Margaret Tudor marries for the third time

On this day in Tudor history, 3rd March 1528, Margaret Tudor, sister of King Henry VIII and widow of King James IV of Scotland, married for the third time.

Margaret, 38 years old, had already been twice married. Her first husband, King James IV of Scotland, had died at the Battle of Flodden in 1513, leaving her as regent for their young son, James V. However, her controversial second marriage to Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus, led to political turmoil. The Scottish nobility opposed the match, and she lost her position as regent. When she returned to Scotland after a brief stay in England, she discovered that Angus had been living openly with a former lover, Lady Jane Stewart. Determined not to remain in an unhappy marriage, Margaret fought for an annulment, despite opposition from none other than her own brother, Henry VIII, who at the time did not believe in divorce.

But Margaret got her way. In 1527, Pope Clement VII granted the annulment, and just a year later, she married Henry Stewart, a Scottish nobleman who had been serving her son, James V, as master carver and master of the artillery. Their relationship likely developed around 1524, and with her second marriage officially over, Margaret wasted no time in marrying again.

Was this third marriage finally Margaret’s chance for happiness?

Well… not for long. Margaret had chosen another unfaithful husband. Just as Angus had humiliated her, Stewart proved to be just as untrustworthy. History was repeating itself, and Margaret once again sought a divorce.

This time, however, she had a powerful opponent—her own son, King James V. Unlike her brother Henry VIII, who would soon break from Rome for his own marital reasons, James had no intention of letting his mother create further scandal. He refused to support her in her petition for annulment. Without the backing of the Pope or the Scottish crown, Margaret had little hope of escaping her marriage.

In the end, Margaret reconciled with Stewart, and in July 1528, just a few months after their wedding, he was granted the title Lord Methven. The couple settled at Methven Castle in Perthshire, but their marriage remained troubled.

Despite her personal struggles, Margaret played an important role in Scottish politics and maintained a close relationship with her son. She later developed a friendship with Mary of Guise, who married James V in 1538 and would go on to be the mother of Mary, Queen of Scots.

Margaret’s health declined in her later years, and she passed away at Methven Castle on 18th October 1541, aged nearly 52. She was laid to rest at the Carthusian Priory of St John in Perth, though her tomb was later destroyed during the Scottish Reformation.

Although Margaret Tudor was often overshadowed by her brother, her legacy was monumental. Through her bloodline, her great-grandson, James VI of Scotland, would inherit the English throne in 1603, uniting Scotland and England under one crown. Without Margaret, there would have been no James I of England, no Stuart dynasty, and perhaps, an entirely different course of British history.