Lady Jane Grey and the Will to Rule

Lady Jane Grey is usually remembered as a tragic pawn, a frightened girl forced onto the throne by ambitious men. But that story simply doesn’t hold up.
When Jane was told she was queen, she wept and insisted that Mary was the rightful heir. Yet once she learned that Edward VI had named her, she made a deliberate choice. She embraced the crown as God’s will, and she ruled.
This video reveals a very different Jane:
The teenage queen who signed herself “Jane the Quene”
The ruler who ordered troops, guards, curfews, and proclamations
The young woman who chose her husband’s title and took charge of London
The prisoner who refused to bend, denounced Catholicism, and argued theology with the queen’s own chaplain
The sixteen-year-old who faced death with unshakable conviction
Jane Grey was not weak.She was not passive.She was unyielding.
This is Part One of Two Tough Cookies, a two-part series on the rival queens of July 1553.In Part Two, we turn to Mary: the woman who outmanoeuvred every obstacle and claimed her throne.
Watch Jane’s story here , and discover why both queens of 1553 were far tougher than history often admits.
#LadyJaneGrey #QueenJane #TudorHistory #NineDaysQueen #TudorQueens #WomenInHistory #HiddenHistory #HistoryDocumentary #BritishHistory

The 1553 Succession Crisis: A Beginner's Guide

Three Monarchs - 13 Days - One Crown
 
In July 1553, England experienced one of the most volatile succession crises of the Tudor period. In just thirteen days, the crown passed from a dying teenage king, to a proclaimed queen who would never be crowned, and finally to Mary I, who became England’s first crowned queen regnant.This video offers a clear, step-by-step guide to the events of that summer, explaining how and why the succession unravelled so rapidly. It explores Edward VI’s decision to rewrite the succession, the proclamation of Lady Jane Grey, and Mary’s determined response, which transformed a disputed claim into an uncontested victory.Rather than focusing on myth or hindsight, this documentary examines what contemporaries believed was at stake in 1553, religion, legitimacy, and the stability of the realm, and how decisions made in the final weeks of Edward VI’s life shaped England’s future.Drawing on contemporary accounts and modern historical scholarship, including diplomatic reports and eyewitness chronicles, this video explains:
Why Edward believed Mary could not succeed him
How Jane Grey became queen, and why her regime collapsed
How Mary organised support, secured loyalty, and claimed the throne without a pitched battle
This is a beginner-friendly but in-depth exploration of a pivotal moment in Tudor history, designed to give viewers a solid understanding of the July 1553 succession crisis and its wider significance.Presented by historian and author Claire Ridgway.#TudorHistory#MaryITudor#LadyJaneGrey#EdwardVI#SuccessionCrisis#TudorEngland#BritishHistory#HistoryDocumentary#WomenInHistory#TudorQueens

When England Apologised to the Pope

On this day in Tudor history, 30 November 1554, England did something astonishing:Parliament itself asked to be forgiven for the kingdom’s break from Rome.This was the crucial first step toward the full reconciliation I covered in my 12 November 1555 video… but today was where it truly began.In this episode, I explore:✦ Why England couldn’t simply “return” to Rome — it had to be done legally and ceremonially✦ The role of Cardinal Reginald Pole, papal legate and later the last Catholic Archbishop of Canterbury✦ The humble petition presented by Lords and Commons to Mary I and Philip of Spain✦ The dramatic moment Pole, with full papal authority, absolved the realm✦ Why the day was ordered to be commemorated annually with processions, masses, and sermons✦ How the reconciliation was swiftly undone after Elizabeth I’s accessionBefore the public ceremonies of 1555, before the statues and processions, England first had to bow its head, and on this day, it did.If you enjoy travelling through Tudor history with me, please like, subscribe, and ring the bell for more daily videos.
 
12 November 1554 video - When Mary I Turned Back the Clock - https://youtu.be/7Xs5kjM_09A#MaryI #TudorHistory #OnThisDay #EnglishReformation #ReginaldPole #MaryTudor #ReformationHistory #Tudors #HistoryYouTube #ClaireRidgway #BritishHistory #HistoryNerd #CatholicHistory

When Mary I Turned Back the Clock

On this day in Tudor history, 12 November 1555, Queen Mary I turned back the religious clock.Parliament passed the Second Statute of Repeal, restoring papal authority and reuniting England with the Catholic Church after more than twenty years of upheaval.I explore how Mary achieved what had once seemed impossible:
Undoing her father Henry VIII’s break with Rome and her brother Edward VI’s Protestant reforms
Bringing England spiritually home to the Pope
Balancing faith and politics by protecting nobles’ monastic lands
And why, intriguingly, she kept the title “Supreme Head of the Church” even as she restored papal power
For three short years, England was once again Catholic, until Mary’s death in 1558 and Elizabeth I’s sweeping reversal.Was Mary’s vision of unity ever possible in a country so divided by faith?Share your thoughts in the comments below.#TudorHistory #MaryI #CounterReformation #Reformation #QueenMaryI #ClaireRidgway #TheAnneBoleynFiles

From the Tower’s Master to Its Prisoner

On this day in Tudor history, 7th November 1565, Sir Edward Warner, soldier, courtier, Member of Parliament, and twice Lieutenant of the Tower of London, died at his Norfolk home.He was a man who lived at the heart of Tudor politics, serving four monarchs, guarding rebels and queens alike, and somehow surviving the shifting loyalties of an age where one wrong step could mean the scaffold.Warner fought in Scotland, helped defend Norwich during Kett’s Rebellion, and rose high under Edward VI, only to fall when he sided with Lady Jane Grey and the Duke of Northumberland.Under Mary I, he found himself imprisoned in the very Tower he had once commanded.When Elizabeth I came to the throne, his fortunes reversed again, until another scandal erupted involving Lady Katherine Grey, sister of the “Nine Days’ Queen", who somehow became pregnant while in his custody.Sir Edward Warner’s story is one of duty, compassion, and danger, a Tudor survivor who lived through rebellion, imprisonment, and redemption.Join me, Claire Ridgway, as we uncover the life of this remarkable - and often forgotten - man of the Tudor age.#TudorHistory #OnThisDay #TowerOfLondon #KatherineGrey #ElizabethI #HenryVIII #AnneBoleynFiles
 

The Tragic Fall of John Dudley

On this day in Tudor history, 21 October 1554, John Dudley, 2nd Earl of Warwick, died at Penshurst in Kent, just days after being released from the Tower of London.The son of John Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, and brother of Robert Dudley and Guildford Dudley, Warwick was born to power and promise. Knight of the Bath, Master of the Horse, and one of Edward VI’s glittering young courtiers, his rise seemed assured.But the failed attempt to place Lady Jane Grey on the throne destroyed the family’s fortunes. Imprisoned, condemned for treason, and stripped of his titles, Warwick’s freedom came too late. He died in quiet disgrace at his brother-in-law Henry Sidney’s home, aged only in his twenties.I’m historian and author Claire Ridgway, and today we remember the overshadowed John Dudley, Earl of Warwick.#TudorHistory #OnThisDay #Dudley #LadyJaneGrey #EdwardVI #MaryI #PenshurstPlace #TudorTragedy #JohnDudley #TowerofLondon

Katherine Willoughby: Duchess, Exile, Survivor

On this day in Tudor history, 19 September 1580, Katherine Willoughby (Katherine Brandon, later Katherine Bertie), Duchess of Suffolk, died after a long illness and was laid to rest at Spilsby, Lincolnshire.I’m historian and author Claire Ridgway, and today I’m telling the story of one of my favourite Tudor women, a brilliant, resilient figure who moved from court glitter to deepest grief, from duchess to exile and back again, guided by a sharp mind and a fiercer faith.In this episode:
Heiress & child-bride: ward of Charles Brandon and Duchess at 14
Court & conscience: official mourner at Catherine of Aragon’s funeral; hiring Hugh Latimer to preach
Tragedy in 1551: losing both sons to the sweating sickness the same day
Love & exile: marriage to Richard Bertie, flight under Mary I, return under Elizabeth I
Legacy: patronage of reform, Miles Coverdale in her household, and that famous little dog named “Gardiner”
If you enjoy deep dives into remarkable Tudor women, please like, subscribe, and share your thoughts below.#OnThisDay #TudorHistory #KatherineWilloughby #DuchessOfSuffolk #CharlesBrandon #Reformation #SweatingSickness #ElizabethI

She Faced the Flames Cheerfully – The Martyrdom of Joyce Lewis

On this day in Tudor history—10 September 1557—Joyce Lewis was led to the stake at Lichfield for her Protestant faith.Eyewitnesses said she faced the flames with cheerfulness.I’m historian and author Claire Ridgway, and in today’s episode, I share the powerful and heartbreaking story of a Tudor gentlewoman who chose faith and conscience over compliance—with devastating consequences.In this video:
Her noble lineage and tragic first marriage
The moment that changed her faith
Her arrest, trial, and unwavering defence of conscience
Her final toast to gospel believers
The dignity and defiance she showed at the stake
Her lasting legacy, memorialised centuries later in Mancetter
This is the story of a woman whose quiet courage still echoes today.Like, comment, and subscribe for more daily Tudor history stories.What do you think sustained Joyce Lewis’s bravery—faith, community, or sheer inner resolve? Tell me in the comments.Want more Tudor content, including my monthly digital magazine The Privy Chronicle? Consider becoming a channel member and stepping into my Tudor court!#TudorHistory #JoyceLewis #MarianMartyrs #OnThisDay #ProtestantMartyrs #MaryI #ClaireRidgway #TudorWomen #FaithAndFire #HistoryWithHeart #TudorMartyrs #ReformationHistory