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"Her modesty is impeccable, but her intention is plain. She will settle for nothing less than marriage."
Elinor Valjean[5]

Jane Seymour (c. 1509 – 24 October 1537) was the third wife of King Henry VIII. She was previously a lady-in-waiting to Henry's wives, Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn. Shortly after Anne's execution, Jane and Henry were married. They were married for a little over a year when she gave birth to Edward VI in 1537. Jane died a few days later of childbed fever.

Biography[]

Early life[]

Jane was born into the Seymour family around 1509.[1] She likely grew up at family's home, Wulfhall. Her father, John Seymour, was the sheriff of Wiltshire, Dorset, and Somerset. He did not come from aristocracy, being only a "wealthy farmer."[6] Jane had several siblings, including Edward, Thomas, and Elizabeth.

1533 – 1537[]

At court, Jane served as a lady-in-waiting to Queen Catherine of Aragon until the latter was sent away to The More. In April 1533, she was selected to join the household of Anne Boleyn, the second wife of King Henry VIII. By October 1535, King Henry VIII had taken an interest in Jane. Many expected her to become his next mistress. However, like Anne before her, Jane played coy and refused to be his mistress. Anne became jealous of Jane and soon began taking out her frustrations on her. In April 1536, Jane departed for Wulfhall with her brother Edward and his wife. Anne was accused of adultery and executed on 19 May. Jane and Henry were betrothed the next day and married at the end of the month.

In October of that year, Jane entreated Henry to stop destroying churches and monasteries. He was furious at her for interfering. During this time, Jane helped Henry reconcile with Mary. That December, Jane was unable to attend the funeral of her father because of duties as Queen. The following February, there were signs that Jane was pregnant. Her pregnancy was formally announced in April. In the months leading up to the birth, Jane became somewhat "snappy" due to her fear of giving birth. On 12 October 1537, she had her son Edward after being in labor for three days. Jane appeared in good health afterwards, but developed childbed fever and died just over a week later. She was buried at Windsor Castle on November 12.

Physical appearance[]

Beatrice Townhill described her as "not exactly beautiful."[7]

Personality and traits[]

Elinor Valjean described Jane as being plain and sensible with "no sparkle at all." Her personality contrasted with that of Anne Boleyn, whom was Henry wife at the time. Elinor also likened her to a sheep, saying she was "meek to look at, but [knew] exactly what it want[ed]." Compared to Henry's first two wives, Jane was not as well educated and had no "wit to argue with anyone," being more inclined to agree with others. During her pregnancy, she became "very bossy and unreasonable" to her servants. However, it was manifestation of her stress regarding her pregnancy.

Behind the scenes[]

Appearances[]

In chronological order:

References[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 Henry VIII's Wives, Alison Prince, Timeline, pages 324-326
  2. Elizabeth I: Red Rose of the House of Tudor, Kathryn Lasky, The Tudor Family Tree, page 224
  3. Henry VIII's Wives, Alison Prince, pages 74-75
  4. Jane Seymour appears in:
  5. Anne Boleyn and Me, Alison Prince, page 194
  6. Anne Boleyn and Me, Alison Prince, page 178
  7. Henry VIII's Wives, Alison Prince, page 7

See also[]


My Story characters
Main characters

Nebka | Hatshepsut "Asha" | Claudia | Bran | Tor Scaldbane | Jenkin Lloyd | Eva De Puebla
Elinor Valjean | Lady Jane Grey | Matilda "Tilly" Middleton | Catherine "Kitty" Lumsden | Thomas Hobbs
Remember "Mem" Whipple | Thomas Adamson | Alice Paynton | Susannah Makepeace | Ignatius Sancho
Euphemia Grant | Mary Wade | Elizabeth "Lizzie" Harvey | Isabelle | James Grant | Mary Prince | Bob Jenkins
Dick Maybury | Eliza Helsted | Phyllis McCormack | Lily Hicks | Michael Pope | Hanuman Singh | Clotee Henley
Will Reed | Edith Lorrimer | Jabulani | Sophia Duleep Singh | Florence Finch | Flora Bonnington | Dollie Baxter
Margaret Anne Brady | Jack Fairfax | Daphne "Daffy" Rowntree | Billy Stevens | Noor Inayat Khan
Eleanor Rhys Davies | Rebecca "Becky" Mortkowicz | Harry Woods | Princess Margaret | Sophie Ridel
Peter Rogers | Kitty Langley | Edith "Edie" Benson | Tim Jackson | Andrew "Andy" Pope | Paul Lelaud
Violet Debuchy

Supporting characters

Henry VII | Henry VIII | Catherine of Aragon | Anne Boleyn | Jane Seymour | Anne of Cleves
Catherine Howard | Catherine Parr | Edward VI | Mary I | Elizabeth II

Lists of characters by book

Pyramid of Secrets | Princess of Egypt | Pompeii | Roman Invasion | Viking Blood | Agincourt | My Tudor Queen
Anne Boleyn and Me | Lady Jane Grey | Bloody Tower | The Queen's Spies | Armada | Mayflower | Civil War
The Great Plague | Highway Girl | Ignatius Sancho | The '45 Rising | No Way Back | Transported
The Fall of the Blade | Trafalgar | Mary Prince | Waterloo | Dodger! | Mill Girl | The Hunger | The Crystal Palace
Crimea | Indian Mutiny | Slave Girl | The Sweep's Boy | Victorian Workhouse | Zulu War | Princess Sophia Duleep Singh
Factory Girl | Twentieth-Century Girl | Suffragette | Titanic | The Trenches | Flying Ace | Road to War
Noor-un-Nissa Inayat Khan | Berlin Olympics | Nowhere to Run | The Storm to Come | Battle of Britain
Wartime Princess | Sophie's Secret War | U-Boat Hunter | War Nurse | Blitz | Desert Danger | D-Day
Spy Smuggler | Codename Céline | London Stories

My Royal Story characters

Cleopatra VII | Beatrice Townhill | Elizabeth I | Mary, Queen of Scots | Marie Antoinette | Victoria | Anastasia

Lists of My Royal Story characters by book

Cleopatra | Henry VIII's Wives | Elizabeth | Mary, Queen of Scots | Marie Antoinette | Victoria | Anastasia

My True Story characters

Dora Thewlis | John "Jack" Cornwell | Joe Read | Susan | Vera

Lists of My True Story characters by book

Give Us the Vote! | Standing Alone | Hero at Dunkirk | What If They Find Us?

Further reading[]