A Son For Mary I of England: A timeline from 1555

[pipisme]

Queen Mary was delighted as her pregnancy advanced in the winter of 1554/1555 and the spring of 1555. Her half sister, Princess Elizabeth, was living in Hampton Court Palace, and forbidden to see anyone apart from a small retinue of servants. In the third week of April 1555, she was invited to St. James's Palace to witness the imminent birth of Mary's child. On Sunday 1 May, Mary went into labour. The following day she gave birth to a healthy baby boy. She named him Charles, after the father of her husband, King Philip.

Mary was full of joy that she had safely given birth to her much desired son. If he was living when she died, he would become king of England and Ireland. However the Treason Act 1554 'declared that if Mary died and her heir was not yet 18, if male, or was under 15 and unmarried if female, then Philip would govern the realm until the heir to the throne came of age (or was married if female).' [1]

The court and Privy Council offered Mary their congratulations. Elizabeth told her half sister that she was delighted at the birth of her son. But really she was disappointed, because she had no chance of becoming queen of England and Ireland, if Charles was alive when Mary died. King Philip was also living at St. James's Palace, and was pleased at the birth of his son, though much less so than Mary was. Charles was baptised on 3 May.

[1] See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treason_Act_1554, Provisions: Section 1 to 6, second paragraph.

 

[ordinarylittleme]

She named him Charles, after the father of her husband, King Philip.

Philip already has a son called Charles...

 

[Not_So_Dark_One]

Philip already has a son called Charles...

It's more original. Most tls name him Philip after her husband, although in my view, Henry would be better.

 

[ordinarylittleme]

It's more original. Most tls name him Philip after her husband, although in my view, Henry would be better.

Mary won't name her son after her father who was horrible to her, she won't name her Catholic son after her Protestant brother, and again, Philip already has a son with that name....

 

[Happiness]

Mary won't name her son after her father who was horrible to her, she won't name her Catholic son after her Protestant brother, and again, Philip already has a son with that name....

Then can she named him Philip?

 

[ordinarylittleme]

Then can she named him Philip?

I think that would be highly likely considering she was in love with her husband and would wish to honor him

 

[eliamartin65]

I think that would be highly likely considering she was in love with her husband and would wish to honor him

Exactly.

 

[lost_in_night_dreams]

There is no way that her son will be named Charles, Edward or Henry. He will be named Philip after his father.

 

[IsaacXII]

On Sunday 1 May, Mary went into labour. The following day she gave birth to a healthy baby boy. She named him Charles, after the father of her husband, King Philip.

Well Mary can get original when naming her son.... maybe George after England's patron saint although not sure as it was the name of Anne Boleyn's brother, maybe Arthur after the legendary king and Philip most likely...

 

[lost_in_night_dreams]

Well Mary can get original when naming her son.... maybe George after England's patron saint although not sure as it was the name of Anne Boleyn's brother.

George was also name of Clarence, so this is a low chance that it would be used. The most probably name is Philip.

 

[The Gybson Boy]

The best option after Philip would be John, named after their common ancestor, John of Gaunt. More honestly John would be better for a second son.

 

[lost_in_night_dreams]

The best option after Philip would be John, named after their common ancestor, John of Gaunt. More honestly John would be better for a second son.

I agree.

 

[HortenseMancini]

Personally I think Mary would name her son Henry as while she may've had a complicated relationship with her dad she was still extremely proud of being his daughter and liked to emphasize her descent from him - I usually think she and philip would've named a son henry philip

 

[IsaacXII]

The best option after Philip would be John, named after their common ancestor, John of Gaunt. More honestly John would be better for a second son.

Will England accept a king John II after what the first John did?

 

[The Gybson Boy]

Will England accept a king John II after what the first John did?

Lackland has been dead for almost three hundred years at this point, and there have been other princes named John since then, I don't see a problem with that.

 

[IsaacXII]

Lackland has been dead for almost three hundred years at this point, and there have been other princes named John since then, I don't see a problem with that.

Other princes but not eldest princes....although not unlikely as she might honour John of Gaunt or John Beaufort

I was wondering what about Edmund? Like he is the father of the founder of the Tudor dynasty.....and maybe Arthur cause Mary is the first woman on the throne of England, might as well name her son after a legendary king?

 

[Happiness]

Other princes but not eldest princes....although not unlikely as she might honour John of Gaunt or John Beaufort

I was wondering what about Edmund? Like he is the father of the founder of the Tudor dynasty.....and maybe Arthur cause Mary is the first woman on the throne of England, might as well name her son after a legendary king?

Will Mary name her son Arthur after her uncle, who Henry VIII accused Catherine of being intimate with and was the reason he believed their marriage was wrong?

 

[IsaacXII]

Will Mary name her son Arthur after her uncle, who Henry VIII accused Catherine of being intimate with and was the reason he believed their marriage was wrong?

Most probably no.... but if she can name him John then might be.

 

[pipisme]

Thank you for the suggestions for the name of Mary's son. Mary was original when naming him and she chose Edmund, after her paternal great-grandfather, Edmund Tudor, the father of Henry VII.

 

[pipisme]

In the week of April 1555, Elizabeth was brought from Woodstock Palace in Oxfordshire, where she was imprisoned, to Hampton Court Palace to witness the imminent birth of Mary's child. 'Mary chose Hampton Court as the place for the birth of her first child, which was expected imminently. (1) So Edmund was born there and not in St. James's Palace.

Mary was seventeen and a half years older than Elizabeth, born on 16 February 1516 and 7 September 1533 respectively. As far as I know they were never close. According to the Venetian ambassador 'Mary's hatred.....scorn and ill-will manifest towards her sister in all kinds of ways was a direct result of the misery and humiliation she and her mother suffered from Henry's behaviour during the divorce. But what disquiets [Mary] most of all is to see the eyes and hearts of the nation already on this lady as successor to the Crown from despair of descent from the Queen.' (2) I don't know how true the first reason was, and now that Mary had a son and heir the second reason for her hostility towards her sister no longer applied. Over time, the two women bonded over baby Edmund.

(1) See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hampton_Court_Palace.

(2) Taken from the book Elizabeth and Mary: Cousins, Rivals, Queens by Jane Dunn, London: HarperCollins Publishers 2003.