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The Boy King

Writer's picture: Nicholas HodgsonNicholas Hodgson


28th January 1547

 

Nine-year-old Edward Tudor becomes King of England upon the death of his father, King Henry VIII.

 

England has had several child rulers – including one King who inherited the throne as a baby, (Henry VI) but the last and possibly most tragic, is young Edward VI who became King at the ripe old age of nine and died only six years later at the age of fifteen.

 

So what do we know about King Edward VI?

 

Not much actually. Technically he was an orphan the moment he took the throne because both his father (obviously) and his mother (while giving birth to him) had died.

As he was only a child, a regency council was established to rule England on his behalf. In reality what that meant was that he didn’t get to do a whole lot of ruling. Indeed, most of his time with taken up with education, as the young King was tutored in everything he was expected to know once he reached his majority (old enough to rule on his own) and took power.

 

We do know that Edward was crowned on February 20th at Westminster Abbey – the ceremony shortened from the usual four hours in order that the King might not get restless and bored (can you imagine making a nine-year-old sit through a four-hour religious ceremony where he was centre of attention?)

 

We know also that there was entertainment during the procession from the coronation, such as Spanish tightrope walkers who made the King laugh.



At the age of thirteen, Edward was betrothed (promised to marry) the daughter of the King of France. This would bring the English and French Monarchy’s into a close alliance which was beneficial to both countries.

 

And had Edward survived, married, and had children – it would be his children who would have succeeded him on the throne.

 

But Edward didn’t marry and didn’t have children.

 

When he became ill in early 1553, there was an attempt to pass the throne to his cousin – the Lady Jane Grey, upon his death on account of his sister Mary (next in line for the throne) being a Catholic and many people not wanting a Catholic on the throne.

 

But it wasn’t to be.

 

King Edward VI became ill in January 1553. He would survive another six months, eventually succumbing to what most historians agree was tuberculosis on July 6th 1553, at the age of 15.

 

The throne would next pass to his sister Mary who reigned as England’s first Queen – Mary the First, until her death, without children, in 1558.

 

Edward’s other sister, Elizabeth, then succeeded to the throne and unlike her brother and sister, she would rule As Queen Elizabeth the First for over forty years – one of England’s greatest and most admired monarchs.

 

A line of succession that began, on a cold winter’s day in 1547, as a nine-year-old boy was proclaimed King of England.

 

Side note: King Edward isn’t exactly the luckiest name for a King of England. Edward II was deposed and murdered by his family, Edward the IV died suddenly in the late 15th century, Edward the V (also a boy King – succeeding to the throne at the age of 12) was deposed by his Uncle (Richard III) and disappeared under mysterious circumstances in the tower of London. Edward VII would be the opposite of Edward VI – he was almost sixty when he became King in 1901 and only ruled for nine years until his death. And Edward VIII ruled for only eleven months before abdicating the throne in 1936.

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