass, and then said: "His Majesty the king of our country has always been very worried. Your daughter is so far away from his son. There is no basis for emotional existence between them. It is inevitable that they will marry suddenly in the future." A pair of resentful couples."

"Yeah, just like him and that Princess Cliffs." The Queen Mother couldn't hide the malice in her tone, "That poor girl, she's only been Queen for six months, hasn't she?"

"If you mean the sister of our king, yes," said the ambassador dryly.The fact that the king turned his divorced wife into his own sister has turned the kingdom of England into a laughing stock across Europe.

"His Majesty the King of our country wants me to make a suggestion to you." The ambassador continued, "He hopes to give the two children more opportunities to get along, so His Majesty the King of our country hopes that you can agree to send your Queen to the English court to receive education."

The queen mother's eyes widened, "You are joking, sir." She said coldly.

"On the contrary, Your Majesty." The ambassador raised his head, not afraid of the angry eyes of the Queen Mother, "The court of England is one of the most luxurious courts in Europe. His Majesty the King of our country will give the best treatment to his future daughter-in-law. She You can live like a real queen." He raised his head and glanced around the somewhat depressed palace, the queen mother's face flushed slightly, "It's not like now, with the name of queen, but living in England or Europe Nobles in the mainland are inferior."

"Let the Queen of Scots go to England to be educated?" The Queen Mother stood up angrily. "There is no such reason! My daughter will never leave her kingdom!"

"His Majesty the King of our country is also for the good of your daughter."

"No, my answer is no!" The queen mother was trembling all over, she took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down, "Please tell His Majesty Henry VIII, I thank him for his kindness, but..."

"I'm sorry, ma'am." The ambassador interrupted the queen mother coldly. "I don't think our king is willing to take back his kindness."

"What does that mean?" asked the Queen Mother.

"It means that you must accept this kindness." The ambassador responded tit for tat.

"What if I just refuse?"

"Then our country can only use force." The ambassador nodded slightly, "I feel very sorry, Your Majesty, but our king insists on ensuring the interests of her future daughter-in-law."

The queen mother felt a little dizzy, and the magistrate hurried forward and helped her sit on a chair. "Earl Allen has replied, Your Majesty." She leaned close to the Queen Mother's ear and whispered a few words. The Queen Mother coughed, and the magistrate quickly poured her a glass of wine to help her breathe.

Sir Sadler had been sitting across from him, looking at the flustered master and servant.When the Queen Mother finally calmed down, he spoke again, "How is Your Majesty thinking?"

The Queen Mother laughed back in anger, "You don't even leave me 24 hours?"

"I'm afraid I'm sending a messenger to London tonight." The ambassador bowed, but without deference.

"She is my daughter! You are going to take my daughter from me!"

"It's all for her own good." The ambassador didn't even blush, "A great mother knows how to be the best for her child, doesn't she?"

"Okay, let's be honest, Your Majesty." The ambassador stood up, "You have two choices, one is to agree to our conditions, and your grandson will be the king of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland and Ireland in the future, you Your daughter can enjoy her life, and London will hold a grand welcome ceremony for her arrival. Or you refuse, and our army and fleet will sail into Scotland and take your daughter back to London as a prisoner. Whether you How to choose, your daughter will live with her fiancé in Whitehall Palace by this time next year." He yawned, "You decide."

"Are you so confident that your country can win the war?" The Queen Mother looked at the ambassador coldly.

"I thought your country had learned its lesson in the battle of Sovimos three years ago." The ambassador smiled slightly, "I was on the battlefield at that time, and I saw your husband flee with my own eyes, even throwing away his guard of honor. Lost. You are now worse than his hand, your kingdom is torn apart, the nobles have their own ghosts, and your allies have abandoned their alliance with you, you have no chance of winning."

"I don't think you have any choice." The ambassador finished his sentence, looking at the queen mother mockingly.

The Empress Dowager stared straight at the other party like a knife, and after a moment of stalemate, she laughed, "You are all right, there is only one point where you miscalculated." She nodded to the female officer who had returned to the door, the female officer opened the door.Sir Sadler glanced at the Queen Mother in surprise, then turned to look at the gate.

"His Excellency, French Ambassador Marcel de Saye!" The announcement of the guard outside the door seemed extremely loud in the quiet atmosphere.

The French ambassador entered the room and saluted the queen mother respectfully, "Your Majesty." He turned around and saw the stunned English ambassador, "Hello, dear colleague." He looked extremely polite, but he couldn't hide it. The sarcasm and complacency in the tone.

The queen mother turned to the surprised English ambassador, "It seems that, sir, I have other options, don't I?"

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In history, Queen Mary was crowned in 1543, and the text moved back two years;

In fact, this chapter should have been published half a month ago, so many things have happened and it has been delayed until now, and it has been relocated as a whole;

It feels like rebuilding after a disaster, I think I saved the manuscript in the iPad is really one of the wisest decisions in my life)