Discussion: Evil Mary???

"This is the exact concept we have to grasp, we can't judge her from a 20th Century perspective, because she wasn't a 20th Century figure. Different era, different culture, completely differen times!

I think i may have rambled on above, just a tad!"

" I'm currently waiting on Linda Porter's book on Mary Tudor, ordered it two weeks ago, when they told me i would receive it in a weeks time... i'll probably need to go back in and find out what's happening!"

"I have recently read a book about 16 evil men and women and I was shocked and apalled to discover that Queen Mary I was included in this list which included people like Hitler, Stalin and Emperor Nero! Considering that in 5 years Queen Mary burnt less than 300 people at the stake, compared to her infamous father King Henry VIII whose final death toll was estimated in the many thousands (though I admit it might have been exagerated). Please tell me i'm not the only one who thinks that this inclusion is cruel and unjust as is the title of 'Bloody' Yes Mary shouldn't have burnt those people just because of their faith, but if you do some research and examine the reasons behind this, then you can clearly see that Queen Mary did not deserve to be labelled as 'evil' she was simply a misguided woman who tried to keep her country together while her life was falling apart at the seams and who listened to misguided people."

"I don't feel she should keep company with Hitler or Stalin, that's for sure. Although not a very good Queen, IMO, I believe she may have gotten a realyy bad rap primarily due to religion. She was trying to restore the Catholic faith & people weren't having it. Unlike her sister who felt "We all believe in Jesus Christ, the rest is just trifles", Mary was fanatic. You were either catholic or a heretic.
We can look at her childhood & try to justify her actions, however, more temperance would have been a wiser move. But,comparing her to Hitler? Ridiculous!"

"I`m not saying she was up there with the likes of Hitler and Stalin, but she was mildly tyrannical towards the end. As far as being misguided, thats nothing short of insulting to Mary herself, her faith was extremely important to her, and she genuinely believed she was doing the right thing, because shewas, in modern parlance, fanatical! She was also a deeply intelligent woman, she knew what she was doing."

"Religious turmoil within Monarch's reign was unavoidable in the 16th century."

"Last three years of her reign actually, and if you take into context of her Father's bloody ways, 284 people in three years was most likely nothing for him to blink at.
Her treatment of the Wyatt Rebels was as any monarch treated rebels. They were out to dethrone Mary, perhaps even for blood, the record on an arrow shot into Mary's precincts was certainly not anything for Mary to take lightly as she had before. Elizabeth used the 'hang, drawn, and quartered' method for traitors in her reign, but no one ever talks about her "evil" ways.
Mary granted clemency to Jane and Guilford, they even had relatively comfortable living quarters, more a house arrest than the dark and dank imprisonment popularly portrayed. However Mary needed to continue her dynasty and with Jane and her husband alive and still being used as figureheads against her, Mary reluctanly signed off for their deaths. It was something she had not wanted to do but was left with no other choice.
Elizabeth had been placed as a part of Wyatt's Rebellion, it was treason. Here was the sister that Mary loved and cared for when Liz was left to suffer for her mothers "crimes". Mary was hurt, while they may have strayed, Mary did what she could to keep Elizabeth near her and now Liz was truely her enemy and rival. Liz was imprisoned for two months, then released and put under house arrest."