Much as been written about the six wives of Henry VIII and his subsequent heirs to the throne of England, but for nine days in 1553, Lady Jane Grey reluctantly usurped the line of succession and became Queen of England. Her miniscule reign is remembered as that of an unpopular teenager who was manipulated by the greed and power of her protectors.
England falls into turmoil during the protectorate of Edward VI
Jane was the eldest daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Suffolk and cousin to Edward VI. When Henry VIII died, the nine-year-old Edward became heir to one of the most powerful kingdoms in the world. Edward's uncle, Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset, became 'lord protector' of the young King and quickly, and comfortably, assumed the power of the throne as his own. Enabled by poor judgment, Somerset rapidly led the monarchy into a state of unrest and he was soon dismissed from his rank. The role of protectorate now fell on John Dudley, the Duke of Northumberland.
John Dudley had great aspirations for himself and devised a plan in which his son, Guilford Dudley and the young Lady Jane Grey would be married. During his life, Henry VIII had provisioned that the line of succession would in fact change to Jane's family if all of his own heirs were to die childless, and Dudley saw this as his way into a life of power. Viewing the Princesses Mary and Elizabeth as bastard children due to the failed marriages of the King and their respective mothers, Dudley conceived that Lady Jane was the natural heir after Edward, and therefore gaining access to the throne through his son.
Without an heir, Edward VI dies opening the new path for succession
By 1552, when he contracted the measles followed by smallpox, Edward's health began a slow decline. The young king put a great deal of trust in Dudley, who encouraged the boy king to write his will and to name Lady Jane Grey as his successor, the final piece to his scheme. In the summer of the next year, King Edward VI died at the age of fifteen without an heir of his own. Within days, Princess Mary received word that her brother was ill and that he requested to see her. Unaware that he had already passed away, she left for London and straight into Dudley's plan to capture and imprison her allowing Jane to take the throne unchallenged.
However, while enroute, the plan became knowledge to Mary and she escaped to Norfolk allowing her time to create her own scheme of gaining the crown. In the meantime, Jane was proclaimed Queen to an unenthusiastic public, who did not view her as the rightful heir to the throne. Three days after Edward's death, Jane traveled to London. As with the custom of the time, she entered the Tower of London and reluctantly accepted the crown unaware that she would never leave the imposing fortress.
Queen Jane falls from grace
With public sentiment behind her, Mary brought forth her own troops to move in on London. In response, Dudley garnered his own regiment and set out to meet her. In fear for her life, Jane demanded that the Tower remain locked. Mary's following proved too strong for her opponents and by the next night it was clear that she was the victor. Jane's supporters fled the tower to save their heads leaving Jane to stand on her own. Mary claimed the throne unopposed as Jane faced the criminal charges without the support of those who put her in power. She was locked away in the Tower to remain a prisoner for the rest of her life. Jane was executed the following year. As an unwilling recipient of this powerful title, she had succumbed to her destiny.
Sources: www.ladyjanegrey.org
The Tudor Chronicles, Susan Doran, Metro Books, 2008
