Henry Stewart, lord Darnley (1545/6-1567)

Second consort of Mary Queen of Scots

Henry Stewart, duke of Albany was born in Yorkshire in late 1545 or early 1546, the son of Matthew Stewart, earl of Lennox and Lady Margaret Douglas, and was therefore a descendant of James II of Scotland and Henry VII of England. He was created earl of Ross in May 1565 - although he is known as Lord Darnley - and married Mary Queen of Scots in July 1565. Their son, the future James VI of Scotland and James I of England, was born on 29 June 1566. In February 1567, following a period of illness, Lord Darnley was staying at the Old Provost's Lodgings at Kirk o' Field in Edinburgh. There was an explosion in the building during the night. His body was found in the garden but the circumstances of his murder and the cause of death remain a mystery to this day.

Marriage in 1565

The marriage of Henry, duke of Albany, earl of Ross and Mary Queen of Scots is recorded in the Old Parish Register (OPR) for Canongate:

'Henry duk of albany erll of Rois. Marie be the grace of God quen souerane of this realm. 1 2 3. Maried in the chapell'

The Hall of Fame entry for Mary Queen of Scots includes the image of a second marriage record, dated 29 July 1565, from the same OPR volume as well as transcriptions of both marriage entries.

Death in 1567

Lord Darnley died on 10 February 1567. The entry in the Old Parish Register for Canongate records that 'The Kyngs grace blawen up with buder in the Kirk of Field the X Februar 1566'. It is another of the notable 16th century events which have been transcribed and added to the original volume.

Entry for the death of Lord Darnley and transcript (15 and 33 KB jpegs)
National Records of Scotland, OPR 685-3/1