Series 3 > Foreign correspondence with Marie de Lorraine, Queen of Scotland, from the originals in the Balcarres papers > Volume 7

INTRODUCTION
XXV
appointment of Madame de Brene, desired by the Duchess
of Guise, the King and the Queen,—a necessary change,
although the Queen of Scots could not behave better
‘ though she had a dozen governesses.’ A letter of Mary
Stuart,1 printed by Labanoff, urges the same appointment;
but with the letter of Charles de Lorraine ends any detailed
mention of the affairs of the Queen in the correspondence
apart from general allusions to her, and there is no record
of the settlement of the matter or of the difficulties in her
household.
Marie de Lorraine’s visit to France came at the time
of the settlement of the most pressing Scots problems,
while the country was quiet and she could be spared.
The peace signed in 1550 by which France regained
Boulogne, and which included Scotland, made that visit a
possibility, and there was much which rendered it desirable
that it should take place. From what the letters show of
the Queen Dowager’s character, it is certain that affection
for and desire to see her family would weigh with her ; she
had not seen her son since he was a child of three, and her
daughter had been separated from her for more than three
years. The question of that daughter’s establishment and
position would be a sufficient reason for undertaking the
voyage, and there was the necessity of arriving at some
definite arrangement as to the government of Scotland,
for, although the Governor’s power was negligible, he was
nominally the ruler. There is hardly a mention of him in
the correspondence, and all messages regarding French
assistance for Scotland appear to have been sent to the
Queen. Connected with that question was one of financial
support, for, although there were French complaints as to
the assistance given, much of the contribution to the
French expenses in Scotland seems to have come from the
Queen. So, to take counsel with the King, his advisers
1 Vol. i. pp. 41-4.