Editing Margaret Tudor (section)

== Divorce and remarriage ==
Margaret attempted to resist but was forced to bend to the new political realities. Besides, by this time her desire for a divorce had become obsessive, taking precedence over all other matters. She was prepared to use all arguments, including the widespread myth that James IV had not been killed at Flodden. Despite the coup of 1524, she corresponded warmly with Albany, who continued his efforts on her behalf in Rome. In March 1527, [[Pope Clement VII]] granted her petition. Because of the political situation in Europe at the time it was not until December that she learned of her good fortune. She married [[Henry Stewart, 1st Lord Methven|Henry Stewart]] on 3 March 1528, ignoring the pious warnings of Cardinal Wolsey that marriage was "divinely ordained" and his protests against the "shameless sentence sent from Rome".<ref name="Stone1905">{{Cite book |last=Stone |first=Jean Mary |url=https://archive.org/details/studiesfromcour02stongoog |title=Studies from Court and Cloister: Being Essays, Historical and Literary, Dealing Mainly with Subjects Relating to the XVIth and XVIIth Centuries |publisher=Sands |date=1905 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/studiesfromcour02stongoog/page/n53 29]–}}</ref>

In June 1528, James V finally freed himself from the tutelage of Angus – who once more fled into exile – and began to rule in his own right. Margaret was an early beneficiary of the royal coup, as she and her husband emerged as the leading advisors to the king. James created Stewart [[Lord Methven]] "for the great love he bore to his dearest mother".<ref name="Carroll2014">{{Cite book |first=Leslie |last=Carroll |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_jdBAwAAQBAJ&pg=PT45 |title=Inglorious Royal Marriages: A Demi-Millennium of Unholy Mismatrimony |year=2014 |publisher=Penguin |isbn=978-1-101-59836-8 |pages=45–}}</ref> It was rumoured – falsely – that the Queen favoured a marriage between her son and her niece [[Mary I of England|Mary Tudor]]. She was instrumental in bringing about the Anglo-Scottish peace agreement of May 1534.
[[File:Methven Castle.jpg|thumb|right|Methven Castle]]
[[File:Site of the Charterhouse, Perth.jpg|thumb|140px|A monument now marks the site of the Perth Charterhouse]]
The central aim of Margaret's political life – besides assuring her own survival – was to bring about a better understanding between England and Scotland, a position she held to through some difficult times.<ref name = "Porter2024"/> James was suspicious of Henry, especially because of his continuing support for Angus, a man he loathed with a passion. Even so, in early 1536 his mother persuaded him to meet with her brother. It was her moment of triumph and she wrote to Henry and [[Thomas Cromwell]], now his chief advisor, saying that it was "by advice of us and no other living person".<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KnZCAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA134 |title=Letters of royal, and illustrious ladies of Great Britain, from the commencement of the 12th century to the close of the reign of Queen Mary |publisher=Henr. Colburn |date=1846 |editor-last=Wood, Mar. Anne Everett |pages=134–}}</ref> She was looking for a grand occasion on the lines of the [[Field of Cloth of Gold]], and spent a huge sum in preparation. In the end it came to nothing because there were too many voices raised in objection and because James would not be managed by his mother or anyone else. In a private interview with the English ambassador, [[William Howard, 1st Baron Howard of Effingham|William Howard]], her disappointment was obvious – "I am weary of Scotland", she confessed.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pM0_AAAAcAAJ |title=State Papers: King Henry the Eighth; Part IV – continued |publisher=Murray |date=1836 |page=48}}</ref> Her weariness even extended to betraying state secrets to Henry.

Lord Methven proved himself to be even worse than Angus in his desire both for other women and for his wife's money. Margaret was once again eager for divorce but proceedings were frustrated by James, whom she believed her husband had bribed. At one point she ran away toward the border, only to be intercepted and brought back to Edinburgh. Time and again she wrote to Henry with complaints about her poverty and appeals for money and protection – she wished for ease and comfort instead of being obliged "to follow her son about like a poor gentlewoman".<ref>{{Harvp|Perry|2000|p=220}}</ref>

In the first months of 1536 Henry VIII sent her £200 and a parcel of luxury fabrics including lengths of purple cloth, tawny cloth of gold tissue, russet tinsel, satin, and velvet. The fabric was for the costume to wear to welcome her son's bride [[Madeleine of Valois]].<ref>Joseph Bain, ''Hamilton Papers'', vol. 1 (Edinburgh, 1890), p. 29: British Library Add MS 32646, see external links.</ref> After Madeleine's death, Margaret welcomed her widowed son's new bride [[Mary of Guise]] to Scotland in June 1538. The two women established a good understanding. Mary made sure that her mother-in-law, who had now been reconciled with Methven, made regular appearances at court and it was reported to Henry that "the young queen was all [[papist]], and the old queen not much less."<ref>{{Harvp|Strickland|1855|p=240}}</ref>  In the summer of 1541, Margaret spent time with James V and Mary, providing support after the death of their infant sons.<ref name ="Porter2024"/>