Edward VI King of England and Ireland, only surviving son of Henry VIII Date of Birth: 12.10.1537 Country: Great Britain

Biography of Edward VI

Edward VI, the King of England and Ireland, was the only surviving son of Henry VIII, reigning from January 28, 1547. He was born from the third marriage of the king to Jane Seymour, who unfortunately passed away shortly after his birth due to childbirth fever.

At the age of nine, Edward ascended to the throne under the regency of his maternal uncle, the Duke of Somerset. However, after Somerset's fall from power and execution in 1549 for influencing the young king, several other regents vied for control.

Edward received a good education, being knowledgeable in Latin, Greek, and French, and even translating from Greek. During his reign, he played a role in the development of Protestant catechism and the "Book of Common Prayer," which became mandatory under the "Acts of Uniformity." He also implemented some religious reforms that leaned towards Lutheranism, in contrast to the more compromising approach towards Catholicism that later prevailed in Anglicanism during the reign of Elizabeth I.

Edward's religious reforms were undone by his fervently Catholic half-sister, Queen Mary I, after his death. However, they formed the basis for the doctrines and rituals of the Anglican Church when Elizabeth I ascended to the throne.

Edward died of tuberculosis at the age of 16 after a prolonged illness, but he had time to designate his elder sisters, Mary and Elizabeth, as his successors, despite them being considered illegitimate during the final years of Henry's reign. However, after his death, a faction of the aristocracy proclaimed Lady Jane Grey, a distant relative of Edward, as queen, and she was sworn in by the city of London. Her reign lasted only a few days before she was arrested, and Mary became the queen.

The figure of the young king gained literary fame through Mark Twain's novel "The Prince and the Pauper."