Mary I

Mary I, also known as Mary Tudor and colloquially as ‘Bloody Mary’ by her Protestant opponents, was the first queen regnant of England, excluding the disputed reigns of Jane and the Empress Matilda. Born to King Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon, she was baptized into the Catholic faith and demonstrated intelligence and aptitude for learning from a young age. Despite early marriage negotiations, including betrothals to Francis, Dauphin of France, and later Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, Mary remained unmarried until later in life. Her reign as Queen of England and Ireland began in July 1553 after the death of her half-brother Edward VI, who had attempted to exclude her from succession due to her Catholic faith.

Mary’s efforts to restore Roman Catholicism following the English Reformation led to the Marian persecutions, where over 280 religious dissenters were executed. Her marriage to Philip II of Spain in July 1554 made her queen consort of Habsburg Spain upon his accession in 1556. Her death in 1558 ended her attempt to re-establish Catholicism in England, and her policies were largely reversed by her half-sister and successor, Elizabeth I.