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Who was Mary Queen of Scots?

Mary, Queen of Scots (Mary Stuart; 1542–1587) was the only child of King James V (1512–1542) of Scotland and his wife Mary of Guise (1515–1560). Mary was six days old when her father died and she became queen. Her mother ruled the country as a regent (one who reigns in place of a young monarch) until 1561, when Mary officially assumed her duties. Raised as a Roman Catholic, Mary inherited her mother's struggle with Protestants, members of a Christian faith that was formed during the Reformation (a revolution within the Catholic Church). A Christian religion based in Rome, Italy, and headed by a pope (the supreme leader), the Roman Catholic Church had dominated social and political life in Europe for many centuries. At the time Mary ascended the throne, Scottish Protestants led by John Knox (1513–1572), a former Catholic priest and a major figure in the Protestant Reformation, were trying to...

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