Mary’s Botched Execution and Loyal Dog

Some executions were meant to be swift. This one went wrong—three times.

After years of imprisonment, Mary, Queen of Scots, was betrayed by her own cousin,

Queen Elizabeth I, who signed her death warrant. On the morning of

her execution in 1587, Mary entered calmly, prepared to die with dignity.

But the executioner was shaking—and his axe was dull. The first blow missed its mark.

The second still didn’t end it. Only the third strike finally completed the execution,

leaving witnesses horrified by the silence that followed. And then came the final,

haunting detail. As Mary’s body was lifted, a small dog emerged from beneath her