EDWARD VI. (1537-5:11. King of England from 1547 to 1353. The son of Henry VIII. by his third wife. Jane Seymour. Edward was horn at Hampton Court, October 12. 15:17. lle sue veeded to the throne at his father's death, .Thim ar• 2S. 1547, his uncle, Edward Seymour, Earl of Ile•tford, being chosen Protector and created Duke of Somerset. Edward received a careful education, and was a studious. religious, and precocious youth; hut he was too young to exer cise any personal influence on the important events of his reign. His religious convictions. however, were shared by the l'roteeto•, who fa vored the principles of the lieformation, and 'lur ing his rule great strides were made toward the establishment of Protestantism in England. The images were removed from the the laity were allowed the cup at the ceremony of the Lord's Supper; Henry's famous six articles (known as the Bloody Statute) were repealed; and a new service book, known as the First Prayer Book of Edward VI. (see PRAYER Boot:, COM AION ) was compiled by Craniner and Rid ley, assisted by eleven other divines, and or dered to be used. During the first year of the protectorate Seymour invaded Scotland, On ae count of the refusal of the Scottish Government to fulfill the contract into wide]] it had entered with Henry VIII. that Nary Queen of Scots should marry Edward. At the battle of Pinkie, September 10, 1517. the Seats were completely beaten; hut Seymour, before be could inflict other damage, was required at home, and re turned to find that his brother, Lord Seymour, had been intriguing against him. Somerset had him arrested, tried, 111141 condemned for treason, and on March 30, 1540, he was beheaded on Tower llill. In the summer of the same year the Protector quelled an insurrection of the populace headed by one Kett. a tanner; lint a more dan
gerous adversary appeared in John Dudley. Earl of War•iek, party, by insinuations against Somerset. exeited the nation against hini and compelled the King to sign his deposition. In 1ctober, 1551, Somerset was placed in the Tower; and on December 1st lie was tried before the house of Lords for treason, condemned, and executed, January 22. 1532. Before Somerset's execution Dudley had been created Duke of Northumberland. lie was (judging front his dying deelaration) a Catholic, took no action to the old religion. His great aim was to secure the succession to the throne of England tor his family. With this view he mar ried hi- -on. Lord Guildford Dudley, to Lady Jane Grey, daughter of the Duchess of to whom Henry VIII. hail willed the crown in default of issue by Edward. Mary. or Elizabeth. Northumberland worked upon the consumptive and dying Edward to exclude Mary and Eliza beth on the ground of illegitimacy, and to nom inate Lady Jane Grey as his successor. Edward' consented. and a doemnent settling the succession on this lady was up in June, 1553. The King lived only a few weeks after. dying on July 6. educational accomplishments were somewhat discounted by shrewdness and a hardness of character, which were exemplified by marked callousness when signing the death warrants of Seymour and Somerset. Edward VT. restored many of the grammar schools suppressed by Henry V111. These schools are still known as King Edward's schools. Consult: Nichol, Liter ary Ilemains of Edward VI. (2 vols., London, 1857) ; Gasquet and Bishop. Edward VI. and the Book of Common Prayer (London, 1891) : Hayward. Life and flaiyne of King Edward the Let (London. 1630).