The reign of King James I was shadowed by religious violence from the Protestant Reformation and the political tensions between Queen Elizabeth I and Mary, Queen of Scots. These factors led James to maintain strict political control while fearing the supernatural. As the only son of Mary, Queen of Scots and Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, James was born in 1566 amid ongoing conflict between Scotland and England. He became King James VI of Scotland at just one year old after his mother's abdication, and later ascended to the English throne as King James I in 1603 following Queen Elizabeth I's death.