Mary I

Reign: 1553 – 1558
Life: 1516–1558

She made vigorous attempts to reverse the English Reformation, which had begun during the reign of her father, King Henry VIII. Her attempt to restore to the Church the property confiscated in the previous two reigns was largely thwarted by Parliament but, during her five-year reign, more than 280 religious dissenters were burned at the stake, in what became known as the Marian persecutions, leading later commentators to label her "Bloody Mary". She was declared illegitimate and barred from the line of succession following the annulment of her parents' marriage in 1533, but was restored via the Third Succession Act 1543. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded their father in 1547 at the age of nine. When Edward became terminally ill in 1553, he attempted to remove Mary as heir to the throne because he supposed, correctly, that she would reverse the Protestant reforms that had taken place during his reign. Mary speedily assembled a force in East Anglia and deposed Jane.

During Mary I's reign, Suleiman the Magnificent ruled Ottoman Empire, Akbar ruled Mughal Empire, and Mary, Queen of Scots ruled Scotland.

Want to learn more? Further reading

Mary Tudor: England's First Queen by Anna Whitelock

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The World During Their Reign

The most notable rulers who held power elsewhere at the same time, from European courts to Ottoman, Mughal, and Chinese thrones.

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From the library

Go deeper on Mary I

Hand-picked histories and biographies for readers who want more than the timeline: the same era, told in full.

Mary Tudor: England's First Queen

Anna Whitelock

A sympathetic modern biography that restores Mary as a serious political actor, not a footnote.

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The Children of Henry VIII
Alison Weir
Places Mary's reign in the context of the Tudor succession crisis that shaped her world.
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