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To What Extent Was the Duke of Northumberland’s Ambitions Responsible for Lady Jane Grey’s Demise?

=International Baccalaureate History Internal Assessment=

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Content


 * 3 ** Plan of the Investigation


 * 4 ** Summary of Evidence


 * 7 ** Evaluation of Sources


 * 8 ** Analysis


 * 10 ** Conclusion

Bibliography

This essay will assess the ‘extent to which the Duke of Northumberland’s ambitions where responsible for Lady Jane Grey’s demise.’ I will focus on the factors contributing to her short reign, which put England on the brink of a Civil War in July 1553 and her rapid fall from power. I chose this question because I find the Tudors an intriguing and engaging period in British History. My particular focus on Lady Jane Grey is motivated by the fact that she appears to be overlooked as a significant historical figure, although at the tender age of sixteen she was the first woman to wield the power of a Tudor monarch – if even for just 9 days. Often depicted as an innocent victim of others ambitions, she was in fact a strong willed, extremely well educated and precocious young lady, and perhaps not as malleable as some historians would make out. I have structured my analysis around the personal motivations of key individuals that plotted to change the natural succession to the throne as laid out in King Henry VIII will, as well as the religious, political and military factors why this coup failed. To keep the scope of the study manageable, I have made use of a variety of carefully selected sources, in particular the following historic novel The Sisters who would be Queen[1] and the film ‘Lady Jane’[2]. I have also used other sources including websites[3] and articles[4].
 * Plan of Investigation**

In spring of 1553, realizing Edward VI was on his death bed, the Duke of Northumberland devised a plot to ensure the Lady Jane would become queen, and he would retain power. The plot amounted to a coup which consisted of persuading Edward VI to change his father’s will in his ‘Devise for the Succession’[5] to instate as his successor the protestant Lady Jane Grey in place of his Catholic half-sister, Mary, should he die without heirs. Changing the line of succession to the fourth in line, involved disinheriting the Kings half-sisters the Ladies Mary and Elizabeth on the grounds that they were bastards and therefore not legally entitled to inherit the crown, and persuading Frances Brandon, the Kings cousin and third in line to relinquish her claim in favor of her daughter, Lady Jane. Frances Brandon, having little inclination for the “burdensome weight of government” and enjoying “the privileges of high rank without too much responsibility”[6] was quick to cede her place to her daughter. The young king committed to the ‘true religion’ and loathed to see his and his father’s efforts reversed after his death should the Lady Mary succeed him, agreed to draft and sign the ‘Devise’ overriding the parliamentary statute of 1544 governing his father’s will for the succession. As Edward VI’s Chief Minister, Northumberland controlled the court, parliament and military and was thus able to persuade the Privy Council to approve it. Furthermore, to ensure their compliance, Northumberland had them sign a second document drawn up by himself, “in which they promise to support the future Queen Jane to the utmost of their power and undertake never at any time to swerve from this resolution” and there he has them as he goes on to claim.[7] Fearing that if Mary succeeded to the throne, he would lose his life, and not trusting Elizabeth to keep him in her service, “I would not like to tangle with Elizabeth – she has no worth for my purposes” [8], Northumberland aimed to secure his power, and so arranged the marriage of his youngest son John Dudley to the Lady Jane in the hope that once she became queen his son would also become king, and he would be able to retain power and influence. The Duke and Duchess of Suffolk, Lady Jane Grey’s parents, complied with Northumberland’s plans as they risked losing both their heads and their wealth should the Lady Mary ascend to the throne. Both were protestant and reformists, although the Duchess claimed to “have secretly flirted with the reformed faith, but with no great conviction”[9]. As such they risked being sentenced to death as heretics In addition, under Catholic rule they, like many other nobles of their time who grew rich from the pickings of absolved abbeys and priories, risked losing their property. The Suffolk’s lavish lifestyle had “incurred debts that would prove an embarrassment to the father of the future Queen”. Debts, that they had “no means of paying off”[10], so they could ill afford to lose their capital. The coup succeeded for nine days. On Sunday 9th July 1553, Northumberland, as the President of the Council, gave Jane the official news of Edward’s death and outlined the contents of the document that confirmed that she had been named as his heir. Her initial response was to fall to the floor crying and proclaimed “The crown is not my right. This pleases me not at all. The Lady Mary is the rightful heir”[11]. On the 10th, Lady Jane Grey was proclaimed Queen of England. In defiance of Edward’s will, Mary declared herself Queen upon confirmation of his death and mobilized ‘innumerable companies of the common people,’[12] nobleman and kinsmen. Unlike Queen Jane, who used the threat of “strangers and papists”[13] to rally her troops, Mary was able to rely on the loyalty of the people to the Tudor name and their fear of the country being ruled by Northumberland and his family whom they disliked. At Framlingham Castle in Suffolk, Mary personally inspected her army, whose loyalty and respect she had won. As she walked along the line “each man kept rank and did not even move a finger’s breadth from the position assigned him.”[14] Meanwhile back at the Tower in London munitions and men were being gathered to be sent against Mary. “Three cartloads of guns, small bows, arrows, spears, pikes, amour, gunpowder, tents and victuals all rumbled into the fortress,”[15] On the East Anglian coast five warships were sent to patrol to prevent Mary escaping by sea. Jane wrote letters demanding allegiance from sheriffs and justices of the peace, reminding them to “Remain fast in their obeisance and duty to the Crown…”[16] Her original choice to lead her army was her father saying she could have “no safer defense for her Majesty than her own loving father.”<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[17] However, after realizing he had been unwell having suffered from fainting fits, she urged the Privy Council to elect a replacement. Although the film ‘Lady Jane’ suggests that Guilford Dudley nominated his own father to prove his “honesty.”<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[18] According to Weir, Jane herself ordered Northumberland to lead her army, referring to his military prowess to justify her choice. This decision is approved by the Lords of Arundel, Pembroke, Huntingdon and Winchester who, although initial accomplices in his plot, all bare grudges against him and are keen to see him fall and our concerned about his increasing power and influence as the father-in-law of the Queen and his maneuvers to make his son king. Northumberland is suspicious as to why his fellow councilors are so eager for him to leave the capital he leaves, but accepts retorting: “well, since ye think it good, I and mine will go, not doubting of your fidelity…”<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[19] On the 14th July Northumberland and Jane’s army leave for East Anglia, outnumbered 3,000 to 30,000. Crowds had gathered to see Northumberland leave London but “not one sayeth God speed to us”.<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[20] By the 18th July, the troops on the warships had mutinied and joined Mary’s forces at Framlingham Castel. Despite provisions made to pay his forces in advance<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[21], the reinforcements Northumberland was expecting to meet up with in Cambridge did not arrive. Lavish living and earlier wars against Scotland and France had emptied the treasury and left little to muster an army. On July 19th the council repudiated Jane’s claim to the throne and the following day Northumberland himself proclaimed Mary queen, turning Jane and her husband Guildford from Sovereign to prisoners in the Tower.
 * Summary of Evidences**

Leanda De Lisle’s historic bibliography ‘The Sisters who would be Queen’ about Mary, Katharine and Lady Jane Grey, was my primary source. Lenda De Lisle is a recognized historian having read history at Somerville College, Oxford University. She has also had numerous books and articles published for new papers such as the //Daily Express. Considering, one would find her research furally and clearly referenced. As she has her professional reputation to uphold.// The film ‘Lady Jane’ is a historical drama, written by Chris Bryant and David Edgar and directed by Trevor Nunn. As a film, distortions of facts are likely, for events must be condensed, complexities of ideologies and politics simplified. An example of this is how Lady Jane, played by Helen Bonham Carter is portrayed as having a close and loving relationship with her husband, although there is no evidence to support this. Furthermore, to make it more entertainment, narrative has taken is made more important than accuracy of detail. These factors make it limiting as a reliable source. However at point 98:33 where the Lady Jane is woken up by her husband and told to hurry to the council room and told there is no need for her to dress as there was no one there. This depicts the extent of betray she experienced from her emotively councilors and how quick they where to change sides.
 * Evaluation of Sources**

So then how did Jane come to the thrown as Queen, instead of Mary? And, why did she ever last the nine days that she did? Fear. Firstly, the fear that England would be sucked into the Hapsburg empires and made to join the Spanish war against France if Mary where to marry Philip II of Spain her second cousin. Secondly, the fear of reconciliation with Rome, having Mary excluded from the succession and “the Lady Jane and her male heirs”<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[22] erected in their place had particularly the vested interest of the aristocracy and gentry who had bought the monastic lands sold off during the Dissolution of the Monasteries’ under Henry VIII’s reign. However, there were still many common people who would not have called themselves active Protestants but rather pragmatists who accepted the religion of the crown rather than encourage divisions that could lead to violence. Most damaging politically towards the success of the coup was betrayal within the Privy Council, the Earls of Arundel and Pembroke in particular. Although their ‘turn coat’ proved significant it was not all that surprising. Arundel had been a conspirator to Somerset’s plot to bring down Northumberland in 1551, and imprisoned by Northumberland he had only been remitted to the council in July in the hope he would not join Mary, “but at the price of my own integrity, I fear” he claims<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[23]. Pembroke had lost his post as Master of the Horse to Northumberland’s eldest son just the year before. They could see their hatred of Northumberland was shared throughout the realm, and prepared to exploit this weakness. Their moment came on the 18th July when Jane placed ‘our right trusty and right well-beloved cousins, the Earls of Arundel and Pembroke’ <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[24] in charge of leading troops into Buckinghamshire to face Mary’s ever growing forces. Now with Jane’s trust and resources at their disposal there treachery would sting all the more.In the end all Jane’s generals abandoned or betrayed her including the Earls. The abandonment of Northumberland by the army as well as the councilors could be because he was widely hated and distrusted. He was the son of a traitor Edmund Dudley, who had been finance minister under Henry VII. After 1512 when the Bill of Attainder being imposed on his family was removed he crawled back up the court’s social ladder, this was done in large part by his victory over the Scots at Pinkie in 1547,and later the Norfolk rebels in 1549. Northumberland had failed to arrest Mary prior to proclaiming Jane queen. Mary fled to East Anglia – the region where Dudley had ruthlessly put down the Ket rebellion. It was an area where there was little support for the man who had done nothing to help the rural poor and where “most were conservative and would have had an instinctive loyalty to the daughter of Henry VIII”.<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[25] In the film ‘Lady Jane’ (time) is appears that Northumberland did not bargained on the support of the people to for whom they believed to be the rightful heir to the throne. The question of ‘legitimacy over religion?’ was answered too late, when it was evident that mostly all people could over look religious threat of Catholicism for their loyalty to the Tudor name and faith in Mary’s legitimacy. Jane Underestimated how protestant English people really were. Many including Jane’s mother herself, were happy to return to the Religion of their birth if the law required it. “I will have few qualms about converting back to the religion of my childhood, if the law requires it of me.” <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[26] Dudley was a protestant although historians are skeptical as to whether this was genuinely spiritual or of a practical nature to gain wealth and power. Many assessed his plot to put Lady Jane, his daughter-in-law on the throne, and make his son King as little more than a means for him to consolidate his power and wealth. There had been rumors for years that he sought the crown, based on nothing but fear and hatred of him.<span style="color: #000000; font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[27]
 * Analysis **

Lady Jane Grey’s greatest weakness was her youth; she was still only an adolescent with strong beliefs. She was very obstinate in her faith as her father raised her to be. Jane may have had many flaws that contributed to her down fall but she was no weakling, she was well respected in academic circles in Belgium and Switzerland with whom she corresponds on religious matters. She also saw through Northumberland and was not as malleable as he would have hoped. Her sending him to fight was perhaps not so innocent. Refusing to make her husband king alongside her and sighing official documents as ‘Jane the Queen’<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[28] showed she intended to rule. Contrary to these views Revisionist Historians have forcibly argued that Jane was little more than a manipulated child, over time “reducing her to an eroticized image of female helplessness.”<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[29] “Yet she had been raised to be a leader of one side of an ideological struggle, in which her co-religionist were facing the greatest confrontation of her life time.”<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[30] Weir suggests that Lady Jane may have believed that her becoming queen was God’s will in order to keep England protestant and safeguard the secular reforms made by Edward Vi “Is it possible that I, a poor weak vessel, am destined to be His instrument?”<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[31]

The causes underlying the failure of this rebellion could be attributed to (x) main factors:

Conclusion: you could say something about the fact that given that through Northumberland Jane held all the power in the land (government, military etc) that the coup could better be described as Marys triumph over Jane than vice versa. Or the triumph of the just cause - the people of England did not consider this rebellion to be for a rightful cause – legitimists. Bibliography Books Alison Weir, Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey, Arrow,6th November 2007 Eric Ives, Lady Jane Grey: A Tudor Mystery,<span style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Wiley-Blackwell; 1 edition, October 17, 2011, 1444350188

Leanda De Lisle, The Sisters who would be Queen: The Tragedy of Mary, Katherine and Lady Jane Grey, Harper Press, 2009, ISBN 0007219059 (ISBN13: 9780007219056)

Websites Chris Trueman, John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, History Learning Site, 2000- 2013, www.historylearningsite.co.uk/john_dudley_northumberland.htm Claire, The Elizabeth Files: The real truth about Queen Elizabeth I, Sitemap, Wordpress installation and design, 10th July 2010, www.elizabethfiles.com/lady-jane-grey-proclaimed-queen/3934/ Faculty, The death of Edward, fall of Northumberland and “Queen Jane”, J.P. Sommerville, [|faculty.history.wisc.edu/sommerville/123/123%20242%20Northumberland.htm] [|/ faculty.history.wisc.edu/sommerville/361/361-12.htm] Lara Eakins, Mary I Queen of England, The Tudor Monarchs, Tudor History, 6th February 2012,[|tudorhistory.org/mary/] Leanda de Lisel,Biography, Leanda de Lisele, 2013, www.leandadelisle.com/about/ Articles The Economist, intelligent life, Debuking the Myth of Lady Jane Grey, Leanda de Lisle Films Trevor Nunn, Lady Jane, Film, Historical Drama Biography, Peter Snell, Paramount Pictures, 7 February 1986

<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[1] Leanda De Lisle, The Sisters who would be Queen: The Tragedy of Mary, Katherine and Lady Jane Grey, Harper Press, 2009, ISBN 0007219059 (ISBN13: 9780007219056) <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">[2] Trevor Nunn, Lady Jane, Film, Historical Drama Biography, Peter Snell, Paramount Pictures, 7 February 1986 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[3] The Economist, intelligent life, Debuking the Myth of Lady Jane Grey, Leanda de Lisle <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[4] Chris Trueman, John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, History Learning Site, 2000- 2013, www.historylearningsite.co.uk/john_dudley_northumberland.htm Claire, The Elizabeth Files: The real truth about Queen Elizabeth I, Sitemap, Wordpress installation and design, 10th July 2010, www.elizabethfiles.com/lady-jane-grey-proclaimed-queen/3934/ Faculty, The death of Edward, fall of Northumberland and “Queen Jane”, J.P. Sommerville, [|faculty.history.wisc.edu/sommerville/123/123%20242%20Northumberland.htm] [|/ faculty.history.wisc.edu/sommerville/361/361-12.htm] Lara Eakins, Mary I Queen of England, The Tudor Monarchs, Tudor History, 6th February 2012, [|tudorhistory.org/mary/]

<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">[5] Edward VI’s ‘Devise for the Succession’ in his own hand altered his will to allow Lady Jane Grey to succeed him. Inner Temple Library, London, Petyt MS 538 vol. 47, f. 317

<span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">[6] Alison Weir, Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey, Arrow,6th November 2007 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">[7] Alison Weir, Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey, Arrow,6th November 2007 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">[8] Alison Weir, Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey, Arrow,6th November 2007 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">[9] Alison Weir, Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey, Arrow,6th November 2007 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">[10] Alison Weir, Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey, Arrow,6th November 2007 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">[11] Alison Weir, Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey, Arrow,6th November 2007 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">[12] Leanda De Lisle, The Sisters who would be Queen: The Tragedy of Mary, Katherine and Lady Jane Grey, Harper Press, 2009, ISBN 0007219059 (ISBN13: 9780007219056), Wriothesley and Hamilton, Chronicle, Vol. I, p.87 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">[13] Leanda De Lisle, The Sisters who would be Queen: The Tragedy of Mary, Katherine and Lady Jane Grey, Harper Press, 2009, ISBN 0007219059 (ISBN13: 9780007219056), Harris, Literary Remains, p. lvi <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">[14] Leanda De Lisle, The Sisters who would be Queen: The Tragedy of Mary, Katherine and Lady Jane Grey, Harper Press, 2009, ISBN 0007219059 (ISBN13: 9780007219056) Wingfield, ‘Vita Mariae Reginae’, p.265 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">[15] Leanda De Lisle, The Sisters who would be Queen: The Tragedy of Mary, Katherine and Lady Jane Grey, Harper Press, 2009, ISBN 0007219059 (ISBN13: 9780007219056), Nichols (ed.), Machyn, p. 34. <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">[16] Leanda De Lisle, The Sisters who would be Queen: The Tragedy of Mary, Katherine and Lady Jane Grey, Harper Press, 2009, ISBN 0007219059 (ISBN13: 9780007219056)Harris, Literary Remains, p. lvi <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">[17] Leanda De Lisle, The Sisters who would be Queen: The Tragedy of Mary, Katherine and Lady Jane Grey, Harper Press, 2009, ISBN 0007219059 (ISBN13: 9780007219056), Wingfield, ‘Vita Mariae Reginae’, p.262 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">[18] Trevor Nunn, Lady Jane, Film, Historical Drama Biography, Peter Snell, Paramount Pictures, 7th February 1986. <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[19] Leanda De Lisle, The Sisters who would be Queen: The Tragedy of Mary, Katherine and Lady Jane Grey, Harper Press, 2009, ISBN 0007219059 (ISBN13: 9780007219056) <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">[20] Leanda De Lisle, The Sisters who would be Queen: The Tragedy of Mary, Katherine and Lady Jane Grey, Harper Press, 2009, ISBN 0007219059 (ISBN13: 9780007219056), Ibid. p.8. <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">[21] Alison Weir, Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey, Arrow,6th November 2007 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">[22] Edward VI’s ‘Devise for the Succession’ in his own hand altered his will to allow Lady Jane Grey to succeed him. Inner Temple Library, London, Petyt MS 538 vol. 47, f. 317 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">[23] Alison Weir, Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey, Arrow,6th November 2007 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">[24] Leanda De Lisle, The Sisters who would be Queen: The Tragedy of Mary, Katherine and Lady Jane Grey, Harper Press, 2009, ISBN 0007219059 (ISBN13: 9780007219056), Ibid. p.8. Ibid.,pp.lvii,lviii. <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">[25] History Learning Site, accession Crisis of 1553. <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">[26] Alison Weir, Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey, Arrow,6th November 2007 <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[27] Leanda De Lisle, The Sisters who would be Queen: The Tragedy of Mary, Katherine and Lady Jane Grey, Harper Press, 2009, ISBN 0007219059 (ISBN13: 9780007219056) <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">[28] Leanda De Lisle, The Sisters who would be Queen: The Tragedy of Mary, Katherine and Lady Jane Grey, Harper Press, 2009, ISBN 0007219059 (ISBN13: 9780007219056) (fig. 2.) <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 13.3333px;">[29] <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 14.6667px;">[30] Leanda De Lisle, The Sisters who would be Queen: The Tragedy of Mary, Katherine and Lady Jane Grey, Harper Press, 2009, ISBN 0007219059 (ISBN13: 9780007219056) <span style="font-family: 'Calibri','sans-serif'; font-size: 10.6667px;">[31] Alison Weir, Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey, Arrow,6th November 2007