Jane Dudley
Jane Dudley was a disputed queen of Great Britain and Ireland. She is more widely known as either Jane Grey or the Nine Days Queen.
Contents
History
Jane as the eldest daughter of Henry Grey, duke of Suffolk. Her grandmother was Mary who, aside from being the younger sister of Henry VIII, had briefly been the queen consort of Louis XII. After Louis' death she married Charles Brandon, the first duke of Suffolk. (While Charles was survived by two sons, they both died young; the duchy passed to his eldest daughter Frances and her husband, the aforementioned Henry Grey).
Henry VIII repeatedly interfered in succession law, setting up an inevitable crisis. Most importantly, the Final Act of 1544 stipulated that, should his children have no heirs, the crown should pass to the line of his sister Mary. (She herself had died in 1533, 11 years prior.) He died in 1547, leaving the nine year old Edward VI to inherit. Then Edward's own health began to fail in early 1553. John Dudley, duke of Northumberland and leader of the regency council, particularly wanted to bar Mary from inheriting. He crafted a legal devise to disqualify both Mary and Elizabeth, making Jane the heir presumptive. He then arranged a marriage between Jane and his son, Guildford.
When Edward died in July, the Dudleys rushed to London to proclaim Jane queen. John Dudley was extremely influential in court and was able to compel practically most nobles and bishops to sign on to his devise. He was however severely detached from the situation on the ground; Mary and Elizabeth successfully fled London for Norfolk and rallied a decisively large army. John Dudley left London leading a small force, and almost immediately the privy council organized a coup against Jane. Henry FitzAlan, earl of Arundel, and William Herbert, earl of Pembroke, are credited with this. The force disbanded and John Dudley was arrested in Cambridge.
Too many members of court had technically supported Jane's claim at one time or another; pragmatically, charges could not be brought against all of them. While Jane and Guildford were convicted of treason, their sentences were stayed. Only a few of the most prominent leaders (including John Dudley) were executed.
Early the next year, Wyatt's Rebellion broke out with significant involvement from many of those who had been granted reprieve, including Henry Grey. This time the sentences were executed. Furthermore, the stays of execution for Jane and Guildford were lifted. These mass executions caused public opinion in Mary's reign to plummet.