Henry died, January 28, 1547, leaving the throne to his only son, a
boy of ten years of age, who was immediately proclaimed king under the
title of EDWARD VI. The Duke of Somerset, maternal uncle to the young
king, became supreme ruler under the title of Protector, and continued
to maintain the Protestant doctrines. Under this reign, the church of
England assumed its present form, and the Book of Common Prayer was
composed nearly as it now exists. Somerset being resolved to effect,
if possible, the match between Edward VI and Mary of Scotland, invaded
that country in the autumn of 1547, and was met at Musselburgh by a
large army under the governor, the Earl of Arran. Though the Scotch
were animated by bitter animosity against the English, against their
religion, and against the object of their expedition, they did not
fight with their usual resolution, but were defeated, and pursued with
great slaughter. Finding them still obstinate in refusing to give up
their queen, Somerset laid waste a great part of the country, and then
retired. Previous to this period, Cardinal Beaton had been
assassinated by private enemies; but the Scotch were encouraged to
persevere by the court of France, to which they now sent the young
queen for protection.
In the reign of Edward VI the government was conducted mildly, until
the Protector Somerset was degraded from his authority by the rising
influence of Dudley, Duke of Northumberland, who caused him soon after
to be tried and executed. Northumberland, who was secretly a Roman
Catholic, was not so mild or popular a ruler. Yet, throughout the
whole reign of Edward VI which was terminated by his death on the 6th
of July 1553, at the early age of sixteen, no religious party was
persecuted, except those who denied the fundamental doctrines of the
Christian religion. It would have been well for the honor of a church
which has produced many great men, and to which the modern world is
indebted for the very existence of Christianity, if it had not been
tempted after this period to commence a very different course of
action. The crown now belonged by birthright to MARY, the eldest
daughter of Henry VIII, who was a zealous Catholic. Northumberland,
however, assuming the illegitimacy of that princess and her sister
Elizabeth, set up as queen the Lady Jane Grey, who was descended from
a younger sister of King Henry, and who had been married to a son of
the Duke of Northumberland. Lady Jane was the most beautiful, most
intelligent, and most amiable of all the females who appear in the
history of England. Though only seventeen, she was deeply learned, and
yet preserved all the unaffected graces of character proper to her
interesting age. Unfortunately, her father-in-law Northumberland was
so much disliked, that the Catholics were enabled to displace her from
the throne in eight days, and to set up in her stead the Princess
Mary. Northumberland, Lady Jane, and her husband, Guildford, Lord
Dudley, were all beheaded by that savage princess, who soon after took
steps for restoring the Catholic religion, and married Philip II, king
of Spain, in order to strengthen herself against the Protestant
interest. Mary experienced some resistance from her Protestant
subjects, and being under great suspicion of her sister Elizabeth, who
professed the reformed faith, but took no part against her, was almost
on the point of ordering her to execution also. As soon as she had
replaced the Catholic system, and found herself in possession of
sufficient power, she began that career of persecution which has
rendered her name so infamous. Five out of fourteen Protestant
bishops, including the revered names of Cranmer, Latimer, and Ridley,
were committed to the flames as heretics; and during the ensuing part
of her reign, which was closed by her death, November 17, 1558, nearly
three hundred persons suffered in the same manner. These scenes did
not take place without exciting horror in the minds of Englishmen in
general, including even many Catholics; but the royal authority was at
all times too great under this line of princes to allow of effectual
resistance. Such a persecution, however, naturally fixed in the minds
of the British Protestants a hereditary horror for the name of
Catholic, which has in its turn been productive of many retaliatory
persecutions, almost equally to be lamented. In the latter part of her
reign, she was drawn by her husband into a war with France, of which
the only effect was the loss of Calais, the last of the French
possessions of the sovereigns of England. The natural sourness of
Mary’s temper was increased by this disgraceful event, as well as by
her want of children, and she died in a state of great unhappiness.