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Edward VI of England

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: British History 1500-1750

          Edward Tudor redirects here; for another (though unlikely)
          Edward Tudor, see a putative younger son of Henry VII of
          England, who, if existed, would be the uncle of this Edward

             King Edward VI
          Edward VI of England
   Reign       28 January 1547 - 6 July 1553
   Born        12 October 1537
               Hampton Court Palace
   Died        6 July 1553
               Greenwich Palace
   Predecessor Henry VIII
   Successor   Jane
   Consort     None
   Royal House Tudor
   Father      Henry VIII
   Mother      Jane Seymour

   Edward VI ( 12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) became King of England, King
   of France (in practice only the town and surrounding district of
   Calais) and Ireland on 28 January 1547, at just nine years of age.
   Edward, the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, was the third monarch
   of the Tudor dynasty and England's first ruler who was Protestant at
   the time of his ascension to the throne. Edward's entire rule was
   mediated through a council of regency as he never reached majority. The
   council was first led by his uncle, Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of
   Somerset (1547-49), and then by John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland
   (1549-1553).

   Although Henry VIII had broken the link between the English church and
   Rome, it was during Edward's reign that Protestantism was established
   for the first time in England. It was during Edward's reign that Thomas
   Cranmer, the Archbishop of Canterbury, implemented the Book of Common
   Prayer.

   Edward's reign was marked by increasingly harsh Protestant reforms, the
   loss of control of Scotland, and an economic downturn. A period of
   social unrest begun earlier intensified during his rule, and conflicts
   with the French increased.

   When it became clear that Edward's life was to be a short one, the
   king's advisors persuaded him to attempt to exclude his two half
   sisters, the devout Catholic Mary and moderate Protestant Elizabeth,
   from the line of succession to the throne in order to put the Lady Jane
   Grey, the solidly Protestant daughter-in-law of the chief Regent, next
   in line to succeed the king. Following Edward's death at the age of
   fifteen, a disputed succession reopened the religious conflicts. Lady
   Jane was Queen for only nine days, during that time reigning in name
   only, before she was replaced by Mary. Queen Mary then sought to undo
   many of Edward's Protestant reforms.

Early life

   Prince Edward in 1538Painting by Hans Holbein
   Enlarge
   Prince Edward in 1538
   Painting by Hans Holbein

   Edward was born at Hampton Court Palace in London Borough of Richmond
   upon Thames. He was the son of King Henry VIII by his wife, Jane
   Seymour, who died twelve days afterwards from puerperal fever. It is
   sometimes asserted that Jane sacrificed her life by the performance of
   a Caesarean section, but such assertions are without basis. Henry was
   deeply upset at Jane's death. He described Jane as his only ‘True Wife’
   as she was the only one that provided him with the son he so
   desperately wanted.

   Edward automatically became Duke of Cornwall upon his birth; a few days
   later he was created Prince of Wales. His initial care until the age of
   6 was left to his nurse, Mother Jack, and various servants, but his
   stepmother Queen Catherine Parr later took over that function.

   Henry VIII was extremely pleased by the birth of a male heir. He had
   disposed of his two previous wives, Catherine of Aragon (mother of
   Mary) and Anne Boleyn (mother of Elizabeth), partially because of their
   failure to produce male heirs. Both marriages were annulled: Anne
   Boleyn was executed, and Mary and Elizabeth were deemed illegitimate.
   Despite their illegitimacy, however, they were reinserted into the line
   of succession after Edward VI in 1544.
   Edward at the age of six. Painting by Hans Holbein
   Enlarge
   Edward at the age of six.
   Painting by Hans Holbein

   Up until recently, it has been widely accepted that Edward VI was an
   extremely sickly child. Theories have speculated that he suffered from
   congenital syphilis or from tuberculosis. His first illness,
   experienced at the age of 4, was a "quartan fever" which lasted for
   months. His supposed frailty may have led Henry VIII to quickly seek to
   remarry; the King's last three marriages ( Anne of Cleves, Catherine
   Howard, and Catherine Parr), however, did not produce any children.
   Edward's own journals mention no illness at all apart from a bout of
   measles in 1552, and the pulmonary tuberculosis which killed him. The
   policies of the Duke of Northumberland also indicate that he was making
   a foundation on which Edward was expected to build when he reached his
   majority, rather than expecting Edward to die young.

   Edward's supposed physical difficulties did not impede his education;
   on the contrary, the young prince was a very bright child, already able
   to read and speak Greek and Latin at the age of seven. His principal
   tutors were Bishop Richard Cox, Sir John Cheke and Jean Belmain. These
   were able teachers and great minds at the time and imparted in Edward
   his knowledge of the Classics, seemingly based on the course of
   instruction described by Erasmus and Vives. Importantly, Henry VIII
   chose his tutors because they were humanists: he may also have
   considered their moderate Protestantism when making his choice , as
   Edward was not brought up in the Catholic religion. Edward's education
   was coloured by the Reformation that had swept through the Netherlands
   and Germany. He later learned to speak French and Greek, and, by the
   age of thirteen, he was writing essays into the latter language. He was
   quite fond of his stepmother Catherine Parr, and wrote three letters to
   her, one each in French, English and Latin. The rest of the letters he
   wrote were in Latin to his sisters. Edward also had strong feelings for
   his sister Mary, although these were tempered by their disagreements
   over religion. His love of learning and writing led him to found many
   grammar schools that were named after him.

   As he grew up he noticed that there were not as many people from a
   poorer background attending church so reigned the country by removing
   the most ornate ornaments from the churches; this resulted in King
   Edward bringing himself closer to his people through the use of
   religion.

Under Somerset

Council of Regency

   Edward VI's uncle, Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, ruled England
   in the name of his nephew as Lord Protector from 1547 to 1549.
   Edward VI's uncle, Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, ruled England
   in the name of his nephew as Lord Protector from 1547 to 1549.

   Henry VIII died on 28 January 1547, when Edward was only 9. His will
   named sixteen executors, who were to act as a Council of Regency until
   Edward VI achieved majority at the age of eighteen (although it was
   agreed by the Council in 1552 that Edward would reach his majority at
   16). These executors were to be supplemented by twelve assistants, who
   would participate only when the others deemed it fit. The executors
   were all inclined towards religious reformation, whose most prominent
   opponents, Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk, Stephen Gardiner (the
   Bishop of Winchester) and Thomas Thirlby (the Bishop of Westminster),
   were excluded. The Council immediately appointed the king's maternal
   uncle Edward Seymour, 1st Earl of Hertford to serve as Lord Protector
   of the Realm and Governor of the King's Person during Edward's
   minority. A few days after Henry VIII's death, Lord Hertford was
   created Duke of Somerset and appointed to the influential positions of
   Lord High Treasurer and Earl Marshal. Edward VI was crowned as king at
   Westminister Abbey on 20 February 1547.

   To allay all doubts regarding the validity of Henry VIII's will, all
   the executors sought reappointment from Edward. On 13 March 1547,
   Edward VI created a new Council of twenty-six members. The Council
   consisted of all the executors and assistants, except for Thomas
   Wriothesley, 1st Earl of Southampton (who, whilst serving as Lord
   Chancellor, had illegally delegated some of his powers to other
   officials) and Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset. Somerset, as Lord
   Protector, was supposed to act only on the advice of the other
   executors but was able to gain near complete control of government
   after obtaining the power to change the composition of the Council at
   his whim. The Lord Protector, then, became the real ruler of England
   with Edward VI acting in a largely ceremonial role. Somerset's
   administration of the country would prove to be more merciful than
   tactical and more idealistic than practical; Henry VIII's treason and
   heresy acts were repealed or changed, resulting in social and political
   unrest.

Ineffective rule

   One of the Duke of Somerset's primary aims was to achieve a union
   between England and Scotland. In late 1547, an English army marched
   into Scotland and took control of the Lowlands in the Battle of Pinkie
   Cleugh. This action was the closing chapter in the War of the Rough
   Wooing and in the Anglo-Scottish Wars that had been simmering
   throughout the 16th century. In 1548, however, Mary, the young Scottish
   Queen, was betrothed to the Dauphin Francis, the heir-apparent to the
   French throne, thereby strengthening the alliance between France and
   Scotland.

   The Duke of Somerset was hardly in a position to oppose both France and
   Scotland, as his own position was insecure. His brother, and the
   widower of Catherine Parr, Thomas Seymour, 1st Baron Seymour of
   Sudeley, the Lord High Admiral, took advantage of this weakness by
   hatching a plot to depose Somerset. Lord Seymour's conspiracy, however,
   was exposed in 1549. A bill of attainder was introduced in Parliament
   and passed almost unanimously. Somerset was hesitant to sign his
   brother's death warrant, so Edward very reluctantly gave his consent to
   the Council; Lord Seymour was executed by beheading on 20 March. Thomas
   Seymour was Edward's favourite uncle and his death would embitter the
   young king toward Protector Somerset.
   Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer, was a very important
   influence on Edward's Protestant views
   Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer, was a very important
   influence on Edward's Protestant views

   Another powerful influence on Edward VI was Thomas Cranmer, the
   Archbishop of Canterbury. Both Cranmer and the Duke of Somerset were
   committed to creating a Protestant England. Various Catholic rites were
   replaced with Protestant ones. One of the most notable was Cranmer's
   Book of Common Prayer, which was published solely in English in 1549 to
   replace the four old liturgical books in Latin. The political aim of
   the work was to unite moderate religious factions into a single
   Protestant fold by obscuring the role of the Mass and downplaying the
   status of saints. Its use was enforced by an Act of Uniformity 1549 but
   it served only to antagonise both Protestants and Catholics. Zealous
   reformers such as John Knox were appointed as court chaplains. The Duke
   of Somerset, however, did not encourage persecution; rather, he
   refrained from it, as he feared the wrath of Europe's powerful Catholic
   monarchs, especially Holy Roman Emperor Charles V.

Prayer book rebellion

   The Prayer book rebellion was a movement opposing the Act of
   Uniformity. After Henry VIII broke with the Roman Catholic Church and
   declared his own Church of England in 1536, he never introduced
   hard-line reforms to break completely, as he was still Catholic at
   heart. The Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer, influenced Edward,
   as Prince of Wales, to follow the Protestant faith. When Henry died in
   1547, Cranmer and Somerset sought to have a completely English Church.

   The introduction of the Book of Common Prayer was disapproved of by
   most of England. However, it was especially opposed in Cornwall, as the
   only language spoken there was the native Cornish language and Latin:
   Somerset and Cranmer had assumed that English was spoken all over the
   country. When the protesters explained that they spoke no English,
   Somerset refused to alter the Act: English was to be the language of
   the true English Church. The protesters responded by forming an army of
   up to 3000 men, led by Sir William Body and other prominent Catholic
   landowners. They proceeded to the city of Exeter, which they had
   assumed would support them, but the mayor refused to open the city
   gates. A five-week siege began, during which time London had time to
   formulate a plan of action.

   Somerset sent Sir Peter Carew and his brother to keep the rebels
   occupied until John Russell, 1st Earl of Bedford could gather an army
   to counter the rebellion. Russell, however, was reluctant to attack
   until reinforcements from Italy and Germany arrived. Once Exeter was
   besieged, the rebels moved to attack Russell, but he surprised the main
   body of rebels in marshland, who were saved only by reinforcements. The
   rebels continued their protests against the Act of Uniformity,
   declaring, "and so we Cornishmen, whereof certain of us understand no
   English, utterly refuse this new English".

   Eventually, Russell's promised foreign reinforcements arrived, headed
   by Lord Grey. The counter-attack followed. The rebels went through a
   valley, where they were cut off and slaughtered by Gawen Carew. Over
   4,000 lost their lives, and English soon became the first language.
   However, it did not help Somerset's popularity, and he was soon
   considered a liability.

Somerset's downfall

   Inflation and the cost of war combined to double prices from 1547 to
   1549. The wool industry, however, boomed during this time, through the
   ongoing fencing in or ' enclosure' of the landscape to raise sheep for
   individual proprietors. This often displaced common land and therefore
   caused great social unrest known as the enclosure riots. So, the
   enforced introduction of the Book of Common Prayer on Whit Sunday in
   1549 sparked an uprising known as the Prayer Book Rebellion or Western
   Rebellion.

   On 8 August, taking advantage of internal strife, the French, under
   Henry II, formally declared war on England. The Duke of Somerset became
   extremely unpopular, even among his own Council. In October 1549 he was
   deposed and sent under arrest to the Tower of London by John Dudley,
   Earl of Warwick.

Under Warwick (Northumberland)

The rule of Warwick

   Somerset was deposed, but John Dudley, Earl of Warwick did not make
   himself Lord Protector, and even encouraged Edward VI into declaring
   his majority as soon as he was sixteen. In 1550, Lord Northumberland
   conciliated the peasant rebels and made peace with France, giving up
   all of England's possessions in Scotland and Boulogne without
   compensation. Unlike Somerset, Warwick was a man of action who was full
   of ambition to officially install and enforce an inflexible form of
   Protestantism and enrich himself with land and power.
   John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland, led the Council of Regency
   after the downfall of Somerset
   Enlarge
   John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland, led the Council of Regency
   after the downfall of Somerset

   The rise of the Earl of Warwick (later Duke of Northumberland) was
   accompanied by the fall of Catholicism in England. Use of the Book of
   Common Prayer in all Church services was more strictly enforced and all
   official editions of the Bible were accompanied by anti-Catholic
   annotations. Catholic symbols in churches were desecrated by mobs and
   the Ordinal of 1550 replaced the divine ordination of priests with a
   government-run appointment system. Religious dissenters, moreover, were
   often persecuted and burnt at the stake. In 1550 and 1551, the most
   powerful Roman Catholic Bishops, Edmund Bonner (the Bishop of London),
   Stephen Gardiner (the Bishop of Winchester) and Nicholas Heath (the
   Bishop of Worcester) included, were deposed and their places taken by
   Protestant reformers such as Nicholas Ridley. The Council under Warwick
   also systematically confiscated church territories and Warwick himself
   had the ambition to be the largest landowner in England.

   Meanwhile, the Duke of Somerset, who agreed to submit to Lord Warwick,
   was released from prison and readmitted to the Privy Council. Within a
   few months, he found himself powerful enough to demand the release of
   other political and religious prisoners. He opposed the Council's
   attempt to curtail the religious liberty of Edward's sister, Mary. The
   Duke of Somerset's opposition to the more radical form of religious
   Reformation irked Lord Warwick.

   Warwick attempted to increase his own prestige; on his advice, Edward
   created him Duke of Northumberland and bestowed honours on his numerous
   supporters. The Duke of Northumberland began a campaign to discredit
   the Duke of Somerset. The people of London were informed that the Duke
   of Somerset would destroy their city; Edward was told that the Duke
   would depose and imprison him and seize his Crown. It was also
   suggested that the Duke of Somerset had plotted to murder the Duke of
   Northumberland. In December of 1551, the Duke of Somerset was tried for
   treason on the grounds that he had attempted to imprison a member of
   the King's Council. The treason charge, however, could not be proven;
   instead, Somerset was found guilty of participating in unlawful
   assemblies, but was still sentenced to death. The Duke of Somerset was
   subsequently executed in January 1552.

   On the day after the Duke of Somerset's execution, a new session of
   Parliament began. It passed the Act of Uniformity 1552, under which a
   second Book of Common Prayer was required for church services.
   Unauthorised worship was punishable by up to life imprisonment.

Plot to retain power as Edward is dying

   A power struggle ensued as Edward VI lay dying of tuberculosis
   Enlarge
   A power struggle ensued as Edward VI lay dying of tuberculosis

   During his father's reign Edward had effectively been mollycoddled and
   kept in seclusion. Edward desperately wanted his own freedom, and
   indulged in the early years of his reign with other children of his
   age. He became extremely fond of sports such as tennis. During the
   winter of 1552–53, Edward VI, strained by physical activities in the
   bitter weather, contracted a cold. Doctors tried to help by
   administering various medicines, but their efforts were in vain,
   leaving Edward in perpetual agony. The first symptoms of tuberculosis
   were manifest in January 1553 and by May it was obvious that his
   condition was fatal. Edward was enough the master of his own destiny to
   have concerns about the succession addressed. Having been brought up a
   Protestant, he had no desire to be succeeded by his older half-sister
   and devout Catholic, Mary.

   At the same time, the Duke of Northumberland was eager to retain his
   own power. He did not find the next two individuals in the line of
   succession, Mary and Elizabeth, conducive to his aims. The third
   individual in the line of succession under Henry VIII's will was Lady
   Frances Brandon (the daughter of Henry's younger sister Mary by Charles
   Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk); she, too, was not to Northumberland's
   liking. Northumberland feared that Frances' husband, Henry Grey, 1st
   Duke of Suffolk, would claim the Crown as his own. The Duke of
   Northumberland then foolishly attempted to rule through the Duchess of
   Suffolk's daughter, the Lady Jane Grey. Jane was married off to the
   Duke of Northumberland's younger son, Guilford Dudley.
   Northumberland plotted to have his daughter-in-law, the Lady Jane,
   placed next in line to succeed Edward
   Enlarge
   Northumberland plotted to have his daughter-in-law, the Lady Jane,
   placed next in line to succeed Edward

   On 11 June 1553, Northumberland commanded senior judges to draw up a
   draft will for Edward. The plan was illegal for many reasons; firstly,
   a minor did not have the authority to make a will. Furthermore,
   Edward's will had not been authorised by any Act of Parliament, whilst
   Henry's will (which Northumberland sought to abrogate), had been
   specifically authorised by an Act passed in 1544. The judges at first
   resisted giving in to the Duke of Northumberland's demands, as it was
   treason to attempt to vary the laws of succession established in 1544.
   Edward, however, ensured their co-operation by promising a pardon under
   the Great Seal.

   The first draft of the will excluded Mary, Elizabeth, the Duchess of
   Suffolk and the Lady Jane from the line of succession on the theory
   that no woman could rule England. The Crown was to be left to the Lady
   Jane's heirs-male. This plan, however, was not to Northumberland's
   liking (probably because Lady Jane had no male heirs at this time,
   having been married only a month or so before); the draft was changed
   to leave the Crown to Jane and her heirs-male. Mary and Elizabeth were
   excluded because they were officially illegitimate; the Duchess of
   Suffolk agreed to renounce her own claims. As Edward VI lay dying, the
   Duke of Northumberland (according to legend) symbolically stole the
   crown from him and gave it to his daughter-in-law, the Lady Jane.

Edward's death and aftermath

   Edward VI died at Greenwich Palace on 6 July 1553, either of
   tuberculosis, arsenic poisoning, or syphilis. His last words were said
   to have been: "Oh my Lord God, defend this realm from papistry and
   maintain their true religion." He was buried in Henry VII Lady Chapel
   at Westminster Abbey by Thomas Cranmer with Protestant rites on 9
   August, while Mary had Mass said for his soul in the Tower.
   Edward's half sister and devout Catholic, Mary, succeeded him after the
   nine day reign of Lady Jane
   Enlarge
   Edward's half sister and devout Catholic, Mary, succeeded him after the
   nine day reign of Lady Jane

   Edward VI's death was kept secret for a couple of days so that
   preparations could be made for Jane's accession. High civic authorities
   privately swore their allegiance to the new Queen, who was not publicly
   proclaimed until 10 July. But the people were much more supportive of
   Mary, the rightful heir under the Act of Succession. On 19 July, Mary
   rode triumphantly into London, and Jane was forced to give up the
   Crown. Jane's proclamation was revoked as an act done under coercion;
   her succession was deemed unlawful. Thus, Edward VI's de jure successor
   was Mary I (1553–58), but his de facto successor was Jane.

   The Duke of Northumberland was executed, but the Lady Jane and her
   father were originally spared. In 1554, when Mary faced Wyatt's
   Rebellion, the Duke of Suffolk once again attempted to put his daughter
   on the throne. For this crime, Jane, her husband and the Duke of
   Suffolk were executed.

   After Edward VI's death at the age of fifteen, rumours of his survival
   persisted. To take advantage of the people's delusions, several
   impostors were put forward as rightful Kings. These impersonations
   continued throughout Mary I's reign, and even far into Elizabeth I's
   reign (1558–1603). Mistaken identities also feature in the American
   author Mark Twain's novel, The Prince and the Pauper, in which the
   young Edward VI and a pauper boy of identical appearance accidentally
   replace each other.

Style and arms

   Like his father, Edward VI was referred to with the styles "Majesty",
   "Highness" and "Grace". His official style was of the same form as his
   father: "Edward the Sixth, by the Grace of God, King of England, France
   and Ireland, Defender of the Faith and of the Church of England and
   also of Ireland in Earth Supreme Head".

   Edward VI's arms were the same as those used by his predecessors since
   Henry IV: Quarterly, Azure three fleurs-de-lys Or (for France) and
   Gules three lions passant guardant in pale Or (for England).

   His Royal Motto was idem per diversa, the same whatever the
   circumstances (similar to Elizabeth the I's - semper eadem, Always the
   same).

Edward in fiction

   Edward VI is featured in Mark Twain's novel The Prince and the Pauper,
   as the young king and a pauper boy accidentally exchange places.

   In the current Tomb Raider canon, the Croft Family was granted the
   title and rights to Abbingdon, Surrey, in 1547.

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