The Truth Behind Bloody Mary?

Answer 1

he research into Bloody Mary goes Come to me . . . back to 1978, when folklorist Janet Langlois published her essay on the legend. Belief in summoning the mirror-witch was even at that time widespread throughout the U.S.

Mary is summoned whenever squealing girls get together for a sleepover, but boys have been known to call on her too. (The 'Bloody Mary' legend was common when I was a kid in the early 1970s. We typically performed the "ritual" in bathrooms, because the bathrooms of our suburban homes had large mirrors and were easily darkened even during the day since they had no windows. A familiar 'Bloody Mary' story was one about a girl who supposedly ended her incantation with a spiteful "I don't believe in Mary Worth," then tripped over the doorjamb while exiting the bathroom and broke her
hip.)

Mary is said to be a witch who was executed a hundred years ago for plying the black arts, or a woman of more modern times who died in a local car accident in which her face was hideously mutilated.

Some confuse the mirror witch with Mary I of England, whom history remembers as "Bloody Mary." An expanded version of that confusion has it that this murdering British queen killed young girls so she could bathe in their blood to preserve her youthful appearance.

Mary I of England (1553-1558) was anything but a famed beauty terrified of losing her looks -- she was a matronly, fortyish woman who had about as much sense of style as a dust mop. The idea of her bathing in the blood of slaughtered virgins to preserve her loveliness is ludicrous. She came by the moniker "Bloody Mary" because she had a number of Protestants put to death during her reign, as she tried to re-establish Catholicism as the religion of the land after the reigns of her father (Henry VIII, he who married six wives over the course of his lifetime and established himself as the head of a new religion rather than tolerate the Pope's saying he couldn't divorce wife #1 to marry wife #2) and her brother (Edward VI, who ruled after Henry died but passed away himself at the age of 16). Mary was a devoutly religious woman who saw what she was doing as the saving of her subjects' souls from eternal damnation, and in those times — as crazy as this sounds now — the eternal wellbeing of a soul was deemed far more important than the comparatively fleeting life of a person. That bringing the country back to Catholicism would also safeguard her throne was also a major consideration.

Mary I was the half sister of Elizabeth I (1558-1603). Both were daughters of Henry VIII, but Mary's mother was Katherine of Aragon and Elizabeth's mother was Anne Boleyn. Elizabeth I became Queen when Mary died, and she reigned for many years, coming to be called "The Virgin Queen" because she never married.

Some muddlings of this "murdering queen" variant claim that Mary, Queen of Scots (1542-1567) is the "bloody Mary" of mirror summonings. Though this Mary was indeed a vain and foolish woman, history does not know her as a murderous one. (Well, okay, she did have a hand in doing away with a husband. But she didn't go after her subjects en masse, as did Mary I of England.)

So, although there was a British queen known as "Bloody Mary," no connection between her and the mirror witch has surfaced, save for their both having the same name. Likewise, the "Mary Worth" appellation of the malevolent apparition doesn't appear to be drawn from the lead character of a popular comic strip of the same name. In lore, as elsewhere, coincidences occur. (The "bathing in blood" detail is traditionally attributed to Elizabeth Bathory, but of course her name was not "Mary.")

Why would otherwise rational youngsters want to risk setting a murderous spirit on the rampage? Gail de Vos offers the following explanation:
So why do children continue to summon Bloody Mary, flirting with danger and possible tragedy? The ages between 9 and 12 are labeled "the Robinson age" by psychologists. This is the period when children need to satisfy their craving for excitement by participating in ritual games and playing in the dark. They are constantly looking for a safe way to extract pleasure and release anxiety and fears.
It's possible these "mirror witch" games have their roots in oldtime divining rituals involving unmarried girls and future husbands. There are a number of variations of these divinations, some involving chanting a rhyme in a darkened room on a special night and then quickly looking in the mirror to catch a glimpse of the bridegroom-to-be.

The concept of mirrors as portals between this world and the realm of spirits shows up in other beliefs, namely those surrounding funerals. It was common practice to cover mirrors in a house where a death had occurred until the body was taken for burial. (Back in the days before funeral homes, corpses were washed by the deceased's relatives, dressed in their funeral finery, and laid out in coffins in the front parlor. Consequently, the dead would be in the house for days.) It was believed if the dear departed caught a glimpse of himself in a mirror, his ghost would remain in the house because the mirror would trap his spirit.

Answer 2

Story Behind Bloody Mary

Answer 3

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
The Truth Behind Bloody Mary?

Answer 4

It doesn't work. I've tried it when I was younger (as I'm sure most kids have). You go into the bathroom, turn off the light and chant "Bloody Mary" ten times as you spin in a circle. When you stop she's supposed to be in the mirror. No it doesn't work. It's ridiculous. It's just another one of those urban legends. The only thing you'll "see" in the mirror is blurryness because it's dark and you're kinda dizzy. Might I suggest ordering the Bloody Mary cocktail if you go to a bar? Yummy!!!

Answer 5

Bloody Mary is the name given to the daughter of Catherine of Aragon, she came to the throne briefly and was a Roman Catholic.
Her reign was marked by the most horrific murders of Christians, people who were not Rcs. People were burned alive at the stake for accepting the Bible as the word of God.
Anyone who would not accept the false teaching of Rome was killed and tortured in the most heinous ways she could imaging. She was certainly one of THE most wicked monarchs ever to have lived.
The drink of tomato juice represents the blood of the saints that she had martyred. Since her reign no Roman catholic is ever allowed to be a monarch in the UK again and no monarch is allowed to marry a RC. And I hope that never changes.

Answer 6

Mary, the fourth and penultimate monarch of the Tudor dynasty, is remembered for her attempt to return England from Protestantism to Roman Catholicism. To this end, she had almost three hundred religious dissenters executed; as a consequence, she is often known as Bloody Mary. Her religious policies, however, were in many cases reversed by her successor and half-sister, Elizabeth I (1558 – 1603). Mary Tudor was a cousin, once removed, of Mary, Queen of Scots, with whom she is often confused by those unfamiliar with British history.

In folklore and children's street culture, "Bloody Mary" is the name of a children's game in which a ghost or witch of the same name (or sometimes other names, such as Mary Worth) is said to appear in a mirror when summoned. One of the more common ways participants attempt to make her appear is to stand before a mirror in the dark and repeat her name three times, though there are many variations. Some include chanting a hundred times, chanting at midnight, spinning around, or rubbing one's eyes. Most of these are meant to disorient people. In some versions of the legend, the summoner must say "Bloody Mary, I killed your son!" (or "I killed your baby"). In these variants, Bloody Mary is often believed to be the spirit of a mother (often a widow) who murdered her children, or a woman who was murdered shortly before or after her wedding. In stories where Mary is supposed to have been wrongly accused of killing her children, the querent might say "I believe in Mary Worth." This is similar to another game involving the summoning of The Bell Witch in a mirror at midnight. Similar rituals are also used to summon spirits in the movies Beetlejuice (1988) and Candyman (1992). The game is often a test of courage, as it is said that if Bloody Mary is summoned, she would murder the summoner, often in a quite violent way, such as gouging out his or her eyes. Other variations say that the querent must not look directly at her, but at her image in the mirror; she will then reveal the querent's future, particularly concerning marriage and children.

Bloody Mary is also the name of a major character in the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical South Pacific. She is a native islander, a trader and a somewhat salty character in the play, but there is no known link between the ghost folklore and the musical. Juanita Hall originated the character on the stage, and also played her in the 1958 motion picture version.

A song about her makes U.S. Navy sailors sing, Bloody Mary is the girl I love, her skin is as tender as DiMaggio's glove, and that she chews betel nuts, and doesn't use Pepsodent, with the refrain Now ain't that too damn bad!

In the fictional universe of DC Comics, "Bloody Mary" is a member of the Female Furies, enemies of the New Gods. She is a vampire with the further power of being able to fire dangerous eye beams.

Answer 7

She was Mary, Queen of Scots. Her army fought with Elizabeth I's army---she was captured---then beheaded.

Caused a lot of bloodshed, therefore known as Bloody Mary

Answer 8

Bloody Mary is either:
1) a drink with gin and tomato juice
2) the co-star of the Broadway play (and movie) South Pacific
3) the sobriquet for Mary, Queen of Scots.
Which one are you talking about, and what truth are you questioning?

Answer 9

Mary I of England was the daughter of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon. When Henry divorced Catherine, he declared that Mary was illegitimate. He left one male heir, who died almost immediately, leaving his two daughters, Mary and Elizabeth (daughter of Ann Boleyn). When Henry had divorced Catherine and created the Church of England, he had alienated most of Europe, so when he died, much of Europe banded together to put Mary on the throne as the "rightful" (read: Catholic) heir. She had a brief reign which was marked by murder and revenge (hence the nickname), but was deposed by Elizabeth's supporters.

Answer 10

Well bloody Mary is most definitely not real so..pleases stop say she is.

Answer 11

A Bloody Mary is a cocktail containing vodka, tomato juice, and usually other spices or flavorings such as Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco sauce, beef consomme or bouillon, horseradish, celery or celery salt, salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and lemon juice. The epithet "Bloody Mary" is associated with a number of historical and fictional women, most notably Queen Mary I of England (see Bloody Mary (person) for others); however, there is no known connection between the name of the cocktail and any of these people.

Mary I, the queen of England from 1553 to 1558 became known as "Bloody Mary" during the reign of her successor, Elizabeth on account of the perceived ferocity of her religious persecutions; she has borne the epithet ever since. "Bloody Mary" is also a name for a ghost or witch who appears in children's folklore; other very similar tales use different names.
Several fictional characters are also called Bloody Mary.

Queen Mary I of England is called Bloody Mary because of her persecution of Protestants. The Protestant Reformation, started fitfully in England by King Henry VIII, became established policy under the brief reign of Edward VI. Mary, like her mother Catherine of Aragon, whom Henry VIII had spurned, was a devout Roman Catholic. She contracted an unpopular marriage to the equally devout Philip II of Spain. The pair, with the assistance of conservative churchmen such as Edward "Bloody" Bonner and Stephen Gardiner, sought to reimpose Roman Catholicism upon the religiously divided country.

During her brief reign of just over five years, Mary had almost three hundred people burnt at the stake for heresy. Her persecutions were notable also for the prominence of their victims; the first person to die was the Protestant John Rogers, who had completed and published Tyndale's work as Matthew's Bible. While heresy trials and executions occurred both before and after her reign, she executed more than twice as many as had been executed for this crime over the preceding century and a half.
Elizabeth her half-sister, succeeded her. Elizabeth persecuted Catholics. She became known as “Bloody Bess” Bloody Bess had, on one single occasion, about 800 Catholics murdered for restoring the Mass in a few towns.

In folklore and children's street culture, "Bloody Mary" is the name of a children's game in which a ghost or witch of the same name (or sometimes other names, such as Mary Worth) is said to appear in a mirror when summoned. One of the more common ways participants attempt to make her appear is to stand before a mirror in the dark and repeat her name three times, though there are many variations. Some include chanting a hundred times, chanting at midnight, spinning around, or rubbing one's eyes. Most of these are meant to disorient people. In some versions of the legend, the summoner must say "Bloody Mary, I killed your son!" (or "I killed your baby"). In these variants, Bloody Mary is often believed to be the spirit of a mother (often a widow) who murdered her children, or a woman who was murdered shortly before or after her wedding. In stories where Mary is supposed to have been wrongly accused of killing her children, the querent might say "I believe in Mary Worth." This is similar to another game involving the summoning of The Bell Witch in a mirror at midnight. Similar rituals are also used to summon spirits in the movies Beetlejuice (1988) and Candyman (1992). The game is often a test of courage, as it is said that if Bloody Mary is summoned, she would murder the summoner, often in a quite violent way, such as gouging out his or her eyes. Other variations say that the querent must not look directly at her, but at her image in the mirror; she will then reveal the querent's future, particularly concerning marriage and children.

Bloody Mary Worth is typically described as a child-murderess who lived in the locality where the legend has taken root about a century ago. There is often a specific local graveyard or tombstone that becomes attached to the legend.


I hope this helps :)