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The Odd Case of Lady Jane Gray
The royal family was really tough in her day.
In years gone by I used to write a “this day in history” bit for radio stations. I still peruse various references that deal with history while looking for story ideas. I recently came across information regarding Lady Jane Grey under July 19. The reference said Lady Jane Grey was deposed as Queen of England on this day in 1553. There’s so much more to the story than that.
If you’ve read my stuff, you know I usually write humor And you also probably notice, that image looks pretty grim. Well, tragedy, plus comedy equals humor. It’s been over 500 years, but it still may be too soon.
Jane Gray is also known as the “Nine Days” Queen. Nine days is a short shelf life for a ruler, even in a banana republic. Back in the 1500s, English royals got around quite a bit, if you know what I mean. It sometimes clouded the road to the throne of England.
That scamp, Henry the VIII married numerous women and produced various female heirs, whacking their mothers as he went. I tried to connect the dots between Henry the VIII and Lady Jane, but the combination of a messed-up royal line and lack of caffeine gave me a headache, so I gave up. I know the combination of illegitimate kids and royal wills gave rise to a situation that saw Jane Gray be named Queen of England for nine days. Jane…
