Margaret Douglas, Countess of Lennox

Known for: known for her plotting on behalf of Roman Catholicism in England.  Ã‚  She was the  grandmother of James VI of Scotland who became James I of England, and the mother of James father, Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley.. Margaret Douglas was the niece of Tudor King Henry VIII and granddaughter of Henry VII. Dates: October 8, 1515 - March 7, 1578 Heritage Margaret Douglas  mother was Margaret Tudor, daughter of Englands King Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. Margaret Tudor, named for her paternal grandmother,  Margaret Beaufort, was the widow of James IV of Scotland. Margaret Douglas father was Archibald Douglas, 6th Earl of Angus; the marriage of Margaret Tudor and Archibald Douglas in 1514, at first secret, was the second for each, and alienated many of the other Scottish nobles and threatened her supervision of her two sons by James IV, James V (1512-1542) and Alexander (1514-1515). Margaret Douglas, the only child of her mothers second marriage, was brought up with and was a lifelong friend to King Henry VIIIs daughter by Catherine of Aragon, Princess Mary, later Englands Queen Mary I. Scandalous Relations Margaret Douglas became engaged to Thomas Howard while she was a lady-in-waiting to Anne Boleyn, the second queen of Margarets uncle Henry VIII. Howard was sent to the Tower of London in 1537 for their unauthorized relationship, as Margaret was at that time next in line of succession, Henry VIII having declared illegitimate his daughters Mary and Elizabeth. Love poems she wrote to Thomas Howard were preserved in the Devonshire MS, now in the British Library. Margaret had reconciled with her uncle by 1539, when he asked her to greet his new bride Anne of Cleves on her arrival in England. In 1540, Margaret had an affair with Charles Howard, nephew of Thomas Howard and brother of Catherine Howard, the fifth queen of Henry VIII. But again Henry VIII reconciled with his niece, and Margaret was a witness to his sixth and final marriage, to Catherine Parr, who had known Margaret for many years. Marriage In 1544, Margaret Douglas married Matthew Stewart, the 4th Earl of Lennox, who was living in England. Their elder son, Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley, in 1565 married Mary, Queen of Scots, daughter of James V, Margaret Douglas half-brother. The Stewart (Stuart) name for a later line of kings of England and Scotland comes from Margaret Douglas second husband through the son of Mary, Queen of Scots, and Lord Darnley. Plotting Against Elizabeth After Marys death and the succession of Protestant Queen Elizabeth I in 1558, Margaret Douglas retired to Yorkshire, where she became involved with Roman Catholic plotting. In 1566 Elizabeth had Lady Lennox sent to the Tower. Margaret Douglas was released after her son, Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley, was murdered in 1567. In 1570-71, Matthew Stewart, Margarets husband, became Regent in Scotland; he was assassinated in 1571. Margaret was again imprisoned in 1574 when her younger son Charles married without royal permission; she was pardoned in 1577 after he died. She briefly helped care for the daughter of Charles, Arbella Stuart. Death and Legacy Margaret Douglas died only a year after she was released. Queen Elizabeth I gave her a large funeral. Her effigy lies in Westminster Abbey, where her son Charles is also buried. The grandson of Margaret Douglas, James, who was the son of Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley, and of Mary, Queen of Scots, became King James VI of Scotland and, at the death of Elizabeth I, was crowned King James I of England. He was the first Stewart king.