The smallpox pustules of Queen Mary II of England were so deep that during the autopsy, it was discovered that a large amount of blood beneath some of them had leaked into the surrounding tissues, flooding the Queen’s internal organs.
Smallpox was one of the deadliest viral diseases in history, usually characterized by a rapid death and small pustules that gradually cover the entire body, accompanied by symptoms such as headaches, vomiting, progressive respiratory problems, and suffocation.
But the smallpox that struck Queen Mary is still debated today because it presented itself differently.
The first symptoms appeared months and months earlier.
Thanks to testimonies, books, and in particular the memoirs of the court bishop and her personal physician Walter Harris, we have been able to reconstruct a suspicious medical picture that differs from the classic form of smallpox as we know it.
One of the largest funeral celebrations in the history of the English royals was it perhaps the grand and extravagant life of Mary II that made her death seem so monumental?
Mary II, Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland, was actually born a Stuart princess during a period when both this dynasty and England itself were navigating what is known as the Restoration.
An important surname, one that carried personal burdens.
The Stuart dynasty was defined for many years, and still is today, as a cursed dynasty.
Physical problems, but above all psychiatric ones, affected some of its most important members and monarchs, the very people who shaped the history of this house.
Mental illnesses accumulated generation after generation, producing more and more rulers who were sometimes unstable, sometimes manic, depressed, or even psychotic.
During that same period, the Stuart dynasty was dealing with the public execution of the king, who was also Mary II’s uncle, Charles I, known for his questionable decisions, poor management of the empire, and controversial choices that ultimately led to his death.
It was also a period of war.
In 1649, we are talking about the years of the English Civil War, and it was during that time that Charles was trying to navigate those turbulent years as the new leader of the kingdom.
The period following the death of Charles was considered a better one, a time of rebirth, particularly in literature and culture.
Trade expanded enormously, as did colonial enterprise.
The courts were joyful and playful, though of course filled with scandals, gossip, court festivities, countless mistresses, and every imaginable vice.
It was during those years that Mary, at the age of nine, born in 1662 at St. James’s Palace, grew up as the daughter of Charles’s brother James, Duke of York, and his wife Anne Hyde.
Her mother was not noble at all.
She and Mary’s father married quickly and hastily when they discovered the pregnancy.
Mary’s sister, Queen Anne, whom we discussed a few videos ago, was two years younger than her.
The role of queen was meant for Mary, but the illness that struck suddenly and unexpectedly, culminating in a rapid and violent way, changed everything.
Mary’s childhood was fairly peaceful, although frequently interrupted by deaths, as was very common at the time.
The first loss she faced came at the age of nine, when her mother Anne died tragically and suddenly in 1672 from what is believed to have been breast cancer.
Soon afterward, her father remarried, choosing Mary of Modena as his new wife.
She was introduced into the new family, and particularly into Mary’s life, in a very rushed way, and with little tact.
Her father presented her by announcing that they now had a new person to play with.
Over time, however, Mary of Modena and Mary became very close friends, and between lessons, they always found time to walk through the gardens together or exchange stories.
Mary’s education was extremely strict.
It was closely supervised by Charles II and focused almost entirely on religion, designed to instill Anglicanism in the girls from an early age.
The years between nine and fifteen passed peacefully for Mary, filled with friends, suitors, and first loves, including her close friendship with Frances Villiers, a young noblewoman with whom she exchanged affectionate letters.
They were also filled with theater performances and acting.
Unfortunately, those happy years were destined to end far too soon.
At the age of fifteen, she was summoned by her father, who informed her that she had been promised in marriage to her first cousin.
William of Orange was an extremely polarizing figure when it comes to judging whether he was good or bad for British history.
He was certainly a strong ruler who accomplished many positive things, such as establishing a constitutional monarchy rather than an absolute one.
He was a brilliant mind and a courageous military leader, but he was also deeply religious, bordering on fanaticism.
It is known that he turned numerous families against one another, and we could even say destroyed many households by fueling conflicts between daughters and fathers through religious divisions.
We should also mention that many of his military campaigns were tremendously violent.
Yet, these were not the things that shocked Mary, because she did not yet know them.
What shocked her was the news that the wedding would take place the very next day.
As you can imagine, Mary was completely devastated by the announcement.
She later learned that her father had actually promised her to William when she was only nine years old, though she had never been told.
She found out just twenty-four hours before the ceremony.
It is here that we first turn to the writings of her chaplain, who witnessed all the major moments of Mary’s life.
He describes in great detail the suffering she experienced, especially during that night.
A night she spent crying in despair.
Marriage often meant leaving home, abandoning one’s family and everything familiar, and moving into the husband’s household among strangers, often facing overwhelming language barriers and knowing absolutely no one.
As planned, the marriage took place the following day.
William was twenty-seven years old, while Mary was fifteen.
Soon afterward came the wedding night.
It is recorded that her father, Charles, entered the bridal chamber, closed the burgundy red curtains, and wished William a productive night that would soon produce a Stuart heir.
We do not know quite a lot about that night.
We just know that Mary remained devastated the following day.
Then came the farewell, an emotional goodbye with everyone she knew before she prepared herself for married life in the Netherlands.
Despite such a dramatic beginning, Mary remained deeply devoted to her husband, who unfortunately did not return that devotion in quite the same way.
Because he was often away on military campaigns and official duties, he left Mary alone for long periods of time, worrying about his safety and that of their family.
Only a few months after the marriage, Mary became pregnant, but sadly suffered a miscarriage.
The doctors told her that this miscarriage, which had not been a simple one, had likely left her sterile.
This became a source of profound depression and sadness for Mary, and that feeling stayed with her for the rest of her life.
It never truly went away.
Other episodes of illness are recorded that may also have been miscarriages occurring in 1678, 1679, and 1680.
If that was indeed the case, then Mary suffered a miscarriage with every pregnancy year after year.
Life in the Netherlands was nevertheless filled with many activities set against the backdrop of breathtaking landscapes.
It was a quiet life, very different from the English one.
Over time, Mary came to appreciate it deeply.
The feeling was mutual because the Dutch court also learned to appreciate Mary greatly.
She was cheerful and playful, while the Dutch were somewhat colder and more reserved.
And in time, these became some of her greatest strengths.
She spent her days singing, painting, and taking excursions in small boats along the canal surrounding the castle.
Life there was less pompous and much simpler, and this suited Mary’s personality very well.
Yet she always carried within herself a deep sadness because of her condition, the difficult moments she had experienced, and the absence of her husband at her side.
In 1685, Charles died, and Mary’s father was crowned as the new king.
From this point onward, a series of political and religious events unfolded that shaped both England and Mary’s life.
They are, however, the kind of events we do not usually cover in detail on this channel because, as you know, we focus on other aspects of these royals’ lives.
What I can tell you is that her father had a new son, and he was deeply Catholic.
The birth of this child frightened the English parliamentarians because they saw in him a potential Catholic heir to the throne.
They therefore wrote to Mary and asked her to take her father’s place.
As we know, Mary had been raised with the education her uncle gave her, and her husband William was deeply Protestant.
The parliamentarians therefore saw in her a figure who could oppose what they viewed as her father’s Catholicism and Catholic fanaticism.
From here, a series of political maneuvers and coups began.
Mary’s father, his wife, and his children were forced to leave the country and seek refuge in France.
In practice, Mary and William had betrayed her father, and Mary, as the eldest daughter, was now ready to become queen.
Mary and William officially became king and queen in a double coronation ceremony held on April 11th, 1689.
One thing I want to mention briefly, because we also discussed it in the video about Anne, is that at first, Anne supported her sister Mary both politically and emotionally.
On the other hand, Mary gradually began to disapprove of Anne because she condemned the friendships and company her sister kept.
We know that Anne likely had a same-sex relationship, which at the time was considered scandalous, and eventually the two sisters reached a breaking point where they stopped speaking to one another entirely.
We do not know what Mary truly felt afterward, or whether she ever regretted cutting ties with her sister.
We know that she suffered because of it, but Mary did not have many years left ahead of her.
Her life as queen began to fill with responsibilities.
According to the arrangement, whenever William was absent, Mary would rule in his place, and this happened very frequently.
It was certainly not an easy period in which to be queen.
The shadow of her father was still present, lingering in the background.
There were wars, conflicts, and supporters of her father who attempted to undermine her, and Mary had to carve out her place amid all of this.
It was undoubtedly a stressful period filled with enormous responsibilities, and perhaps it also took a toll on her health, which soon began to deteriorate.
Beyond the miscarriages and all the pressure that came with them, just imagine being a queen who was unable to produce an heir.
We know very well how important heirs were.
Entire families have killed their own members to secure suitable successors to the throne.
Crimes were committed over this issue.
Families were destroyed, relationships shattered, wars fought.
Producing an heir was a priority, and Mary could not do so.
In addition to this, she began to suffer from failing eyesight.
Her vision was visibly and significantly deteriorating, and she often complained about it in her letters, referring to it as sore eyes.
The symptoms continued to increase, and new ones appeared.
One day, she complained that her face was swollen.
Though she dismissed it by saying she had probably spent too much time near a window.
What did Mary do to fight all of this?
It was customary to travel to the famous waters at Bath and immerse oneself in it.
Such treatments were also commonly recommended for infertility.
Mary began experiencing her first symptoms in the spring of 1694, but by winter, the situation in London had worsened dramatically.
Smallpox had already become permanently endemic in London by the 1680s, and had grown into one of the city’s greatest plagues.
The virus seemed to gain strength year after year.
Decades would pass before significant improvements were seen, and we find ourselves here during one of the most severe periods.
London became one of the deadliest and most persistent centers of infection.
Infant mortality soared, as did deaths among the most vulnerable, particularly those living within the city itself, where smallpox spread most aggressively.
Many people fled toward rural areas in an attempt to escape death.
What we know is that between 1670 and 1800, the period during which Mary lived, smallpox reached a mortality index of 2.7.
To give you an idea of what that means, the Black Death and Cholera had mortality indices of approximately two.
We are talking about roughly 3,000 deaths per year during the worst years.
At its peak, smallpox accounted for nearly 10% of all deaths in London.
In November of 1694, at the age of thirty-two, Mary accidentally noticed a rash on her arm.
We were in the very height of the epidemic, and her physicians, the best doctors at court, immediately suspected smallpox.
At this point, Mary performed an act of charity that I do not often come across in historical accounts.
Her chaplain recorded in his diary that she sent away the attendants who were still healthy and normally served her because she did not want them to become infected, fully aware of how contagious the disease was.
The chaplain tells us that during the first few days before the rash appeared, Mary did not seem ill at all.
In fact, they had met and spent an hour and a half talking together, as they often did, and the queen complained of nothing.
The following day, she even went out on a short trip.
Unfortunately, the accounts tell us that the illness returned much more violently the day after that.
Mary still had no idea what had struck her, and as she was accustomed to doing throughout her life, following the advice of her physicians, she turned to several remedies, specifically mixtures and syrups that were meant to be drunk.
She believed she was simply feeling unwell.
Within just a few days, however, the smallpox revealed itself in all its violence, first with an initial rash, and then, very rapidly, accompanied by a whole series of symptoms.
The chaplain specifically places the blame on one individual, a physician named Dr. Ratcliffe.
He tells us that this doctor was summoned as soon as the queen began to worsen, but that he arrived too late.
Now, we know that, given the limited medical knowledge of the period, the queen’s death certainly cannot be blamed on a doctor arriving slightly later than expected.
Medicine at the time simply did not possess the power to cure diseases during such epidemics.
Nevertheless, these testimonies are extremely valuable in my opinion, especially because within the same context there is another account that may be even more important and far more detailed.
Dr. Walter Harris, whom I mentioned at the beginning of the video, was one of the most prominent physicians of his age.
He attended numerous English royals and was also one of Queen Mary II’s doctors.
Years before the smallpox episode, he recorded a problem of a different nature.
On a separate occasion, he and the Queen spoke about a remedy that he strongly disapproved of, one that had been recommended by another physician.
The very doctor later blamed for her decline.
The sources tell us that the Queen confided to Dr. Harris that whenever she felt slightly unwell or a little weaker than usual, Dr. Lower, who had already passed away by that time, had advised her to take a large dose of Venice treacle, a liquid compound that she was meant to drink before going to bed.
It was supposed to make her sweat.
As we know, sweating at that time was considered a healing process.
If you felt unwell, sweating was believed to expel the virus or illness causing your discomfort.
This liquid syrup was specifically intended to warm the body.
Dr. Harris reacted with great concern.
His writings describe how he replied to the Queen with considerable alarm.
Although he respected Dr. Lower and had no intention of criticizing him personally, Harris believed this compound should only be administered in very rare circumstances, especially not when simple fevers were involved.
According to Harris, fevers often became destructive after the use of Venice treacle.
The patient would develop a constant rise in temperature and most importantly begin experiencing delirium.
He was therefore deeply worried and sincerely begged the Queen not to endanger her life by taking the syrup.
He explains in his writings that delirium tended to affect most severely those with what was then described as a warm and sanguine constitution, a description which, according to him, suited no one better than her majesty herself.
He even added that Galen, who had written numerous works and an entire book praising the many virtues of treacle, never recommended it for high fevers, but only for chronic illnesses and cases of poisoning.
At this point, the doctor, clearly distressed by the decision the queen eventually made, recounts how she disregarded his advice and chose instead to follow Dr. Lower’s recommendation.
At the very first sign of smallpox, she decided to take Venice treacle that same evening.
In that instance, however, the expected sweating never occurred.
The queen did not wait long before taking an even larger second dose the following morning.
All of this happened before she had even consulted her physicians.
One can almost feel Dr. Harris’s sorrow as he recounts these events.
He writes that the memory of such a great tragedy always returns to him.
Though it becomes somewhat easier to bear when he remembers that he had warned her about the very dangers toward which she was heading and had clearly cautioned her of the imminent risk.
Dr. Harris’s testimony is extraordinarily valuable because from a medical perspective, it provides a detailed account of what happened.
First of all, the smallpox that struck the queen and ultimately carried her away was the most severe and dangerous form of the disease.
It was smallpox combined with measles, a condition that was usually accompanied by facial erysipelas, purple bruising, and the coughing up of blood.
He recalls how the court physicians, as often happened, disagreed with one another.
Some believed it was smallpox, while others argued it was measles.
Harris reassured them all by stating that both diseases could occur simultaneously, a phenomenon he himself had witnessed more than once.
According to Dr. Harris, the smallpox-measles combination was made even worse by the use of Venice treacle.
On the third day of illness, skin eruptions appeared on the queen, accompanied by a very troublesome cough.
The symptoms presented themselves in such a way that the physicians could not determine whether they were dealing with smallpox or measles.
On the fourth day, the smallpox declared itself clearly and unmistakably across her face and the rest of her body.
By the morning of the sixth day, the smallpox pustules had become so numerous and so large that they began covering her chest.
Strangely, however, they also started transforming into large red patches that were more typical of measles.
At the same time, the facial erysipelas, also known as St. Anthony’s fire or simply the rose, caused her entire face to swell, gradually replacing the pustules that had appeared before.
That same evening, numerous large round petechiae appeared across her forehead, eyebrows, and temples.
These were described as blood spots.
Harris notes that he had predicted their appearance earlier that very morning.
And here he recounts a small debate he had with another court physician who insisted that the dark spots were actually necrotic tissue rather than petechiae.
The following morning, however, the seventh day of the illness, the spots were cut open with a scalpel during a medical examination.
The blood that emerged clearly demonstrated that Harris had once again been correct and that they were indeed true petechiae.
After midnight on that same day, a night during which Dr. Harris remained awake watching over the Queen, she began to suffer severe breathing difficulties.
These were soon followed by a violent cough, and now blood was appearing with it.
On the seventh day, the coughing up of blood was followed by the presence of blood in her urine.
By the eighth day, the Queen was nearing the point of collapse.
The symptoms were becoming increasingly severe, debilitating, and frightening.
And William was beginning to realize just how grave the situation had become.
At this stage, the large measles-like patches were still present on her chest, but on the rest of her body, wherever the smallpox pustules had been, the swelling suddenly disappeared, leaving behind flat round marks the size of the original pustules.
They were a deep red or scarlet color, smooth on the surface and not raised, unlike the deadly plague spots.
It is here that Harris describes the large pustule that was later found to have caused internal bleeding within the Queen’s body and organs.
It was a massive pustule filled with pus, surrounded by a broad scarlet ring that resembled a burning coal.
It was located directly above the region of the Queen’s heart.
The King was inconsolable.
Through the Chaplain’s account, we know that William went to confession when the Queen’s condition began to worsen and revealed a grief of extraordinary depth.
He broke down in tears and cried out that there was no longer any hope for the Queen and that from being the happiest man alive, he was about to become the most miserable creature on Earth.
He also confessed that throughout their entire marriage, he had never found a single fault in her.
“There was a worth in her,” he said, “that no one knew except himself.”
The Chaplain describes the same feeling among the common people.
Never before had such a universal expression of grief been witnessed in either a court or a city.
Men and women alike could barely hold back their tears.
He also tells us that the Archbishop never abandoned her side.
He remained in the Queen’s chamber watching over her constantly.
It was ultimately the Archbishop who informed her of the seriousness of her condition after discussing the matter with her husband, the King.
When the hopelessness of her circumstances became clear, he delivered the news with great tact, hoping not to shock her too severely.
Mary immediately understood where the conversation was leading.
Yet, she showed neither fear nor distress.
She replied that she thanked God for always reminding her that nothing should be left until the final hour and that there was now nothing left for her to do except look toward God and submit herself to his will.
She remained calm and resigned until the final moments of her life.
The chaplain tells us that the king and queen never truly shared a final farewell.
They avoided giving one another a definitive goodbye because neither wished to part in that manner.
The queen spent almost all of her remaining time in prayer.
On the day before her death, she received the sacrament, and all of the bishops present were permitted to receive it alongside her.
They were devastated.
The chaplain writes that they were losing the person who was their greatest hope and glory on Earth.
When the ceremony ended, the queen quite literally composed herself and waited for death.
At times, she drifted into sleep, but when she awoke, she would say that the sleep brought her no comfort, repeating that only prayer eased her suffering.
Once or twice, she attempted to say something to the king, but she was unable to finish her thoughts.
She continued taking various medicinal tonics known as cordials, but without any effect.
For several hours, she remained silent.
The few words that escaped her lips revealed that her thoughts were beginning to grow confused.
Then came the day of her death.
It was the eighth day of her illness, December 28th, toward one in the morning, in the thirty-third year of her life and the sixth year of her reign.
The chaplain asserts that she was the queen most universally mourned, and above all that she deserved to be.
Once again, he describes the king’s grief, which was as immense as it was justified.
Yet even William’s temperament struggled to endure such a blow.
When she died, the king’s spirit sank so low that there was serious reason to fear he might soon follow her into death himself.
For several weeks afterward, he was scarcely master of his own mind.
He was unable to attend to affairs of state and refused visitors.
He devoted himself almost entirely to religious meditation and prayer.
The archbishop spent many hours with him.
Over time, however, the intensity of the grief gradually faded, and William was eventually able to return to court life and resume his duties.
The Queen had requested a humble funeral and wished to be buried with an ordinary ceremony.
Yet, one element of magnificence was added that had never been seen before.
Both houses of Parliament marched in procession before the carriage carrying her body to Westminster Abbey, where places had been prepared for both chambers.
They sat in formal assembly while the Archbishop delivered the funeral sermon.
Nothing like this had ever happened before because the death of a monarch automatically dissolved Parliament.
Before the funeral, Mary’s body lay in state from December until March.
She remained at Banqueting House in Whitehall until March 5th, when she was finally buried.
The harsh winter likely helped preserve the body.
Because Mary was unable to produce an heir, the throne eventually passed to her sister, Queen Anne, after William’s death in 1702.
From 1694 until 1702, William ruled alone.
For eight years, he wore a lock of Mary’s hair around his neck until the day he finally joined her.
Disclaimer : This content may be created by AI for entertainment purposes. Any resemblance to real persons, events, or places is coincidental.
