On 12 February 1554, Lady Jane Grey

On 12 February 1554, Lady Jane Grey was executed for treason by Mary I, aged 16 or 17 years old. Jane had



 been manoeuvred into the line of succession by her cousin Edward VI, in a bid to displace his half-sisters Mary and Elizabeth and protect his Protestant legacy. Mary and her supporters moved quickly however, consigning Jane to history as the 'Nine Days Queen'. 

At her execution, Jane could not find the block with her hands after she was blindfolded. She cried, "What shall I do? Where is it?", and was likely helped towards it by Sir Thomas Brydges, the Deputy Lieutenant of the Tower. This 1833 portrait by Paul Delaroche depicts the tragic moment.

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