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Mary II. war das zweite Kind des englisch-schottischen Königs Jakob II. (VII.) Stuart (1633-1701) und seiner ersten Gattin Anne Hyde (1637-1671). Sie erblickte das Licht der Welt am 30. April 1662 und starb bereits am 28. Dezember 1694. Am 4. November 1677 heiratete sie ihren Cousin Wilhelm III. von Oranien (1650-1702). Ihre Ehe blieb kinderlos.
Mary "was ushered into the world at St. James’s Palace, about three minutes past six in the evening of April the thirtieth, 1662, and a few days afterwards was christened Mary, after the unfortunate Mary, Queen of Scots … In June, she was taken to a nursery established for her at Twickenham Palace, the residence of her grandfather, Clarendon [Edward Hyde (1608/09-1674)], where she remained till the incursions of the plague caused that establishment to be broken up, and her residence to be fixed at the palace of Richmond, a lease of which was granted to her appointed governess, Lady Villiers, with whose daughters she and her sister, Anne, were brought up in their early youth. She was a fine, healthy babe, and her fond father frequently nursed and dandled her … When she was little more than two years old, the minute observer, Pepys, remarks in his journal, 'I was with the Duke of York [ihrem Vater], and saw him with great pleasure play with his little girl, just like an ordinary private father of a child.'" (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 794).
Since their mother's death in 1671, Mary and Anne had been removed from their father's care, in case he should contaminate them with his Catholicism, and had their own household at Richmond Palace. With the arrival of their young stepmother [Maria von Modena], the two Princesses were invited to St. James's more frequently." (in: Maureen Waller: Ungrateful Daughters – The Stuart Princesses who stole their father’s crown, id., p. 22).
Mary war im Gegensatz zu ihrer jüngeren Schwester Anne "… blessed with a faithful memory, a love of study, and an aptitude for literature and art … The royal sisters, Mary and Anne, who in their early youth were never apart, were first introduced to court on the second of December, 1674, when they took part in a ballet ..." (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 795).
Mary II. wurde am 4. November 1677 mit ihrem Cousin Wilhelm III. von Oranien (1650-1702), dem einzigen Kind ihrer Tante Maria Stuart, verheiratet. "The Dutch Prince [Wilhelm III. von Oranien] was old [bei seiner Heirat im Jahr 1677)] - nearly twenty-seven - and seemed older still because his slight frame was hunched and stooped. At five feet six and a half inches [168,91 m], he was of average height for a man of his time, but small compared with his Stuart uncles, who were just over six feet [182,88 m] tall, and he would have had to look up at Mary, who was five feet eleven [180,34 m]." (in: Maureen Waller: Ungrateful Daughters – The Stuart Princesses who stole their father’s crown, id., p. 93).
The day after the wedding, William's closest friend, Hans Willem [oder Johann Wilhelm] Bentinck, came to present Princess Mary with William's magnificent wedding present to her: £40,000 worth of jewels, including the huge pearls she wore in all her subsequent portraits and the ruby ring 'she came to value above her kingdom'. ... Observers noticed that 'he was a very fond husband, but she was a very coy bride, at least before folks.'" (in: Maureen Waller: Ungrateful Daughters – The Stuart Princesses who stole their father’s crown, id., p. 97).
Bevor Mary sich mit ihrem Gatten in die Niederlande begeben wollte, brachen in London wieder einmal die gefährlichen Pocken aus: "Lady Frances Villiers, who had cared for Mary all her life, lay sick of smallpox and close to death, and many of the party who were to accompany her to Holland were too ill to leave. [Auch Marys Schwester Anne hatte sich die Pocken zugezogen.] Nevertheless, among the forty attendants she was permitted by her marriage contract - a nuisance and an unnecessary expense in William's opinion - were her old nurse Mrs Langford and three of the Villiers sisters, Anne, Elizabeth and Katherine, with whom she had passed her childhood at Richmond. ... when John Churchill had asked William what it would cost to join the Princess's household, William had replied scornfully that offices were not for sale at his court." (in: Maureen Waller: Ungrateful Daughters – The Stuart Princesses who stole their father’s crown, id., p. 98).
Das englische Parlament wollte verhindern, dass die Töchter des Katholiken Jakob II. (VII.) Stuart ebenfalls als Katholiken erzogen wurden. Sie wünschten jene als mögliche Nachfolgerinnen ihres Onkels Karl II. Stuart als Protestantinnen erzogen sehen. Und sie sollten mit protestantischen Prinzen vermählt werden. "... and in spite of the protests of the Duke [Jakob II. (VII.) Stuart], it was suggested to the prince of Orange [Wilhelm III.] that he might ask for the hand of his cousin, the Princess Mary, in marriage. After various negotiations in the autumn of 1677, the Prince arrived in England. The chief victim of this design, Mary, now fifteen years old, guessed nothing of the affair until her father took her into her closet and told her that all was arranged, 'whereupon her Highness wept all that afternoon and the following day.' Anne [ihre jüngere Schwester] was kept in complete ignorance of her sister's marriage." (in: Marie Ruan Hopkinson: Anne of England – The Biography of a great Queen, id., p. 69). Mary II. hatte am 4. November 1677 Wilhelm III. von Oranien zu heiraten. Am 19. November 1677 hatte sie ihre Heimat, das englisch-schottische Königreich, zu verlassen, um sich in die Herrschaft ihres Gatten zu begeben.
Über die erste Zeit, die Mary II. in den Niederlanden verbrachte: "Mary had taken Elizabeth Villiers to Holland - her one consolation for her marriage being to have her adored friend with her. But ... Elizabeth became, as mistress of that austere man, William of Orange, the greatest humiliation and unhappiness in Mary's life; for in spite of his neglect of her, she had fallen deeply in love with her husband." (in: Marie Ruan Hopkinson: Anne of England – The Biography of a great Queen, id., p. 79).
"To Mary's surprise and delight, she liked her new country [die Niederlande], and the Dutch people immediately took her to their hearts. When William had sought the permission of the States-General for his proposed marriage to Mary, as he was bound to do if his allowance were to be continued, they gave it cautiously. [Wilhelms Mutter Maria Stuart war nicht besonders beliebt gewesen!] But this Mary Stuart was completely different. ... While her regal bearing was evident, she clearly had none of the previous Mary's proud aloofness or haughty contempt for the Dutch. She gave the impression of being pleased and of wanting to please. This Mary, William's wife, had heard nothing but jokes and sneers about the hated Dutch republicans all her life at the English court, but she was curious and intelligent enough to make up her own mind about her new people. And she liked what she saw. ... She won the Dutch over with her easy charm, her gaiety and conversation, while the good housewife in her admired their order, neatness and cleanliness, the antithesis of what she had been used to in London. ... Mary made every effort to learn Dutch and soon spoke it well enough to make friends among the ladies of her new court. ... At Honselaersdijck, William could indulge his passion for art and gardening, which Mary came to share. They had both inherited their grandfather Charles I's appreciation of fine painting and William had gone to some trouble to add to his collection prior to the marriage. ... The couple spent the first weeks of their marriage quietly ensconced at Honselaersdijck getting to know each other. Soon the impressionable young girl, so hungry for affection, had fallen in love with her solemn husband. Mary had the sense to understand that, hitherto William had led a typical bachelor life in exclusive male company. With his male friends, loyal, long-term companions of the hunting field and his military campaigns, William relaxed and was at his most jovial, sharing animated conversation over a few bottles. ... she [Mary] was on the best of terms with William's closest friend, Bentinck, who would shortly make a love match with one of her ladies, Anne Villiers. After the stresses of his public life, the gentle Mary would offer William peace and tranquillity. When he came to join her in her rooms, they spoke in English together, and she would entertain him with light chatter, a delightful distraction from the cares of state." (in: Maureen Waller: Ungrateful Daughters – The Stuart Princesses who stole their father’s crown, id., pp. 99-103).
Nach der "glorreichen Revolution" im Jahr 1688, in der ihr Vater Jakob II. (VII.) Stuart, der versucht hatte, sein Königreich zu rekatholisieren, von Wilhelm III. von Oranien unblutig gestürzt wurde: "During this time Mary was still in Holland. William [ihr Gatte] wished to keep her there until the question of the sovereignty had been finally settled, and when she did attempt to come over the 'Protestant winds' failed her. She could not sail for some time, but, at last, accompanied by her retinue, including Elizabeth Villiers, she arrived at Greenwich on February 12th. There she was met by Anne [ihrer Schwester], who flung herself into the arms of her eagerly expected sister. Mary was tall, talkative, handsome and bovine, with a forced vivacity of manner. She came dressed in a purple velvet robe showing a great deal of orange petticoat. When she travelled this gorgeous attire was covered by a long bright orange cloak, but she wore no hood, so that her elaborately dressed hair, adorned with orange ribbon [eines der Embleme der Oranier: siehe Anna von Sachsen] and pearls, could be seen by her amazed countrymen." (in: Marie Ruan Hopkinson: Anne of England – The Biography of a great Queen, id., p. 115).
Nach der Krönung von Wilhelm III. von Oranien und Mary II. Stuart in England, änderte sich einiges am Hofe: "Mary herself gave a good example by working amongst her ladies at their needlework while someone read to them. This was such a contrast to the previous reigns, with their reckless dissipation, that the disgusted nobles and their wives practically deserted the Court." (in: Marie Ruan Hopkinson: Anne of England – The Biography of a great Queen, id., p. 117).
"The sisters [Mary II. Stuart und Anne Stuart im Jahr 1689] got on fairly well together at first, but as they had been separated for over twelve years ... Mary had become above all things a conscientious and obedient wife. She had but one love and one thought - William. Aside from her love for him ... Mary loved conversation ... and Anne was one of those shy people who have little small talk at the best of times ..." (in: Marie Ruan Hopkinson: Anne of England – The Biography of a great Queen, id., p. 117).
Mary hatte sich über alles Kinder gewünscht. Sie war schon kurz nach ihrer Eheschließung schwanger geworden, verlor das Kind jedoch schon im April 1678. Man hatte in dieser Situation sogar mit ihrem Tod zu rechnen. Es ging ihr gesundheitlich sehr schlecht. Sie schien sich in ihrer neuen Heimat zudem das Malariafieber zugezogen zu haben und war fortan ständig krank. Im Spätsommer 1678 wurde sie zu ihrer großen Freude erneut schwanger. Dieses Geheimnis teilte sie zuerst nur mit ihrer "zweiten Mutter" Frances Villiers: "I would hardly give me self leave to think on it nor no body leave to spake of it nott so much as to my self and that I have not yett ritt the Duchess [ihrer Stiefmutter] word who has always chargd me to do it in all her letters ... If you love me don't tell it because I would nott have it known yett for all the world since it cannot be above 6 or 7 weeks att most." (in: Maureen Waller: Ungrateful Daughters – The Stuart Princesses who stole their father’s crown, id., pp. 105-106). Schließlich teilte sie ihr Geheimnis auch mit ihrer Stiefmutter und ihrem Vater, der seinem Schwiegersohn Wilhelm III. im Herbst 1678 Folgendes schrieb: "I was very glad to see by the last letters that my daughter continued so well, and hope now she will go out her full time. I have written to her to be very careful of herself, and she would do well not to stand too much, for that is very ill for a breeding woman." (in: Maureen Waller: Ungrateful Daughters – The Stuart Princesses who stole their father’s crown, id., p. 106). Aber sie war nicht schwanger. Litt sie an einer Scheinschwangerschaft? Nach neun Monaten gab man die Hoffnung endlich auf. Irgendetwas war bei der ersten Fehlgeburt geschehen. Sie konnte keine Kinder mehr bekommen. Wilhelm III. liebte sie trotzdem und zeigte es ihr ständig.
Marys Verhältnis zu ihrem Vater wurde sehr schlecht, als jener gegenüber ihrem Cousin James Scott, dem Herzog von Monmouth, den sie über alles liebte (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 802), in dessen Rebellion gegen ihn keine Milde und kein Erbarmen zeigte und ihn grausam hinrichten ließ. Überdies war ihr Vater nicht bereit, sich für seinen Schwiegersohn bei seinem französischen Cousin Ludwig XIV. einzusetzen, als Letzterer Wilhelm III. von Oranien seine Herrschaft von Oranien entrissen hatte, in dem sehr viele Hugenotten Zuflucht vor den Verfolgungen des französischen Königs Schutz gesucht hatten: "'The only thing I ever asked the King, my father, to do was to use his influence with the King of France to prevent the seizure of the Principality of Orange,' she recalled sadly. 'But my father preferred to join with the King of France against my husband.'" Mary aber stand in diesem Fall zu ihrem Gatten, nicht zu ihrem Vater.
"James [Marys Vater] hoped to convert one or both of his daughters to the Catholic faith. Those who did not know her thought that Princess Anne was the more likely to convert and there was a disturbing rumour that James intended to ignore the claim of the Princess of Orange and make Anne his successor. Rumour also had it that he might declare his marriage to Anne Hyde null and void, so disinheriting both Mary and Anne." (in: Maureen Waller: Ungrateful Daughters – The Stuart Princesses who stole their father’s crown, id., p. 113).
Ihr Vater verbreitete zudem seit Jahren das Gerücht, seine Tochter Mary würde von ihrem Gatten Wilhelm III. schlecht behandelt und unterdrückt werden. Hierzu schrieb sie gegen Ende des Jahres 1684 ihrem Vater: "I am happy and contented, and not kept in awe by my husband." (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 802).
Mary liebte ihren Gatten über alles. In einem ihrer Briefe vom 9. August 1690 lesen wir: "They promise me all shall be ready by Tuesday next, that is the night of Mr. Butler’s reckoning, that with a fair wind you [Wilhelm III., der sich in Irland auf einem Feldzug gegen ihren Vater Jakob II. (VII.) Stuart befindet] may be here; though I think by your dear letter it is possible you may come a day sooner. … This letter, I hope will meet you at Chester, and I have one thing to beg, which is that, if it is possible, I may come and meet you on the road, for I do so long to see you, that I am sure had you as much mind to see your poor wife again, you would propose it; but do as you please, I will say no more, but that I love you so much, it cannot increase, else I am sure it would." (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 828).
In einem weiteren ihrer Briefe, geschrieben am 26. August 1690, lesen wir: "… I think in what perpetual danger you are. I am in great fear, count the hours and the moments, and have only reason enough to think, so long as I have no letter, all is well. … I must play twice a-week, nay, must laugh and talk, though never so much against my will. I believe I dissemble very ill to those who know me, at least it is a great constraint to myself, yet I must endure it. All my motions are so watched, and all I do is so observed, that if I eat less, or speak less, or look more grave, all is lost in the opinion of the world. So that I have this misery added to that of your absence, and my fears for your dear person, that I must grin when my heart is ready to break, and talk when it is so oppressed I can scarce breathe. … if you love me as you make me believe, and as I endeavour to deserve a little by that sincere and lasting kindness I have for you. … beseeching God to bless you, and keep you from all dangers whatsoever; and send us a happy meeting again here upon earth, and at last a joyful and blessed one in heaven, in his good time. Farewell, do but continue to love me, and forgive this taking up so much of your time by your poor wife, who deserves more pity than ever any creature did, and who loves you a great deal too much for her own ease, though it can’t be more than you deserve." (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., pp. 832-834).
"On the fifth of September, 1690, William embarked at Duncannon fort … the next day he arrived in King’s Road, near Bristol. Two days afterwards, the Queen received intelligence of his landing … [in ihrem Brief vom 8. September 1690 lesen wir:] '… Nothing can express the impatience I have to see you, nor my joy to think it is so near. I have not slept all this night for it, though I had but five hours’ sleep the night before, for a reason I shall tell you.' ... On the ninth of September, Mary with infinite joy, met her husband at Windsor…" (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 834).
Im Winter 1694 brachen in London wieder die Pocken aus. Mary II. hatte es geschafft, sich bisher nicht mit diesen anzustecken. Aber ihr Glück endete in diesem Jahr. "It was thought at first that it was some less serious complaint than small-pox, and the doctors were not called in until too late. When it was discovered on the day after Christmas that she was in fact suffering from small-pox in a most virulent form, her doctor told the King [Wilhelm III.] that there was little hope of saving her. ... The Queen died on December 28th at one o'clock in the morning, in her thirty-third year. Although he had seemed to care little for her during their marriage, the King was inconsolable during his wife's illness [er hatte sie also mehr geliebt, als die Zeitgenossen um ihn herum wahr haben wollten). He had many fainting fits and was in such an agony at her death that those who knew him best were amazed at his display of sorrow, for they did not think him capable of so much feeling. ... Her death had also placed William in a new and exceedingly difficult position. Doubts were cast upon his right to the Crown, and some even argued that as Parliament had been summoned in the joint names of the King and Queen, it was dissolved by the death of the latter. The Marlboroughs and certain other supporters of Anne were very active in their desire to further this contention." (in: Marie Ruan Hopkinson: Anne of England – The Biography of a great Queen, id., pp. 143-144).
Marys II. Gatte Wilhelm III. von Oranien hatte den Tod seiner Gattin sehr betrauert. Ja, wenn man den zeitgenössischen Quellen folgt, waren Mary II. und Wilhelm III. sehr verliebt ineinander. Aber warum hatte er dann eine Geliebte, nämlich Marys II. beste Freundin, Elizabeth Villiers, als seine Mätresse genommen? "So early as October, 1679, the relations between William and Elizabeth Villiers had been discussed at a dinner party in Paris. William never loved anyone but his wife, but to deny that he had illicit relations with Elizabeth Villiers would be impossible. Whether Mary knew of the infidelity of William before September, 1685, when she was informed of it by agents of James II [ihrem Vater], who were living in her household, is uncertain." (in: Nellie M. Waterson: Mary II - Queen of England 1689-1694, Durham (North Carolina), Duke University Press 1928, p. 16). Elizabeth Villiers war nie Wilhelms Geliebte, sondern nur seine Spionin. Marys Vater wollte seinen Schwiegersohn nur vor den Augen seiner Tochter schlecht machen. Er war derjenige, der dieses Gerücht in die Welt gesetzt hatte. Leider hat es sich bis heute gehalten.
Im Dezember 1694 zog Mary II. Stuart sich die gefährlichen Pocken zu. Bevor sie starb, ließ sie alle ihre Briefe, schriftlichen Unterlagen, Notizen und ihr Tagebuch ins Feuer werfen. Somit sind alle wichtigen zeitgenössischen Quellen vernichtet worden. Ihr Gatte Wilhelm III. von Oranien war nach ihrem Tod ein gebrochener Mensch. Er liebte sie über alles. Im Dezember 1694 "the dread symptoms of small-pox appeared, and it was known that the Queen's [Mary II. Stuart] life was in great danger. She destroyed many of her letters, meditations, and journals ... William's anguish was uncontrolled. The bishops and the members of the household, themselves deeply affected, were amazed at his unrestrained grief. He summoned Burnet [= Gilbert Burnet, Bishop of Salisbury, am 26. Dezember], and gave 'a free vent to a most tender passion ... he burst out into tears ... there was no hope of the Queen ... from being the happiest, he was now going to be the miserablest creature upon earth ...' He, said, 'during the whole course of their marriage he had never known one single fault in her; there was a worth in her that nobody knew besides himself.' Death freed the Queen in the early morning of the 28th December. 'She was the most universally lamented Princess ... of any in our age or in our history.'" (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 844; und in: Nellie M. Waterson: Mary II - Queen of England 1689-1694, id., 195). "The King, when informed on the Sunday evening that his consort could not live the night through, fainted and fell to the ground; thrice that day he had swooned, and he became so sad and ill, that it was feared he would not long survive." (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 845).
Die Reaktion ihres Vaters, als man ihm den Tod seiner Tochter Mary mitteilte, war ganz anders: "When her father heard that Mary had died without repenting of her unfilial conduct, he was horrified to find 'a child he loved so tenderly, persevere even to death, in a state of signal disobedience and disloyalty, and to find her crimes extolled for virtues by the flatterers around her.' He shut himself up, and mourned her loss in private, but would not go into black for her; and by his request, Louis XIV. ordered the court of France not to assume mourning …" (in: Francis Lancelott: The Queens of England and their Times, Volume II, id., p. 846).
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