Lady Jane Grey
By
Marlissa Harink
Though once a queen,
this girl was never remember as ‘Queen Jane’ but rather as ‘Lady Jane Grey’. However
more than even that, she is remembered for her great courage and strength in choosing
to do what was right.
Starting from before she
was born we see how times were changing. Christians, who obeyed the Roman
Catholic Church, were fed up with the distracted pope who paid more attention
to riches and power then the Bible and God. These unhappy Christians worked to
bring people back to the simple messages in the Bible. We call these people
reformers. However, how does Jane fit in this? Well when Jane was very little
her uncle King Henry VIII and Jane Seymour (his sixth wife) were blessed with a
son. The King and his wife were undoubtable very happy because they had waited
long for a son to inherit the throne. And this throne came fast! At age nine
Edward was already king, along with a few other men appointed by King Henry to
help him rule until he was eighteen. One of these men was Edwards’s uncle,
Edward Seymour. This man agreed with the reformers and pushed for the Protestant
view to be introduced to England. About this time Jane went to live with Edward
Seymour’s brother and wife to receive a better education. Jane enjoyed it there
a lot and learned lots about the Bible; she was a fast learner and enjoyed
studying immensely.
Many people despised
the new changes King Edward put forth. Princess Mary (Edward’s step sister) was
one of them. However, for the Christians these were good times. It wasn’t long
however, that King Edward became deadly ill. This caused his men and him great
worry. According to the will of his father, King Henry VIII, if Edward died
without children Mary would be the next in line to the throne. That fact is
what caused the worry. Everyone knew what Mary’s stand was; if she became queen
she would lead the country back to the Roman Catholic views and would not allow
freedom of religion. If she succeeded in doing that, all their work for freedom
in the past seven years would be in vain! And with this thought in mind, Edward
put great thought and energy into composing a will in which Jane, his cousin,
would become the new ruler. With his will in place Edward died, leaving Jane
sad and shocked at the proposal of her becoming queen, and even though she does
not want to she took on this new challenge!
When Princess Mary received news that Lady
Jane Grey had become queen she was furious.
Mary’s support grew daily and one day they captured Jane and her husband,
Guildford Dudley, and sent then to London tower as prisoners. Lady Jane Grey had
only ruled for nine days before Mary Tudor claimed the throne for her own. In
these hard times Jane worried about the future of the church in Mary’s rule but
she had great courage, and never forsook her faith. When Jane was still in the
Tower as a prisoner her father and two of her uncles formed a group to kill
Mary or force her off her throne. They were unsuccessful and were sent to the Tower
as prisoners. Because of this Mary was worried that if she didn’t kill Jane
someone else might be successful and put Jane back on the throne. Jane and her
husband received word that they are to be beheaded.
Although she was asked multiple times to
denounce her faith Jane stayed strong saying “I ground my faith on God’s Word
not the church.” Jane wrote a letter to her father and her sister during her
last hours and when the time came, she calmly walked, reading her prayer book
all the way. Her last words were the words Jesus cried from the cross ‘Lord,
into thy hands I commend my spirit.’ Though only a queen for nine days, her courage,
strength and faith will never be forgotten.
Sources:
Englishhistory.net.
.bbc.co.uk
Simonetta
Carr, Lady Jane Grey, Reformation
Heritage Books Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2012
