Editing Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley

{{Short description|King consort of Scotland from 1565 to 1567}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2014}} 
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2014}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name         = Henry Stuart
| title        = [[Duke of Albany]], [[Earl of Ross]]<br>[[Lord Darnley]]
| image        = Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley.jpg
| caption      = Lord Darnley in his late teens, by an unknown artist.<ref>PG 2279, www.nationalgalleries.org</ref> [[National Galleries of Scotland]].
| succession   = [[King consort of Scotland]]
| reign        = 29 July 1565 – 10 February 1567
| reign-type   = Tenure
| birth_date   = {{birth year|1546}}
| birth_place  = [[Temple Newsam]], Yorkshire, [[Kingdom of England|England]]
| death_date   = {{Death date and given age|1567|02|10|20|df=y}}<ref name="Ballantine Books">{{cite book|last1=Weir|first1=Alison|title=The Lost Tudor Princess: The Life of Lady Margaret Douglas|date=2015|publisher=Ballantine Books|location=New York|isbn=978-0345521392|page=131}}</ref>
| death_place  = [[Kirk o' Field]], Edinburgh, [[Kingdom of Scotland|Scotland]]
| burial_place = [[Holyrood Abbey]]
| spouse       = {{marriage|[[Mary, Queen of Scots]]|29 July 1565}}
| issue        = [[James VI and I]]
| house        = [[House of Stuart|Stuart]]
| father       = [[Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox]]
| mother       = [[Lady Margaret Douglas]]
| burial_date  = 14 February 1567
| signature    = Signature of Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley.svg
}}
'''Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley''' (1546 – 10 February 1567) was [[List of Scottish royal consorts|King of Scotland]] as the second husband of [[Mary, Queen of Scots]], from 29 July 1565 until [[Murder of Lord Darnley|his murder]] in 1567. Lord Darnley had one child with Mary, the future [[James VI of Scotland and I of England]]. Through his parents, he had claims to both the [[Stewart of Darnley|Scottish]] and [[Stewart of Darnley#Claimants to the English Throne|English throne]]s.<ref name=Greig>Elaine Finnie Greig, 'Stewart, Henry, duke of Albany [Lord Darnley] (1545/6–1567)', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, Jan 2008 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/index/26/101026473/ accessed 4 March 2012]</ref> Less than a year after the birth of his son, Darnley was murdered at [[Kirk o' Field]] in 1567. Many contemporary narratives describing his life and death refer to him as simply ''Lord Darnley'', his title as [[heir apparent]] to the [[Earldom of Lennox]].<ref name="Fraser"/>

==Origins==
He was the second but eldest surviving son of [[Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox]], by his wife [[Lady Margaret Douglas]], which supported his claim to the English succession. Darnley's maternal grandparents were [[Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus]], and Queen [[Margaret Tudor]], daughter of King [[Henry VII of England]] and widow of King [[James IV of Scotland]].

==Early life==
[[File:Hans Eworth Henry Stuart Lord Darnley.jpg|thumb|left|Lord Darnley aged about nine, by [[Hans Eworth]].<ref>''Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, 1545–1567''. PG 2471, www.nationalgalleries.org</ref> [[Scottish National Portrait Gallery]], Edinburgh.]]
Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley was born at [[Temple Newsam]], [[Leeds]], in the [[West Riding of Yorkshire]], England, in 1546. Henry was initially believed to be born on 5 December 1545, but more recent research suggests he was born in 1546, as his mother had given birth in late February 1545. In a letter from March 1566, his age was given as nineteen.<ref name="Ballantine Books">{{cite book|last1=Weir|first1=Alison|title=The Lost Tudor Princess: The Life of Lady Margaret Douglas|date=2015|publisher=Ballantine Books|location=New York|isbn=978-0345521392|page=131}}</ref> 

In 1545, his father, [[Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox]], was found guilty of treason in Scotland for siding with the English in the War of the [[Rough Wooing]], in opposing [[Mary of Guise]] and [[Regent Arran]]. The family's Scottish estates were forfeited<ref>Elaine Finnie Greig, 'Stewart, Henry, duke of Albany [Lord Darnley] (1545/6–1567)', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004; online edn, Jan 2008</ref> and his father went into exile in England for 22 years, returning to Scotland in 1564. The Countess of Lennox [[Margaret Douglas]], his mother, had left Scotland in 1528.<ref name="Daniel 2">Daniel, William S., ''History of The Abbey and Palace of Holyrood'' (Edinburgh: Duncan Anderson, 1852), p. 62.</ref>

The Scottish scholar [[John Elder (writer)|John Elder]] was among his tutors. Elder advocated Anglo-Scottish union through the marriage of [[Mary, Queen of Scots]], and [[Edward VI of England|Prince Edward]]. His advice to [[Henry VIII]] in 1543, was termed the ''Advice of a [[Redshank (soldier)|Redshank]]''.<ref>[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=76781 ''Letters & Papers Henry VIII,'' vol. 18 part 2 (London, 1902), no. 539]: [https://books.google.com/books?id=l1QJAAAAQAAJ ''Bannatyne Miscellany'', Edinburgh vol. 1, (1827), 1–6]</ref> Another schoolmaster to the young heir was Arthur Lallart, who would later be interrogated in London for having gone to Scotland in 1562.<ref>Morgan Ring, ''So High A Blood'' (Bloomsbury, 2017), pp. 160–161: Joseph Stevenson, [https://archive.org/details/calendarstatepa03britgoog/page/26/mode/2up ''Calendar State Papers Foreign Elizabeth'', 5 (London, 1867), p. 13 no. 12]: ''Calendar State Papers Domestic 1547–1580'' (London, 1856), pp. 201, 203.</ref>

Henry was considered strong, athletic, skilled in horsemanship and weaponry, and passionate about hunting and hawking. His youthful character is captured somewhat in a letter of March 1554 to [[Mary I of England]] from Temple Newsam, where he writes about making a map, the ''Utopia Nova'', and his wish that "every haire in my heade for to be a wourthy souldiour".<ref>Henry Ellis, ''Original Letters illustrative of British History'', 2nd series vol. 2 (London, 1827) pp. 249–251.</ref> In Scotland, he was delighted with an [[English Water Spaniel]], a gift from the courtier [[James Melville of Halhill]].<ref>Joseph Stevenson, [https://archive.org/details/selectionsfromu00stevgoog/page/n197/mode/2up ''Selections from unpublished manuscripts illustrating the reign of Mary Queen of Scotland'' (Glasgow, 1837), p. 165]</ref>

==Succession crisis==
There was a political dilemma in England arising from the dynastic ambition of the Lennoxes: Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox, was third in line to the Scottish throne, and his wife [[Margaret Douglas]], Countess of Lennox, was a niece of Henry VIII, making her a potential successor to the English throne if Elizabeth should die.<ref name="Macauley, 2004, 267">Macauley, (2004), p. 267</ref> As [[Roman Catholic]]s, they posed a threat to English [[Protestants]].<ref name="Macauley, 2004, 267"/> Although Elizabeth was bright, witty, and well-educated for her position, as a woman she had to prove herself. As she was a Protestant, many Roman Catholics would have liked to see the Catholic Mary, Queen of Scots, take the throne. They regarded Elizabeth as illegitimate, her parents' marriage not having been recognised by the Catholic Church. As a male descended from Henry VII, Darnley was also a contender for the English throne—these interrelationships made for complex intrigues, spying, strategising, and manoeuvering for power at the various courts.

When [[Henry II of France]] died in July 1559, Lennox's brother John, 5th [[Duke of Aubigny|Sieur d'Aubigny]], was elevated in the French court as a relative of the new French queen, Mary, already Queen of Scots. Aubigny arranged for Darnley to be dispatched to the French court to congratulate Mary and [[Francis II of France]] on Francis's accession and seek restoration for Lennox. Mary did not restore Lennox to his Scottish earldom. Still, she did give 1,000 crowns to Darnley and invited him to her coronation.<ref>Macauley, (2004), p. 268</ref> Lennox planned to appeal directly to the Queen of Scots via her ambassador, over the heads of Elizabeth and the [[House of Guise|Guise]]. The mission of Lennox's agent, one Nesbit, appears to have been a desperate one; not only was Lennox willing to hand over Darnley and his brother Charles as hostages for his restoration, but he supplied pedigrees of Darnley, indicating his right to the inheritance of England and Scotland and the houses of Hamilton and Douglas.<ref>Macauley, (2004), pp. 268–269</ref> Aubigny was also later accused of supporting Mary's title to the throne of England and hinting that even his nephew had a stronger claim than Elizabeth.

Lennox set Nesbit to watch Mary, Darnley, and Darnley's tutor, John Elder. In 1559 [[Nicholas Throckmorton]], the English ambassador in Paris, warned Elizabeth that Elder was "as dangerous for the matters of England as any he knew."<ref>''Calendar State Papers Foreign Elizabeth'', vol. 1</ref> [[William Paget, 1st Baron Paget|Lord Paget]] in March 1560, wrote of the 'well founded' fear that Catholics would raise Darnley to the throne on Elizabeth's death.<ref>The Lennox Crisis, 1558–1563; Sarah Macauley, Christ's College, Cambridge. ''Northern History'', 41:2 (Sept. 2004), p. 276.</ref>

[[Francis Yaxley]] was a Catholic spy discovered in 1562 whose activities led to the arrest of the Lennox family. He had been a [[Clerk of the Signet]] and from 1549 was employed by [[William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley|William Cecil]] travelling in France.<ref>''HMC Manuscripts of the Marquis of Salisbury'', vol. 1 (London, 1883), pp. 74, 118, 121, 147; vol. 2 (1888), p. 509: ''CSP Domestic, Elizabeth: 1547–1580'' (London, 1856), p. 90.</ref> Yaxley was employed by the Countess of Lennox. He placed Mabel Fortescue and other ladies as servants in the Lennox household at Settrington in November 1560.<ref>''CSP Domestic, Elizabeth: 1547–1580'' (London, 1856), pp. 164, 171, 177.</ref> His interrogation at the [[Tower of London]] in February 1562 revealed that he had obtained intelligence about the English Court from the Spanish ambassador, and the ambassador had entrusted him and Hugh Allen with messages and tokens for the Lennoxes and Darnley. Yaxley admitted that his missions were intended to arrange the marriage of the Queen of Scots with Darnley, that Darnley's religion guaranteed him greater success in his suit than the [[James Hamilton, 3rd Earl of Arran|Earl of Arran]], and that the countess had many friends in the north.<ref>Macauley, (2004), p. 284: ''CSP Domestic 1547–1580'' (London, 1856), p. 195.</ref> Although the Lennox threat never died out, Elizabeth did not convict the family of treason in 1562 after their arrest, nor did she encourage efforts to annul the countess's claim to her throne. Perhaps Elizabeth feared that these investigations could also be directed at herself, or her inaction was intended to ensure the monarchy's survival by not reducing the number of potential heirs. The Lennox family was released in February 1563. Within a few months, Darnley and his mother were conspicuous by their presence at Court and the favour they received there, although Elizabeth would not accommodate the earl at Court.<ref name="Macauley, 2004, 287">Macauley, (2004), p. 287</ref>

Sarah Macauley notes three outcomes of the court's decision in the Lennox trial:<blockquote>"Their elevation at Court was, as it turned out in 1563, a useful complication in the succession issue. First, it presented a public statement that the preferences of Parliament (the claim of Catherine Grey in the succession crisis) could not dictate her own policy. Secondly, favouring the Lennoxes could serve as some kind of appeasement of the English Roman Catholics, who, like the Spanish ambassador, might foresee Elizabeth naming Darnley as her successor ... Such speculation would also distract them from favouring the more alarming claim of the Queen of Scots ... Thirdly, and most significantly, the elevation of the Lennoxes presented an obstacle between the Queen of Scots and the English throne. Thus was Darnley's uniquely 'British' inheritance put to use at last ... The subsequent release of Darnley into Scotland and the restoration of his father at the Scottish Court were part of this policy: the political disaster of the Darnley marriage as yet unforeseen."<ref>Macauley, Sarah. 'The Lennox Crisis, 1558–1563.', in ''Northern History'' 41.2 (2004), pp. 267–287</ref></blockquote>
In September 1564, the [[Parliament of Scotland|Scottish Parliament]] restored Matthew Stewart's rights and titles as Earl of Lennox, and listened to a lengthy speech from the Queen's secretary [[William Maitland of Lethington|William Maitland]], who offered;<blockquote>"[I]t may be affirmid Scotland in na manis age that presentlie levis wes in gritter tranquillitie."<ref>[[Annie Cameron|Cameron, Annie I.]], ed., ''Warrender Papers'', vol. 1 (Edinburgh, 1931), p. 43, Maitland's oration in parliament.</ref></blockquote>

==Marriage to Mary, Queen of Scots==
[[Image:Mary Stuart James Darnley.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Darnley and Mary, Queen of Scots (painting {{circa|1565}}, now at [[Hardwick Hall]] in [[Derbyshire]]).<ref>{{cite web|title=Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, (1545–1567) and Mary, Queen of Scots (1542–1587), National Trust Inventory Number 1129218 |url=http://www.nationaltrustcollections.org.uk/object/1129218 |publisher=[[National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty|National Trust]] collections |access-date=2 February 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140204015143/http://www.nationaltrustcollections.org.uk/object/1129218 |archive-date=4 February 2014 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> ]]
[[File:Mary Stuart James.jpg|thumb|300px|right|James VI and I (right) depicted aged 17 beside his mother [[Mary, Queen of Scots|Mary]] (left), 1583. In reality, they were separated when he was still a baby.]]

On 3 February 1565, Darnley left London; by 12 February, he was in [[Edinburgh]]. On 17 February, he presented himself to Mary at [[Wemyss Castle]] in [[Fife, Scotland|Fife]].<ref>Charles Wemyss, ''Noble House of Scotland'' (Prestel Verlag, 2014), p. 80: Joseph Bain, ''Calendar State Papers Scotland'', vol. 2 (Edinburgh, 1900), pp. 125–126.</ref> [[James Melville of Halhill]] reported that "Her Majesty took well with him, and said that he was the lustiest and best proportioned long man that she had seen."<ref>{{cite book|last=Melville|first=James|title=Memoirs of his own life|editor=Gordon Donaldson|publisher=AMS Press|location=New York|year=1973|isbn=0404527183|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/MemoirsOfHisOwnLife}}</ref> After a brief visit to his father at [[Dunkeld]], Darnley returned with Mary and the court to [[Holyrood Palace|Holyrood]] on 24 February. The next day, he heard [[John Knox]] preach, and he danced a [[galliard]] with Mary at night.<ref>Joseph Bain, ''Calendar State Papers Scotland'', vol. 2 (Edinburgh, 1900), p. 128.</ref> He was constantly in Mary's company from then on.<ref name=Greig/>

Darnley was his wife's half-first cousin through two different marriages of their grandmother, [[Margaret Tudor]], putting Mary and Darnley high in the line of succession for the English throne. Darnley was also a descendant of a daughter of [[James II of Scotland]], and so also in line for the throne of Scotland.

As a preliminary to the marriage, Darnley was made a [[knight]], Lord of Ardmanoch and [[Earl of Ross]] at [[Stirling Castle]] on 15 May 1565.<ref>''[[The Scots Peerage]]'', vol. I, [https://archive.org/stream/scotspeeragefoun01paul#page/155/mode/1up p. 155].</ref> An entourage of 15 men were made knights, including one of Mary's half brothers, [[Robert Stewart, 1st Earl of Orkney|Robert Stewart of Strathdon]], [[Robert Drummond of Carnock]], [[James Stewart, 1st Lord Doune|James Stewart]] of [[Doune Castle]], and [[William Murray of Tullibardine]].<ref>Goodare, Julian, 'Queen Mary's Catholic Interlude', in ''Mary Stewart Queen in Three Kingdoms: Innes Review'', vol.37 (1987), p. 158: ''Calendar of State Papers Scotland'', vol. 2 (Edinburgh, 1900), p. 161 no. 181.</ref> In England, a concerned [[Privy council]] debated the perils of the intended marriage on 4 June. One of their resolutions was to relax the displeasure shown to Lady [[Catherine Grey]], another rival to Mary Stuart for the English throne.<ref>''Calendar State Papers Scotland'', vol. 2 (Edinburgh, 1900), pp. 175, 194.</ref> Mary sent John Hay, Commendator of Balmerino, to speak to Elizabeth; Elizabeth demanded Darnley's return and gave John Hay plainly to understand her small satisfaction.<ref>''Calendar of State Papers Scotland'', vol. 2 (Edinburgh, 1900), pp. 175–177, 178.</ref>

On 22 July, Darnley was made [[Duke of Albany]] in [[Holyrood Abbey]], and the [[banns of marriage]] were called in the parish of Canongate. A proclamation was made at the [[Mercat cross|Cross]] of Edinburgh on 28 July 1565 that government would be in the joint names of the king and queen of Scots, thus making Darnley king and giving him equality with and precedence over Mary. This was confirmed in the circulation of a silver ryal in the names of Henry and Mary.<ref>Calendar State Papers Scotland, vol. 2 (Edinburgh, 1900), p. 184.</ref><ref name="Daniel2">Daniel, William S. (Edinburgh, 1852), ''History of The Abbey and Palace of Holyrood'', p. 67.</ref>

On 29 July 1565, the [[Wedding of Mary, Queen of Scots, and Henry, Lord Darnley|marriage took place by Roman Catholic rites in Mary's private chapel at Holyrood]], but Darnley (whose religious beliefs were unfixed – he was raised as a Catholic, but was later influenced by Protestantism)<ref name="Davison, Meredith Henry Armstrong 1965">Davison, Meredith Henry Armstrong, ''The Casket Letters'' 1965.</ref> refused to accompany Mary to the nuptial Mass after the wedding.<ref name=Greig /> Because they were both first cousins, a papal dispensation was needed for the marriage, which was initially celebrated without the dispensation because the [[Holy See]] delayed issuing it.{{sfnm|Fraser|1994|1p=230|Wormald|1988|2p=150}} It was not until 25 September that Rome issued the dispensation, thus validating the marriage between Mary and Darnley.<ref>{{harvnb|Weir|2008|p=82}}</ref>

The marriage union between Mary and Darnley provoked the wrath of Elizabeth because the Queen considered that Darnley, who, despite being Scottish, was born and raised in England and, therefore, was her subject, had married without her permission. The marriage also posed a serious threat to Elizabeth: both Darnley and Mary had claims to the English throne as descendants of [[Henry VII of England|Henry VII]], the first monarch of the reigning [[House of Tudor]], and the English Catholics considered Mary to be the rightful heir to the throne, rather than Elizabeth who was Protestant. Furthermore, any son they might have would be a clear claimant to the throne of England.<ref>{{harvnb|Weir|2008|pp=83–84}}</ref>

In retaliation for Henry's marriage, Elizabeth sent a diplomat [[John Tamworth]] to Mary with her complaints,<ref>[[Jane Dawson|Jane E. A. Dawson]], 'Mary, Queen of Scots, Lord Darnley and Anglo-Scottish Relations in 1565', ''International History Review'', 8 (1986), pp. 1–24.</ref> and ordered the imprisonment of her first cousin and Darnley's mother, Lady Margaret, in the [[Tower of London]]. Margaret remained imprisoned in the Tower until she was freed shortly after her son's murder.<ref>Morgan Ring, ''So High A Blood: The Life of Margaret, Countess of Lennox'' (Bloomsbury, 2017), pp. 160–161, 200–211.</ref>

The marriage between Mary and the son of Scotland's premier Catholic nobleman alarmed the Protestant nobility, precipitating the Queen's half-brother, [[James Stewart, Earl of Moray]], along with the earls of [[Archibald Campbell, 5th Earl of Argyll|Argyll]], [[Alexander Cunningham, 5th Earl of Glencairn|Glencairn]], and [[Andrew Leslie, 5th Earl of Rothes|Rothes]] to take up arms against Mary.{{sfnm|Weir |2008|1p=78|Wormald|1988|2pp=151-153}}<ref>Henry Ellis, ''Original Letters'', series 2 vol. 2 (London, 1827), pp. 298–99.</ref> Protestant noblemen were worried that the marriage would mean Scotland would take a turn towards Catholicism.<ref>[[Jenny Wormald]], ''Mary, Queen of Scots: Politics, Passion and a Kingdom Lost'' (London, 2001), p. 154.</ref> The rebellion, known as the [[Chaseabout Raid]], was soon defeated by the royal forces, and Moray was forced to escape to England, where he sought Elizabeth's asylum.<ref>James Aikman, ''History of Scotland by George Buchanan'', 2 (Glasgow, 1827), pp. 473–74.</ref><ref>http://www.marie-stuart.co.uk/timeline.htm - details the campaign.</ref><ref>Thomas Finlay Henderson, [https://archive.org/details/maryqueenofscots01hend/page/352/mode/2up ''Mary, Queen of Scots, her environment and tragedy, a biography'', 1 (London, 1905), p. 353]</ref>

==Estrangement==
[[File:The Murder of David Rizzio.jpg|thumb|300px|''[[The Murder of David Rizzio]]'' by [[William Allan (painter)|William Allan]], 1833]]
Soon after Mary married Darnley, she became aware of his vain, arrogant, and unreliable qualities, which threatened the state's well-being. Darnley was unpopular with the other nobles and had a violent streak, aggravated by his drinking.<ref name=Fraser>''Mary Queen of Scots'', by [[Antonia Fraser]], 13th reprint, London: 1989; {{ISBN|0-297-17773-7}}</ref> Mary refused to grant Darnley the [[Crown Matrimonial]], which would have made him the successor to the throne if she died childless.<ref name="Davison, Meredith Henry Armstrong 1965"/> By August 1565, less than a month after the marriage, William Cecil heard that Darnley's insolence had driven Lennox from the Scottish court. On 28 August 1565, a pair of diplomatic letters were sent from the Scottish court to the [[Frederick II of Denmark|King of Denmark]], one signed by Mary, the other by Darnley. This seems to have been an effort to confirm his royal status.<ref>Cynthia Fry, [https://www.ssns.org.uk/journal/northern-studies-43-2012/ 'Henry, King of Scots: An Analysis of Royal Authority and Diplomatic Influence', ''Northern Studies'', 43 (2012), pp. 50–70]</ref> Mary soon became pregnant.

As a token of friendship, [[Charles IX of France]] sent an ambassador, [[Nicolas d'Angennes]], seigneur de [[Rambouillet]], to invest Darnley in the [[Order of Saint Michael]] in February 1566. Mary, Darnley, and her private secretary [[David Rizzio]], took part in a costly [[masque]] with seven other dancers in rich attire to welcome Rambouillet and celebrate Darnley's investiture. His costume for the ceremony in the chapel of Holyroodhouse, of satin guarded with black velvet and satin, sewn with [[aglet]]s of gold, was given to a French herald as a perquisite.<ref>''A Narrative of the Minority of Mary Queen of Scots by James Maitland'' (Ipswich, 1842): W. Park, 'Letter of Thomas Randolph to the Earl of Leicester, 14 February 1566', ''Scottish Historical Review'', 34:118 Part 2 (October 1955), pp. 135-139.</ref>

David Rizzio was stabbed 57 times on 9 March 1566 by Darnley and his confederates, Protestant Scottish nobles, in the presence of the queen, who was six months pregnant. According to English diplomats [[Thomas Randolph (diplomat)|Thomas Randolph]] and the [[Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford|Earl of Bedford]], the murder of Rizzio (who was rumoured to be the father of Mary's unborn child) was part of Darnley's bid to force Mary to cede the Crown Matrimonial. Darnley also bargained with his allies to advance his claim to the Crown Matrimonial in the [[Parliament of Scotland]] in return for restoring their lands and titles.<ref>''Calendar State Papers Scotland'', vol. 2 (Edinburgh, 1900), pp. 259–61 no. 351, 6 March 1566, or so Randolph and Bedford were advised before the murder.</ref>

When the Spanish Ambassador in Paris heard this news, the headlines were that Darnley "had murdered his wife, admitted the exiled heretics, and seized the kingdom." However, on 20 March, Darnley posted a declaration denying all knowledge of or complicity in the Rizzio murder. 
Mary no longer trusted her husband, and he was disgraced by the kingdom. On 27 March, the [[Regent Morton|Earl of Morton]] and [[Patrick Ruthven, 3rd Lord Ruthven|Lord Ruthven]], who were both present at Rizzio's murder and had fled to England, wrote to Cecil claiming that Darnley had initiated the murder plot and recruited them, because of his "heich quarrel" and "deadly hatred" of Rizzio.<ref>''Calendar State Papers Scotland'', vol. 2 (Edinburgh, 1900), 270–1 no. 364 & no. 369.</ref>

==Birth of son==
[[File:DarnleySycamore.JPG|thumb|Mary is said to have nursed the smallpox-stricken Darnley under this [[Acer pseudoplatanus|sycamore tree]] at home at [[Darnley]], now a suburb of Glasgow.<ref name=fcs>{{cite web|url=http://www.forestry.gov.uk/forestry/INFD-6U8J4E|title=The Darnley Sycamore|work=Forestry Commission Scotland – Heritage Trees of Scotland website|access-date=10 February 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090215032958/http://www.forestry.gov.uk/forestry/INFD-6U8J4E|archive-date=15 February 2009|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref>]]
Mary and Darnley's son James (the future King James VI of Scotland and I of England) was born on 19 June 1566 at Edinburgh Castle.<ref>Jenny Wormald, ''Mary Queen of Scots'' (London, 2001), p. 163.</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/james_i_vi.shtml|title=BBC – History – James I and VI|language=en-GB|access-date=2018-09-20}}</ref>

Following the birth of James, the succession was more secure, but Darnley and Mary's marriage continued to struggle, despite a hunting trip together to [[Cramalt Tower]] in the [[Ettrick, Scotland|Ettrick Forest]] in August 1566.<ref name=":2" /> Darnley alienated many who would otherwise have been his supporters through his erratic behaviour. His insistence that he be awarded the Crown Matrimonial was still a source of marital frustration.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZIWDDAAAQBAJ&q=lord+darnley+crown+matrimonial|title=Catholic Queen, Protestant Patriarchy: Mary Queen of Scots and the Politics of Gender and Religion|last=Walton|first=K.|date=2006|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-0230285958|language=en}}</ref>

Their son was [[baptism of James VI|baptised Charles James]] on 17 December 1566 in a Catholic ceremony held at [[Stirling Castle]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZZqAyj5JAlIC&q=james+vi+scotland+birth|title=The Cradle King: A Life of James VI & I|last=Stewart|first=Alan|date=2011|publisher=Random House|isbn=978-1448104574|language=en}}</ref> His godparents were [[Charles IX of France]],<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EzKzPflzIJkC&q=lord+darnley+and+mary+queen+of+scots+relationship|title=Mary, Queen of Scots, and the Murder of Lord Darnley|last=Weir|first=Alison|date=2007|publisher=Random House Publishing Group|isbn=978-0307431479|language=en}}</ref> [[Elizabeth I of England]]<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8hg_LcAusLQC&q=james+vi+scotland+godparents&pg=PA28|title=Network North: Scottish Kin, Commercial And Covert Associations in Northern Europe 1603–1746|last=Murdoch|first=Steve|date=2006|publisher=Brill|isbn=9004146644|language=en}}</ref> and [[Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy]].<ref name=":3" /> Mary refused to let the [[John Hamilton (archbishop of St Andrews)|Archbishop of St Andrews]], whom she referred to as "a pocky priest", spit in the child's mouth, as was then the custom.<ref name="Fraser" /> In the entertainment, devised by Frenchman [[Bastian Pagez]], men danced dressed as satyrs and sporting tails; the English guests took offence, thinking the satyrs "done against them".<ref name="Fraser" /> The French ambassador described how Darnley was lodged in the castle but stayed in his rooms, and sensing he was out of favour, the ambassador refused to meet with him.<ref>Agnes Strickland, ''Letters of Mary Queen of Scots'', vol. 3 (London, 1843), pp. 16–17.</ref>

==Death==
{{Main|Murder of Lord Darnley}}
[[Image:Kirk o' Field contemporary sketch.jpg|thumb|350px|right|1567 drawing of [[Kirk o' Field]] after the murder of Darnley, drawn for [[William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley|William Cecil]] shortly after the murder.]]
Darnley was murdered eight months after James's birth. On the night of 9/10 February 1567, his body and that of his valet were discovered in the orchard of [[Kirk o' Field]], in Edinburgh, where they had been staying.<ref name=":4" /> During the weeks leading up to his death, Darnley was recovering from a bout of [[smallpox]] (or, it has been speculated, [[syphilis]]). He was described as having deformed pocks upon his face and body. He stayed with his family in [[Glasgow]] until Mary brought him to recuperate at Old Provost's lodging at Kirk o' Field, a two-storey house within the church quadrangle, a short walk from Holyrood, to incorporate him into the court again.<ref>"Mary, Mary, quite Contrary." Off Our Backs 19 February 1971: 11–. ProQuest Research Library. Web. 15 March 2012 .</ref> Darnley stayed at Kirk o' Field while Mary attended the wedding of [[Bastian Pagez]], one of her closest servants, at Holyrood.<ref>{{Harvnb|Weir|2008|p=296}}; {{Harvnb|Wormald|1988|p=161}}</ref>

Around {{nowrap|2:00 a.m.}} on the night of 9/10 February 1567, while Mary was away, two explosions rocked the foundation of Kirk o' Field. These explosions were later attributed to two barrels of gunpowder that had been placed in the small room under Darnley's sleeping quarters. Darnley's body and the body of his valet, William Taylor, were found outside, surrounded by a cloak, a dagger, a chair, and a coat. Darnley was dressed only in his nightshirt, suggesting he had hurriedly fled from his bedchamber. Darnley was smothered.<ref>{{Harvnb|Weir|2008|p=296}}; {{Harvnb|Wormald|1988|p=161}}</ref> There were no visible marks of strangulation or violence on the body.<ref>{{Harvnb|Weir|2008|p=252}}; {{Harvnb|Greig|2004}}</ref> A post-mortem revealed internal injuries thought to have been caused by the explosion. [[John Knox]] claimed that the surgeons who examined the body were lying and that Darnley had been strangled, but all the sources agreed there were no marks on the body and there was no reason for the surgeons to lie as Darnley was murdered either way.<ref>{{Harvnb|Weir|2008|p=255}}</ref>

==Aftermath==

Suspicion quickly fell on [[James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell]], and his supporters, notably [[Archibald Douglas, Parson of Douglas]], whose shoes were found at the scene, and on Mary herself. Bothwell had long been suspected of having designs on the throne, and his close relationship with the queen gave rise to rumours they were sexually intimate. This was viewed as a motive for Bothwell to have Darnley murdered, with help from some of the nobility and seemingly with royal approval. Mary had been looking at options for removing Darnley and had discussed ideas at [[Craigmillar Castle]] in November 1566, though her ideas were for divorce. The problem was the risk of making her son illegitimate.<ref>Jenny Wormald, ''Mary Queen of Scots'' (London, 2001), pp. 163–164.</ref>

Soon after Darnley's death, Bothwell and Mary left Edinburgh together. There are two points of view about the circumstances: in the first, Bothwell kidnapped the queen, took her to [[Dunbar Castle]], and raped her. In the second, Mary was a willing participant in the kidnapping, and the story of rape was a fabrication, so her honour and reputation were not ruined by her marriage to a man widely suspected of murder. Mary later miscarried twins by Bothwell while a prisoner at [[Lochleven Castle]].<ref>Antonia Fraser, ''Mary Queen of Scots'' (Panther, 1970), p. 409.</ref>

A soldier under the pay of Bothwell, Captain William Blackadder of the [[Clan Blackadder]], was one of the first non-participants to happen upon the scene and, for that reason, was treated as a suspect. He was convicted and executed by being [[hanged, drawn and quartered]] before each of his limbs was nailed to the gates of a different Scottish town.<ref>Lord Herries (1837), ''Historical memoirs of the reign of Mary Queen of Scots and a portion of the reign of King James the Sixth'', p. 84.</ref><ref>[[Robert Pitcairn (antiquary)|Robert Pitcairn]], ''Ancient Criminal Trials'' (Edinburgh, 1833), pp. 489–490.</ref>{{better source needed|date=February 2021}}

Bothwell was put on trial in Edinburgh and found not guilty. Suspicions that Mary colluded with conspirators in her husband's death or that she took no action to prevent his death led to the loss of her supporters and the loss of the Scottish crown. Bothwell escaped to Shetland and Norway. Her enemies captured Mary at the [[battle of Carberry Hill]]. In 1568, Mary's involvement in the murder was discussed in England in conferences at York and Westminster, which ended with no definitive findings. The [[Casket letters]] were produced as evidence against her, alleged to have been written by Mary; they seemed to indicate her support for the killing.<ref>Jenny Wormald, ''Mary Queen of Scots'' (London, 2001), p. 174.</ref> The letters were purportedly found by [[James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton]], in Edinburgh, in a silver box engraved with an "F" (for Francis II), along with other documents, including the Mary-Bothwell marriage certificate.<ref name="MacRobert">{{cite book|last=MacRobert|first=A. E.|title=Mary, Queen of Scots and the casket letters|publisher=I.B. Tauris|year=2002|series=International Library of Historical Studies|volume=25|isbn=978-1-86064-829-8}}</ref> Before Morton's execution in 1581, he admitted knowing the murder plot, and that Bothwell and Archibald Douglas were "chief actors" in Darnley's murder.<ref>George Hewitt, ''Scotland under Morton'' (Edinburgh, 1982), pp. 198–202.</ref>

Mary fled to England but was kept in captivity there until she was implicated in the [[Babington plot]] against Elizabeth, after which she was convicted of treason and executed.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/09764a.htm |title=Catholic Encyclopedia: Mary Queen of Scots |publisher=Newadvent.org |date=1 October 1910 |access-date=9 September 2012}}</ref>

== Burial and missing remains ==
Darnley was buried in the Royal Vault at [[Holyrood Abbey]] in 1567 alongside the bodies of several royals: [[James II of Scotland|King James II]], [[Arthur, Duke of Rothesay]], [[Madeleine of Valois]], [[James, Duke of Rothesay (born 1540)|James, Duke of Rothesay]], Arthur, Duke of Albany and [[James V of Scotland|King James V]]. In 1668, the vault was opened by mobs, and sometime later (between 1776 and 1778), the vault was raided, and the skull of Lord Darnley was stolen.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last=Wilson|first=Daniel|date=1890|title=Queen Mary and the legend of the black turnpike|url=http://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/archiveDS/archiveDownload?t=arch-352-1/dissemination/pdf/vol_024/24_415_435.pdf|journal=The Society of Antiquaries of Scotland|volume=XXIV|pages=415–435|via=Archaeology Data Service}}</ref>

In 1928, a paper was published by [[Karl Pearson]],<ref>Pearson K (1928) The skull and portraits of Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley, and their bearing on the tragedy of Mary, Queen of Scots. ''Biometrika'' 20: 1–104</ref> detailing his vast research into the skull of Lord Darnley. In his paper, Pearson discussed the possibility of Darnley's skull residing in the [[Royal College of Surgeons of England|Royal College of Surgeons]]’ museum. In 2016, at the request of the [[University of Edinburgh]], research was undertaken to identify whether a skull once held in the university's collection (until destroyed in [[the Blitz]]) could be Darnley's stolen remains. The Royal College of Surgeons' skull and detailed pictures and measurements from 1928 of the destroyed Edinburgh skull were examined and compared to portraits of Darnley by Emma Price at the [[University of Dundee]]. The conclusion was that the Edinburgh skull could not be Darnley's, but the Royal College of Surgeons' one was a good match. A historical facial reconstruction was then produced.<ref name=":4">{{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2016/08/15/face-of-lord-darnley-revealed---mary-queen-of-scots-lusty-and-we/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2016/08/15/face-of-lord-darnley-revealed---mary-queen-of-scots-lusty-and-we/ |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Face of Lord Darnley revealed – Mary Queen of Scots' 'lusty and well proportioned' husband|last=Knapton|first=Sarah|date=August 2016|work=The Telegraph|access-date=6 September 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.formingfaces.com/#/historicalfacialreconstruction/|title=Lord Darnley|last=Price|first=Emma|date=2016|website=Forming Faces}}</ref>

==Sexuality==
Darnley's sexuality has been subject to debate.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mary, Queen of Scots: the real history behind the film |url=https://www.historyextra.com/period/stuart/mary-queen-scots-real-history-film-movie-husbands-meeting-elizabeth-cousin/ |access-date=2023-10-19 |website=HistoryExtra |language=en}}</ref> While at the Court of Elizabeth I, he was described as "a great cock chick", and Thomas Randolph (Elizabeth I's ambassador to Scotland) in a later despatch wrote that Darnley and Rizzio "would lie sometimes in one bed together".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Carroll |first=Leslie |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TcXWrhvBc8YC&dq=great+cock+chick+darnley&pg=PT189 |title=Notorious Royal Marriages: A Juicy Journey Through Nine Centuries of Dynasty, Destiny,and Desire |date=2010-01-05 |publisher=Penguin |isbn=978-1-101-15977-4 |language=en}}</ref> A sexual relationship between Darnley and Rizzio was depicted in both the 1971 film ''[[Mary, Queen of Scots (1971 film)|Mary, Queen of Scots]]'' and the 2018 film, [[Mary Queen of Scots (2018 film)|''Mary Queen of Scots'']]. 

==Honours==
* February 1565: [[Order of Saint Michael]], awarded by King [[Charles IX of France]].<ref>{{cite book | last1 = Anderson | first1 = Duncan | title = History of the Abbey and Palace of Holyrood | publisher = Keeper of the Chapel Royal | year = 1849 | location = Edinburgh, Scotland | page = 58 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=1xkvAAAAMAAJ&pg=PP1 | access-date = 15 December 2011 | quote = about the beginning of February 1565-6, the [[Nicolas d'Angennes|Seigneur de Rambouillet]], with a deputation from the King of France, arrived at the Palace, to present Darnley with the order of St. Michael, known as the Scallop or Cockle-shell Order, so called from the escallop shells of which the collar was composed. The investiture was performed after the celebration of mass in the Chapel-Royal}} [https://archive.org/details/historyofabbeypa00ande Alt URL]</ref>

==Ancestry==
{{ahnentafel
|collapsed=yes |align=center
|boxstyle_1=background-color: #fcc;
|boxstyle_2=background-color: #fb9;
|boxstyle_3=background-color: #ffc;
|boxstyle_4=background-color: #bfc;
|1= '''Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley'''
|2= [[Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox]]
|3= [[Margaret Douglas]]
|4= [[John Stewart, 3rd Earl of Lennox]]
|5= [[Elizabeth Stewart, Countess of Lennox|Elizabeth Stewart]]
|6= [[Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus]]
|7= [[Margaret Tudor]]
|8= [[Matthew Stewart, 2nd Earl of Lennox]]
|9= [[James Hamilton, 1st Lord Hamilton#Marriage and issue|Elizabeth Hamilton]]
|10=[[John Stewart, 1st Earl of Atholl]]
|11=[[William Sinclair, 1st Earl of Caithness#Family|Eleanor Sinclair]]
|12=[[George Douglas, Master of Angus]]
|13=[[John Drummond, 1st Lord Drummond#Family|Elizabeth Drummond]]
|14=[[Henry VII of England]]
|15=[[Elizabeth of York]]
}}

== Poetry and the Bannatyne Manuscript ==
Darnley was the author of 'Darnley's Ballet', 'Gife langour makis men licht', and potentially 'Quhair luve is kendlit confortless' [attribution uncertain] printed in the [[Bannatyne Manuscript]] (1570 ca.).<ref>{{Cite web|title=Scottish Poets|url=http://scotspoets.cath.vt.edu/select.php?select=Stewart._Henry_Lord_Darnley-s|access-date=2020-12-02|website=scotspoets.cath.vt.edu|archive-date=25 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210925155601/http://scotspoets.cath.vt.edu/select.php?select=Stewart._Henry_Lord_Darnley-s|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=(1) - Scottish Text Society publications > New series > Bannatyne manuscript > Volume 4, 1930 - Publications by Scottish clubs - National Library of Scotland|url=https://digital.nls.uk/publications-by-scottish-clubs/archive/106077334|access-date=2020-12-02|website=digital.nls.uk}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Bibliography==
{{commons category}}
* ''Darnley: A Life of Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, Consort of Mary Queen of Scots'' by Caroline Bingham
* {{cite book |last=Fraser |first=Antonia |author-link=Antonia Fraser |year=1994 |orig-year=1969 |title=Mary Queen of Scots |publisher=Weidenfeld and Nicolson |location=London |isbn=978-0-297-17773-9}}
* [http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/maney/nhi/2004/00000041/00000002/art00005 Macauley, Sarah, 'Lennox Crisis', in ''Northern History'' vol.41.2 (2004)] subscription or ATHENS login required.
* {{cite encyclopedia|last=Greig|first=Elaine Finnie|title=Stewart, Henry, duke of Albany <nowiki>[</nowiki>Lord Darnley<nowiki>]</nowiki> (1545/6–1567)|volume=1|encyclopedia=Oxford Dictionary of National Biography|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2004|url=http://www.oxforddnb.com/index/26/101026473/|doi=10.1093/ref:odnb/26473|access-date=3 March 2012}} {{ODNBsub}}
* {{cite book|last=Weir|first=Alison|author-link=Alison Weir|year=2008|orig-year=2003|title=Mary, Queen of Scots and the Murder of Lord Darnley|publisher=Random House|location=London|isbn=978-0-09-952707-7}}
* {{cite book|last=Wormald|first=Jenny|author-link=Jenny Wormald|year=1988|title=Mary, Queen of Scots|publisher=George Philip|location=London|isbn=978-0-540-01131-5}}

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{{S-vac|last=[[Francis II of France]]}}
{{S-ttl|title=[[List of Scottish consorts|King consort of Scots]]|years=1565–1567}}
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{{S-ttl|title=[[Duke of Albany]]<br>{{nobold|4th creation}}<br>[[Earl of Ross]]<br>{{nobold|3rd creation}}|years=1565–1567}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Darnley, Henry Stuart, Lord}}
[[Category:1546 births]]
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[[Category:16th-century Scottish peers]]
[[Category:People assassinated in the 16th century]]
[[Category:Assassinated royalty]]
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[[Category:Burials at Holyrood Abbey]]
[[Category:Dukes of Albany|301]]
[[Category:Earls of Ross]]
[[Category:English people of Scottish descent]]
[[Category:Heirs apparent who never acceded]]
[[Category:House of Stewart of Darnley|Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley]]
[[Category:Husbands of Mary, Queen of Scots]]
[[Category:Kings consort]]
[[Category:Peers created by Mary, Queen of Scots]]
[[Category:People from Leeds]]
[[Category:People murdered in Scotland]]
[[Category:Scottish murderers]]
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[[Category:Scottish Roman Catholics]]
[[Category:Scottish royal consorts|Henry, Lord Darnely]]
[[Category:Historical figures with ambiguous or disputed sexuality]]