Secret Bond
Encyclopedia
The Secret Bond was a document drawn up by Cardinal Beaton
and signed by a number of Scottish peers on 24 July 1543. They agreed to resist alliance with England by the marriage of Mary, Queen of Scots to Prince Edward.
in December 1542, his daughter, Mary, Queen of Scots, an infant of less than a week old, succeeded to the Scottish throne. A struggle for the regency
between Cardinal Beaton
and Earl of Arran was won by the latter. On 1 July 1543, the Earl of Arran entered into the Treaty of Greenwich
with Henry VIII of England
. Under the treaty, Mary was promised to Henry's son, Edward
. The union of the thrones of England and Scotland which the treaty envisaged was controversial from the outset: the treaty's Anglo-centric policy was resisted by many who preferred to continue the Auld Alliance
with France.
to Stirling Castle
, the leaders of the Scottish-French party entered into a bond drawn up by Cardinal Beaton in which they pledged themselves to resist the realm being "swbdewit till our awld enymyis of Ingland". The signatories included:
. Scotland's rejection of the treaty and its pursuit of a French Alliance led to the Rough Wooing, Henry VIII's attempt to impose his matrimonial policy by force, which lasted until the Treaty of Norham in 1551.
David Beaton
The Most Rev. Dr. David Cardinal Beaton was Archbishop of St Andrews and the last Scottish Cardinal prior to the Reformation.-Career:...
and signed by a number of Scottish peers on 24 July 1543. They agreed to resist alliance with England by the marriage of Mary, Queen of Scots to Prince Edward.
Historical context
Following the death of James V of ScotlandJames V of Scotland
James V was King of Scots from 9 September 1513 until his death, which followed the Scottish defeat at the Battle of Solway Moss...
in December 1542, his daughter, Mary, Queen of Scots, an infant of less than a week old, succeeded to the Scottish throne. A struggle for the regency
Regent
A regent, from the Latin regens "one who reigns", is a person selected to act as head of state because the ruler is a minor, not present, or debilitated. Currently there are only two ruling Regencies in the world, sovereign Liechtenstein and the Malaysian constitutive state of Terengganu...
between Cardinal Beaton
David Beaton
The Most Rev. Dr. David Cardinal Beaton was Archbishop of St Andrews and the last Scottish Cardinal prior to the Reformation.-Career:...
and Earl of Arran was won by the latter. On 1 July 1543, the Earl of Arran entered into the Treaty of Greenwich
Treaty of Greenwich
The Treaty of Greenwich contained two agreements both signed on July 1, 1543 in Greenwich between representatives of England and Scotland. The accord, overall, entailed a plan developed by Henry VIII of England to unite both kingdoms...
with Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
. Under the treaty, Mary was promised to Henry's son, Edward
Edward VI of England
Edward VI was the King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death. He was crowned on 20 February at the age of nine. The son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, Edward was the third monarch of the Tudor dynasty and England's first monarch who was raised as a Protestant...
. The union of the thrones of England and Scotland which the treaty envisaged was controversial from the outset: the treaty's Anglo-centric policy was resisted by many who preferred to continue the Auld Alliance
Auld Alliance
The Auld Alliance was an alliance between the kingdoms of Scotland and France. It played a significant role in the relations between Scotland, France and England from its beginning in 1295 until the 1560 Treaty of Edinburgh. The alliance was renewed by all the French and Scottish monarchs of that...
with France.
The Secret Bond
On 24 July 1543, when about to remove Mary from Linlithgow PalaceLinlithgow Palace
The ruins of Linlithgow Palace are situated in the town of Linlithgow, West Lothian, Scotland, west of Edinburgh. The palace was one of the principal residences of the monarchs of Scotland in the 15th and 16th centuries. Although maintained after Scotland's monarchs left for England in 1603, the...
to Stirling Castle
Stirling Castle
Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most important castles, both historically and architecturally, in Scotland. The castle sits atop Castle Hill, an intrusive crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological formation. It is surrounded on three sides by steep...
, the leaders of the Scottish-French party entered into a bond drawn up by Cardinal Beaton in which they pledged themselves to resist the realm being "swbdewit till our awld enymyis of Ingland". The signatories included:
- George Gordon, 4th Earl of HuntlyGeorge Gordon, 4th Earl of HuntlyGeorge Gordon, 4th Earl of Huntly was a Scottish nobleman.-Biography:He was the son of John Gordon, Lord Gordon, and Margaret Stewart, daughter of James IV. George Gordon inherited his earldom and estates in 1524 at age 10...
- Archibald Campbell, 4th Earl of ArgyllArchibald Campbell, 4th Earl of ArgyllGillespie Roy Archibald Campbell, 4th Earl of Argyll was a Scottish nobleman and politician.-Biography:He was the eldest son of Colin Campbell, 3rd Earl of Argyll and Jean Gordon, daughter of Alexander Gordon, 3rd Earl of Huntly...
- Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of LennoxMatthew Stewart, 4th Earl of LennoxMatthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox was the 4th Earl of Lennox, and leader of the Catholic nobility in Scotland. He was the son of John Stewart, 3rd Earl of Lennox. His grandson was James VI of Scotland....
- Patrick Hepburn, 3rd Earl of BothwellPatrick Hepburn, 3rd Earl of BothwellPatrick Hepburn, 3rd Earl of Bothwell , was the son of Adam Hepburn, Lord Hailes, who died at the Battle of Flodden the year after Patrick's birth.Hepburn was known as the Fair Earl...
- John Gordon, 11th Earl of Sutherland
- William Graham, 3rd Earl of MenteithWilliam Graham, 3rd Earl of MenteithWilliam Graham, 3rd Earl of Menteith was the third Earl of Menteith.-Biography:He was the son of Alexander Graham, 2nd Earl of Menteith and Margaret Buchanan. He was the great grandson of Malise Graham, 1st Earl of Menteith...
- John Erskine, 5th Lord ErskineJohn Erskine, 5th Lord ErskineJohn Erskine, 5th Lord Erskine was a Scottish nobleman who was de jure but not de facto Earl of Mar.He succeeded to the title of 16th Earl of Mar de jure, [S., c. 1115], on 9 September 1513. On 3 August 1522, Mar was appointed keeper of the ten year old King James V of Scotland and Stirling Castle...
- William Ruthven, 2nd Lord RuthvenWilliam Ruthven, 2nd Lord RuthvenWilliam Ruthven, 2nd Lord Ruthven was a Scottish nobleman. He served as an Extraordinary Lord of Session and Keeper of the Privy Seal.-Life:...
- Malcolm Fleming, 3rd Lord FlemingMalcolm Fleming, 3rd Lord FlemingMalcolm Fleming, 3rd Lord Fleming , was Lord Chamberlain of Scotland to King James V, from 1524.He was the son and heir of John Fleming, 2nd Lord Fleming, who was killed in a feud with the Tweedie of Drumelzier family in 1524....
- William Crichton, 5th Lord Crichton of Sanquhar
- David Drummond, 2nd Lord Drummond
- John Lyle, 4th Lord Lyle
- George Home, 4th Lord HomeGeorge Home, 4th Lord HomeGeorge Home, 4th Lord Home was a Scottish nobleman. The son of Alexander Home, 2nd Lord Home and his wife Nicola Ker, daughter of George Ker of Samuelston, he succeeded his brother, Alexander Home, 3rd Lord Home, when he died on October 8, 1516....
- William Abernethy, 5th Lord Saltoun
- The Master of LovatLord LovatLord Lovat is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1458 for Hugh Fraser. The title descended in a direct line for nine sequential generations until the death of the ninth Lord in 1696. He was succeeded by his great-uncle, the tenth Lord...
- The Master of ForbesLord ForbesLord Forbes is the senior Lord of Parliament in the Peerage of Scotland. The title was created sometime after 1436 for Alexander de Forbes, feudal baron of Forbes. The precise date of the creation is not known, but in a Precept dated July 12, 1442, he is already styled Lord Forbes. Brown's 1834...
Aftermath
In December 1543, the Treaty of Greenwich was rejected by the Parliament of ScotlandParliament of Scotland
The Parliament of Scotland, officially the Estates of Parliament, was the legislature of the Kingdom of Scotland. The unicameral parliament of Scotland is first found on record during the early 13th century, with the first meeting for which a primary source survives at...
. Scotland's rejection of the treaty and its pursuit of a French Alliance led to the Rough Wooing, Henry VIII's attempt to impose his matrimonial policy by force, which lasted until the Treaty of Norham in 1551.