About Lady Jane Grey

Answer 1

Before he died, Edward VI (1537 - 1553) was persuaded to name the Protestant Lady Jane Grey (1537 - 1554) as his successor, because the true heir to the throne, his eldest sister Mary, was a staunch Roman Catholic. Jane was a great granddaughter of the first Tudor king, Henry VII, through her grandmother Princess Mary Rose Tudor, the younger sister of Henry VIII. Four days after Edward died (6 July 1553), and promoted by her fiercely ambitious father in law, the Protestant Duke of Northumberland, Jane, who was just a pawn in a power game, was proclaimed Queen. However there was surprisingly strong support for Mary Tudor, as the true heir to the throne. It was soon apparent that Jane was not going to be able to hold on to the throne and so she was persuaded, by her father, to step down, leaving a 9 days reign behind her. Mary I took her rightful position as Queen, and Jane and her supporters were arrested, eventually tried for treason and executed. Jane and her husband, Guildford Dudley, were beheaded on 12 February 1554.