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- This is the page for the ballad "Mary Hamilton". For the serial bigamist, see Mary Hamilton (bigamist)
"Mary Hamilton" (aka "The Four Marys") is a Sixteenth Century ballad that tells the story of Mary Hamilton, one of the "four Marys", all of whom were ladies-in-waiting to Mary Queen of Scots. However, none of the historical "four Marys" was actually named Mary Hamilton. Indeed, there is speculation by scholars that it was fused with a Russian incident involving a Mary Hamilton in 1719[1]. In the song, Mary Hamilton bears the illegitimate child of Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley. (It is not made clear in the song whether the child is the result of an affair, or whether Lord Darnley raped Mary Hamilton.) She murders the baby to cover up the scandal, and is later executed for her crime. The ballad was catalogued by Francis James Child (Child Ballad # 173). Joan Baez' 1960 recording is the most famous version of the song.
- Last night there were four Marys,
- Tonight there'll be but three.
- Mary Beton and Mary Seton,
- Mary Carmichael and me
[edit] External links
[edit] References
- ^ Tolman, Albert H. "Mary Hamilton: The Group Authorship of Ballads." PMLA: Publications of the Modern Language Association of America. 42.2 (1927): 422-32. ISSN: 0030-8129
