CASE 3: BLOODY MARY

This stern looking woman is Mary I, the first regnant queen of England

Hi all. Long time no see. I hope that everyone is doing well this week and continues to do well as time goes on — I’m sure our current situation will get worse before it gets better, and things seem to be changing drastically from a week to week, even day to day, basis. Hang in there, stay safe, and take care of yourself and those you love.

This is a post I thought about using around Halloween, but decided against it. It’s not quite as spooky as it may seem on the surface, but it is rooted in some interesting historical fact. Everyone has heard of Bloody Mary as a cultural phenomenon – there’s even an alcoholic drink named after her – but not many people know who the woman herself actually was. She was no saint, to be clear, but she also isn’t a spirit lurking in your bathroom mirror waiting to be summoned and to terrorize you.

Mary didn’t have such an easy life. As the only child of King Henry VIII (you know, the man who had multiple wives and tragic ends to his marriages, got mad at the Catholic church for not allowing him to annul his marriage to his first wife when she could not bore a son, kind of crazy — that Henry VIII) and his first wife, her path to the throne was not a clear one. You know, because of her father’s many wives and consistent failure to produce a male heir. Nonetheless, Mary did rise to the throne in her late 30’s and was said to be wracked with problems regarding her emotional and mental health. She struggled to produce an heir herself, which would lead to the throne eventually being passed on to her younger half-sister Elizabeth.

Mary I is not remembered for her unstable childhood or her struggles to acquire and maintain her status as queen – there’s nothing really bloody about that, is there? The nickname “Bloody Mary” comes from a time of divide in England between the Protestants and the Catholics, mainly spurred by the shift in religion inspired by Mary’s father, Henry VIII (who broke off from the Catholic Church during his reign). Mary, a devout Catholic, viewed Protestantism and its followers in a highly negative light. So negative, in fact, that she was directly responsible for ordering the execution of hundreds of “convicted” Protestants. They were burned at the stake in what would later become known as the Marian Persecutions.

So how does this example of historical persecution and misfortune translate into chanting Bloody Mary’s name into a mirror in the dark to attempt to summon spirits, demons, or other supernatural forces/phenomenon? I honestly am a bit unsure. I tried to do some digging, but am unable to fully understand why Mary specifically was chosen to be a legendary figure of horrific folklore. Historically, women were encouraged to summon Bloody Mary in a mirror – if they could see their husband’s faces in the mirror, they were to be married soon. But, if they saw a skull, they were to die before they had the chance to marry. But why Mary I? Could it be her unyielding cruelty? Could it have been rooted anti-Catholic sentiment and fear? Let me know what you think if you have any ideas.