I tried to imagine how the unfortunate Mary Queen of Scots must have felt in May 1568 as she crouched in a boat after being imprisoned for almost a year in Loch Leven  Castle. During that time she had miscarried twins and been forced to abdicate or else get her throat cut.  Her 13 month old son James then became king while her half brother acted as Regent.  The extra shows the castle as it probably looked then and a mention is made that on James VI coronation night the Laird apparently fired the guns and lit fires in the courtyard, singing and dancing in the garden, while his captive, the deposed queen, was taunted by members of the household.
Although many of the nobility wanted her away she still had many supporters and her escape was carefully planned. One evening while Willie Douglas was serving dinner at a MayDay Masque party he dropped a napkin onto the castle keys which lay discarded on the table.  He then hid the keys under the napkin with the serving dishes and going outside he signalled to the Queen who was dressed as a servant and unlocked the gate.  He had left a boat ready for a quick escape so Mary crawled in and Willie rowed her across the loch to her rescue party waiting with horses.  She then revoked her abdication and gathered an army but her freedom was shortlived and she spent many more years imprisoned.


This is part of my occasional series on places connected with the famous, but tragic, Mary Queen of Scots (see the tags)
(Mary Queen of Scots 14