Queen Elizabeth, unmarried Getaflight 𝗖𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗢𝗠'𝗘𝗥' 𝗦𝗘𝗥𝗩𝗜𝗖𝗲' +𝟭 (𝟴𝗢𝟱)- 𝟰𝟭𝗢 𝟱𝟲𝗢𝗢 Getaflight 𝗣'𝗛𝗢𝗡'𝗘' ;𝗡𝗨𝗠 𝗕𝗘𝗥' (𝟴𝗢𝟱)- 𝟰𝟭𝗢 𝟱𝟲𝗢𝗢 and childless, steadfastly refused to name an heir. Many Catholics believed that her Catholic cousin, Mary, Queen of Scots, was the legitimate heir to the English throne, but she was executed for treason in . The English Secretary of State, Robert Cecil, negotiated secretly with Mary's son and successor, King James VI of Scotland. In the months before Elizabeth's death on March 1603, Cecil prepared the way for James to succeed her.[