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5 | <Description>
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14 | <Metadata name="Content">Lady Jane Grey The Nine Days Queen biography portraits primary sources</Metadata>
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15 | <Metadata name="Page_topic">Tudor Relatives: Lady Jane Grey: Biography, Portraits, Primary Sources The Nine Days' Queen 1553</Metadata>
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16 | <Metadata name="Author">Marilee Mongello</Metadata>
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17 | <Metadata name="Title">Lady Jane Grey: Biography, Portraits, Primary Sources</Metadata>
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18 | <Metadata name="FileFormat">HTML</Metadata>
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19 | <Metadata name="URL">http://englishhistory.net/tudor/relative/janegrey.html</Metadata>
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20 | <Metadata name="UTF8URL">http://englishhistory.net/tudor/relative/janegrey.html</Metadata>
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21 | <Metadata name="dc.Subject">Tudor period|Relatives</Metadata>
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39 | </Description>
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40 | <Content>
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41 |
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42 | <table border="0" cellpadding="3" width="100%" height="667">
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43 | <tr>
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44 | <td width="25%" height="29"></td>
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45 | <td valign="top" width="50%" height="29">&nbsp;</td>
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46 | <td width="25%" height="29"></td>
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47 | </tr>
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48 | <tr>
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49 | <td width="25%" height="3"></td>
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50 | <td width="50%" height="3">
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51 | <p align="center"><IMG height=47 alt="Lady Jane Grey"
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52 | src="_httpdocimg_/janegrey.gif" width=320></td>
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53 | <td width="25%" height="3"></td>
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54 | </tr>
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55 | <tr>
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56 | <td width="25%" height="610"></td>
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57 | <td valign="top" width="50%" height="610">
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58 | <p align="center">
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59 | <IMG height=287
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60 | alt="The Execution of Lady Jane Grey by Paul Delaroche"
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61 | src="_httpdocimg_/janegrey-nga.jpg" width=358 border=2></p>
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62 | <blockquote>
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63 | <p><A
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64 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2frelative%2fjanegrey.html#Biography"><br>
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65 | <font size="4">Read
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66 | the biography of Lady Jane Grey</font></A><font size="4">.</font></p>
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67 | <P><B><BR>Primary Sources</B> <BR><A
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68 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fjane1.html">An eyewitness account
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69 | of Jane's coronation</A>, 1553. <BR><A
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70 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fprijane1.html">Jane's letter to
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71 | Queen Mary from the Tower of London</A>, 1554. <BR><A
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72 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fexjane.html">An eyewitness account
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73 | of Jane's execution</A>, 1554. <BR>&nbsp;</P>
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74 | <p>Visit <a href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.marileecody.com%2fimages.html">Tudor England:
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75 | Images</a> to view portraits of Jane.<BR><BR><br>Visit the <A
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76 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2frelative%2fcathgrey.html">Lady
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77 | Catherine Grey site</A> to learn more about Jane's tragic
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78 | sister.<BR>Visit the <A
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79 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2fedward6.html">King Edward
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80 | VI site</A> to learn more about Jane's cousin who left her the throne.
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81 | <BR><br>Test your knowledge of Jane Grey's life at <A
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82 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2ftudor1.html">Tudor
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83 | Quizzes</A>.</p>
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84 | <p><br><b><font size="2">Links&nbsp; <br></font></b>
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85 | <font size="2">Visit <A href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.geocities.com%2fjane%5fthe%5fquene">Sarah's
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86 | Lady Jane Grey website</A>. &nbsp;<br>Visit <A
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87 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.bitterwisdom.com%2fladyjanegrey">The Lady Jane Grey Internet
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88 | Museum</A>.</font></p>
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89 | <P><font size="2"><b><br>Interact<br></b>Meet other Tudor Dynasty enthusiasts at
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90 | <a href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fquietly.still-inspired.com%2ftudor">Tudor Rose: The Tudor
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91 | Dynasty Fanlisting</a>.<a href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2ftudorhistory.org%2flists%2flist.html"><br>Tudor Talk </a>&nbsp; This email discussion list is sponsored by Tudorhistory.org.<br>
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92 | <a href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fgroups.yahoo.com%2fgroup%2fReign%5fof%5fthe%5fTudors%5frpg">Reign
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93 | of the Tudors</a>&nbsp; This is a role-playing game set in 16th century
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94 | England.&nbsp; If you would like to 'play' Jane Grey or Anne Boleyn or
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95 | other Tudors, click the link to join.</font></P>
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96 | </blockquote>
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97 | </td>
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98 | <td width="25%" height="610"></td>
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99 | </tr>
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100 | </table>
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101 |
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102 | <blockquote>
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103 | <blockquote>
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104 | <blockquote>
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105 | <p>
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106 | <A name=Biography></A>
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107 | <B>Jane Grey remains one of the most compelling and tragic figures in
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108 | Tudor history.&nbsp; She possessed royal blood through her grandmother,
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109 | Princess Mary Tudor, and this heritage brought her to the scaffold in
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110 | 1554.&nbsp; Jane had been named heiress to the English throne in her
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111 | great-uncle Henry VIII's will, but only if his son Edward and daughters
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112 | Mary and Elizabeth died without issue.&nbsp; But Edward ruled for just six
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113 | years and his ambitious advisor, John Dudley, was determined to remain in
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114 | power.&nbsp; To that end, he persuaded Edward to write his own will and
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115 | leave the throne to his pious cousin, Jane Grey.&nbsp; Though just fifteen
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116 | at the time, she was known for her Protestant piety and learning; it was
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117 | this religious devotion which persuaded Edward to alter the succession.&nbsp;
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118 | Deeply pious himself, he could not leave the throne to his Catholic
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119 | sister, Mary.&nbsp; Jane was quickly wed to Dudley's son and crowned queen
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120 | of England in July 1553.&nbsp; But she ruled for just nine days, trapped
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121 | and unhappy.&nbsp; Mary Tudor claimed the throne with great popular
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122 | support and Jane was imprisoned in the Tower of London.&nbsp; Her
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123 | subsequent execution was a political necessity for Mary Tudor.&nbsp;
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124 | Despite her youth, Jane met her end with great dignity and courage.</B></p>
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125 | <hr>
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126 | </blockquote>
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127 | </blockquote>
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128 | <p><font size="4">'I think that at the supper I neither receive flesh nor
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129 | blood, but bread and wine; which bread when it is broken, and the wine when it
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130 | is drunken, put me in remembrance how that for my sins the body of Christ was
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131 | broken, and his blood shed on the cross. ...I ground my faith upon God's word,
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132 | and not upon the church...&nbsp; The faith of the church must be tried by
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133 | God's word, and not God's word by the church; neither yet my faith.'&nbsp;
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134 | </font>&nbsp;<I><FONT size=-1>Jane Grey to John Feckenham,
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135 | 1554</FONT></I></p>
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136 | <blockquote>
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137 | <blockquote>
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138 | <hr>
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139 | <p><B>Biography</B><BR><B>Ancestry</B>
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140 | <BR>Lady Jane Grey was the eldest child of Lord Henry and Lady Frances
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141 | Grey, the duke and duchess of
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142 | <IMG height=205
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143 | alt="Princess Mary Tudor, grandmother of Lady Jane Grey"
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144 | src="_httpdocimg_/grey1.jpg" width=101 border=2 align="left">Suffolk.&nbsp; She was a viable heir to
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145 | the English throne because of her maternal grandmother, <A
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146 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.englishhistory.net%2ftudor%2frelative%2fbrandon.html">Princess
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147 | Mary Tudor</A>.&nbsp; After the death of her first husband, King Louis
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148 | XII of France in 1515, Mary secretly wed her true love, <A
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149 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.englishhistory.net%2ftudor%2frelative%2fbrandon.html">Charles
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150 | Brandon</A>.&nbsp; Brandon was her brother <A
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151 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.englishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2fhenry8.html">Henry
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152 | VIII</A>'s best friend; the king's friendship and Brandon's service to
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153 | the Crown led to his creation as duke of Suffolk in 1514.&nbsp; He and
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154 | Mary had a son, Henry, who died as teenager.&nbsp; Their next eldest
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155 | child was a daughter, Frances.&nbsp; Under the terms of the Third Act of
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156 | Succession (1544) and Henry VIII's last will and testament (1547), the
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157 | Suffolk line would inherit the throne after Henry VIII's children died
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158 | childless.&nbsp; In other words, the throne would pass to Henry's son <A
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159 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.englishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2fedward6.html">Edward</A>;
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160 | if Edward died childless, it passed to Henry's eldest daughter <A
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161 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.englishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2fmary1.html">Mary</A>;
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162 | if she died childless, it passed to Henry's youngest daughter <A
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163 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.englishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2feliz1.html">Elizabeth</A>.&nbsp;
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164 | If Elizabeth died childless, the throne passed to Lady Frances.&nbsp;
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165 | This plan completely disregarded the children of Henry's elder sister <A
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166 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.englishhistory.net%2ftudor%2frelative%2fmargaret.html">Margaret</A>,
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167 | the former queen of Scots.&nbsp; Henry did not care for Margaret and,
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168 | more importantly, did not want the English throne in Scottish hands. </p>
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169 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; So it was through Princess Mary that Jane Grey was
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170 | bequeathed her deadly heritage.&nbsp; Still, no one in the 1540s
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171 | expected the Suffolk line to rule.&nbsp; After all, Henry VIII had left
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172 | three heirs and it was unlikely all three would die childless.&nbsp; Of
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173 | course, we know that this did occur and the Tudor dynasty died with
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174 | Elizabeth I in 1603.&nbsp; It was only in 1552, with Edward VI's health
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175 | rapidly failing, that people realized there would be a succession
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176 | crisis.&nbsp; According to parliament and Henry VIII's will, Mary was
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177 | Edward's heir - but she was Catholic, in her late thirties, and never
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178 | robust.&nbsp; More importantly, Edward was a devout Protestant and did
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179 | not want Roman Catholicism restored in England.&nbsp; Urged on by
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180 | self-interested advisors, he removed Mary from the succession on the
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181 | grounds of her illegitimacy (she was declared so by parliament in
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182 | 1532.)&nbsp; But if he removed Mary, he also had to remove Elizabeth
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183 | even though she was a Protestant; Elizabeth had also been declared a
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184 | bastard by parliament in 1536.&nbsp; In his <I>Device for the
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185 | Succession</I>, written in his own hand, Edward wrote that they were
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186 | both "illegitimate and not lawfully begotten."&nbsp; </P>
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187 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Edward's course of action removed the succession
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188 | from the heirs of Henry VIII and gave it to the heirs of Henry's younger
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189 | sister, Mary.&nbsp; This was a tumultuous course for many reasons.&nbsp;
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190 | For example, the king of France, Henry II, was raising <A
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191 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.englishhistory.net%2ftudor%2frelative%2fmaryqos.html">Mary
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192 | Stuart</A>, Margaret Tudor's granddaughter; he planned to marry this
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193 | ten-year-old <A
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194 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.englishhistory.net%2ftudor%2frelative%2fmaryqos.html">queen
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195 | of Scots</A> to his son and heir, Francois.&nbsp; By all the accepted
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196 | laws of primogeniture, she had a better claim to the English throne than
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197 | her Suffolk cousins.&nbsp; In fact, most European Catholics believed
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198 | Mary's claim better than her Tudor cousins, Mary and Elizabeth, since
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199 | both were illegitimate by acts of constitutional and canon law.&nbsp;
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200 | However, Mary of Scotland was in France - not England; also, the
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201 | Suffolks were Protestant and she was not.&nbsp; Edward VI never
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202 | considered leaving her the throne.&nbsp; </P>
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203 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The above paragraph illustrates the complexity of
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204 | blood ties within the Tudor family.&nbsp; And since Mary Tudor was
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205 | half-Spanish and thus cousin to the Holy Roman Emperor, the succession
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206 | crisis interested most of the major powers of Europe - France, the
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207 | Hapsburg Empire, Italy (the pope hoped to bring England back to his
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208 | authority), and the Protestant princes of Germany.&nbsp; When Edward VI
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209 | died in 1553, all of these nations waited to see who would
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210 | triumph.&nbsp; Mary....&nbsp; Elizabeth....&nbsp; Mary of
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211 | Scotland....&nbsp; Jane Grey....&nbsp; Which would become queen?&nbsp;
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212 | </P>
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213 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Also, Europe waited to see how England would
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214 | welcome a queen as their sole ruler.&nbsp; All of the possible
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215 | candidates for the throne were women, an unprecedented occurrence.&nbsp;
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216 | The only woman to attempt to rule England as her father's sole heir had
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217 | been Matilda in the 12th century; she had been forced out of the country
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218 | by popular revolt and a male cousin named Stephen of Blois became
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219 | king.&nbsp; Now it seemed the English had no choice but to accept a
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220 | woman ruler.&nbsp; </P>
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221 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; And because of the secret marriage of Mary Tudor
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222 | and Charles Brandon, the first woman to rule England in her own right
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223 | would be Jane Grey.&nbsp; <BR>&nbsp; </P>
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224 | <P><B>Early Life and Education</B> </P>
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225 | <BLOCKQUOTE>
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226 | <p>'I will tell you a truth which perchance ye will marvel
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227 | at.&nbsp; One of the greatest benefits that God ever gave me is that
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228 | he sent me so sharp and severe parents and so gentle a
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229 | schoolmaster.&nbsp; For when I am in the presence of Father or Mother,
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230 | whether I speak, keep silence, sit, stand or go, eat, drink, be merry
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231 | or sad, be sewing, playing, dancing, or doing anything else, I must do
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232 | it as it were in such weight, measure and number, even so perfectly as
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233 | God made the world; or else I am so sharply taunted, so cruelly
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234 | threatened, yea presently sometimes with pinches, nips and bobs and
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235 | other ways (which I will not name for the honour I bear them), so
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236 | without measure misordered, that I think myself in hell, till time
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237 | comes that I must go to Mr Aylmer, who teacheth me so gently, so
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238 | pleasantly, with such fair allurements to learning, that I think all
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239 | the time nothing while I am with him.&nbsp; And when I am called from
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240 | him, I fall on weeping because whatsoever I do else but learning is
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241 | full of grief, trouble, fear and wholly misliking to me.'&nbsp;&nbsp;
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242 | <I><FONT size=-1>Lady Jane Grey to Roger Ascham,
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243 | 1550</FONT></I></p>
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244 | </BLOCKQUOTE>
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245 | <p>Jane Grey was not close to her
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246 | parents.&nbsp; Henry Grey was the marquess of Dorset; he became the duke
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247 | of Suffolk in 1551.&nbsp; He married Mary Tudor and Charles Brandon's
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248 | eldest daughter Frances when she was sixteen.&nbsp; At the time, Grey
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249 | was a ward of Brandon's.&nbsp; He was also an appropriate match for a
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250 | Princess's daughter.&nbsp; The Grey family had an ancient and impressive
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251 | lineage, originally receiving lands from Richard the Lionheart.&nbsp;
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252 | Later, they rose to prominence under Edward IV; he had married Elizabeth
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253 | Woodville, the widow of Sir John Grey and mother of his two sons.&nbsp;
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254 | When she became queen, she tirelessly promoted the interests of the Grey
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255 | family.&nbsp; In fact, her eldest Grey son, Thomas, was created marquess
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256 | of Dorset during Edward IV's reign.&nbsp; His son, also called Thomas,
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257 | was a companion to Charles Brandon - soldiering with him in France in
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258 | 1513 and journeying there a year later to celebrate Princess Mary
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259 | Tudor's wedding to the French king.&nbsp; In 1530, Thomas Grey died and
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260 | Brandon became his son's guardian.&nbsp; The marriage between Frances
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261 | and the heir, Henry Grey, was a satisfactory way to join two noble
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262 | families together.&nbsp; </p>
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263 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Their marriage was celebrated at Suffolk Place in
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264 | London.&nbsp; Mary Tudor died some months later.&nbsp; Charles Brandon
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265 | remarried, this time to an heiress called Catherine Willoughby.&nbsp;
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266 | She bore him two sons (his son with Mary Tudor had recently died).&nbsp;
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267 | When Brandon passed away in 1545, he and Catherine's eldest son, called
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268 | Henry after his late half-brother, became duke of Suffolk.&nbsp; He and
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269 | his younger brother died of the dreaded sweating sickness a few years
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270 | later.&nbsp; This left the dukedom of Suffolk vacant until 1551, when
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271 | Edward VI would award it to Henry Grey.&nbsp; </P>
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272 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; As mentioned, Henry VIII had left the throne to
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273 | his children and, if they died without issue, "to the heirs of the body
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274 | of the lady Frances our niece, eldest daughter to our late sister the
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275 | French Queen lawfully begotten...."&nbsp; This meant that the Grey
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276 | children (by this time Frances and Henry had 3 daughters - Jane born in
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277 | 1537, Catherine born in 1540, and Mary born in 1545) had enhanced
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278 | social status.&nbsp; In 1547, when the will was read, no one seriously
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279 | expected them to gain more.&nbsp; Edward was small and blond, like his
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280 | long-dead uncle Arthur, lacking Henry VIII's robust athleticism and good
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281 | health.&nbsp; But he was expected to live, marry, and provide
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282 | heirs.&nbsp; Therefore, any immediate interest in the Grey children
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283 | centered on how Edward would favor them.&nbsp; Understandably, it was
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284 | thought that he might marry the eldest, his cousin Jane.&nbsp; They were
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285 | the same age, both precocious, very serious, and fervently
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286 | Protestant.&nbsp; </P>
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287 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Jane had been raised, with her two sisters, at
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288 | Bradgate.&nbsp; This was the principal family home on the edge of
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289 | Charnwood Forest.&nbsp; It was a beautiful and luxurious estate, suited
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290 | to the Grey's semi-regal status.&nbsp; Lady Frances was very conscious
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291 | of her royal heritage and, as she grew older, became quite like her
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292 | uncle Henry.&nbsp; She and her husband were well-known for their love of
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293 | riding, hunting, hawking and gambling.&nbsp; They were not, however, the
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294 | most interested of parents.&nbsp; In this, they resembled their
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295 | aristocratic contemporaries. They provided very well for their three
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296 | daughters.&nbsp; While Frances and Henry spent time in London, their
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297 | daughters remained at Bradgate, in the hands of capable servants.&nbsp;
|
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298 | Jane's nurse was a woman called Mrs Ellen and would remain with her
|
---|
299 | until Jane's execution; her first tutor was probably the house chaplain,
|
---|
300 | Dr Harding.&nbsp; The first ten years of Jane's life, from her birth in
|
---|
301 | October 1537 (the exact date is not known) to her residence in Katharine
|
---|
302 | Parr's household in 1547, are not documented.&nbsp; It is likely she
|
---|
303 | received the typical upper-class girl's education - its primary emphasis
|
---|
304 | would be on instilling good manners and the 'feminine' virtues of
|
---|
305 | obedience and docility.&nbsp; She undoubtedly learned needlework and was
|
---|
306 | taught dancing and how to play some musical instruments.&nbsp; But
|
---|
307 | neither of her parents were scholars and no one in the sixteenth century
|
---|
308 | expected women to be well-educated.&nbsp; She may have visited London,
|
---|
309 | accompanying her parents to Dorset Place in Westminster; she may have
|
---|
310 | met her royal cousins.&nbsp; No one knows.&nbsp; But in March 1547, Lady
|
---|
311 | Jane Grey finally emerges into the historical landscape.&nbsp; It was
|
---|
312 | then that she entered the household of the dowager queen <A
|
---|
313 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2fparr.html">Katharine
|
---|
314 | Parr</A>, Henry VIII's sixth and last wife.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
315 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Katharine had retired from court upon Edward VI's
|
---|
316 | accession, though she remained close to London.&nbsp; Her<IMG height=191 alt="Jane's guardian, Katharine Parr"
|
---|
317 | src="_httpdocimg_/parr-cr.jpg" width=150 border=2 align="right"> dower manor,
|
---|
318 | Chelsea, was in the suburbs.&nbsp; It was a comfortable brick home with
|
---|
319 | modern amenities.&nbsp; Here, Katharine planned to live with the man she
|
---|
320 | had longed to marry before Henry laid claim to her, Thomas Seymour,
|
---|
321 | Edward VI's uncle.&nbsp; She also brought with her the 13 year old
|
---|
322 | Princess Elizabeth.&nbsp; Katharine Parr was justly celebrated for her
|
---|
323 | warm and open nature; she was a good stepmother to all of Henry's
|
---|
324 | children, particularly the youngest two.&nbsp; A few weeks after
|
---|
325 | Katharine and Elizabeth settled at Chelsea, Jane Grey came to join
|
---|
326 | them.&nbsp; She was sent to acquire polish and learn social graces, a
|
---|
327 | common practice for daughters of the nobility.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
328 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Jane acquired much more than social skills at
|
---|
329 | Katharine's household.&nbsp; For the first time in her young life, she
|
---|
330 | was truly happy.&nbsp; Katharine was a devout Protestant and the most
|
---|
331 | intellectual of Henry's queens.&nbsp; Her home was the center of the
|
---|
332 | Protestant 'New Learning'; there was instruction and frequent
|
---|
333 | debates.&nbsp; Jane, quiet and studious by nature, thrived.&nbsp; And
|
---|
334 | though her parents were Protestant, it was at Katharine Parr's that she
|
---|
335 | became devoutly committed to the faith.&nbsp; The Greys, after all, had
|
---|
336 | become Protestants like many nobles - because it was a matter of
|
---|
337 | political necessity.&nbsp; At Katharine's, Jane became a Protestant
|
---|
338 | because she truly believed in its tenets.&nbsp; This serious and intense
|
---|
339 | study of faith would remain with her throughout her short life.&nbsp;
|
---|
340 | </P>
|
---|
341 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; During Edward VI's reign, the Lord Protector was
|
---|
342 | Edward Seymour, duke of Somerset.&nbsp; Katharine Parr had married his
|
---|
343 | younger brother, Sir Thomas Seymour.&nbsp; Thomas was very ambitious and
|
---|
344 | angered that his brother had so much authority while he had to be
|
---|
345 | content with a baronetcy, a seat on the Privy Council, and the office of
|
---|
346 | Lord Admiral.&nbsp; Thomas and Katharine Parr had planned to marry years
|
---|
347 | before but Henry's sudden interest in the twice-widowed heiress delayed
|
---|
348 | their plans.&nbsp; Within months of his death, however, they were wed in
|
---|
349 | a secret ceremony; the exact date is not known but it was probably April
|
---|
350 | 1547. Their whirlwind courtship offended some but Edward VI gave them
|
---|
351 | his blessing.&nbsp; Some people remarked that the new Lord Admiral would
|
---|
352 | have preferred marrying Princess Elizabeth, such was his ambition.&nbsp;
|
---|
353 | He certainly lacked the evangelical zeal of his new wife, always
|
---|
354 | remembering important business when it was time for prayers.&nbsp; He
|
---|
355 | possessed great charm, particularly with women and children; and his
|
---|
356 | desire to advance his own career led to some indiscreet behavior -
|
---|
357 | notably bursting into Princess Elizabeth's bedroom in the early morning,
|
---|
358 | still in his bedclothes, to tickle her awake.&nbsp; This was dangerous
|
---|
359 | play for an ambitious man and a thirteen-year-old heiress to the
|
---|
360 | throne.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
361 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; At any rate, Thomas had wed the dowager queen and
|
---|
362 | she loved him passionately.&nbsp; Meanwhile, other supporters of his
|
---|
363 | brother Edward, the Lord Protector, were also rewarded for their
|
---|
364 | loyalty.&nbsp; John Dudley, for example, became earl of Warwick.&nbsp;
|
---|
365 | Meanwhile, Thomas was also becoming interested in the other young
|
---|
366 | heiress who lived with his wife - Lady Jane Grey.&nbsp; When news of
|
---|
367 | Henry VIII's will came out, he wasted no time in becoming friends with
|
---|
368 | the Greys.&nbsp; He sent his most trusted friend and servant, John
|
---|
369 | Harington, to talk to Jane's father, Henry Grey.&nbsp; Harington was to
|
---|
370 | use 'all the persuasions he could' to gain Jane Grey's wardship and
|
---|
371 | marriage rights.&nbsp; Later, Harington would say he never promised
|
---|
372 | anything explicitly but Henry Grey remembered a guarantee that&nbsp;
|
---|
373 | Jane would marry King Edward.&nbsp; On this basis, Grey sold his
|
---|
374 | daughter to Seymour for the sum of £2000.&nbsp; Seymour paid a few
|
---|
375 | hundred immediately, promising to pay the rest in installments.&nbsp;
|
---|
376 | </P>
|
---|
377 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; In other words, Thomas Seymour was hedging his
|
---|
378 | bets - if Edward VI died unexpectedly (as Tudor boys often did), he
|
---|
379 | could arrange something with the Princess Elizabeth.&nbsp; If Edward
|
---|
380 | lived, he could gain influence by marrying his ward, Jane Grey, to the
|
---|
381 | king.&nbsp; Jane, of course, was oblivious to Seymour's plans.&nbsp; She
|
---|
382 | remained in Katharine Parr's household, moving from Chelsea, to Hanworth
|
---|
383 | in Middlesex, or Seymour Place in London.&nbsp; Her sensitive and eager
|
---|
384 | mind, long starved for affection and knowledge, was finally engaged on a
|
---|
385 | course of study - Latin, Greek and modern languages as well as religious
|
---|
386 | instruction.&nbsp; As relations between the Seymour brothers
|
---|
387 | deteriorated for a variety of reasons, Katharine Parr became
|
---|
388 | pregnant.&nbsp; About halfway through the pregnancy, she happened upon a
|
---|
389 | very unpleasant sight - her husband and stepdaughter, Princess
|
---|
390 | Elizabeth, locked in a passionate embrace.&nbsp; Katharine's reaction
|
---|
391 | was a testament to her good character.&nbsp; She successfully averted an
|
---|
392 | ugly scandal; a few weeks later, Elizabeth and her household staff were
|
---|
393 | sent to Cheshunt on a visit to old family friends.&nbsp; She parted from
|
---|
394 | Katharine with real affection and sadness; Elizabeth undoubtedly felt
|
---|
395 | embarrassed and guilty.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
396 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Jane Grey remained with Katharine.&nbsp; There is
|
---|
397 | no evidence she was ever particularly close to Elizabeth; the gulf
|
---|
398 | between nine and thirteen is great.&nbsp; Though they lived in the same
|
---|
399 | homes for over a year, there are no surviving letters or
|
---|
400 | reminisces.&nbsp; Perhaps Jane was grateful for Elizabeth's departure;
|
---|
401 | the princess was described as proud and disdainful, not good company for
|
---|
402 | a shy child.&nbsp; On 13 June 1548 Jane accompanied Katharine and Thomas
|
---|
403 | to their Gloucestershire estate, Sudeley Castle.&nbsp; On 30 August
|
---|
404 | Katharine gave birth to a baby daughter, Mary; within a week, the
|
---|
405 | dowager queen was dead, buried in the chapel at Sudeley.&nbsp; She was
|
---|
406 | yet another victim of puerperal fever.&nbsp; Jane Grey, small for her
|
---|
407 | age, freckled and with red hair, acted as chief mourner.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
408 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Meanwhile, her parents were becoming
|
---|
409 | restless.&nbsp; More than a year had passed since Seymour purchased
|
---|
410 | their daughter's wardship.&nbsp; In that time, no match had been made
|
---|
411 | with Edward VI.&nbsp; Also, they wondered if it would be better to marry
|
---|
412 | Jane to the Lord Protector's son.&nbsp; They wrote to Thomas Seymour,
|
---|
413 | consoling him on the loss of his wife and remarking that, since
|
---|
414 | Katharine was dead, her household would be dispersed - therefore, Jane
|
---|
415 | should be sent home; Seymour was not to be outfoxed.&nbsp; He wrote that
|
---|
416 | his own mother was coming to Sudeley, to take charge of Katharine's
|
---|
417 | household (none of which would be dispersed); she would be 'as dear unto
|
---|
418 | Jane as though she were her own daughter.'&nbsp; He did let Jane go home
|
---|
419 | briefly in September.&nbsp; It was undoubtedly an unpleasant journey for
|
---|
420 | the young girl.&nbsp; However, Seymour was able to regain her parents'
|
---|
421 | favor.&nbsp; He stressed his determination to wed her to Edward (the
|
---|
422 | greatest prize) and agreed to pay another £500 on his bond.&nbsp; The
|
---|
423 | Greys were chronically short of cash and wanted this grand
|
---|
424 | marriage.&nbsp; Jane returned to the Seymour household.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
425 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; But the noose was tightening around Thomas
|
---|
426 | Seymour's neck.&nbsp; He had been boasting about his intent to destroy
|
---|
427 | his overbearing brother and he had encouraged gossip that he would marry
|
---|
428 | Princess Elizabeth.&nbsp; This gossip was perhaps the most damaging,
|
---|
429 | particularly to the eyes of the young king.&nbsp; Was Seymour attempting
|
---|
430 | to seize the throne?&nbsp; John Dudley, earl of Warwick, had long waited
|
---|
431 | for the opportunity to destroy the Seymour brothers.&nbsp; He wanted to
|
---|
432 | be Lord Protector himself and was quite prepared to turn on his old
|
---|
433 | friend, Edward Seymour.&nbsp; He used the arrogant and ambitious Thomas
|
---|
434 | to destroy them both.&nbsp; On 17 January 1549, Thomas Seymour was
|
---|
435 | arrested at Seymour Place in London.&nbsp; Jane Grey was immediately
|
---|
436 | brought home by her alarmed parents.&nbsp; Because Parliament was in
|
---|
437 | session, it was decided that Thomas would not have a trial - instead a
|
---|
438 | bill of attainder was drawn up and passed through both houses in early
|
---|
439 | March.&nbsp; All that was needed was for the Lord Protector to sign the
|
---|
440 | bill.&nbsp; For about a week, Edward Seymour did nothing.&nbsp; He was
|
---|
441 | understandably hesitant to execute his brother.&nbsp; Seizing his
|
---|
442 | chance, Dudley urged the council to appeal to the king - flattering his
|
---|
443 | authority, they asked for him to sign the bill so they could proceed
|
---|
444 | without further troubling the Protector.&nbsp; Edward cared little for
|
---|
445 | either of his uncles (the Protector kept him short of pocket money and
|
---|
446 | assigned him cold-hearted tutors.)&nbsp; He signed the bill.&nbsp; On 20
|
---|
447 | March 1549, Thomas Seymour was executed on Tower Hill.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
448 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Meanwhile, Dudley moved to take control of the
|
---|
449 | government.&nbsp; The year 1549 was marked by discontent - rising
|
---|
450 | prices, high unemployment, bad harvests; also, people resented the
|
---|
451 | radical religious changes passed since Henry VIII's death.&nbsp; There
|
---|
452 | were two serious revolts, in the West Country and Norfolk, both of which
|
---|
453 | alarmed the land-owning gentry.&nbsp; Seymour had once been popular with
|
---|
454 | the common people but his execution of his own brother struck many as
|
---|
455 | cold-blooded and evil.&nbsp; Dudley had counted on this reaction.&nbsp;
|
---|
456 | He also counted on the support of the gentry; he was a capable soldier
|
---|
457 | and put down the rebellion in the West Country.&nbsp; This pleased the
|
---|
458 | landowners and the king.&nbsp; Also, it allowed Dudley to gather a
|
---|
459 | well-armed and experienced group of soldiers about him.&nbsp; On 10
|
---|
460 | October, he and his supporters captured the fleeing Edward Seymour at
|
---|
461 | Windsor Castle.&nbsp; He was arrested and taken under guard to the
|
---|
462 | Tower.&nbsp; Dudley became one of the six prime attendants on the King
|
---|
463 | but - very intelligently - did not take the title of Lord
|
---|
464 | Protector.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
465 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Dudley was on the list of sixteen executors Henry
|
---|
466 | VIII had appointed in his will.&nbsp; In 1543 he had been appointed Lord
|
---|
467 | High Admiral, a post he relinquished reluctantly to the unqualified
|
---|
468 | Thomas Seymour; in 1549, he regained that title.&nbsp; He was also a
|
---|
469 | family man with several sons.&nbsp; But Dudley had learned from his
|
---|
470 | dealings with Henry VIII; he knew to treat Edward not as one of his own
|
---|
471 | sons but as a king.&nbsp; He flattered the king, allowed him greater
|
---|
472 | access to money, more physical freedom.&nbsp; Luckily for Dudley, his
|
---|
473 | coup coincided with Edward's own physical maturity.&nbsp; He became a
|
---|
474 | sportsman, which Dudley encouraged, and began to travel a bit outside of
|
---|
475 | London.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
476 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; His cousin Jane was not so fortunate.&nbsp; She
|
---|
477 | had returned to a home devoid of affection which also included physical
|
---|
478 | abuse normal in the sixteenth-century (smacks, pinches, and the
|
---|
479 | like).&nbsp; The Greys were discovering that their daughter had matured
|
---|
480 | into a thoughtful, intelligent, and self-righteously pious young
|
---|
481 | woman.&nbsp; She openly disapproved of their lack of piety, their
|
---|
482 | devotion to material gain and social advancement, as well as their
|
---|
483 | gambling.&nbsp; They were happy to hire a tutor, John Aylmer, to
|
---|
484 | continue her education - and take her off their hands.&nbsp; Aylmer was
|
---|
485 | a friend of Roger Ascham, the former tutor of Princess Elizabeth.&nbsp;
|
---|
486 | On a visit to Aylmer, Ascham met Jane Grey; she impressed him
|
---|
487 | greatly.&nbsp; He preserved their meeting in his educational treatise,
|
---|
488 | <I>The Schoolmaster</I>.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
489 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Were the Greys really such terrible parents?&nbsp;
|
---|
490 | There is no doubt that Jane and her parents were not affectionate to one
|
---|
491 | another.&nbsp; Yet this was normal in an age which expected children to
|
---|
492 | be dutiful and obedient and that discipline built character.&nbsp; In
|
---|
493 | fairness to them, Jane was openly critical of their pleasure-loving
|
---|
494 | lifestyle.&nbsp; She encouraged the chaplain to deliver sermons against
|
---|
495 | gambling, told visitors that she found her parents foolish and
|
---|
496 | irritating, and she was very self-righteous.&nbsp; What parent would
|
---|
497 | enjoy the company of such a devout thirteen-year-old?&nbsp; At home,
|
---|
498 | Jane met John ab Ulmer, a Swiss Protestant and student of Henry
|
---|
499 | Bullinger, chief pastor of the Protestant church in Zurich.&nbsp; They
|
---|
500 | were both friends of Aylmer and Ascham.&nbsp; The four men corresponded
|
---|
501 | about the education of this most pious young girl.&nbsp; There are many
|
---|
502 | surviving letters - Jane thanking Bullinger for sending a copy of his
|
---|
503 | treatise on Christian Perfection - and some reveal her as more than a
|
---|
504 | pious Protestant martyr.&nbsp; In one, Aylmer is concerned that she is
|
---|
505 | taking too much of an interest in music and her appearance.&nbsp; He was
|
---|
506 | distressed - but what good news for the student of Jane's life!&nbsp;
|
---|
507 | She is human, after all.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
508 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Of course, the European reformers were hopeful
|
---|
509 | that Edward VI would marry this most proper cousin.&nbsp; Their union
|
---|
510 | would make England a most blessed Protestant realm.&nbsp; But Jane
|
---|
511 | turned fourteen and was still not betrothed to anyone while Edward was
|
---|
512 | in serious talks to wed the French princess Elisabeth.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
513 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Meanwhile, Charles Brandon's two sons with
|
---|
514 | Catherine Willoughby had died.&nbsp; This meant that their half-sister
|
---|
515 | Frances Grey was sole surviving heir to the Brandon estates.&nbsp; On 4
|
---|
516 | October 1551, the title of duke of Suffolk was given to her husband in
|
---|
517 | right of his wife.&nbsp; And on 11 October, just a week later, Dudley
|
---|
518 | was made duke of Northumberland; two years of Edward's favor had
|
---|
519 | sufficiently emboldened him to petition the king.&nbsp; He was the first
|
---|
520 | man to receive a ducal title who had no ties of marriage or blood to the
|
---|
521 | reigning royal family.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
522 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; For Jane Grey, that week in 1551 was to have
|
---|
523 | terrible consequences. <BR>&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
524 | <P><B>Marriage</B> <BR>The political situation in England during
|
---|
525 | Edward's reign is fully explored in the Edward VI pages.&nbsp; Suffice
|
---|
526 | to say, the duke of Northumberland, John Dudley, had replaced Edward
|
---|
527 | Seymour as the true power behind the throne.&nbsp; In spring 1552, his
|
---|
528 | young master fell ill.&nbsp; No one was especially concerned; Edward VI
|
---|
529 | had been ill before and recovered well enough.&nbsp; But this time he
|
---|
530 | did not fully recover.&nbsp; It seemed as if his physical resemblance to
|
---|
531 | the long-dead Prince Arthur went beyond their fair coloring and delicate
|
---|
532 | physique - they were both consumptive as well.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
533 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; This naturally terrified the Protestant lords who
|
---|
534 | had prospered during his six-year reign.&nbsp; The Princesses Mary and
|
---|
535 | Elizabeth were rarely seen at the king's court, Mary in
|
---|
536 | particular.&nbsp; She could no longer persuade herself that Edward was
|
---|
537 | simply a misguided Protestant pawn.&nbsp; He had, like Henry before him,
|
---|
538 | ordered her to change her religion; he was king and expected
|
---|
539 | obedience.&nbsp; He was closer to Elizabeth (only 4 years older than
|
---|
540 | him) and she was suitably Protestant.&nbsp; But she, too, was rarely at
|
---|
541 | court.&nbsp; His Grey family, however, was increasingly present.&nbsp;
|
---|
542 | </P>
|
---|
543 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; When Mary of Guise, mother of Mary queen of Scots
|
---|
544 | and regent of Scotland, visited England in November 1551, Mary and
|
---|
545 | Elizabeth were not invited.&nbsp; But Frances and Henry Grey were there,
|
---|
546 | bringing their fourteen-year-old daughter Jane.&nbsp; Mary of Guise's
|
---|
547 | two-day visit to Hampton Court was Jane's official debut on the English
|
---|
548 | political scene.&nbsp; In early February, Jane contracted an unspecified
|
---|
549 | illness.&nbsp; It was serious enough to warrant mention from Aylmer (in
|
---|
550 | a letter to Ascham.)&nbsp; After her recovery, Jane's parents persuaded
|
---|
551 | her to devote less time to study and more to social concerns.&nbsp; Of
|
---|
552 | course, an educated and pious daughter was an asset but they also wanted
|
---|
553 | a daughter who could attract a king in marriage.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
554 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; On 2 April 1552, Edward became ill with the
|
---|
555 | measles.&nbsp; As mentioned, he recovered somewhat - enough to<IMG height=194 alt="Jane's cousin, King Edward VI"
|
---|
556 | src="_httpdocimg_/edward6-crop.jpg" width=137 border=2 align="right"> attend St
|
---|
557 | George's Day services at Westminster Abbey.&nbsp; He also jousted,
|
---|
558 | played on the tennis courts, and went hunting.&nbsp; And on 27 June, he
|
---|
559 | began his most extensive progress through the south and west of his
|
---|
560 | kingdom.&nbsp; The king enjoyed himself (he had never traveled so far
|
---|
561 | outside London) but the pace was exhausting; combined with the illness
|
---|
562 | in April and his strenuous athletics, it wore him down.&nbsp; Passer-by
|
---|
563 | thought he was ill; he was pale, losing weight, and lost his
|
---|
564 | appetite.&nbsp; He returned to Windsor in mid-September.&nbsp; By then,
|
---|
565 | the tuberculosis which killed him had begun in earnest.&nbsp; By
|
---|
566 | Christmas 1552, his condition was obvious.&nbsp; The holiday
|
---|
567 | celebrations were unusually festive, perhaps to take notice from the
|
---|
568 | king's health.&nbsp; Princess Mary came to visit in February but his
|
---|
569 | illness prevented their meeting for three days.&nbsp; Still, the king's
|
---|
570 | illness meant an increased respect for Mary, his heir under Henry VIII's
|
---|
571 | will.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
572 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The exact nature and course of Edward's illness is
|
---|
573 | discussed at the Edward VI page.&nbsp; It was tuberculosis, or
|
---|
574 | consumption as it was then called.&nbsp; On 11 April 1553, Edward moved
|
---|
575 | his household to his favorite residence, Greenwich Palace.&nbsp; He had
|
---|
576 | managed to open parliament in March but those who hadn't seen him since
|
---|
577 | the holidays were shocked at his appearance; he was terribly thin and,
|
---|
578 | oddly, his left shoulder seemed higher than his right.&nbsp; It was
|
---|
579 | obvious Edward was suffering terribly.&nbsp; Northumberland, his closest
|
---|
580 | advisor, was torn - he talked of retiring from political life but this
|
---|
581 | was a passing dream.&nbsp; He had made too many enemies - particularly
|
---|
582 | the Catholic nobles and churchmen who would rally around Mary.&nbsp; In
|
---|
583 | truth, if Mary succeeded, the best Dudley could hope for was complete
|
---|
584 | financial and political ruin.&nbsp; More than likely, he would lose his
|
---|
585 | head.&nbsp; He could, of course, attempt to marry Princess Elizabeth to
|
---|
586 | his one remaining unmarried son, Guildford.&nbsp; Why didn't he?&nbsp;
|
---|
587 | It certainly seems less convoluted than attempting to place Jane Grey on
|
---|
588 | the throne.&nbsp; The truth was that Elizabeth Tudor, nearly twenty
|
---|
589 | years old, had seasoned political acumen - she would never be Dudley's
|
---|
590 | pawn.&nbsp; Dudley knew her well enough to guess as much.&nbsp;
|
---|
591 | Therefore, only Jane Grey (fourth in line, after her mother Frances)
|
---|
592 | remained.&nbsp; She would be amenable enough, the duke thought.&nbsp;
|
---|
593 | </P>
|
---|
594 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Certainly Frances and Henry were happy enough to
|
---|
595 | encourage Dudley.&nbsp; With Edward dying, there was no possibility of
|
---|
596 | Jane marrying him.&nbsp; They may have been put off by Dudley's
|
---|
597 | ambition; he first attempted to marry Guildford to Eleanor Brandon's
|
---|
598 | only child, Margaret Clifford (Eleanor was Frances's younger
|
---|
599 | sister.)&nbsp; But, swayed by the prospect of wealth and power, they
|
---|
600 | agreed to marry Jane to Guildford.&nbsp; In late April or<img border="2" src="_httpdocimg_/films2.jpg" width="171" height="215" alt="Cary Elwes and Helena Bonham Carter as Guildford and Jane in the 1986 film 'Lady Jane'" align="left"> early May, the
|
---|
601 | betrothal was announced.&nbsp; Jane had protested the union but was
|
---|
602 | persuaded by 'the urgency of her mother and the violence of her father';
|
---|
603 | in other words, persuaded by verbal and physical abuse.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
604 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Many have argued that Jane protested because she
|
---|
605 | didn't like Guildford.&nbsp; That is unlikely.&nbsp; He was handsome
|
---|
606 | enough (like most of the Dudley men), fair-haired and about her
|
---|
607 | age.&nbsp; He was arrogant and spoilt; his mother openly favored
|
---|
608 | him.&nbsp; But he had no other documented flaws.&nbsp; When considered
|
---|
609 | against other men of the age, he was a good match.&nbsp; Jane's
|
---|
610 | reservations centered on his father.&nbsp; She disliked and feared
|
---|
611 | Dudley, as most people did.&nbsp; But the duke had a weapon against Jane
|
---|
612 | which he would wield effectively - religion.&nbsp; She was a devout and
|
---|
613 | committed Protestant.&nbsp; She didn't want Mary as queen any more than
|
---|
614 | he did.&nbsp; And, unlike Dudley, Jane's desire was based on real
|
---|
615 | principle, not simple greed.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
616 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; So on 25 May 1553, Jane married Guildford at the
|
---|
617 | Dudley's London residence, Durham House.&nbsp; It was one of the great
|
---|
618 | homes of Tudor England; her sister <A
|
---|
619 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.englishhistory.net%2ftudor%2frelative%2fcathgrey.html">Catherine</A>
|
---|
620 | was also married that day, to the earl of Pembroke's heir.&nbsp; Orders,
|
---|
621 | signed by the king, had been sent to the Master of the Wardrobe so that
|
---|
622 | the grandest clothing and jewels could be used.&nbsp; Edward was
|
---|
623 | supposed to attend but was far too ill.&nbsp; He did not watch as his
|
---|
624 | cousin marched down the aisle, richly appareled in cloth of gold and
|
---|
625 | silver, her red hair braided with pearls.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
626 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; For many, Jane and Guildford's marriage marks the
|
---|
627 | beginning of the attempt to change the line of succession.&nbsp; In
|
---|
628 | reality, Edward VI had been pondering the problem for months.&nbsp; Ever
|
---|
629 | since he became ill, he had wondered how to prevent his Catholic sister
|
---|
630 | from becoming queen.&nbsp; His reasoning was purely religious.&nbsp;
|
---|
631 | Edward was a devout Protestant; he wanted his nation, for its own sake,
|
---|
632 | to remain Protestant.&nbsp; Just as Mary believed Catholicism was the
|
---|
633 | path to righteousness, Edward believed in Protestantism.&nbsp; He was
|
---|
634 | king, charge by God with responsibility for his people's religious
|
---|
635 | welfare.&nbsp; It was a sacred duty.&nbsp; For the sake of his immortal
|
---|
636 | soul, Mary had to be prevented from leading England on the path to
|
---|
637 | damnation.&nbsp; This necessity overcame all else.&nbsp; What was Henry
|
---|
638 | VIII's will when compared to divine retribution?&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
639 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; So in late 1552/early 1553, he first began his
|
---|
640 | Device for the Succession.&nbsp; At first he left the throne to Lady
|
---|
641 | Frances Grey and her male heirs, then to Jane Grey and her male
|
---|
642 | heirs.&nbsp; But it was evident that Frances Grey would have no more
|
---|
643 | children and none of her daughters would bear children in time.&nbsp; So
|
---|
644 | he made a change - simple and explosive - he left the throne to 'the
|
---|
645 | Lady Jane and her heirs male.'&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
646 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; It was the beginning of the end for Jane Grey.
|
---|
647 | <BR>&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
648 | <P><B>'Jane the Quene'</B> <BR>Edward's <I>Device for the Succession</I>
|
---|
649 | was eventually issued with the title <I>Letters Patent for the
|
---|
650 | Limitation of the Crown</I>.&nbsp; It disinherited Mary and Elizabeth
|
---|
651 | because they were 'illegitimate and not lawfully begotten.'&nbsp;
|
---|
652 | Furthermore, they were only half-sisters of the king, not entitled to
|
---|
653 | succeed him, and might marry foreign husbands who would 'tend to the
|
---|
654 | utter subversion of the commonwealth of this our realm.'&nbsp; But
|
---|
655 | Edward's device would have no legal validity as long as Henry VIII's
|
---|
656 | 1544 Act of Succession was still acknowledged by parliament.&nbsp; But
|
---|
657 | there was no time to wipe that law from the statute book.&nbsp; Instead,
|
---|
658 | Dudley planned to gain support from government and then carry out a coup
|
---|
659 | so quickly that its legality would not matter.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
660 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; To gain government support, he spent June 1553
|
---|
661 | persuading the Privy Council, judiciary, and various churchmen to
|
---|
662 | endorse Edward's device.&nbsp; The Lord Chief Justice, Sir Edward
|
---|
663 | Montague, and the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer, were uneasy;
|
---|
664 | but Dudley was desperate and called them traitors.&nbsp; Furthermore,
|
---|
665 | the king ordered them to obey.&nbsp; So the <I>Letters Patent for the
|
---|
666 | Limitation of the Crown </I>was endorsed with the Great Seal on 21
|
---|
667 | June.&nbsp; It was recognized by the Lord Chancellor, the Privy
|
---|
668 | Councilors, twenty-two peers of the realm, the Lord Mayor of London,
|
---|
669 | various aldermen and sheriffs, the secretaries of state (including
|
---|
670 | William Cecil, Elizabeth I's great statesman), and various judges and
|
---|
671 | churchmen.&nbsp; King Edward VI did not live long after this
|
---|
672 | triumph.&nbsp; After months of agony, he died in the early evening of
|
---|
673 | Thursday 6 July.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
674 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Jane Grey, meanwhile, had been married to
|
---|
675 | Guildford Dudley for almost six weeks.&nbsp; She disliked her in-laws
|
---|
676 | more than she disliked her parents so, immediately after the marriage,
|
---|
677 | returned to Suffolk Place at Westminster.&nbsp; From there, she moved to
|
---|
678 | her parents' new residence in London, a former Carthusian monastery they
|
---|
679 | were converting into a grand home.&nbsp; Dudley's wife, the duchess of
|
---|
680 | Northumberland and Jane's mother-in-law, was not happy with this
|
---|
681 | arrangement.&nbsp; She informed the Greys that Edward VI was dying and
|
---|
682 | Jane had been made heir to his throne; she must hold herself in
|
---|
683 | readiness (in other words, come to the Dudley home.)&nbsp; Jane later
|
---|
684 | said this was the first she knew of the king's impending death.&nbsp;
|
---|
685 | She didn't believe the duchess and told her as much; she accused the
|
---|
686 | Dudleys of lying so they could steal her away from her parents.&nbsp;
|
---|
687 | The duchess accused the Greys of deliberating keeping Guildford and Jane
|
---|
688 | apart.&nbsp; Such petty conflict indicated rougher waters ahead for all
|
---|
689 | involved.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
690 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; In the end, there was no reason Jane should not be
|
---|
691 | with her husband.&nbsp; She went to the Dudley's residence, Durham
|
---|
692 | House, and possibly consummated her marriage.&nbsp; But, after only a
|
---|
693 | few days, she became ill and accused the Dudleys of poisoning her.&nbsp;
|
---|
694 | The charge was ludicrous (she was the key to their political salvation)
|
---|
695 | and showed a surprising lack of logic on Jane's part.&nbsp; But the
|
---|
696 | Dudleys were concerned with her physical and mental state.&nbsp; They
|
---|
697 | sent her to Chelsea, Catherine Parr's former home where Jane had been so
|
---|
698 | happy.&nbsp; It was there that, on Sunday 9 July, Dudley's eldest
|
---|
699 | daughter, Mary Sidney, came to visit her; they were to leave Chelsea and
|
---|
700 | go to Syon House, a former convent on the Thames which Dudley
|
---|
701 | controlled.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
702 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; At this point, it is right to question Jane's true
|
---|
703 | knowledge of Dudley's plans.&nbsp; Remember, even if she knew Dudley
|
---|
704 | intended to make her queen, there was nothing she could do to prevent
|
---|
705 | it.&nbsp; She was not stupid; the charge of poisoning was probably a
|
---|
706 | result of nervousness and hysteria.&nbsp; She knew her own
|
---|
707 | lineage.&nbsp; She knew that she was fourth in line for the English
|
---|
708 | throne, after Mary, Elizabeth and her own mother Frances.&nbsp; She also
|
---|
709 | knew that, for some reason, the Dudleys and her parents were desperate
|
---|
710 | to marry her to Guildford as quickly as possible.&nbsp; She also watched
|
---|
711 | her sister wed into another influential noble family on the same
|
---|
712 | day.&nbsp; Something was afoot and she undoubtedly suspected Dudley's
|
---|
713 | plan.&nbsp; In the end, her awareness of the plot was undoubtedly a
|
---|
714 | greater strain than ignorance.&nbsp; After all, she could do nothing to
|
---|
715 | escape her family or in-laws.&nbsp; She was, quite literally,
|
---|
716 | trapped.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
717 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; When she arrived at Syon House with Mary Sidney,
|
---|
718 | she found her parents, in-laws, and a variety of distinguished nobles -
|
---|
719 | the earls of Arundel, Huntington, and Pembroke, and the marquess of
|
---|
720 | Northampton.&nbsp; They greeted her very pleasantly and then knelt
|
---|
721 | before her in reverence.&nbsp; Jane was naturally embarrassed.&nbsp;
|
---|
722 | Dudley, in his capacity as President of the Council, then announced
|
---|
723 | Edward's death.&nbsp; The young king had led a 'virtuous life' and
|
---|
724 | always cared for his kingdom - cared enough to disinherit his unworthy
|
---|
725 | sisters and appointed his cousin Jane as his successor.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
726 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Jane was stunned.&nbsp; She may have suspected as
|
---|
727 | much but the actual moment of declaration was too much for her.&nbsp;
|
---|
728 | She muttered that she was 'insufficient' for the task.&nbsp; The Lords
|
---|
729 | of the Council then took a solemn oath to shed their blood in defense of
|
---|
730 | her claim.&nbsp; Jane murmured a quick prayer - if it was God's will
|
---|
731 | that she be queen, then she would trust in God to help her govern
|
---|
732 | England for His glory.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
733 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Her reaction was not what those gathered
|
---|
734 | expected.&nbsp; She was not openly thrilled, excited, or even
|
---|
735 | pleased.&nbsp; She made no stirring speech to raise their spirits - she
|
---|
736 | simply uttered a prayer to God.&nbsp; Did Jane want to be queen?&nbsp;
|
---|
737 | That is a much-debated question, impossible to answer.&nbsp; But
|
---|
738 | whatever her desire, she was queen and - for nine long days - ruled
|
---|
739 | England.&nbsp; <BR>&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
740 | <P><B>'Jana Regina'</B> <BR>On Monday 10 July 1553, the new queen, Jane
|
---|
741 | Grey, was taken in full state from Syon to Westminster (this journey was
|
---|
742 | along the Thames in barges.)&nbsp; They dined at the Dudley home, Durham
|
---|
743 | House, and then journeyed by barge again to the Tower of London.&nbsp;
|
---|
744 | It was an ancient custom that all new sovereigns must come tot the Tower
|
---|
745 | and take possession of it at the beginning of their reigns.&nbsp; Jane
|
---|
746 | and her various attendants arrived at 3 o'clock in the afternoon.&nbsp;
|
---|
747 | There was an eyewitness account by a Genoese merchant named Baptista
|
---|
748 | Spinola.&nbsp; He was standing with a group of spectators outside the
|
---|
749 | main Tower gates, waiting to catch a glimpse of this new queen.&nbsp; He
|
---|
750 | wrote:&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
751 | <UL>
|
---|
752 | <p>She is very short and thin, but prettily shaped and
|
---|
753 | graceful.&nbsp; She has small features and a well-made nose, the mouth
|
---|
754 | flexible and the lips red.&nbsp; The eyebrows are arched and darker
|
---|
755 | than her hair, which is nearly red.&nbsp; Her eyes are sparkling and
|
---|
756 | reddish brown in color. </p>
|
---|
757 | </UL>
|
---|
758 | <p>Her complexion was good, unmarked by the
|
---|
759 | pox, but freckled; she had sharp white teeth and a lovely smile.&nbsp;
|
---|
760 | Because she was so short, she wore chopines; these were shoes with a
|
---|
761 | special cork sole designed to make her appear taller.&nbsp; Her gown was
|
---|
762 | made of green velvet stamped with gold (the colors undoubtedly flattered
|
---|
763 | her red hair.)&nbsp; Her husband Guildford, Spinola wrote, was 'a very
|
---|
764 | tall strong boy with light hair' and clothed in white and silver
|
---|
765 | velvet.&nbsp; He 'paid her [Jane] much attention.'&nbsp; </p>
|
---|
766 | <P>
|
---|
767 | <IMG height=343 alt="Lady Jane Grey or Katharine Parr? by Master John"
|
---|
768 | src="_httpdocimg_/grey3.jpg" width=170 border=2 align="left">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Once in the Tower, Jane was installed in the royal
|
---|
769 | apartments (now destroyed.)&nbsp; There, another rift occurred between
|
---|
770 | her and the Dudleys, much more serious than the first.&nbsp; Jane was
|
---|
771 | visited by the Lord Treasurer, the Marquess of Winchester, who brought a
|
---|
772 | selection of the royal jewels for her to try on.&nbsp; Among them was
|
---|
773 | the crown.&nbsp; Jane would later stress that she never asked for the
|
---|
774 | crown - it was brought to her.&nbsp; Winchester asked her to check if it
|
---|
775 | fitted properly.&nbsp; Jane would not.&nbsp; She had played at being
|
---|
776 | queen for nearly twenty-four hours but this, the most sacred symbol of
|
---|
777 | the monarchy, was another reminder of the danger - and importance - of
|
---|
778 | her role.&nbsp; If she put it on, there was no turning back.&nbsp; This
|
---|
779 | was how she viewed it.&nbsp; So she hesitated, would not take it from
|
---|
780 | Winchester.&nbsp; He didn't recognize her uneasiness.&nbsp; He told her
|
---|
781 | to take it, remarking that another would be made to crown her husband
|
---|
782 | king.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
783 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; It was then Jane realized the extent of Dudley's
|
---|
784 | duplicity.&nbsp; He had manipulated Edward, knowing the devout
|
---|
785 | Protestant king wanted the throne to go to his equally devout cousin
|
---|
786 | Jane; but, all along, Dudley simply wanted his own son crowned
|
---|
787 | king.&nbsp; None of the lords cared whether England was a righteous
|
---|
788 | nation; no one cared about Edward's will.&nbsp; Instead, her royal blood
|
---|
789 | was to be used to maintain Dudley's control of England, to make his
|
---|
790 | family into royalty.&nbsp; She was outraged and angry.&nbsp; And Jane
|
---|
791 | was a Tudor herself, as proud of her royal background as she had a right
|
---|
792 | to be.&nbsp; The Dudleys, that arrogant, pretentious family, had no
|
---|
793 | right to exploit her.&nbsp; She told those assembled that she would
|
---|
794 | gladly make Guildford a duke, but he would never be king.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
795 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Guildford was present for this declaration.&nbsp;
|
---|
796 | He rushed out and fetched his mother.&nbsp; The duchess, no admirer of
|
---|
797 | Jane's anyway, joined her son in an attack - Jane was an unnatural wife
|
---|
798 | and behaved like a child; in the end, Jane did not give in.&nbsp; The
|
---|
799 | duchess said Guildford would be leaving with her for Syon House.&nbsp;
|
---|
800 | When they had left, Jane called in the earls of Arundel and
|
---|
801 | Pembroke.&nbsp; They were ordered to prevent Guildford from
|
---|
802 | leaving.&nbsp; Jane did not like her husband - she probably pitied him
|
---|
803 | for he was a pawn as well - but they had to stay together.&nbsp; He was
|
---|
804 | the consort to the monarch and could not act like a spoiled child.&nbsp;
|
---|
805 | </P>
|
---|
806 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Later, Jane would tell Mary I's officers this
|
---|
807 | story, adding, 'I was compelled to act as a woman who is obliged to live
|
---|
808 | on good terms with her husband; nevertheless I was not only deluded by
|
---|
809 | the duke and the Council, but maltreated by my husband and his
|
---|
810 | mother.'&nbsp; The battle, however, had been domestic.&nbsp; Jane would
|
---|
811 | soon have much greater problems to confront.&nbsp; For, later that
|
---|
812 | evening, the Sheriff of London and various heralds and trumpeters,
|
---|
813 | marched to the Cross in Cheapside to proclaim Jane queen.&nbsp; The
|
---|
814 | announcement was met with silence.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
815 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; For Jane's father-in-law, the architect of the
|
---|
816 | plan to make her queen, her accession had gone smoothly.&nbsp; He
|
---|
817 | controlled London - with the Tower and armory, the treasury, and navy -
|
---|
818 | and no councilors offered resistance.&nbsp; Jane's only rival for the
|
---|
819 | crown was Mary Tudor, thirty-seven, often ill, with no organized support
|
---|
820 | or wealth.&nbsp; Her situation was so dire that her champion, the
|
---|
821 | Emperor Charles V, urged his ambassador to be friendly with Dudley; he
|
---|
822 | wanted the duke's promise to protect Mary.&nbsp; Every observer
|
---|
823 | considered the throne won by Dudley.&nbsp; But none of these learned men
|
---|
824 | considered the feelings of ordinary Englishmen.&nbsp; And they, unlike
|
---|
825 | their aristocratic lords, would not gain wealth of prestige by
|
---|
826 | supporting Jane or Mary.&nbsp; So their support was based solely on
|
---|
827 | ideas of right and wrong - to them, it was wrong for Jane to be queen
|
---|
828 | and right for Mary to be queen.&nbsp; It was that simple.&nbsp; (<FONT
|
---|
829 | size=-1><A href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fjane1.html">Click here
|
---|
830 | to read an eyewitness account of Jane's coronation</A>.)</FONT> </P>
|
---|
831 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Dudley understood popular opinion.&nbsp; He also
|
---|
832 | recognized the limits of his support - after all, most of the nobles
|
---|
833 | would not stand by him if things turned ugly.&nbsp; But he believed that
|
---|
834 | a quick coup, eliminating all opposition, was the key to success.&nbsp;
|
---|
835 | So he had to get hold of Mary and Elizabeth.&nbsp; Mary, the daughter of
|
---|
836 | Katharine of Aragon, was much-loved by the English people.&nbsp; They
|
---|
837 | had always been sympathetic to her mother's plight; most believed Mary
|
---|
838 | was legitimate, that Katharine had been forced aside by the king's lust
|
---|
839 | and Anne Boleyn's ambition.&nbsp; Did Mary understand the importance of
|
---|
840 | this support?&nbsp; She had been receiving regular letters from Dudley
|
---|
841 | about her brother's condition.&nbsp; They were accurate for Dudley
|
---|
842 | wanted to remain in her good graces as long as possible.&nbsp; In early
|
---|
843 | July, he sent summons for Mary to come to Edward's deathbed.&nbsp; She
|
---|
844 | set out from Hunsdon (an old palace in Hertfordshire) but had not
|
---|
845 | traveled far before a message reached her - the summons was a
|
---|
846 | trap.&nbsp; Mary, oddly for her, acted decisively and immediately turned
|
---|
847 | back.&nbsp; With half a dozen attendants, she went to Kenninghall in
|
---|
848 | East Anglia.&nbsp; She had friends there and, if need be, would be near
|
---|
849 | the coast and safety in the Spanish Netherlands.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
850 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; When he realized she had fled, Dudley sent his son
|
---|
851 | Robert after her.&nbsp; But they couldn't capture her and, on 9 July, he
|
---|
852 | was forced to act without her in his power.&nbsp; The Bishop of London,
|
---|
853 | Nicholas Ridley, preached at St Paul's Cross, calling Mary and Elizabeth
|
---|
854 | bastards, and specifically singling out Mary as a papist who would
|
---|
855 | destroy the true religion and make England the pawn of foreign
|
---|
856 | powers.&nbsp; The next day, of course, Jane was proclaimed queen.&nbsp;
|
---|
857 | But it was on that day that the Council received a letter from
|
---|
858 | Mary.&nbsp; It expressed her surprise that they hadn't announced her
|
---|
859 | brother's death to her, his heir; furthermore, they were commanded to
|
---|
860 | proclaim her queen in London.&nbsp; They responded by reminding her of
|
---|
861 | her illegitimacy and inability to inherit 'the Crown Imperial of this
|
---|
862 | realm'; she must demonstrate her obedience to the 'Sovereign Lady Queen
|
---|
863 | Jane' and turn herself over to the authorities.&nbsp; It was hardly
|
---|
864 | reassuring for Mary.&nbsp; Also, her old allies, the Spanish envoys,
|
---|
865 | were not responding to her desperate pleas for help.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
866 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Jane spent little time with her lords during her
|
---|
867 | nine days as queen.&nbsp; She sent an order to the Master of the
|
---|
868 | Wardrobe for twenty yards of velvet, twenty-five ells of fine Holland
|
---|
869 | linen cloth, thirty-three ells of coarser material for lining; she also
|
---|
870 | collected the royal jewels, a motley assortment of fish-shaped
|
---|
871 | toothpicks and Henry VIII's shaving materials.&nbsp; This reveals an
|
---|
872 | important fact about Jane's nine-day reign.&nbsp; She made no explicit
|
---|
873 | political statements; she was Dudley's puppet.&nbsp; He was the one who
|
---|
874 | met with the council, he was the one who wanted to capture Mary Tudor;
|
---|
875 | he was the one tried to shore up their perilous situation.&nbsp; When
|
---|
876 | they fell from power, Jane never protested or attempted another
|
---|
877 | coup.&nbsp; One can imagine that she felt relieved to be simply Lady
|
---|
878 | Jane Grey again.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
879 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Dudley spent the nine days attempting to
|
---|
880 | strengthen their position.&nbsp; It was imperative to capture Mary; when
|
---|
881 | that failed, he needed to at least track her movements.&nbsp; If he
|
---|
882 | could reach her potential supporters first, there was a chance he could
|
---|
883 | sway them to his side.&nbsp; Dudley undoubtedly feared that (like his
|
---|
884 | father during Henry VIII's reign), he would be the sacrificial lamb of
|
---|
885 | Edward's unsuccessful government.&nbsp; But he worked well under
|
---|
886 | pressure, leaving Jane to fight domestic battles with her husband and
|
---|
887 | mother-in-law.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
888 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Elizabeth, meanwhile, remained in the
|
---|
889 | country.&nbsp; She was no admirer of her half-sister Mary but knew that
|
---|
890 | if Jane Grey was recognized as queen, her own claim to the crown was
|
---|
891 | forfeit.&nbsp; So she chose the safest course - she remained quiet,
|
---|
892 | neither supporting nor rejecting Jane.&nbsp; Like all of England and
|
---|
893 | most of Europe, she was watching and waiting.&nbsp; It became evident on
|
---|
894 | 11 July, just a day after her coronation, that Jane's hold on England
|
---|
895 | was flimsy at best.&nbsp; Dudley had prepared a letter for circulation
|
---|
896 | to all the sheriffs and lieutenants in England; it announced Jane's
|
---|
897 | succession and ordered them to resist any appeal from Mary.&nbsp; But
|
---|
898 | Dudley knew the issue would not be settled so easily.&nbsp; It would be
|
---|
899 | decided on the field of battle.&nbsp; He was an experienced soldier and
|
---|
900 | determined to succeed.&nbsp; So he ordered a muster on 12 July at
|
---|
901 | Tothill Fields, offering 10 pence a day as pay (a very high rate.)&nbsp;
|
---|
902 | Dudley intended to put Jane's father, Henry Grey, in charge of this army
|
---|
903 | and remain in London himself.&nbsp; He realized that most of his hold on
|
---|
904 | the council was based on personal intimidation.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
905 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; But the queen would not hear of it.&nbsp; When
|
---|
906 | told that her father was going to battle, Jane burst into tears and
|
---|
907 | begged the council to let him remain at home, 'in her company.'&nbsp;
|
---|
908 | The councilors were already preparing to make Dudley a scapegoat for
|
---|
909 | their treason.&nbsp; Since the queen was so distraught, they argued, it
|
---|
910 | would be better for Dudley to command the army.&nbsp; After all, he was
|
---|
911 | a great soldier, renowned for his defeat of the rebels in East Anglia
|
---|
912 | (that triumph had begun his rise to power.)&nbsp; It was up to Dudley,
|
---|
913 | the councilors said, 'to remedy the matter.'&nbsp; And Dudley had no
|
---|
914 | choice but to leave.&nbsp; 'Since ye think it good, I and mine will go,
|
---|
915 | not doubting of your fidelity to the Queen's majesty which I leave in
|
---|
916 | your custody.'&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
917 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Dudley did doubt their fidelity and he had every
|
---|
918 | reason to doubt it.&nbsp; But he couldn't turn back now.&nbsp; On 13
|
---|
919 | July he had his personal armor delivered and appointed a retinue to meet
|
---|
920 | him at Durham Place.&nbsp; Afterwards, he addressed the councilors for
|
---|
921 | the last time.&nbsp; They were to send reinforcements to meet him at
|
---|
922 | Newmarket, he said, for he and his companions would need much
|
---|
923 | support.&nbsp; They were leaving their wives and children behind,
|
---|
924 | trusting in the loyalty of the council.&nbsp; And, Dudley warned, if any
|
---|
925 | man thought to betray him or the queen, their punishment would be
|
---|
926 | eternal.&nbsp; Remember, Dudley said, the oath you took 'to this
|
---|
927 | virtuous lady the Queen's highness, who by your and our enticement is
|
---|
928 | rather of force placed therein than by her own seeking and
|
---|
929 | request.'&nbsp; The assembled lords assured him of their loyalty; one of
|
---|
930 | them said, 'If we should shrink from you as one that were culpable,
|
---|
931 | which of us can excuse himself as guiltless?&nbsp; Therefore herein your
|
---|
932 | doubt is too far cast.'&nbsp; Dudley's final words?&nbsp; 'I pray God it
|
---|
933 | be so,' he said and left for battle.&nbsp; It was not an auspicious
|
---|
934 | beginning.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
935 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Dudley did not trust the lords so he sent his
|
---|
936 | cousin Henry Dudley on a secret mission to France that day, promising
|
---|
937 | Calais and Ireland in exchange for immediate military assistance.&nbsp;
|
---|
938 | He did not tell the lords of this; nor did they tell him they were
|
---|
939 | meeting secretly with the Imperial ambassadors.&nbsp; A report arrived
|
---|
940 | that Buckinghamshire had declared Mary to be queen but Mary herself was
|
---|
941 | still unsure.&nbsp; She retreated from Kenninghall to Framlingham
|
---|
942 | Castle, nearer the coast.&nbsp; She sent an urgent message to the
|
---|
943 | Imperial envoys; if her cousin Charles V did not help her, she was
|
---|
944 | doomed.&nbsp; In the midst of this confusion and treachery, Dudley had
|
---|
945 | assembled an army of three thousand.&nbsp; Early on Friday, the 14th of
|
---|
946 | July, he left Durham Place for Cambridge.&nbsp; The villagers he passed
|
---|
947 | were silent, staring at the side of the road - 'The people press to see
|
---|
948 | us, but not one sayeth God speed us.'&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
949 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; As Dudley marched on, his situation became more
|
---|
950 | perilous.&nbsp; Norwich, one of the wealthiest towns in England,
|
---|
951 | declared Mary queen, as did Colchester, Devon, and Oxfordshire.&nbsp;
|
---|
952 | Dudley had sent six royal ships to the port near Framlingham to cut off
|
---|
953 | Mary's possible escape; the ships deserted Dudley and, with crews and
|
---|
954 | heavy guns, proclaimed Mary queen.&nbsp; Meanwhile, the loyal towns were
|
---|
955 | sending money, men, and supplies.&nbsp; The ordinary Englishman, ordered
|
---|
956 | by his lord to fight in Dudley's army, refused to go.&nbsp; Dudley's own
|
---|
957 | army was - understandably - racked with dissension; no one wanted to be
|
---|
958 | on the losing side.&nbsp; Once the news had reached London that the
|
---|
959 | ships had deserted Dudley, the councilors decided to save
|
---|
960 | themselves.&nbsp; They attempted to leave the Tower, where they had been
|
---|
961 | stationed since Dudley's departure.&nbsp; On the 16th of July, at about
|
---|
962 | 7 o'clock in the evening, the main gates of the Tower were locked; they
|
---|
963 | keys were delivered to Jane.&nbsp; Jane suspected one of the lords
|
---|
964 | (possibly Winchester, the lord treasurer) of trying to leave the
|
---|
965 | city.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
966 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Meanwhile, she was continuing her rule - sending
|
---|
967 | out letters signed 'Jane the Quene' which instructed her loyal subjects
|
---|
968 | to suppress Mary's rebellion.&nbsp; But she must have realized the
|
---|
969 | futility of it all.&nbsp; She was just a teenage girl, inexperienced and
|
---|
970 | frightened.&nbsp; It was simply a question of waiting for the end.&nbsp;
|
---|
971 | On the 18th of July, most of her councilors had left the Tower on the
|
---|
972 | pretext of visiting the French ambassador.&nbsp; In reality, they were
|
---|
973 | planning a visit to the Imperial embassy.&nbsp; Once there, they assured
|
---|
974 | Charles V's envoys that they had always been loyal to Mary; they had
|
---|
975 | been kept prisoner by Dudley, forced to declare Jane queen.&nbsp; But
|
---|
976 | now they were free and determined to proclaim Mary queen of
|
---|
977 | England.&nbsp; They did so around 5 o'clock in the evening, on Thursday,
|
---|
978 | the 19th of July.&nbsp; London erupted into a joyous celebration.&nbsp;
|
---|
979 | The foreign ambassadors were astonished, with the French envoy writing:
|
---|
980 | 'The atmosphere of this country and the nature of its people are so
|
---|
981 | changeable that I am compelled to make my despatches correspondingly
|
---|
982 | wavering and contradictory.'&nbsp; They all agreed it owed more to
|
---|
983 | Providence than anything else.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
984 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Jane was terribly frightened.&nbsp; She had long
|
---|
985 | fought with her parents but, upon becoming Dudley's pawn, had sought
|
---|
986 | support from them, particularly her father.&nbsp; He came to Jane as she
|
---|
987 | ate supper that night and told her she was deposed.&nbsp; Together, they
|
---|
988 | took down the cloth of estate from above her head.&nbsp; He ordered his
|
---|
989 | men to leave their weapons and then went to Tower Hill.&nbsp; Those near
|
---|
990 | him heard him mutter, 'I am but one man.'&nbsp; He proclaimed Mary queen
|
---|
991 | and then left for his London residence.&nbsp; Jane was left alone in the
|
---|
992 | Tower.&nbsp; Lady Throckmorton, one of her ladies-in-waiting, returned
|
---|
993 | to the Tower for her duties but could not find Jane.&nbsp; She asked for
|
---|
994 | the queen's whereabouts and was told that the <I>Lady</I> Jane was now a
|
---|
995 | prisoner, detained elsewhere in the Tower.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
996 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Jane was in the deputy lieutenant's house,
|
---|
997 | awaiting her fate.&nbsp; The indignities began.&nbsp; Her belongings
|
---|
998 | were sorted through, all her money confiscated; within the day, she was
|
---|
999 | accused of stealing valuables from the royal wardrobe.&nbsp; Mary was
|
---|
1000 | riding to London, now accepted as queen.&nbsp; Dudley was arrested by
|
---|
1001 | his former ally, the earl of Arundel.&nbsp; His entire family was taken
|
---|
1002 | to the Tower; as they were marched through the streets, the crowd pelted
|
---|
1003 | them with filth and insults.&nbsp; Even the Imperial envoy called it
|
---|
1004 | 'dreadful' and 'a strange mutation.'&nbsp; For Dudley's fall from power
|
---|
1005 | had been rapid, extraordinarily so - the nine days' progress from ruler
|
---|
1006 | to traitor was a confusing mix of treachery, rumor, and disgrace.&nbsp;
|
---|
1007 | </P>
|
---|
1008 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Mary did release Dudley's wife from the Tower,
|
---|
1009 | almost immediately; the duchess hurried to the queen to beg for her
|
---|
1010 | family's release.&nbsp; Mary ordered her from the city.&nbsp; Her cousin
|
---|
1011 | Frances, however, was more fortunate.&nbsp; She had a private audience
|
---|
1012 | with the queen.&nbsp; Within days, Henry Grey (who had been arrested at
|
---|
1013 | his London home and sent to the Tower on the 28th) was released.&nbsp;
|
---|
1014 | On 3 August, Mary made her state entry into London.&nbsp; As she rode
|
---|
1015 | past cheering crowds, clad in purple velvet and rich jewels, Jane Grey
|
---|
1016 | waited in prison, along with her husband and father-in-law.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1017 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; What would be their fate?&nbsp; All Europe
|
---|
1018 | pondered this, even as Jane prepared to plead her case.&nbsp; <BR>&nbsp;
|
---|
1019 | </P>
|
---|
1020 | <P><B>'I pray you despatch me quickly'</B> <BR>Jane Grey possessed the
|
---|
1021 | committed idealism of a religious fanatic and the events following her
|
---|
1022 | brief reign allowed her a place in history as a Protestant martyr.&nbsp;
|
---|
1023 | Her cousin Mary never questioned her passionate Catholicism; Jane did
|
---|
1024 | question her own Protestantism but the quest for spiritual meaning only
|
---|
1025 | reinforced her
|
---|
1026 | <img border="2" src="_httpdocimg_/mary1faq.jpg" alt="portrait of Princess Mary Tudor, later Queen Mary I; also painted by Master John (note the stylistic similarities)" width="165" height="213" align="right">already strong convictions.&nbsp; Had she remained queen,
|
---|
1027 | there is every possibility she would have persecuted Catholics with the
|
---|
1028 | same energy Mary persecuted Protestants (thus earning the nickname
|
---|
1029 | 'Bloody Mary.')&nbsp; Instead, Jane's fate was to be executed and later
|
---|
1030 | celebrated as a Protestant martyr, the greatest sacrificial lamb of
|
---|
1031 | Mary's misguided policies.&nbsp; The truth is, of course, more
|
---|
1032 | complex.&nbsp; Mary did not execute Jane because of their religious
|
---|
1033 | differences.&nbsp; Rather, she was motivated by political necessity and
|
---|
1034 | her own desire to marry and reinstate the Catholic church in
|
---|
1035 | England.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1036 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Immediately after her accession, Mary had
|
---|
1037 | imprisoned Jane in the Tower of London.&nbsp; The former queen was
|
---|
1038 | well-treated but undoubtedly frightened.&nbsp; She probably expected
|
---|
1039 | imminent execution for she had long since realized the severity of her
|
---|
1040 | crime.&nbsp; Since it became clear no one would intercede for her, she
|
---|
1041 | wrote to Mary herself.&nbsp; Only an Italian translation of the letter
|
---|
1042 | exists.&nbsp; In it, Jane described events since her marriage to
|
---|
1043 | Guildford Dudley.&nbsp; She was wrong for accepting the crown - she
|
---|
1044 | freely admitted this; but she had relied on the advice of others.&nbsp;
|
---|
1045 | She knew the queen's 'goodness and clemency'; Mary must realize that 'I
|
---|
1046 | might have taken upon me that of which I was not worthy, yet no one can
|
---|
1047 | ever say either that I sought it.... or that I was pleased with
|
---|
1048 | it.'&nbsp; Mary believed her cousin, an honest, plain-spoken child, for
|
---|
1049 | all her heretical ways.&nbsp; <SMALL>(<A
|
---|
1050 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.englishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fprimary%2fjanemary.html">Click
|
---|
1051 | here to read Jane's letter to Mary</A>.)&nbsp;</SMALL> </P>
|
---|
1052 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Mary was in the midst of arranging her marriage to
|
---|
1053 | Philip of Spain, the son and heir of Charles V.&nbsp; It was the
|
---|
1054 | culmination of a decades-old dream.&nbsp; She had spent the last few
|
---|
1055 | years in the countryside, surrounded by a Catholic household and
|
---|
1056 | sympathetic nobles.&nbsp; Thus, she never realized the extent of
|
---|
1057 | Protestantism in the vital areas of London and its surrounding
|
---|
1058 | countryside.&nbsp; Mary assumed all of England wanted to return to the
|
---|
1059 | early 1520s, the years before Henry VIII had decided to abandon her
|
---|
1060 | beloved mother and break with the church of Rome.&nbsp; Mary assumed
|
---|
1061 | that the popular support which had taken the throne from Jane&nbsp;
|
---|
1062 | indicated support not simply for her rule - but for <I>Catholic</I> rule
|
---|
1063 | in general.&nbsp; In this misguided view, she was initially supported by
|
---|
1064 | her most trusted political advisor - a Spaniard named Simon Renard, the
|
---|
1065 | newly arrived Imperial ambassador.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1066 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Charles V had instructed Renard to guide Mary
|
---|
1067 | through the crucial first months of her reign.&nbsp; At first, signs
|
---|
1068 | were good - Mary attended Mass with her privy councilors but, on 12
|
---|
1069 | August 1553, told her council that she would not 'compel or constrain
|
---|
1070 | other men's consciences.'&nbsp; She hoped her subjects would open their
|
---|
1071 | hearts to the truth and, shortly thereafter, return to the religion she
|
---|
1072 | supported.&nbsp; Renard was also instructed to urge moderate punishment
|
---|
1073 | upon those who had supported Jane.&nbsp; Charles did not want his cousin
|
---|
1074 | to be too cruel; that would hurt her reputation.&nbsp; He needn't have
|
---|
1075 | worried.&nbsp; Mary was, in fact, too lenient for Renard.&nbsp; 'As to
|
---|
1076 | Jane of Suffolk, whom they tried to make Queen, she [Mary] could not be
|
---|
1077 | induced to consent that she should die.'&nbsp; Mary firmly believed her
|
---|
1078 | cousin was innocent of any intrigue; Jane had never intended to be
|
---|
1079 | queen, but had been the unwilling dupe of Dudley.&nbsp; She could not
|
---|
1080 | put this innocent young woman to death.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1081 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Renard admitted that Jane was 'morally' innocent
|
---|
1082 | but, nevertheless, she had worn the crown of England.&nbsp; In times of
|
---|
1083 | trouble, those nine days may be used as a precedent for deposing Mary
|
---|
1084 | and restoring Jane.&nbsp; Mary was commended for her trusting nature but
|
---|
1085 | she must remember that kindness could be destroyed by duplicity.&nbsp;
|
---|
1086 | Renard was somewhat mollified when, on 18 August, Dudley was sentenced
|
---|
1087 | to die.&nbsp; He was convicted along with his eldest son and William
|
---|
1088 | Parr, marquess of Northampton.&nbsp; The following day a group of lesser
|
---|
1089 | nobles were convicted.&nbsp; Dudley's execution was set for Monday 21
|
---|
1090 | August but, at the last minute, Dudley announced he wanted to reconciled
|
---|
1091 | to the Catholic faith.&nbsp; Did he hope to avert his own death,
|
---|
1092 | appealing to Mary's religion?&nbsp; Or did he genuinely wish to
|
---|
1093 | convert?&nbsp; Whatever the case, his execution was delayed for one day
|
---|
1094 | while he made his peace with God.&nbsp; At 9 o'clock the next morning,
|
---|
1095 | he was escorted - with his son and Parr - to St Peter ad Vincula, the
|
---|
1096 | church within the Tower of London grounds.&nbsp; There, he attended mass
|
---|
1097 | and, upon receiving the sacrament, Dudley addressed the crowd:&nbsp;
|
---|
1098 | </P>
|
---|
1099 | <UL>
|
---|
1100 | <p>My masters, I let you all to understand that I do most faithfully
|
---|
1101 | believe this is the very right and true way, out of the which true
|
---|
1102 | religion you and I have been seduced these sixteen years past, by the
|
---|
1103 | false and erroneous preaching of the new preachers....&nbsp; And I do
|
---|
1104 | believe the holy sacrament here most assuredly to be our Saviour and
|
---|
1105 | Redeemer Jesus Christ and this I pray you all to testify and pray for
|
---|
1106 | me. </p>
|
---|
1107 | </UL>
|
---|
1108 | <p>He died the next morning, before a great crowd of
|
---|
1109 | spectators.&nbsp; He repeated his speech at the mass; it had a great
|
---|
1110 | effect on the crowd.&nbsp; </p>
|
---|
1111 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; By this point, Jane Grey knew she was safe from
|
---|
1112 | imminent death.&nbsp; She was still in the Tower but treated with
|
---|
1113 | increasing respect.&nbsp; A week after Dudley's execution, Rowland Lea
|
---|
1114 | (an official of the royal mint who lived in the Tower and was the author
|
---|
1115 | of the <I>Chronicle of Queen Jane</I>) ate with her.&nbsp; She had a
|
---|
1116 | staff of four (two attendant ladies, Mrs Tilney and Mrs Jacob, one
|
---|
1117 | manservant, and her nurse and lifelong companion, Mrs Ellen.)&nbsp; The
|
---|
1118 | government paid them each 20 shillings a week; Jane was allowed a
|
---|
1119 | generous allowance of 90 shillings a week.&nbsp; She was allowed books
|
---|
1120 | and spent most of her time reading and studying.&nbsp; When she wished
|
---|
1121 | it, she walked in the Queen's garden.&nbsp; She no longer had to deal
|
---|
1122 | with her parents or her in-laws, undoubtedly a welcome relief.&nbsp; The
|
---|
1123 | gentleman gaoler, called Partridge, and his wife were kind and
|
---|
1124 | respectful.&nbsp; Lea recorded Jane's comments on Dudley:&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1125 | <UL>
|
---|
1126 | <p>'Woe worth him! he hath brought me and our stock in most miserable
|
---|
1127 | calamity and misery by his exceeding ambition.&nbsp; But for the
|
---|
1128 | answering that he hoped for life by his turning, though other men be
|
---|
1129 | of that opinion, I utterly am not; for what man is there living, I
|
---|
1130 | pray you, although he had been innocent, that would hope of life in
|
---|
1131 | that case; being in the field against the Queen in person as general,
|
---|
1132 | and after his taking so hated and evil spoken of by the commons? and
|
---|
1133 | at his coming into prison so wondered at [reviled] as the like was
|
---|
1134 | never heard by any man's time.&nbsp; Who was judge that he should hope
|
---|
1135 | for pardon, whose life was odious to all men?&nbsp; But what will ye
|
---|
1136 | more?&nbsp; Like as his life was wicked and full of dissimulation, so
|
---|
1137 | was his end thereafter.&nbsp; I pray God, I, nor no friend of mine,
|
---|
1138 | die so.&nbsp; Should I, who am young and in my few years, forsake my
|
---|
1139 | faith for the love of life?&nbsp; Nay, God forbid!&nbsp; Much more he
|
---|
1140 | should not, whose fatal course, although he had lived his just number
|
---|
1141 | of years, could not have long continued.&nbsp; But life was sweet, it
|
---|
1142 | appeared; so he might have lived, you will say, he did not care
|
---|
1143 | how.&nbsp; Indeed the reason is good; for he that would have lived in
|
---|
1144 | chains to have had his life, by like would leave no other mean
|
---|
1145 | [un]attempted.&nbsp; But God be merciful to us, for he sayeth, Whoso
|
---|
1146 | denieth him before me, he will not know him in his Father's Kingdom.'
|
---|
1147 | </p>
|
---|
1148 | </UL>
|
---|
1149 | <p>Jane's intense religious convictions and her hatred of Dudley are
|
---|
1150 | evident in this passage.&nbsp; She further demonstrated her religious
|
---|
1151 | intolerance when writing to Dr Harding, a former chaplain at her
|
---|
1152 | parents' home of Bradgate and her first tutor.&nbsp; Harding had joined
|
---|
1153 | other Protestant chaplains in renouncing his reformed faith and becoming
|
---|
1154 | Catholic once again.&nbsp; Jane was completely disgusted and appalled by
|
---|
1155 | his cowardice:&nbsp; </p>
|
---|
1156 | <UL>
|
---|
1157 | <p>'I cannot but marvel at thee and lament thy case, who seemed
|
---|
1158 | sometime to be the lively member of Christ, but now the deformed imp
|
---|
1159 | of the devil; sometime the beautiful temple of God, but now the
|
---|
1160 | stinking and filthy kennel of Satan; sometime the unspotted spouse of
|
---|
1161 | Christ, but now the unshamefaced paramour of Antichrist; sometime my
|
---|
1162 | faithful brother, but now a stranger and apostate; sometime a stout
|
---|
1163 | Christian soldier, but now a cowardly runaway.&nbsp; Yea, when I
|
---|
1164 | consider these things, I cannot but speak to thee, and cry out upon
|
---|
1165 | thee, thou seed of Satan.&nbsp; <BR>Oh wretched and unhappy man, what
|
---|
1166 | art thou but dust and ashes?&nbsp; And wilt thou resist thy Maker that
|
---|
1167 | fashioned thee and framed thee?&nbsp; ....Wilt thou refuse the true
|
---|
1168 | God, and worship the invention of man, the golden calf, the whore of
|
---|
1169 | Babylon, the Romish religion, the abominable idol, the most wicked
|
---|
1170 | mass?' </p>
|
---|
1171 | </UL>
|
---|
1172 | <p>Such rhetoric reveals insight into Jane's character.&nbsp;
|
---|
1173 | She was pious, devout, and kind - but she was also self-righteous and
|
---|
1174 | intolerant.&nbsp; She and Mary were more alike than many realized.&nbsp;
|
---|
1175 | Both were plain-spoken, transparently honest, and passionately believed
|
---|
1176 | their religion was the sole path to salvation.&nbsp; </p>
|
---|
1177 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; While Mary prepared for her coronation, Jane
|
---|
1178 | remained in the Tower.&nbsp; The Dudley brothers were now allowed to
|
---|
1179 | exercise on the roof of their prison, Beauchamp Tower, though there is
|
---|
1180 | no evidence that Jane and Guildford saw one another.&nbsp; Mary did not
|
---|
1181 | speak of her imprisoned cousin.&nbsp; Her time was taken up with her
|
---|
1182 | coronation and impending marriage, as well as the conflict her marriage
|
---|
1183 | was causing.&nbsp; Most Englishmen did not want Mary to wed a Spaniard,
|
---|
1184 | for the same reasons Edward VI had excluded her from the succession -
|
---|
1185 | she was past middle-aged and would probably bear no children.&nbsp;
|
---|
1186 | Therefore, she would leave the throne to a Catholic husband and England
|
---|
1187 | would become yet another state of the Imperial empire.&nbsp; But as the
|
---|
1188 | weeks passed, Mary's leniency began to be questioned.&nbsp; So Mary gave
|
---|
1189 | in to pressure and ordered Jane and the four Dudley sons to stand trial;
|
---|
1190 | the order had been prepared in mid-September but Mary did not allow the
|
---|
1191 | trial to take place until two months later.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1192 | <P>
|
---|
1193 | <IMG height=184 alt="engraving of Lady Jane Grey"
|
---|
1194 | src="_httpdocimg_/grey2.jpg" width=150 border=2 align="left">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; As they were led out of the Tower to be arraigned
|
---|
1195 | at Guildhall, the executioner walked before them.&nbsp; He carried an
|
---|
1196 | axe, as was the custom.&nbsp; Jane dressed soberly for the occasion, as
|
---|
1197 | befitted a proper young lady of the reformed church.&nbsp; She was clad
|
---|
1198 | all in black; she wore a black cloth gown, black cape trimmed with
|
---|
1199 | velvet, and a black French hood trimmed with velvet.&nbsp; At her girdle
|
---|
1200 | hung a prayer book also bound in black velvet.&nbsp; She held a book of
|
---|
1201 | prayers open in her hands as she walked behind Guildford.&nbsp; She was
|
---|
1202 | attended by her two ladies, Mrs Tilney and Mrs Jacob.&nbsp; The
|
---|
1203 | proceedings were a mere formality.&nbsp; Jane and the four Dudleys pled
|
---|
1204 | guilty to the charge of high treason.&nbsp; Sentence was passed against
|
---|
1205 | them; the men would be hung, drawn, and quartered and Jane would be
|
---|
1206 | burnt or beheaded at the Queen's pleasure.&nbsp; They returned to the
|
---|
1207 | Tower, this time with the edge of the axe turned towards them.&nbsp; In
|
---|
1208 | this way, spectators knew they were condemned.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1209 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; But the passing of the sentence was simply a
|
---|
1210 | formality.&nbsp; As Renard reported in his subsequent dispatches, 'It is
|
---|
1211 | believed that Jane will not die' and, a week later, 'As for Jane, I am
|
---|
1212 | told her life is safe.'&nbsp; Meanwhile, her parents had left the
|
---|
1213 | reformed church.&nbsp; Henry Grey was forced to pay a 20000 pd fine but
|
---|
1214 | given a general pardon.&nbsp; He returned to court.&nbsp; His wife was
|
---|
1215 | Queen Mary's favorite lady and their two daughters, Catherine and Mary,
|
---|
1216 | were her ladies-in-waiting.&nbsp; In fact, Frances Grey was shown great
|
---|
1217 | favor at court, even gaining precedence over Princess Elizabeth.&nbsp;
|
---|
1218 | Most observers believed Jane would soon be pardoned and released, free
|
---|
1219 | to join her family at court.&nbsp; The rehabilitation of the Greys
|
---|
1220 | seemed complete.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1221 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; However, Mary's fervent desire to wed Philip of
|
---|
1222 | Spain was soon to have tragic consequences for the sixteen-year-old Jane
|
---|
1223 | Grey.&nbsp; <BR>&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1224 | <P><B>'So perish all the Queen's enemies'</B> <BR>The complexities of
|
---|
1225 | Mary Tudor's decision to marry the twenty-six widower, Philip of Spain,
|
---|
1226 | are discussed at her <A
|
---|
1227 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2fmary1.html">website</A>.&nbsp;
|
---|
1228 | They can be outlined briefly here.&nbsp; Mary - and most of her
|
---|
1229 | contemporaries - believed she must marry; she needed a husband for
|
---|
1230 | support and guidance.&nbsp; No woman had ruled England in her own right
|
---|
1231 | before.&nbsp; Most Englishmen wanted Mary to wed the great-grandson of
|
---|
1232 | Edward IV, Edward Courtenay.&nbsp; He was the last of the Plantagenets,
|
---|
1233 | young, good-looking, and charming; his high birth led him to spend most
|
---|
1234 | of his youth in prison.&nbsp; Mary was kind to him.&nbsp; She released
|
---|
1235 | him from the Tower and restored he and his mother to favor.&nbsp; She
|
---|
1236 | remembered that Edward's parents had supported her mother during the
|
---|
1237 | great divorce.&nbsp; But she also made it clear she would not marry
|
---|
1238 | him.&nbsp; For Mary, whose life had possessed little happiness and peace
|
---|
1239 | after her adolescence, had always turned to her mother's family for
|
---|
1240 | advice and support.&nbsp; And she continued to do so when she became
|
---|
1241 | queen.&nbsp; Certainly Philip of Spain, heir to the Hapsburg empire, was
|
---|
1242 | the most sought-after prince in Europe.&nbsp; But he was also the
|
---|
1243 | grandson of her aunt, which meant a great deal to the sentimental Mary
|
---|
1244 | Tudor.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1245 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Still, she did not immediately plan to marry
|
---|
1246 | him.&nbsp; She was deeply religious and had spent the past twenty years
|
---|
1247 | essentially alone and unloved.&nbsp; She was naturally fearful of
|
---|
1248 | marriage.&nbsp; She asked Renard - was Philip too young for her?&nbsp;
|
---|
1249 | would she be able to satisfy him for she was ignorant of 'that which was
|
---|
1250 | called love' ?&nbsp; In short, she was a deeply devout and chaste maiden
|
---|
1251 | and he was a twenty-six-year-old widower.&nbsp; Would he be happy with
|
---|
1252 | her?&nbsp; Renard assured her that Philip was delighted to wed
|
---|
1253 | Mary.&nbsp; And, he added, they would have children together, providing
|
---|
1254 | England with a Catholic succession.&nbsp; Mary replied that she had
|
---|
1255 | never considered marriage until God had raised her to the throne but -
|
---|
1256 | now that she was queen - she would lead her subjects down the path of
|
---|
1257 | righteousness.&nbsp; With the might of the Holy Roman Empire behind her,
|
---|
1258 | her faith would be triumphant.&nbsp; So she agreed to marry Philip in
|
---|
1259 | late October 1553; their engagement was made official.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1260 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; She was faced with a hostile reaction.&nbsp; Both
|
---|
1261 | her subjects and the king of France made their anger known.&nbsp; Many
|
---|
1262 | Englishmen believed Charles V wanted to drag England into war against
|
---|
1263 | France, another costly and ineffectual enterprise.&nbsp; In truth,
|
---|
1264 | Charles really wanted control of that vital sea route between Spain and
|
---|
1265 | the Netherlands; he needed to control the English coast in order for his
|
---|
1266 | trade route to operate at its maximum profitability.&nbsp; But England
|
---|
1267 | has always been an insular nation.&nbsp; With Protestant propagandists
|
---|
1268 | and the French ambassador spreading all sorts of rumors (from Spanish
|
---|
1269 | invasions to immediate wars), the people were in an uproar.&nbsp;
|
---|
1270 | Furthermore, Mary's councilors were an ineffectual bunch and their
|
---|
1271 | policies were roundly criticized.&nbsp; It seemed that, just months into
|
---|
1272 | her reign, Mary was steadily falling from favor.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1273 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; On 2 January 1554, Charles V's envoys arrived to
|
---|
1274 | iron out the details of the marriage contract.&nbsp; To secure his
|
---|
1275 | valuable trade route, Charles was prepared to be generous.&nbsp; In
|
---|
1276 | fact, he included every provision possible to stifle English
|
---|
1277 | fears.&nbsp; But it was no use.&nbsp; The people didn't want the
|
---|
1278 | marriage.&nbsp; Soon enough, word reached London of uprisings in the
|
---|
1279 | countryside - Carew in Devonshire, Wyatt in Kent, Crofts in
|
---|
1280 | Wales....&nbsp; The councilors were alarmed.&nbsp; And then word reached
|
---|
1281 | them that Henry Grey, the duke of Suffolk, had disappeared from his
|
---|
1282 | country home, Sheen.&nbsp; They had planned the uprising for March when
|
---|
1283 | Philip was due to arrive but Courtenay, timid after years in the Tower,
|
---|
1284 | betrayed them.&nbsp; So the conspirators were forced into action.&nbsp;
|
---|
1285 | Carew could not raise his force without Courtenay's help so he fled to
|
---|
1286 | France and Crofts plans fell through.&nbsp; But, by the end of January,
|
---|
1287 | Wyatt had taken Rochester and the royal ships at the Medway.&nbsp; The
|
---|
1288 | duke of Norfolk left with a force from London but many men
|
---|
1289 | deserted.&nbsp; Wyatt was encouraged and pressed on to London.&nbsp; For
|
---|
1290 | two days, the fate of the Spanish marriage hung in the balance.&nbsp;
|
---|
1291 | Londoners were undecided; Mary decided to sway the balance.&nbsp; She
|
---|
1292 | went to Guildhall and made a rousing speech exhorting the Londoners to
|
---|
1293 | support her.&nbsp; She did so against the advice of her council for they
|
---|
1294 | feared for her safety.&nbsp; They needn't have worried.&nbsp; When Wyatt
|
---|
1295 | reached London, he found the bridge closed to him.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1296 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Mary had refused to let the Tower guns be turned
|
---|
1297 | on the traitors.&nbsp; She feared the innocent citizens of Southwark
|
---|
1298 | would be harmed if they were fired.&nbsp; The rebels eventually
|
---|
1299 | surrendered but Mary had learned a valuable lesson - she discovered the
|
---|
1300 | depth of her subjects' hatred of the Spanish marriage.&nbsp; But it did
|
---|
1301 | not cause her to change her plans.&nbsp; She was bewildered and angry
|
---|
1302 | but also hurt.&nbsp; She had shown mercy and<IMG height=226 alt="Jane's cousin Mary Tudor in 1554, by Hans Eworth"
|
---|
1303 | src="_httpdocimg_/mary1-eworthcr.jpg" width=160 border=2 align="right"> forgiveness and was
|
---|
1304 | rewarded by rebellion.&nbsp; She was now particularly susceptible to Renard's advice.&nbsp; Renard immediately questioned Mary's safety as
|
---|
1305 | well as Philip's - would the prince be safe when rebellions were
|
---|
1306 | occurring throughout the nation?&nbsp; The queen was exhorted to ensure
|
---|
1307 | his safety.&nbsp; She must do this by punishing the rebels so none would
|
---|
1308 | dare rebel again.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1309 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Renard's advice was supported by Mary's
|
---|
1310 | council.&nbsp; Inevitably, all her advisors urged Mary to execute Jane
|
---|
1311 | Grey.&nbsp; Wyatt had been supported by the vanished Henry Grey.&nbsp;
|
---|
1312 | When he had disappeared from Sheen, he had gone to raise an army against
|
---|
1313 | the Spanish marriage.&nbsp; But he gained little support.&nbsp; Grey
|
---|
1314 | owed his life to Mary's kindness and he responded by seeking to
|
---|
1315 | overthrow her.&nbsp; His intent was to lead men of the midland shires
|
---|
1316 | and join Wyatt near London.&nbsp; His actual course fell far short of
|
---|
1317 | this goal - he fled from one county to another until he reached his
|
---|
1318 | manor of Astley.&nbsp; He apparently hid in a tree trunk or under some
|
---|
1319 | hay; accounts vary.&nbsp; He was promptly arrested by the earl of
|
---|
1320 | Huntingdon.&nbsp; Later, rumors spread that he had proclaimed Jane queen
|
---|
1321 | during his ride through the midlands.&nbsp; This was untrue but it
|
---|
1322 | didn't matter.&nbsp; Jane had once been queen and, as Mary's advisors
|
---|
1323 | put it, she would be the figurehead of any Protestant plot.&nbsp; Once
|
---|
1324 | again, she was <I>morally</I> innocent but she was still
|
---|
1325 | dangerous.&nbsp; She had to die.&nbsp; To this, Renard added that Philip
|
---|
1326 | could not arrive until the Protestant threat had been destroyed.&nbsp;
|
---|
1327 | All the opposition to her marriage had simply made the obstinate Mary
|
---|
1328 | more determined to marry Philip.&nbsp; So the suspended sentence on Jane
|
---|
1329 | was revoked and she was condemned to die immediately.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1330 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The date of the execution was set for Friday 9
|
---|
1331 | February 1554.&nbsp; Mary, who so hated executing her cousin, tried one
|
---|
1332 | last time to save her soul.&nbsp; She sent John Feckenham, dean of St
|
---|
1333 | Paul's, to Jane.&nbsp; He was given a few days to sway Jane to the
|
---|
1334 | Catholic faith.&nbsp; Jane, long deprived of intellectual company and
|
---|
1335 | theological debate, was polite.&nbsp; But she rebutted each of
|
---|
1336 | Feckenham's arguments with her own.&nbsp; Perhaps she relished this last
|
---|
1337 | chance to elucidate her precious faith.&nbsp; After hours of argument,
|
---|
1338 | she remained Protestant.&nbsp; But she had also come to like Feckenham
|
---|
1339 | very much.&nbsp; So she accepted his offer to accompany her to the
|
---|
1340 | scaffold and she promised to 'pray God in the bowels of his mercy to
|
---|
1341 | send you his Holy Spirit; for he hath given you his great gift of
|
---|
1342 | utterance, if it pleased him also to open the eyes of your heart.'&nbsp;
|
---|
1343 | </P>
|
---|
1344 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Feckenham's work had delayed the executions until
|
---|
1345 | Monday 12 February.&nbsp; Meanwhile, Jane was also preparing to die with
|
---|
1346 | as much grace and dignity she could summon.&nbsp; She chose her dress,
|
---|
1347 | composed her speech, and appointed the two members of her household who
|
---|
1348 | would accompany her and dispose of her body.&nbsp; She sent a letter to
|
---|
1349 | her sister Catherine and one to her father (brought to the Tower on 10
|
---|
1350 | February.)&nbsp; The latter included a remonstration that his actions
|
---|
1351 | had hastened her death.&nbsp; But she did not write to her mother nor
|
---|
1352 | did Frances attempt to visit her or her husband.&nbsp; There exists a
|
---|
1353 | story that Guildford asked to see Jane before they died and that Mary
|
---|
1354 | granted his request.&nbsp; Jane, however, refused to see him, waiting
|
---|
1355 | until they met 'in a better place.'&nbsp; But there is no evidence the
|
---|
1356 | story is true.&nbsp; In fact, Jane and her husband showed no interest in
|
---|
1357 | seeing one another while in the Tower.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1358 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Jane did watch her husband's execution.&nbsp; He
|
---|
1359 | was taken from Beauchamp Tower at 10 o'clock in the morning and led to
|
---|
1360 | the execution area on Tower Hill.&nbsp; Jane stood by her window and
|
---|
1361 | watched as he went to his death.&nbsp; Guildford died with great courage
|
---|
1362 | and dignity and, when the cart rolled past carrying his corpse, Jane
|
---|
1363 | muttered his name and a comment about 'the bitterness of death.'&nbsp;
|
---|
1364 | Perhaps she realized that he had been a victim, too.&nbsp; In any case,
|
---|
1365 | she saw his blood-splattered body, thrown atop equally stained straw,
|
---|
1366 | driven to St Peter-ad-Vincula; his head was wrapped in a cloth beside
|
---|
1367 | the body.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1368 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; It was now Jane's turn to face death.&nbsp; <SMALL><A
|
---|
1369 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fexjane.html">(Click here to read
|
---|
1370 | an eyewitness account of her execution</A>.)&nbsp; </SMALL>She
|
---|
1371 | wore the <IMG height=360
|
---|
1372 | alt="Lady Jane Grey kneeling before the block, from Delaroche's painting"
|
---|
1373 | src="_httpdocimg_/janecrop.jpg" width=165 border=2 align="left">same black outfit she had worn at her trial.&nbsp; She carried
|
---|
1374 | her prayer book in her hands; she was escorted by Sir John Brydges, the
|
---|
1375 | lieutenant of the Tower.&nbsp; Her nurse, Mrs Ellen, and her attendant,
|
---|
1376 | Mrs Tylney, also accompanied her.&nbsp; They both cried but Jane was
|
---|
1377 | calm and composed.&nbsp; She had, after all, watched her scaffold being
|
---|
1378 | erected near the White Tower; her rooms provided an excellent view of
|
---|
1379 | its construction.&nbsp; Since she was a princess of royal blood, her
|
---|
1380 | execution was private.&nbsp; Only a small crowd had been invited.&nbsp;
|
---|
1381 | </P>
|
---|
1382 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; At the steps of the scaffold, he greeted
|
---|
1383 | Feckenham: 'God grant you all your desires and accept my own hearty
|
---|
1384 | thanks for all your attention to me. Although indeed, those attentions
|
---|
1385 | have tried me more than death can now terrify me.' She then ascended the
|
---|
1386 | steps and addressed the crowd.&nbsp; She admitted she had committed
|
---|
1387 | treason when she accepted the crown but 'I do wash my hands in innocency, before God and the face of you, good Christian people this
|
---|
1388 | day.'&nbsp; She wrung her hands and asked that they witness her death,
|
---|
1389 | and affirm that she died a good Christian.&nbsp; She ended with yet
|
---|
1390 | another indication of her strong Protestant faith; she said, 'And now,
|
---|
1391 | good people, while I am alive, I pray you to assist me with your
|
---|
1392 | prayers.'&nbsp; Protestants, unlike Catholics, did not believe in
|
---|
1393 | prayers for the dead.&nbsp; She then knelt and asked Feckenham, 'Shall I
|
---|
1394 | say this psalm?'&nbsp; She read the fifty-first psalm in English and he
|
---|
1395 | followed her in Latin.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1396 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; After the prayer, she told Feckenham, 'God I
|
---|
1397 | beseech Him abundantly reward you for your kindness to me.'&nbsp; She
|
---|
1398 | then rose to her feet and completed her final duties.&nbsp; She handed
|
---|
1399 | her gloves and handkerchief to her attendant, Mrs Tylney and her
|
---|
1400 | prayer-book to the lieutenant's brother, Thomas Brydges.&nbsp; She then
|
---|
1401 | began to untie her gown; as was the tradition, the executioner stepped
|
---|
1402 | forward.&nbsp; It was the custom that the victim's outer garments became
|
---|
1403 | the executioner's property.&nbsp; Perhaps Jane did not know this; or
|
---|
1404 | perhaps she was simply terrified as that masked figure came toward
|
---|
1405 | her.&nbsp; She stepped back and 'desired him to leave her alone.'&nbsp;
|
---|
1406 | Her attendants completed the unlacing.&nbsp; They then gave her a
|
---|
1407 | handkerchief to tie over her eyes.&nbsp; Next, the executioner knelt
|
---|
1408 | before her and begged her forgiveness.&nbsp; This, too, was a custom and
|
---|
1409 | one Jane had expected.&nbsp; She gave her forgiveness 'most
|
---|
1410 | willingly.'&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1411 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Now there was nothing to do but end it all.&nbsp;
|
---|
1412 | The executioner asked her to stand upon the straw.&nbsp; Perhaps she saw
|
---|
1413 | the actual block for the first time.&nbsp; Her composure faltered for
|
---|
1414 | just a brief moment.&nbsp; She whispered, 'I pray you despatch me
|
---|
1415 | quickly,' and began to kneel.&nbsp; She hesitated and asked, 'Will you
|
---|
1416 | take it off before I lay me down?', referring to the blindfold.&nbsp;
|
---|
1417 | The executioner replied, 'No, madame' and so she tied the handkerchief
|
---|
1418 | around her eyes.&nbsp; She then knelt but, blindfolded, could not find
|
---|
1419 | the block.&nbsp; Her arms flailed about for several moments and she
|
---|
1420 | cried out, 'What shall I do?&nbsp; Where is it?'&nbsp; Those standing on
|
---|
1421 | the scaffold were hesitant - should they help her?&nbsp; A member of the
|
---|
1422 | crowd climbed the scaffold and helped her.&nbsp; He guided her hands to
|
---|
1423 | the block.&nbsp; She lowered her head and stretched forth her body; her
|
---|
1424 | last words were, 'Lord into thy hands I commend my spirit.'&nbsp; The
|
---|
1425 | executioner swung his axe and severed her head.&nbsp; Blood splattered
|
---|
1426 | across the scaffold and many of the witnesses.&nbsp; The executioner
|
---|
1427 | then lifted her head and said, 'So perish all the Queen's enemies.
|
---|
1428 | Behold, the head of a traitor.'&nbsp; It was the end of Lady Jane
|
---|
1429 | Grey.&nbsp; </P>
|
---|
1430 | <P>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Permission had to be granted for her burial at St
|
---|
1431 | Peter-ad-Vincula since the church had recently become Catholic
|
---|
1432 | again.&nbsp; Feckenham was forced to go to court for the
|
---|
1433 | permission.&nbsp; So Jane's body lay exposed and unattended for nearly
|
---|
1434 | four hours, spread obscenely across the blood-soaked straw.&nbsp; The
|
---|
1435 | French ambassador reported seeing it there hours after the
|
---|
1436 | execution.&nbsp; Her attendants kept watch, though they were not allowed
|
---|
1437 | to cover the corpse.&nbsp; Finally, Feckenham returned and Jane's body
|
---|
1438 | was laid to rest between the bodies of two other headless queens -
|
---|
1439 | <a href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2fboleyn.html">Anne
|
---|
1440 | Boleyn</a> and
|
---|
1441 | <a href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2fhoward.html">Catherine Howard</a>.&nbsp; During the reign of her Protestant
|
---|
1442 | cousin, <a href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fmonarchs%2feliz.html">Queen Elizabeth I</a>, Jane was celebrated as a martyr to her faith
|
---|
1443 | and she remains one of the most famous queens of England.</P>
|
---|
1444 | <hr>
|
---|
1445 | </blockquote>
|
---|
1446 | </blockquote>
|
---|
1447 | <p align="center"><font size="4">'Live still to die, that by death you may purchase eternal life.... As
|
---|
1448 | the preacher sayeth, there is a time to be born and a time to die; and the
|
---|
1449 | day of death is better than the day of our birth.'&nbsp;&nbsp; </font><I><FONT
|
---|
1450 | size=-1>Jane Grey's message to John Brydges, lieutenant of the Tower of
|
---|
1451 | London, 1554</FONT></I></p>
|
---|
1452 | <blockquote>
|
---|
1453 | <blockquote>
|
---|
1454 | <hr>
|
---|
1455 | <P align="center"> <SMALL><A
|
---|
1456 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2fexjane.html"><br></A></SMALL> <font size="2"><br>Visit <A href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fwww.geocities.com%2fjane%5fthe%5fquene">Sarah's
|
---|
1457 | lovely tribute to Lady Jane Grey</A>; it's a wonderful website.</font></P>
|
---|
1458 | <BLOCKQUOTE>
|
---|
1459 | <CENTER>
|
---|
1460 | <P><FONT size=-1><A
|
---|
1461 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor%2frelatives.html">to Tudor
|
---|
1462 | Relatives</A></FONT> <BR><FONT size=-1><A
|
---|
1463 | href="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=1&amp;href=http:%2f%2fenglishhistory.net%2ftudor.html">to Tudor
|
---|
1464 | England</A></FONT></P></CENTER></BLOCKQUOTE>
|
---|
1465 | <P align="left"><font size="-1"><br><b>Note: </b>&nbsp;My favorite
|
---|
1466 | biographies of Lady Jane Grey are by Hester Chapman and Alison Plowden.&nbsp;
|
---|
1467 | Thanks for reading / exploring this website.&nbsp; <i>-Marilee</i></font></P>
|
---|
1468 | </blockquote>
|
---|
1469 | </blockquote>
|
---|
1470 | </blockquote>
|
---|
1471 |
|
---|
1472 |
|
---|
1473 |
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1474 | <!-- text below generated by server. PLEASE REMOVE --><!-- Counter/Statistics data collection code --><script language="JavaScript" src="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;href=http:%2f%2fhostingprod.com%2fjs%5fsource%2fgeov2.js"></script><script language="javascript">geovisit();</script><noscript><img src="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;el=direct&amp;href=http://visit.webhosting.yahoo.com/visit.gif?us1108082561" alt="setstats" border="0" width="1" height="1"></noscript>
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1475 | <IMG SRC="_httpextlink_&amp;rl=0&amp;el=direct&amp;href=http://geo.yahoo.com/serv?s=76001524&t=1108082561" ALT=1 WIDTH=1 HEIGHT=1>
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1476 | </Content>
|
---|
1477 | </Section>
|
---|
1478 | </Archive>
|
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