Discover Royalty: Top 7 Entertaining and Unexpected Facts About Mary Queen of Scots

1. "La Reine Blanche" - Fashion Queen

Mary Queen of Scots, the original fashion victim: Known for her all-white mourning attire and elaborate ensembles, she gained the nickname "La Reine Blanche," while her love for dancing had John Knox shaking his head in disapproval. But don't let the fabulous fashion fool you, she was a skilled politician who kept Moray as her chief advisor and tolerated the Protestant ascendancy in Scotland, against the expectations of her Catholic followers.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

2. Golf’s First Leading Lady

Little-known fact: Mary Queen of Scots would have been a perfect addition to your weekend golf foursome. As it turns out, Scotland's own royal was quite the pioneering lady duffer: Mary Queen of Scots regularly played golf, even as early as 1563 at the now renowned St. Andrews golf course, making her the first woman known to have partaken in the sport. This tidbit of royal athleticism is supported by none other than the National Museums of Scotland and Getty Images.
Source => foxnews.com

Did you know Queen Elizabeth I plucked her eyebrows and hairline for a high forehead and used a dangerous beauty secret? 😱 Discover the lengths she went to for fashion!

=> Fun Facts about Queen-Elizabeth-1

3. Embroidery Queen's Prison Pastime

Who needs Netflix and chill when you've got fabric and frills: Mary Queen of Scots, during her seemingly endless prison staycation, took her embroidery game to a whole new level, creating over 100 panels of intricately stitched masterpieces with her crew, including Bess of Hardwick. Known collectively as the Oxburgh Hangings, these fascinating works now reside at Oxburgh Hall, showcasing Mary's artistic flair with a needle and thread while giving us a textured peek into her life behind bars.
Source => vam.ac.uk

4. Arya Stark's Jailbreak Inspiration

In a daring jailbreak that would put the 'Red Wedding' to shame, Mary Queen of Scots hatched a tipsy plan of escape, gave a whole new meaning to "boat party," and slipped away from her captors in true Arya Stark style: On May 2, 1568, Mary drugged half the island with wine while Willie Douglas, son of the castle's owner, dressed up as the "Abbot of Unreason" during May Day festivities and smuggled her and her companions out on the last remaining boat from Lochleven castle – all of this taking place on her successful second attempt to escape almost a year of imprisonment.
Source => thehistorypress.co.uk

5. Poetry and Putts: A Royal Combo

Forget birdies and bogeys, Mary Queen of Scots brought royalty to the green: Not only was she the first woman to regularly hit the links playing golf, but she also penned exquisite poetry in her native French, composing a famous sonnet while held captive in England – "Adieu, Farewell Earth's Bliss", a melody many have swung to across the ages.
Source => npg.org.uk

6. Highlands' Anti-Piggy Club

In a swine twist of fate that would make Miss Piggy and Porky Pig weep, turns out the Highlands of Scotland were one "Babe" short of a pig fan club: Mary Queen of Scots, like many in her realm, held a strong aversion to pork consumption. This peculiar piggy prejudice was not rooted in any religious cult but rather in scarce pig fodder or perhaps distaste for the swine, slowly fading by the 1800s.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

7. Queen of the Pox-pocalypse

If the pox marked the spot, then Mary Queen of Scots was X-ceptional: She battled smallpox not once but twice, in 1562 at the tender age of 19 and again in 1568 while under lock and key at Lochleven Castle, leaving her royal visage with a lasting reminder of each encounter.
Source => nationalarchives.gov.uk