No doubt Anne ought to have been satisfied to make a virtue of necessity; but she could not understand any argument but that of her own heart, which prompted her to rebel against the Marrs because they had possession of her darling, [[A.D. 1595.]] She fretted and wept until the king was beside himself to know what was best to do. When little Henry was fifteen months old his mother requested that the question of his guardianship might be settled by council; but James was too shrewd to submit to that proceeding, so he urged the queen to satisfy the craving of her heart by going at once to Stirling Castle. But that was not what her majesty desired; therefore, she declared that she was not well, and refused to stir. James insisted, and obliged his wife to obey by superintending the arrangements for the journey and turning a deaf ear to all her objections. Finding that there was no help for it, Queen Anne set out on horseback with her train of attendants; but with her usual perversity she feigned illness, and stopped at a palace by the way. She was anxious to see her baby, no doubt, but could not bear that her husband should find her too yielding; so, on every occasion when he deemed it necessary to oppose her, she made him suffer for it. Yet James VI. was a devoted husband throughout his life, and never took a firm stand against his wife unless urgent reasons required it. As soon as the Earl of Marr was informed of the queen's whereabouts he hastened to pay his respects to her; but {128}she absolutely refused to see him, and her people treated him so uncivilly that he was glad to return to Stirling Castle. It was foolish in Queen Anne to insult her husband's most faithful friend and the man who had charge of her infant, but that was not the extent of her folly. During the king's absence on his summer travels she actually went so far as to plan an expedition, which she meant to head, for the purpose of carrying off the infant prince by force. Fortunately, James heard of it in time to reach the place where his wife was stopping and bring her back to her senses. He at once accompanied her to Stirling Castle, where she was permitted to fondle little Henry as much as she pleased. It was not unnatural that Queen Anne should want to keep her child with her; but she showed decided want of character in insisting upon it after the king had explained to her that the safety of his own person, the child, and the kingdom required this sacrifice at her hands. Had she taken pains to inform herself she would have seen that all the misfortunes of the preceding kings of the line of Stuart had arisen on account of their having been minors at the time of their accession. The throne had in each case been claimed for the son, which necessitated the destruction of the father and the appointment of a regent. Thus the strongest party had ruled according to their own ideas of justice.