News / Scotland

Mary Queen of What? Most Britons ‘cannot recognise famous royal’

Fifty-one per cent of people questioned could not identify who Mary Queen of Scots was from her portrait, a survey found.

Mary Queen of What? Most Britons ‘cannot recognise famous royal’ — Survey: Fifty-one per cent of people questioned could not identify who Mary Queen of Scots was from her portrait. PA Ready

Dan Barker, PA Scotland

22nd Nov 2021

More than half of Britons cannot identify Scotland’s most famous queen, research shows.

Fifty-one per cent of people questioned could not identify who Mary Queen of Scots was from her portrait, a survey commissioned by the University of Glasgow found.

And beyond her red hair, the survey found that Britons know very little about the Linlithgow Palace-born monarch and her history.

Married three times and widowed twice before she was 25, Mary’s third husband was believed to have killed her second before forcing her to marry him.

But her trauma did not end there. She was betrayed and imprisoned by her cousin, Elizabeth I of England, for 19 years before she was beheaded at the age of 44.

But, according to the survey, only 27% could correctly state how old she was when she was killed and just 18% knew she was just six days old when she became queen of Scotland.

A total of 62% were able to identify her famous red hair, and 63% of people who were asked knew she was accused of killing her second husband, Lord Darnley.

A portrait of Queen Elizabeth I, who kept Mary Queen of Scots prisoner. <em> (David Cheskin/PA)</em>”/><cite class=cite>PA Ready</cite></div><figcaption aria-hidden=true>A portrait of Queen Elizabeth I, who kept Mary Queen of Scots prisoner. <em> (David Cheskin/PA)</em> <cite class=hidden>PA Ready</cite></figcaption></figure><p>The University of Glasgow has now launched a new course, The Life and Afterlife of Mary Queen of Scots, which is free to access.</p><p>Dr Steven Reid, a senior lecturer in Scottish history at the university, and the course leader, said: “We’ve found over 2000 different objects, ranging from art to personal relics, that tell us how Mary was remembered and how stories about her were told throughout centuries.</p><p>“These stories tell us as much about the cultural biases of the people who tell them – their views on gender, on religion, and on power, for example – as they do about how Mary has lived on in the popular imagination.”</p><p>The three-week course is available on the FutureLearn platform, and Astrid deRidder, the director of content at the company, said it “dives into the fascinating life and legacy of Mary Queen of Scots”.</p><div class=

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