Queen Mary I (1553 - 1558)
Name: Queen Mary I
Born: February 18, 1516 at Greenwich Palace
Parents: Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon
Relation to Charles III: 1st cousin 14 times removed
House of: Tudor
Ascended to the throne: July 19, 1553 aged 37 years
Crowned: October 1, 1553 at Westminster Abbey
Married: Philip II of Spain
Children: None
Died: November 17, 1558 at St James Palace, London, aged 42 years, 8 months, and 29 days
Buried at: Westminster
Reigned for: 5 years, 3 months, 29 days
Succeeded by: her half sister Elizabeth
Queen of England from 1553. She was the eldest daughter of Henry VIII by Catherine of Aragón. When Edward VI died, Mary secured the crown without difficulty in spite of the conspiracy to substitute Lady Jane Grey. In 1554 Mary married Philip II of Spain, and as a devout Roman Catholic obtained the restoration of papal supremacy and sanctioned the persecution of Protestants. The number of executions earned her the name 'Bloody Mary'. She was succeeded by her half-sister Elizabeth I.
Queen Mary I's Signature
Timeline for Queen Mary I
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 1553 | Lady Jane Grey is proclaimed Queen by her father-in-law The Duke of Northumberland. After nine days, Mary arrives in London, Lady Jane Grey is arrested, and Mary is crowned Queen. |
| 1554 | After Mary declares her intention to marry Philip of Spain, Sir Thomas Wyatt leads a revolt to depose her. |
| 1554 | Wyatt’s rebellion is crushed. Sir Thomas Wyatt, Lady Jane Grey, and her husband are executed. |
| 1554 | Mary's half-sister Princess Elizabeth is sent to the Tower of London on suspicion of involvement in Wyatt's rebellion |
| 1554 | Mary marries Philip of Spain heir to the Spanish throne. |
| 1554 | Four months after Mary's accession, Parliament meets to re-establish Catholicism in England |
| 1554 | The persecution of Protestants begins, the heresy laws are revived, and England is reconciled to Papal authority. |
| 1555 | Protestant bishops are burned at the stake for heresy. |
| 1555 | Princess Elizabeth (later Elizabeth I) is released from the Tower of London |
| 1556 | Cardinal Reginald Pole is appointed Archbishop of Canterbury. |
| 1556 | Thomas Cranmer, former Archbishop of Canterbury, is burned at the stake for heresy. |
| 1556 | Philip becomes King Philip II of Spain; he leaves England, never to return |
| 1557 | Philip II persuades Mary to declare war on France as an ally of Spain. |
| 1558 | Port of Calais, the last English possession in France, is captured by the French. |
| 1558 | Mary dies at St.James’s Palace, London. |