Episode 210 of the Renaissance English History Podcast saw us learning about Edward Seymour, who was the Protector when his nephew was Edward VI.
In this episode of the Renaissance English History Podcast, Heather unravels the life of Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset and Lord Protector during Edward VI’s reign. Discover how Seymour rose to power through political acumen and strategic alliances following Henry VIII’s death.
We delve into his policies on social reform, his dedication to Protestant ideals, and his tumultuous alliance with John Dudley, which ultimately led to Seymour’s downfall. Explore the fascinating story of a man who wielded king-like power in Tudor England, his legacy, and the tragic end that marked one of the most dramatic episodes in Tudor politics.
Listen below, or read the Very Rough Transcript on Episode 210: Edward Seymour.
A very rough transcript on Episode 210: Edward seymour.
Hello and welcome to the Renaissance English History Podcast, a part of the Agora Podcast Network. I am your host, Heather Teysko, and I’m a storyteller who makes history accessible because I believe it’s a pathway to understanding who we are, our place in the universe, and being more deeply in touch with our own humanity.
This is episode 210, and it’s on how Edward Seymour became the protector in England. It involved a lot of political maneuvering and plotting, and we’re going to talk about Edward. And how he became Protector, and then a little bit about his legacy as Protector. Alright, so Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset, the eldest brother of Jane Seymour, the third wife of Henry VIII, has a significant yet very tumultuous position in English history.
His life was marked by a rapid ascent to power and eventual tragic downfall, and it epitomizes the volatile and intrigue filled atmosphere of the Tudor court. Following the death of Henry VIII. Edward Seymour navigated the political labyrinth and he became the Lord Protector of England during the minority of his nephew Edward VI.
Despite Henry’s will not specifying the need for a protector, Seymour’s political acumen and strategic alliances enabled him to consolidate his power. We’re going to talk about Seymour’s life, the intricate political landscape that facilitated his rise, his family ties and conflicts. and the impact of his governance on Tudor England.
So he was born to Sir John Seymour and Margaret Wentworth around 1500. He was exposed early to a life intertwined with political intrigue and ambition. The Seymour family was old and pretty well established, but right at the time that Edward was coming of age and was starting his political life, there was a huge scandal due to allegations of improper conduct by his father.
With Edward’s own wife. So Edward’s own wife apparently had a thing going with Edward’s father. Now, how much agency she had in this thing, you know, I couldn’t guess, and it all worked out very badly for her. I actually did a YouTube video on her and, and what happened to her. And, um, there was a child involved and it was all a very sad story.
And we’re not going to talk about that here. We are going to talk about here is that it left kind of a stain on the family. in the kind of late 1520s, early 1530s, and that needed some astute political maneuvering to restore and elevate the family’s standing. So fortune turned for them when Jane Seymour attracted the attention of Henry VIII, becoming his third queen consort in 1536.
Her marriage significantly bolstered the status of the Seymour family within the royal court, providing them with unprecedented access to power and influence. This matrimonial alliance was a pivotal moment laying the foundational stones for Edward Seymour’s eventual ascent to the role of Lord Protector.
Edward’s early years, like any noble young man’s, had a religious education, which equipped him with knowledge and skills essential for navigating the complexities of court politics. He would have been grounded in classical texts, languages, arts, combining that with an understanding of governance and statecraft.
We don’t know a whole lot about his life early on, but he does come from an ancient family. Like I said, his mother, Marjorie Wentworth, actually is descended from Edward III. And when he was about 14, in 1514, he received an appointment in the household of Mary Tudor, Queen of France. And was enfant des honneurs at her marriage with Louis XII.
So one kind of wonders if he would have met Anne Boleyn. Obviously he probably would have met Anne Boleyn there and probably been close to her. So that’s an interesting little thing to think about. Edward Seymour’s military achievements also were crucial stepping stones in his ascent to power and political prominence.
He was involved in military campaigns beginning with his service in the English army during the invasion of France in 1523. His capabilities there did not go unnoticed, enabling him to forge important connections and establish his reputation as a competent and reliable military leader. Later, 20 years later in 1544, During the later stages of Henry VIII’s reign, Seymour played a pivotal role in the successful capture of Bologna, which was a significant military accomplishment during the Italian wars of 1542 to 1546.
His leadership and strategic acumen were instrumental in this victory, further elevating his status within the military ranks and at court. This campaign was more than a military conquest, it was a showcase of his ability to manage men and resources effectively. Contributing to his image as a capable leader.
He also actively participated in military campaigns against Scotland, aimed at enforcing the English marriage proposal for young Mary, Queen of Scots, to marry Edward VI, reflecting the larger political and dynastic ambitions of Henry VIII. These military endeavors were often called the rough wooing.
There were a lot of challenges, but it did give Seymour the platform to demonstrate his military prowess and his strategic thinking. While his military campaigns were characterized by varying degrees of success and failure, they were essential in shaping his political destiny. The exposure to the rigors of warfare, The intricacies of military planning and execution fortified his resolve and honed his leadership skills.
The recognition and respect garnered from his military exploits facilitated his rise in the Tudor court, paving the way for his eventual appointment as the Lord Protector of England. His political ascension to the role of Lord Protector can be dissected as a series of adept maneuvers, meticulous calculations, and strategic alliances reflective of the elaborate tapestry of the Tudor court politics.
His military exploits had certainly facilitated a burgeoning reputation, but it was his political sagacity that enabled him to ascend the political ladder with a swiftness that left his contemporaries intrigued and wary. When Henry VIII died in 1547, Edward VI was just nine years old, and he would inherit a kingdom embroiled in religious discord and political instability.
Henry’s will had delineated a regency council of 16 executors to govern the realm during Edward’s minority, with no clear provisions for a singular protectorate. The absence of a definitive guideline for governance in Edward’s minority left a vacuum, which was fertile ground for an ambitious courtier to sow the seeds of their aspirations.
Edward Seymour perceived the opportunities inherent in the situation and initiated his play for power. He got support from key members of the council, he exploited his ties to the young Edward VI, his family ties, and he offered prospectus of power and influence. His meticulous orchestration culminated in him being declared the Lord Protector and Governor of the King’s Person.
only a few days after Henry’s death. It is noteworthy that Edward was not only appointed as Lord Protector, but was also granted almost regal powers. It was an absolutely radical departure from how things had ever been in the past. There was almost absolute authority vested in Edward Seymour, who was, after all, a subject.
of Edward VI, his nephew, but he actually had very similar powers to an actual king. One of the things that made his ascent successful was his strategic alliance with John Dudley. Now, a couple of weeks ago, we did the episode on Empson and Dudley. So here we have another Dudley popping up. We’ve got John Dudley popping up, another influential member of the Regency Council.
This alliance was pivotal in consolidating his position, providing the requisite support to override any potential opposition within the council, and there was a little bit, but Dudley’s military experience and political influence complemented Seymour’s ambitions. They crafted a mutually beneficial relationship that was instrumental in establishing and sustaining Seymour’s protectorate.
However, the significance of royal favor in his political elevation cannot be understated. Edward Seymour was not only the uncle of the young king, but had also won his nephew’s affection and trust. This connection, coupled with the young king’s favor, was a crucial component in validating and solidifying his authority.
The fact that Edward loved him so much gave him this kind of aura of legitimacy and it gave him a sense of stability which anchored him in this position. Once he was in power, Seymour undertook administrative reforms and fortified his position by granting titles and lands to his supporters. His policies actually leaned towards populism and reflected a genuine concern for social justice and for education.
It was one of the things that surprised me when you read about Kett’s rebellion that he actually was very much anti landing closures, which is what kind of started that and was something that was hurting the commons a lot. He pursued religious reforms guided by a Protestant vision. He initiated measures to address economic disparities as well.
But his reign was not devoid of challenges and controversies marked by socioeconomic unrest, military failures, and the pursuit of power by his wife, and also drama. That’s one of the things we really remember about him, the drama with his wife, Anne Stanhope. The marriage between Edward and Anne Stanhope is steeped in political ambition, power plays, and avarice.
Anne came from an aristocratic background. And she was a formidable character with an insatiable desire for power and influence, which was one of the things that helped fuel her husband. I need to do an episode just on Anne Stanhope, actually. Maybe I’ll, maybe I’ll do a YouTube video on her. She had a sharp intellect and acute awareness of her station’s potential, and she embodied the quintessential ambitious woman navigating the Tudor court’s labyrinth policies.
Her pursuit of power led to unprecedented frictions within the court, notably the infamous dispute over the Queen’s jewels after Henry died. Anne said that she deserved to have the Queen’s jewels. She laid claim to them, which was opposed by the council and, of course, the Dowager Queen Catherine Parr.
Anne’s insistence on her perceived rights to the jewels was emblematic of her broader quest for acknowledgment and assertion within the royal hierarchy. Now, of course, one of the things that made this extra tricky is that there was family drama involved, because Catherine Parr had married And Stan Hope’s brother in law, Thomas Seymour, the brother of Edward Seymour.
Catherine Parr said that the jewels were given to her were gifts from Henry VIII. And this fight was actually one of the things that might have driven apart Edward and Thomas Seymour. Anne’s influence over her husband was palpable. It often manifested through her involvement in political and administrative decisions.
And she leveraged her proximity to power to fulfill her own ambitions. Nothing wrong with that. I’m not gonna hate on that. Sometimes, however, it was to the detriment of her husband’s political career. It could cause some problems with the council when she was fighting for the right to have the jewels and things like that.
Of course, a lot of that is due to sexism, too, so we’re not, we’re not gonna get into that. But it wasn’t necessarily the best move on Anne Stanhope’s part. One of the features of Seymour’s governance was his inclination towards populist policies aimed at addressing the economic disparities and social injustices that he saw.
He actually demonstrated a genuine concern for the plight of common people and he sought to implement reforms to alleviate their suffering. For instance, he wanted to curtail the enclosure policies that were detrimental to the farming communities. He also wanted to implement a law to protect vulnerable rural populace from the landowning gentry.
But these well intentioned policies often met with resistance. by the lords that would be affected by it the most. And this, of course, would come back to haunt him later. Seymour was a devout Protestant. He played an instrumental role in advancing the Protestant Reformation in England. He championed religious reforms, aligning them with his vision of a Protestant England.
He facilitated the introduction of the Book of Common Prayer and the enforcement of the Act of Uniformity in 1549. These were critical steps in establishing Protestantism as the state religion. These reforms, however, did not go uncontested, leading to a lot of dissent and upheaval, particularly in the North and the West, exemplified by the Prayer Book Rebellion or the Western Rising, um, and also, I will say that I think this is a bit of a stain on him, this, he presided over the stripping of the altars, which was when they took everything that could be considered Popish, uh, away.
They smashed stained glass windows, they destroyed choir books, they, uh, destroyed prayer books and altars, anything that seemed Catholic got destroyed. They whitewashed the walls of churches and cathedrals to get rid of the paintings and the murals. It kind of breaks my heart. I mean, I kind of am seeing what he was getting at, and I don’t think there’s any excuse for doing that, and that’s one of the things that I very much dislike about him.
But that is just me. Edward Seymour, despite all of the controversies, did leave an indelible mark on the governance of Tudor England and of his nephew’s reign. His progressive stance on social justice and education and his commitment to religious reform have earned him a nuanced place in history. His journey, marked by ascendancy, reform, conflict, and his eventual downfall, offers a detailed insight into the complexities and dynamics of power, governance, and reform.
He, of course, did fall from power. His downfall was not an isolated event, but a culmination of strained alliances, misguided policies, and the inevitable repercussions of his unchecked ambition. His alliance with John Dudley, which was instrumental to his rise to power, began to unravel due to differing visions, political priorities.
The divergence of their approaches to both domestic and foreign policies sowed the seeds of their discord. They basically just started growing apart. Which then erupted into open conflict. This fracture within the power destabilized the political landscape, and this helped to lead to his fall. He also had a lot of misjudgments in military endeavors, failed campaigns in Scotland, which tarnished his reputation and eroded his political capital.
He was unable to secure decisive victories, and this exposed him to criticism. There was also rebellions, there was, like I said, the Prayer Book Rebellion, there was Kett’s Rebellion, there were a number of rebellions that cost a lot of money to put down. And people didn’t always like his populist viewpoints, like I said.
So in 1549, he was arrested, sent to the Tower of London, charged with ambition to usurp the King’s Majesty. John Dudley was the one who was orchestrating much of this political intrigue and accusations. He was now the Duke of Northumberland. All of this culminated in Seymour’s execution in 1552. He was also brought down in part by his brother.
Thomas Seymour, of course, had married Catherine Parr, had had a dalliance of sorts with Elizabeth. Princess Elizabeth seemed very ambitious. And eventually, possibly tried to kidnap Edward, the young Edward the King, probably, possibly shot his dog. It was all very bad. Was then executed. And of course, this was going to leave a mark on Edward the Protector as well.
This was his brother doing all of this. So people were kind of beginning to just generally suspect the Seymour brothers. So his downfall, of course, is emblematic of the precarious nature of power in Tudor England. And His rise was marked by strategic brilliance and the zeal for reform, and then his fall was characterized by political miscalculations, betrayals, unfulfilled ambitions, which kind of illustrate the fragile essence of power in Tudor politics.
His life remains a compelling study of ambition, reform, power, and tragedy in the rich tapestry of England’s history. If you want to dig deeper into Edward Seymour, there’s a couple of books you can check out. Janet Wertman, the fabulous Janet Wertman, who’s been on the show many times, has been to Tudorcon.
She has a trilogy, The Seymour Saga, which starts with Jane, book two of The Seymour Saga, The Path to Somerset. And then The Boy King is The Seymour Saga, book three. So you can check that out on Amazon. There’s also a biography by Margaret Scard, Edward Seymour, Lord Protector, Tudor king in all but name. So you can check out any of those books to learn more about Edward Seymour.
I will leave it here for today. Thank you so much for listening. I hope that this kind of piqued your interest into Edward Seymour and you would like to maybe dig deeper into him. He’s a fascinating character. I am looking forward to learning more about him myself. So thank you so much for listening.
Thank you for your time. I will talk with you soon. Have a fantastic week. Um, yeah, just thanks for listening. All right. Bye bye!
Heather Teysko is the creator, writer, and producer of The Renaissance English History Podcast,  the original Tudor history podcast, started in 2009. She's been writing about history online for over 25 years, since her first site on Colonial American history became number one in history on Yahoo in 1998. In 2019 she created Tudorcon, which is now a yearly event, in addition to writing books, and running TudorFair.com - a whimsical Tudor Merch shop.
She has been passionate about Tudor England since she first read Alison Weir's The Six Wives of Henry VIII 30 years ago, and subsequently moved to London after college to spend her time immersed in Tudor history (how exciting when she got to interview Alison for the first time!). In addition to history, she is passionate about travel, and has lived in 3 countries and 4 states (not counting her perpetual state of confusion), and her family (who help her host her YouTube channel occasionally).
