On This Day (17 November) in 1558, Mary I, Queen of England, died at St James's Palace, possibly from uterine cancer, aged 42 years old, with her 25 year-old half-sister Elizabeth succeeding to the throne.
Mary had been physically unwell since earlier in the year; she had initially believed herself to have been pregnant since the beginning of 1558, due to a distended abdomen (which is now thought to have been a tumour). On 30 March, Mary made her will; believing herself to be in the latter stages of pregnancy, she advised that in the event of her death, the crown would be passed to the "'heirs, issue and fruit of her body", whilst her husband Philip would act as the child's guardian and regent (Whitelock, 2009).
Despite the ongoing swelling, by May Mary had acknowledged that she was not pregnant. This had been the second humiliating similar incident, the first being in April 1555, where she had entered into confinement at Hampton Court Palace, again believing herself to be in the end stages of pregnancy (Gristwood, 2007). This news had significant psychological consequences, causing the queen to become anxious, depressed and withdrawn, in addition to the ongoing physical health symptoms, which included vomiting 'black bile', intermittent fever, convulsions, insomnia, loss of vision and headaches (Weir, 1997; Whitelock, 2009).
Over the summer, a weakened Mary contracted influenza, an epidemic spreading through England that summer, claiming the lives of many; she was moved from Hampton Court Palace to St James's Palace, where she was never to leave (Tallis, 2024). By mid-October, Mary was further declining, and by 14 November, her health had significantly deteriorated, with the queen now presenting with fluctuating levels of consciousness (Whitelock, 2009). Coincidentally, Cardinal Reginald Pole, Archbishop of Canterbury, was also on his death bed, one mile away at his residence of Lambeth Palace; messages were sent between the two, consoling each other (Weir, 1997).
Masses were said by her bedside, praying for her soul, which appeared to give some comfort to her. Mary's last conscious request was a message sent to Elizabeth, requesting for her to preserve the Catholic faith in England, which her half-sister did not honour. Last Rites were delivered to her just before midnight on the evening of 16 November, and Mary died just before dawn, around 5 o'clock in the morning of the 17 November (Weir, 1997; Whitelock, 2009).
Within hours of her death, Mary's body was prepared; her heart and bowels were removed and cavity filled with herbs and spices. Her corpse was placed in a lead coffin, inside a wooden box, which then lay in state in the privy chamber of St James's Palace, which had been dressed with black cloth and her coat of arms. The coffin remained in the privy chamber until 10 December, when it was moved to the Palace's Chapel Royal; after three days of mourning and prayers, it was moved to Westminster Abbey, in preparation for her funeral the following day (Whitelock, 2009).
Mary's death was announced by the Lord Chancellor, Nicholas Heath, to the House of Lords later that morning (17 November), with 'Lady Elizabeth' subsequently being proclaimed "Queen of this realm". Heralds then rode to the Temple Bar and the cross at Cheapside, and infront of the Lord Mayor and Aldermen of the City of London officially proclaimed Elizabeth Queen of England. This news was greeted with celebrations in the streets, church bells being rang and bonfires being lit (Weir, 1997; Whitelock, 2009).
News of Mary's death also reached Cardinal Pole, at Lambeth Palace, with the ailing Archbishop hearing the mass of peeling bells from his bed; it was said that he died shortly after hearing this news. Cardinal Pole was the last appointed Catholic Archbishop of Canterbury, and with his death change was able to be made within the echelons of the Church in England, from the first day of Elizabeth's reign (Weir, 1997).
In November 1558, Elizabeth was staying at Hatfield Palace, a former Bishop's Palace in Hertfordshire, where she had resided on-and-off since her childhood. Since news of Mary's pending demise had been known, Elizabeth had been gathering support at Hatfield over the past month, in preparation for the regime change (Tallis, 2024). However, once Mary had reluctantly announced Elizabeth as her legal heir on 06 November, official members of the court, including the Comptroller of the Royal Household and Secretary of the Privy Council, were sent to Hatfield with this news, with others following suit (Whitelock, 2009).
Henry FitzAlan, 12th Earl of Arundel and William Herbert, 1st Earl of Pembroke, the same men who had travelled to Framlingham Castle in July 1553 on behalf of the Privy Council to advise of their abandonment of their support of Lady Jane Grey, and to confirm Mary's proclamation as queen, now did the same for her younger half-sister (Weir, 1997). Arrangements had previously been made between Elizabeth and Sir Nicholas Throckmorton for the latter to inform her immediately of Mary's death, by providing her with her sister's betrothal ring, that did not leave her finger; Throckmorton was on his way to Hatfield, but was overtaken by Arundel and Pembroke (Weir, 1997). Traditionally, Elizabeth was said to be found sitting reading under an oak tree in the grounds when she was informed of that she was to be queen, although this version of events has been challenged by later historians (Weir, 1999; Tallis, 2024). It was also said that Elizabeth greeted the news of her half-sister's death with grief and sadness, but also relief, "for with Mary died the bitterness...that had come to dominate the last few years of their relationship" (Tallis, 2024, p.451).
By the afternoon of 17 November, privy councillors gathered at Hatfield, where the first meeting was held in the Great Hall. They were led by William Cecil, who was appointed as Elizabeth's Secretary of State. Cecil had spent his early career as the personal secretary of Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset, later entering the employ of John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland. It was whilst in the service of Northumberland that Cecil was employed to manage the administration of her lands, and had continued to advise her on financial matters during both her brother's and sister's reigns (Gristwood, 2007). Tallis (2024, p.455) described Cecil as someone whose advice "was not always welcome" but whom Elizabeth would trust "implicitly". Three days of official mourning for Mary were announced, and arrangements made for proclamations of Elizabeth's ascension to foreign courts during this first council meeting, prior to its adjournment, with councillors remaining at Hatfield for the night some later having individual audiences with their new queen (Weir, 1999).
The councillors met again the following day, when changes were subsequently made to the Privy Council; Gristwood (2007, p.76) describes "the most aggressively Catholic of the Marion councillors were out", as many Catholics continued to view Elizabeth as illegitimate; whilst she had been restored by her father Henry VIII to the line of succession, her legitimacy had not been, as the marriage between her parents remained invalid, a claim which Elizabeth herself challenged throughout her reign (Borman, 2023). This also extended to her household, as Elizabeth also dismissed Catholic ladies, replacing them with those who held her similar religious beliefs, including her kinswomen Catherine Carey, Lady Knollys, and her daughter Lettice Knollys (Weir, 1999).
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