King Edward VI recounts the short reign of Henry VIII’s only legitimate son, who inherited the throne at the age of nine. It explains government by the Duke of Somerset and the Duke of Northumberland, war with Scotland and the social unrest of 1549.
The biography focuses on the rapid advance of Protestant reform through new prayer books, changes to worship and the removal of traditional religious practices. Edward’s final illness and attempt to exclude his Catholic half-sister Mary created the succession crisis that briefly placed Lady Jane Grey on the throne.
