Katherine, affectionately called Katy Kate (1566 - 1579) by her adoring Grandfather, was born early in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I of England. 

Her Catholic family was distantly related to the Tudors and were fervent, though secret supporters to Mary Queen of Scot's claim to the English throne. 

Katy Kate grew up with the belief that Mary was her rightful Queen.  She followed with great interest the saga of the Scottish Queen's captivity in England.  Mary's son James was just slightly younger than Katy Kate.

When Katy Kate was approaching her 12th birthday her parents called her into her father's study to tell her the most wonderful news.  As part of a plan to oust Elizabeth from the throne and have her replaced by James with Mary as Queen Regent an engagement was to be arranged between Katy Kate and James.  This had the approval of Mary and now the next step was to convince the Regents of Scotland to agree.  Katy Kate was stunned at the thought that she would actually marry the son of her idol.  Then it dawned on her that she would be the Queen of England.  She did not think of any possible dangers and threw herself wholeheartedly into the preparations for the next stage of the plan.

The most regal clothes were made for her so that she would look the part of a Queen in the portrait that was to be painted and sent to Scotland.  Katy Kate was so excited at the prospect of her wonderful future.  It did not occur to her that the plan might fail. Katy Kate's grandfather was an eccentric man who spent much time in what could only be called a laboratory in a high tower room.  When he finally heard of the plan he was totally against it.  He raged at his daughter, Katy Kate's mother, that it was so foolhardy that it could only end in disaster.  None in the family would listen to him and he retreated into a brooding shell.  Everyone tried hard to keep the old man's worries from Katy Kate but she soon sought out her grandfather in his tower.  He could not hide his fear from her and it was then that she came down to earth and realised that sometimes life is not always sweet and safe.  She spent as much time with her grandfather as she could and he taught her many things that a girl would never have been taught.  In fact these were things that very few people knew about.

A few months after her 12th birthday Katy Kate was dragged from her bed in the middle of the night and carried kicking and screaming to where she was thrown in a carriage and taken to a place where she was locked in a dark and cold cell.  She had no idea how long she was kept there and all the questions about her family fell on deaf ears.  It was horrible in the cell as only a tiny stream of light came in from a very high opening for a few hours a day.  It was so cold and the darkness and coldness seemed to crush the air out of her lungs.  It was a living nightmare to this girl who had known nothing but comfort all her life.  As she lay near death with a fever she was bundled up and taken to another part of the castle.  As she became well enough to be aware of her surroundings she noticed that she was in a large but sparsely furnished room.  It was dark but not like it was in the cell.  She had enough covers to keep her warm and when she was strong enough she was able to get out of bed and pull the curtains back to let in the light.  The view from her window was on to an empty courtyard but at least the light could enter her room.

Still she got no answers to her questions about her family or why she was there. Of course she knew that it was because of the plot to have her marry James of Scotland and oust Elizabeth but she wanted to hear someone say it.  One day she found out that she was being held in the same castle as Mary Queen of Scots.  Just knowing that her idol was near gave her strength to endure.  She realised that the lovely lady who used to walk around and around in the courtyard must be Mary and so instead of shyly slipping away from the window when the lady came, she stayed and made a noise so that the lady would look up.  When she did Katy Kate smiled and waved to her.  This became a daily ritual until the day the guards came and boarded up the lower part of the window so that she could not see out or be seen.

Out of sheer boredom and loneliness Katy Kate began listening at her door to the conversations of the guards who were always outside.  At first she could not hear much but as she strained to hear her hearing became more acute.  Most of what they talked about was local gossip but sometimes they would talk of Mary and even of herself.  This was how she found out that her parents had been executed for their part in the plot to oust Elizabeth.  She fervently hoped that her grandfather had not been implicated in any way.

One day she heard them discussing the very real possibility of her own execution.  It seems that Elizabeth was loath to execute one so young but she was an astute ruler who could put sympathy aside in order to secure her throne.  Katy Kate began to turn to her religion for comfort.  In her mind she somehow melded Mary Queen of Scots with the Virgin Mother Mary.  She never doubted that the Catholic religion was the one true religion and when an obviously important gentleman came to see her to put a proposition to her she steadfastly refused to compromise her beliefs.  The proposition was that she sign a document renouncing her faith and declaring her conversion to Protestantism.  If she did this she would be taken to live with a poor protestant family near the border of Wales.  She would be a no one, a nothing living in poor means, but she would be free.

It was so tempting but she found the inner strength to stand by her religion and refused to sign the document.  Many times over the next few weeks she was asked to sign the document and finally she was threatened with the fact that if she did not sign it there and then she would be executed the following day.

Katy Kate spent the night in terror trying hard to pray.  As dawn broke she saw a vision of Mother Mary who spoke thus to her, "My child, you have proven yourself steadfast in your belief.  Do not fear as you will soon be in my loving arms.  I will walk by your side to give you strength and courage right up to the last moment."  As the vision faded the guards entered the room to escort Katy Kate at barely 13 years old, to her execution.  As she walked between them she could feel Mother Mary with her and she felt strangely calm.  It soon became obvious that this was to be a secret execution as she was taken to a room within the castle.

In this room stood three men.  One was the man who tried so hard to get her to sign the document.  One was a priest who was allowed to give her the Last Rites.  The third man was the executioner in his mask, holding the axe near a block.  At least it was newly cut and had not the presence of blood from previous executions.

A number of men came into the room behind her and she never saw them. As the moment of truth arrived Katy Kate suddenly found herself saying, "If you pity me then make it quick and make it clean." In the blink of an eye one of the men behind her drew his sword and struck her head quickly and cleanly from her body.