In 1561, nineteen-year-old Mary Stuart, Catholic Queen of Scotland, returns to her home country from France following the death of her husband, Francis II of France, to take up her throne, where she is received by her half brother, the Earl of Moray. In neighbouring England, Mary’s twenty-eight-year-old cousin Elizabeth is Protestant Queen of England – unmarried, childless, and threatened by Mary’s potential claim to her throne. Mary dismisses the cleric John Knox from her court. A Protestant and leader of the Scottish Reformation, Knox views Mary as a danger to the kingdom’s Protestant supremacy.Mary Queen of Scots 2018 Movie Download.
Seeking to weaken her cousin’s threat to her sovereignty, Elizabeth arranges for Mary, whom English Catholics recognise as their rightful Queen, to be married to an Englishman. She chooses Robert Dudley, whom she secretly loves; although he and Mary are unwilling, news of Elizabeth’s smallpox convinces Mary to accept, provided she is named Elizabeth’s heir apparent. Reluctant to let go of Dudley, Elizabeth sends Lord Darnley to Scotland with the pretence of living under their religious freedom. Despite sensing the ulterior motive, Mary grows fond of Darnley and eventually accepts his proposal.Mary Queen of Scots 2018 Movie Download.
Mary’s impending marriage causes a constitutional crisis within both realms: Elizabeth is advised to oppose the marriage for fear that Darnley, an English noble, will elevate Mary’s claim to the Crown; Mary’s council is suspicious of Darnley, fearing an English takeover. Both kingdoms demand his return to England but Mary refuses, leading Moray to mount a rebellion against her. Mary marries Darnley, only to discover him in bed with her friend and private secretary, David Rizzio. Mary quashes the rebel forces but spares Rizzio and Moray, and demands that Darnley give her a child. When a child is conceived, Mary declares the child is “heir to Scotland and England” – offending the English.