While Cleopatra is fabled to have actually bathed in sour donkey milk, Mary Queen of Scots is stated to have washed with white wine to guarantee a smooth complexion. A devout Catholic, throughout her life Mary discovered herself at the mercy of hostile power plays and the bitterness of her cousin, Elizabeth I of England.
Born in 1542 to James V of Scotland, Mary became the queen of Scotland at simply 6 days old. She was soon sent to France to keep her safe from King Henry VIII, who fanatically pressed his so-called rough charming policy to guarantee Mary marry his boy and combine England and Scotland once and for all.
Growing up within the French royal nursery, and referred to by the French King Henry II as his own child, the young Scottish queen was educated in the lap of high-end. Called la plus parfait, meaning “the most best,” Mary Queen of Scots rose to the French throne following her marital relationship to Francis II, whose temporary reign came to an unforeseen end when he died in 1560.
After years in France, the 18-year-old widowed Dowager Queen of France went back to Scotland. “Young, high, elegant and lively,” in the words of History Today, life in Edinburgh was a far cry from the sophisticated lifestyle experienced in France.
The Rival Queens– Mary Queen of Scots Defying Queen Elizabeth in a 19th century print. (Public domain )
Mary Queen of Scots has been remembered for her historical fight with her cousin and competitor. The Protestant Elizabeth I ended up being queen of England in 1558, the very same year Mary was made queen consort of France. Mary was a direct threat, 2nd in line to the English throne and seen by Catholics as the rightful beneficiary. Meanwhile, Elizabeth was the bastard kid of Henry VIII who had her mom, Anne Boleyn, performed and their marital relationship annulled.
They were polar opposites on paper. Over her 45-year reign, Elizabeth cultivated the image of a strong queen and her rejection to marry earned her the epithet the Virgin Queen. In later years she is said to have applied thick white makeup to cover up scars developed by smallpox.
Slender, athletic, tall (nearly 6 feet), with long auburn hair and pale complexion, Mary was an undeniable appeal who after being widowed went on to marry two times more. History Today reported that she had an extra bathhouse developed at Holyrood Palace, her house in Edinburgh, where she delighted in bathing in gewurztraminer. Some sources claim that the red wine baths were for discomfort relief.
With vinotherapy including red wine massages, facials and baths remaining popular today, this should not truly come as a surprise. The Discussion highlighted a 16th century dish called A far bella faccia (significance “to make a lovely face”) to create a cosmetic brew by boiling rosemary flowers in white wine. The Beautiful Chemistry Task has studied its impacts on skin quality and discovered that the procedure released important oils and chemicals with “antibacterial, moisture-binding, collagen-growth stimulating, anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, lightening up and relaxing results.”
Top image: Mary, Queen of Scots was said to bathe in gewurztraminer. Source master1305/ Adobe Stock
By Cecilia Bogaard