Kitchen plants, Newhaven, Edinburgh on the last day of winter. Sunday, 28 February 2021.
12
Portobello Tide #portobello #edinburgh #scotland (at Portobello, Edinburgh)
https://www.instagram.com/p/CLzJsCwhB4g/?igshid=1opxpok8ol0po6
February 27th 1560 saw the Second Treaty of Berwick between England and Scotland.
The Scottish reformation was under full swing, but those pesky French were causing problems and the Protestant Lords of the Congregation could not shift them, so looked south for help, unthinkable up to now, English troops were invited into Scotland to fight French and Scottish Catholics. Remember this was only 15 years on from the battle in my last post, and less than 13 years after The Rough Wooing, quite a remarkable turn of events in such a short time.
Queen Elizabeth was keen on the Berwick treaty was because she feared that France intended to rule Scotland, which would have threatened her realm. The two had signed an accord that stipulated that the crowns of Scotland and France would be unified if there were children of the marriage of Mary Stuart and François, then the King to be, and the crown of Scotland would be given to France if there were not. , Elizabeth feared such greater unity between Scotland and France, and in particular, Mary Stuart’s claim to her throne.
Another factor concerning Elizabeth was the desire to further hasten the Reformation in Scotland, which is why the Protestant Scottish Lords of the Congregation (sounds like a great name for a rock group) were trying to get the Catholic French expelled. For Elizabeth, if Scotland were Protestant, that would make it an ally and help protect England.
The result of the discussions was that an English fleet and an army came to Scotland to help expel the ten thousand French troops that were defending the Regency of the Catholic Marie of Guise. Armed conflict ensued and the French troops retreated. They fortified the port and town of Leith against the combined force of English and rebel Scots and so began the Siege of Leith, on the 17th of March, 1560.
The English Lieutenant General Norfolk was the man sent north by Elizabeth Ito support the Lords, whilst his compatriot, Admiral Winter, was in charge of the blockade and besieging of the Forth at Leith, occupied by the allies – the Scottish and French naval forces. For safety then, Marie of Guise had flitted to Edinburgh Castle, which event took place on the 1st of April.
Interestingly, an old Scottish prophecy had foretold great changes “when two winters were to be seen in Scotland in the same year.” And so it happened that whilst Admiral Winter was told to pick any quarrel he could with the French and prevent reinforcements or the Scots, eponymous winter storms coincidentally wrecked a second French convoy on its way to Leith. Thus two winters did indeed prove to have been a decisive factor in the expulsion of the French from Scotland. Spooky, or what?
Eventually, the Gordon Earl of Huntly, a Catholic, came to terms with the Congregation and by then, hardly a Scot of note remained on the French side, except Bothwell and the Bishops. Following this shift, on 27th February, 1560, the Treaty was concluded between Norfolk and the Scottish Lords – both Protestant and Catholic.
The Treaty was “for the defence of the ancient rights and liberty of their country”, as the original words “for the maintenance of Christian religion” were left out of the final version. The Lords bound themselves to resist any closer of a union between Scotland and France than existed through Mary’s marriage and to assist England against France with all their forces if France invaded England north of York. In addition, they were to assist with 2000 foot and 1000 horse if France invaded elsewhere.
On the 11th of June, 1560, Mary of Guise died and figurehead of the Scottish Catholic resistance was removed. Later in the year, Mary, Queen of Scots, was widowed and returned to Scotland – but that’s another story.
Another treaty, Treaty of Edinburgh, was signed in July 1560, agreeing that French and English troops would withdraw from Scotland. Also included in that treaty was the agreement for Mary, Queen of Scots, and François, to give up Mary’s claim to the English crown and recognize Elizabeth I as rightful Queen of England. Mary though, never signed this.
Pics are of James Hamilton, Duke of Châtellerault and Thomas Howard, Duke of Norfolk, Scotland and England’s representative at Berwick respectively15
