Lady Jane Grey
Jane Grey, who is often referred to as Lady Jane Grey, is a sympathetic historical character. Lady Jane Grey was born in 1537 to Henry Grey, who was the Duke of Suffolk, and Lady Frances Brandon, who was the daughter of Princess Mary, sister of Henry VIII, and later the wife of her second husband, Charles Brandon.
Lady Jane Grey's early years included much education. As was the custom for young ladies who had a link to the English throne, she left home at a pretty early age to go to boarding school. Jane Grey was schooled by Thomas Seymour, who was the second husband of Catherine Parr. During her time as a ward to Seymour, he was executed for treason, forcing Grey to return home to her parents.
In 1549, John Dudley, who was Duke of Northumberland, became head of the advising council to the very young King Edward VI. Dudley helped the young King take measures to improve England's economy and helped to facilitate an advanced acceleration of the Protestant movement. It is thought by many that the majority of decisions made by King Edward VI were strong suggested by John Dudley. In 1553, Dudley arranged for his son, Guildford Dudley, to be married to Lady Jane Grey. Shortly after that arrangement, Dudley convinced King Edward to declare Lady Jane and any male sons as his heirs. Predictably, Edward agreed to this.
This decision caused quite an outcry among the royal connections. By making such an act, he was bypassing the daughters of King Henry, who had been declared Edward's heirs if Edward died without a child. In addition, this left out Lady Jane's mother, Frances Brandon, who would have normally held precedence over her daughter.
This became important when King Edward died later in 1553. Dudley had Lady Jane named the Queen of England, which came as a bit of a shock to her. Historians believe that Lady Jane Grey neither wanted nor liked being the Queen of England, but her father in law's desire for power forced her to occupy the seat. There was little support for Lady Jane Grey's role as the Queen, as Mary gathered support for her campaign to take back the throne. Only 13 days after King Edward's death, Mary was declared the Queen of England and she immediately had Jane and her father imprisoned. Mary had Northumberland executed for his role in arranging the ordeal.
Jane's life was nearly spared by Mary's kindness until repeated rebellions made it clear that a living Lady Jane Grey would be a very dangerous thing. Because of her stance on religious matters, she became a rallying point for supporting Protestants. Not wanting any more rebellions, Queen Mary had Lady Jane Grey and her husband executed on February 12, 1554 for the crime of high treason.
Because of the circumstances surrounding her death, Grey is thought by many to be a religious martyr. Though her execution was not directly caused by her religious affiliation, her lifetime work as a Protestant leader caused a stir among those who supported her.
Original Authors: Coby DuBose
Edit Update Authors: RPN
Updated On: 22/05/2007
