Lady Jane Grey (1537-12 February 1554) was the disputed Queen of England from 10 to 19 July 1553, succeeding Edward VI of England and preceding Mary I of England. She was the cousin of Edward VI, who named her his heir, preferring to have the Protestant Jane occupy the throne than his own Catholic sister, Mary. Jane reigned for nine days before the Privy Council deposed her in favor of Mary, who had Jane executed a year later.
Biography[]
Jane Grey in the winter of 1552
Jane Grey was born in Bradgate Park, Leicestershire, England in 1537, the daughter of Henry Grey, 1st Duke of Suffolk and Frances Brandon. She was the great-granddaughter of King Henry VII of England through his younger daughter, Mary Tudor, and she was a first cousin, once removed of King Edward VI of England. In May 1553, she was married to Lord Guildford Dudley, the son of the powerful regent John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland, after a proposal to marry her to her cousin Edward failed. King Edward, who had a close relationship with Jane, named her his heir before he died, as Jane was a fellow Protestant; he did not want to see his Catholic sister Mary inherit the throne.
The Nine Days' Queen[]
Grey's execution
On 10 July 1553, she succeeded Edward as king upon his death at the young age of fifteen. She awaited coronation in the Tower of London, but her older cousin, Mary, quickly gathered more support across the country. The Privy Council decided to change sides and proclaimed Mary as queen just nine days into Jane's short-lived reign. Her primary supported, the Duke of Northumberland, was imprisoned and executed less than a month later, and Jane was convicted of high treason in November 1553. Mary initially spared her life, but Jane's father's involvement with Thomas Wyatt the Younger's rebellion in February 1554 led to Mary viewing Jane as a threat to the crown. On 12 February 1554, both Jane and her husband Guildford were beheaded.