Editor says, what if David Rizzio had lived? PART TWO. In this article we reverse the storyline of Jeff Provine's blog article David Rizzio Defends Mary, Queen of Scots. Please note that the opinions expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect the views of the author(s). This story was published in the July 2012 edition of Changing the Times Magazine.

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Editor says, in out timeline, the Queen was forced to yield. Please note that in authoring this post we have repurposed a considerable amount of content from History Today Magazine and Wikipedia.

Eric Oppen commented on 2012-06-26 18:57:16 ~ Him disappearing mysteriously would have been just about as bad as in OTL...he was, however unworthily, "King of Scots" by marriage. A lot likelier way would have been for him to die "of illness", with the Queen going into mourning, no matter how little she really missed him, and for him to be given an honorable burial in a cathedral somewhere, as in OTL.

Jackie Rose commented on 2012-07-01 17:55:28 ~ You aren't even mentioning Bothwell, who was Mary's lover at the time, and thus a very likely suspect in Darnley's death. Mary and Bothwell reigned briefly together, until her treacherous illegitimate half-brother overthrew them both, in Darnley's name. Mary, of course, was beheaded and Bothwell died in prison, insane. A sad story all the way around.

Stan Brin commented on 2012-07-01 18:28:00 ~ I saw a BBC dramatization in which Darnley was portrayed as both an English agent and as a syphilitic. Either reason was enough to want to have him out of the way. (To Eric, as an editor, I would say at the opening of your comment, "His mysterious disappearance" instead of "Him disappearing mysteriously." But, then, I'm a tad old fashioned.)

Jackie Rose commented on 2012-07-01 18:42:41 ~ Stan, it's an old rule of drama...if you want to make an adulterer seem sympathetic, you must villify the injured spouse. That rule was fully illustrated in the movie "Mary Queen of Scots," where Darnley did indeed have syphilis and was having an affair with Rizzio besides.

Jeff Provine commented on 2012-07-02 16:36:58 ~ With Mary stabilized in Scotland, she'd have no need to flee to hide out in London under Elizabeth's "protection." Going to be a big difference for Scottish-English relations. Maybe they could have offered the battered Spanish Armada a save harbor to unload their thousands of troops? Or would there have been a Spanish Armada at all?

Jackie Rose commented on 2012-07-02 17:34:55 ~ As I recall, the Spanish Armada was at last partly a retaliation for Mary's execution the year before...so you are right that, Jeff, in suggesting that if she had not been executed, the Armada would never have been launched at all.