Mary of Guelders and the Architecture of Queenship in Fifteenth-Century Scotland

Abstract

In 1460 Mary of Guelders, the former queen consort of James II of Scotland and now widow and queen dowager, embarked upon a substantial programme of architectural patronage. While Mary's role as a skilled stateswoman during the minority of her son, James III, is now widely recognised, this article makes a new intervention into existing analyses by arguing that Mary's programme of building works formed a deliberate strategy whereby she sought to articulate and define her power and status through the built environment. It is argued that the queen's architectural patronage, including the foundation of Trinity Collegiate Kirk and hospital on the outskirts of Edinburgh, the creation of the coastal castle of Ravenscraig in Kirkcaldy and renovations to the royal palace of Falkland in Fife, formed a coordinated programme of works through which she made provisions for all aspects of her queenship. Through her architectural patronage, Mary of Guelders presented herself as a devoted widow and mother, and as a pious and politically astute queen.