Bertrand de Salignac de la Mothe-Fénelon (1523-1589) was French diplomat who served as ambassador to

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is ...

in England and to

James VI James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

in Scotland.

Mothe-Fénelon and Mary, Queen of Scots

Mothe-Fénelon was secretary to the French ambassador

Gilles de Noailles Gilles de Noailles, abbé de l'Isle (1524–1600) was French Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire from 1575 to 1579. He was the brother of his predecessor as ambassador, François de Noailles, and was succeeded by Jacques de Germigny. He was sent to th ...

during the crisis of the

Scottish Reformation The Scottish Reformation was the process by which Scotland broke with the Papacy and developed a predominantly Calvinist national Kirk (church), which was strongly Presbyterian in its outlook. It was part of the wider European Protestant Refor ...

in 1560. After serving in the army he was sent ambassador to England in 1568. At the request of

Charles IX of France Charles IX (Charles Maximilien; 27 June 1550 – 30 May 1574) was King of France from 1560 until his death in 1574. He ascended the French throne upon the death of his brother Francis II in 1560, and as such was the penultimate monarch of the ...

he endeavoured to excuse to Elizabeth the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre as a necessity caused by a plot which had been laid against the life of the king. While in England, Mothe-Fénelon corresponded with

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of S ...

on political matters. He also bought textiles and sewing matereials for her, and advised on potential gifts for Elizabeth. In 1574

embroidered an incarnate satin skirt with silver thread using materials bought in London by Mothe-Fénelon. She soon wrote for more incarnate silk thread, better quality thinner silver thread, and incarnate taffeta for the lining. Mothe-Fénélon presented the finished item to Elizabeth on 22 May, with a declaration of friendship, and reported to Charles IX that the gift was a success. Presumably hopeful of an audience at the English court, Mary asked the

Archbishop of Glasgow The Archbishop of Glasgow is an archiepiscopal title that takes its name after the city of Glasgow in Scotland. The position and title were abolished by the Church of Scotland in 1689; and, in the Scottish Episcopal Church, it is now part of ...

, her contact in Paris, to send coifs embroidered with gold and silver and the latest fashion in Italian ribbons and veils for her hair. Mary planned making more gifts for Elizabeth and wrote to Mothe Fénélon for advice on what she would like best. She asked him to send lengths of gold

passementerie Passementerie (, ) or passementarie is the art of making elaborate trimmings or edgings (in French, ) of applied braid, gold or silver cord, embroidery, colored silk, or beads for clothing or furnishings. Styles of passementerie include the tas ...

and braids called "bisette". Elizabeth remained cautious of Mary's gifts, and was reluctant to try some sweets which Mothe Fénélon offered her as a gift from the brother of the chancellor of Mary's dowry, for fear of poison. For some time after the death of Charles IX, Fénelon was continued in his office, but he was recalled in 1575 when Catherine de' Medici wished to bring about a marriage between Elizabeth and the duke of Alençon, and thought that another ambassador would have a better chance of success in the negotiation.

Scotland in 1583

Mothe-Fénelon returned to England in 1582, and then he and François de Rocherolles, Sieur de Mainville, were sent as ambassadors to Scotland in January 1583. The government of Scotland was in the hands of

Ruthven Raiders The Raid of Ruthven was a political conspiracy in Scotland which took place on 22 August 1582. It was composed of several Presbyterian nobles, led by William Ruthven, 1st Earl of Gowrie, who abducted King James VI of Scotland. The nobles intended ...

, a rule known as the Gowrie Regime. The French diplomats were to ensure that James VI was at liberty, to continue discussions about the reurn of Mary to Scotland to rule in association with James VI, and the rehabilitation of

Esmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox Esmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox, 1st Earl of Lennox, 6th Seigneur d'Aubigny, (26 May 1583) of the Château d'Aubigny at Aubigny-sur-Nère in the ancient province of Berry, France, was a Roman Catholic French nobleman of Scottish ancestry ...

, who had been exiled by the Raiders. In December 1582 while travelling towards

Berwick on Tweed Berwick-upon-Tweed (), sometimes known as Berwick-on-Tweed or simply Berwick, is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, and the northernmost town in England. The 2011 United Kingdom census reco ...

, by chance near

Northallerton Northallerton ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Hambleton District of North Yorkshire, England. It lies in the Vale of Mowbray and at the northern end of the Vale of York. It had a population of 16,832 in the 2011 census, an increa ...

they had encountered Esmé Stewart, who was travelling south. After a banquet given by Edinburgh burgh council, Mothe-Fénelon went to Seton Palace and returned to Berwick.Thomas Thomson, ''History of the Kirk of Scotland by David Calderwood'', vol. 4 (Edinburgh, 1843), p. 700.

Return to France

Mothe Fénélon returned to France in 1583. He opposed the Protestants until the end of the reign of Henry III, but espoused the cause of Henry IV. He died in 1589.

Writings

Fénelon was the author of a number of writings, among which those of general importance are: * ''Mémoires touchant l'Angleterre et la Suisse, ou Sommaire de la négociation faite en Angleterre, l'an 1571'' (containing a number of the letters of Charles and his mother, relating to Queen Elizabeth, Queen Mary and the Bartholomew massacre), published in the ''Mémoires of Castelnau'' (Paris, 1659) * ''Négociations de la Mothe Fénelon et de Michel, sieur de Mauvissière, en Angleterre'' * ''Dépêches de M. de la Mothe Fénelon, Instructions au sieur de la Mauvissière'', contained with the above in the edition of Castelnau's ''Mémoires'', published at Brussels in 1731. The correspondence of Fénelon was published at Paris in 1838–1841.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mothe-Fénelon, Bertrand de Salignac 1523 births 1589 deaths Court of James VI and I Ambassadors of France to Scotland Ambassadors of France to England 16th-century French diplomats 16th-century French people