Homecoming

One of the most famous queens in history, Mary Stuart lived in her homeland for just twelve years: as a dauntless child who laughed at her friends' seasickness as they sailed to safety in France and later, on her return as an 18-year-old widow to take control of a nation riven with factions, dissent, and religious strife. Brief though her time in Scotland was, her experience profoundly influenced who she was and what happened to her.

In Homecoming, Rosemary Goring tells the story of Mary's Scottish years through the often dramatic and atmospheric locations and settings where the events that shaped her life took place. She also examines the part Scotland, with its tumultuous court and culture, played in her downfall. Whether or not Mary Stuart emerges blameless or guilty, in this evocative retelling she can be seen for who she really was.

Locations included:

• Linlithgow Palace
• Stirling Castle
• Dumbarton Castle
• Leith
• Holyrood Palace
• Crichton Castle
• Darnaway Castle
• Huntly Castle
• Spynie Palace
• Falkland Palace
• Seton Palace
• St Andrews and Fife
• Dunbar Castle
• Edinburgh Castle
• Traquair House
• Hermitage Castle
• Jedburgh, Mary Queen of Scots House
• Craigmillar Castle
• Edinburgh and Kirk o' Field
• Borthwick Castle
• Carberry Hill
• Lochleven Castle
• Langside
• Dundrennan Abbey

'A nicely measured book, intelligent, engaging and well-balanced' — Allan Massie, The Scotsman