Rough Wooing, The

1543 - 1548

The Rough Wooing refers to a time when England advanced her territorial ambitions through a proposed marriage between the young Mary, Queen of Scots, and Edward, the English Prince of Wales, son of Henry VIII. Politically the English felt trapped between their Catholic neighbours and were attempting to break the Scottish alliance with France and forge an alliance with the Scots themselves. At Henry's behest, 'Protector Somerset' (the Earl of Hertford) invaded in 1544 and laid waste to much of the south of the country in an attempt to bring the Scots to heel. 10,000 Scottish soldiers were killed at the Battle of Pinkie and the raids continued until 1548 when the Scots signed the Treaty of Haddington, agreeing to a marriage between Mary and the Dauphin of France, effectively ending English ambitions.

Use the tabs on the right of this page to see other parts of this entry