Lady Jane Grey: A Tudor Mystery
ISBN: 978-1-444-35018-0
October 2011
Wiley-Blackwell
400 pages
ISBN: 978-1-444-35018-0
October 2011
Wiley-Blackwell
400 pages
In July 1553 the death of the childless Edward VI threw the Tudor dynasty into crisis. On Edward's instructions his cousin Jane Grey was proclaimed queen, only to be ousted 13 days later by his illegitimate half sister Mary and later beheaded. In this radical reassessment, Eric Ives rejects traditional portraits of Jane both as hapless victim of political intrigue or Protestant martyr. Instead he presents her as an accomplished young woman with a fierce personal integrity. The result is a compelling dissection by a master historian and storyteller of one of history’s most shocking injustices.
The first major study of the 1553 crisis, created after Edward VI’s untimely death left the Tudor dynasty in turmoil
Presents a vivid portrait of Lady Jane Grey, one of the least studied figures of English history, depicting Jane as a forceful, educated individual
Subjects Jane’s writings to an original literary and religious analysis
Demonstrates that Edward VI’s will gave Jane and her supporters strong legal grounds for her claim to the throne
Offers a fresh assessment of other characters involved in the 1553 accession crisis: including Edward VI; Mary Tudor; and John Dudley, duke of Northumberland
Illuminates the inner workings of Tudor politics and the exercise of power in Early Modern England