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Should Mary Queen of Scots be returned?

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EDINBURGH, Scotland, Oct. 12 (UPI) -- Mary Queen of Scots may have been rejected by her subjects while she was alive but now a member of the Scottish parliament wants her body returned.

Mary reposes in Westminster Abbey not far from Queen Elizabeth I, the cousin who ordered her execution. Christine Grahame, a member of the Scottish National Party, argues that Mary's rightful resting place is Falkland Palace, where her father died a few days after her birth in 1542, The Scotsman reported.

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"She was an iconic historical Scots figure and ultimately the victim of English plotting," Grahame said. "Given the House of Stuart's association with Falkland Palace, a place where Mary is believed to have spent her happiest days, that would appear to be an appropriate place to inter her remains."

Mary lived in France from the age of 5, returning to Scotland 13 years later when her husband, by then king of France, died young. After six years, she was forced to abdicate and fled to England.

Elizabeth had Mary, then 45, beheaded 20 years later, fearing Catholics might rally around her. When Mary's son became King James I of England, he had his mother's body moved to Westminster from Peterborough Cathedral.

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