Jane Gray is the uncrowned Queen of Great Britain, who is not even mentioned in many history textbooks. She ruled the country for only 9 days, and was subsequently executed by order of her own relative.
Biography: childhood "Lady J"
Jane Gray was born into the family of the granddaughter of King Henry VII, Francis Brandon and Henry Gray (Marquis of Dorset, later Duke of Suffolk). She was born in October 1537 in Leicestershire. Jane was the firstborn. The couple dreamed of a son-heir, but then two more daughters were born: Katerina and Maria.
Jane was small and fragile. The surrounding people noticed a strong resemblance to the grandmother Maria Tudor. Jane had exactly the same pretty pale face and golden curls.
As a child, Jane had the best mentors. The girl studied well and was considered one of the most educated women of that time. After the Reformation carried out by Henry VIII, the church no longer regulated educational issues and women received the right to engage in self-education, and not only childbearing and housekeeping.
Of course, at that time it was still akin to luxury, and only aristocrats could afford self-improvement. But not every representative of the high society aspired to this. Jane loved learning. She not only sang and danced, but was also able to read and speak several languages: Greek, Latin, French, Italian. She studied them in her childhood. Jane later learned Spanish, Old Babylonian, Hebrew, and Arabic. She enthusiastically read books in the original.
The girl showed great promise, so her parents decided to send her to live at the court of King Henry VIII. Jane was raised according to the strict canons of Puritanism. She rarely took part in social events.
According to the rules of succession to the throne, she was not supposed to become queen, because Henry VIII had enough heirs. There were three potential candidates for the royal chair after his death:
- Edward VI;
- Elizabeth;
- Maria.
Therefore, no one prepared Jane for this. However, life itself was preparing a big surprise for Jane.
Jane Gray's personal life
After the death of Henry VIII, the crown passed to his son, nine-year-old Edward VI. The young monarch was Jane's age. Her family dreamed of marrying them. However, nothing came of this venture.
Jane became a pawn in the dirty games of the Duke of Northumberland, who was the head of government under Edward VI. He forced her to become the wife of his son Lord Guildford Dudley. At that time, she was barely 15 years old. The wedding was double: on the same day, the younger sister, thirteen-year-old Katherine, was also married to Henry Herbert. Both suitors came from noble English families.
Their marriage lasted a little over a year. They were sentenced to death for high treason.
Nine Day Queen of England
Soon after the wedding, the young King Edward VI, who was not even 16 years old, died. He died of tuberculosis. The Duke of Northumberland knew before his death that the king had serious health problems. By the spring of 1553, it became clear to him that Edward VI would not survive. For this reason, he hastily married his son. Historians agree that then he forced Jane to marry his offspring. Also, during the lifetime of Edward VI, the Duke made sure that he removed from the will of succession to the throne his half-sisters, Elizabeth and Mary. By a decision of parliament, they were declared illegitimate.
For the first time since the Norman Conquest, there was not a single male contender for the throne. In any case, the next king of England was to be a woman. So Jane became the main heiress.
When she was announced that she had become queen, the girl fainted. She never aspired to the crown, so at first she refused the throne. However, the cunning duke convinced his daughter-in-law otherwise.
Jane was proclaimed Queen of England 4 days after the death of Edward VI, on July 10, 1553. However, she only stayed on the throne for 9 days. For this reason, her name does not appear in the lists of the rulers of England.
It took only nine days for Edward VI's older sister, Mary, to summon supporters for help and organize a rebellion against the new queen. The army and the lords went over to her side. Only her father and Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Krumner remained with Jane. On the ninth day, she was left alone. When the soldiers took over the palace, Jane's father said the phrase that went down in history: “Come down, my child. You don't belong here. She did just that.
Jane and her husband were imprisoned in the Tower. They spent seven months there. The plans of the new Queen Mary did not include their execution. However, Jane's father did not want to put up with this situation. He joined the rebels against Mary. Jane again tried to proclaim the queen. Then Maria had to sign the death warrant for a relative and her husband.
Death
Jane, her husband and father were executed on the same day, February 12, 1554, for treason to the Queen. In her deathbed speech, she agreed to the prosecution, but refused to admit guilt. Jane also apologized for taking the royal throne.
According to eyewitnesses, when she was blindfolded, she lost her orientation in space and could not find the chopping block. Then she cried out: “What should I do? Where's she?! . A man from the crowd helped her to find the block. She was 17 years old. Jane became England's first Protestant martyr.
The image of Jane Gray in art
The Gloomy Tower had seen many executions, but the death of the "nine-day queen" could not be forgotten for a long time. Poets, artists and writers have dedicated many works to her. The brightest of which:
- Paul Delaroche's painting The Execution of Jane Gray;
- opera by Henri Bussé "Jane Gray";
- Alison Weir's novel Lady Jane's Throne and Block;
- the film by Robert Stevenson "The Rose of the Tudors" / "The Queen for Nine Days".
