Date of Birth

No official record of her date of birth exists. A letter written by John Aylmer to Henry Bullinger in May 1551 refers to Jane's age.

In his talk 'A Queen of a New and Pretty Invention - Lady Jane Grey and the Loseley Manuscripts' at the Surrey History Centre in October 2007, Dr Stephan Edwards argued that Jane was probably born before July 1537. His article on this subject, 'On the Birthdate of Lady Jane Grey' was published in 'Notes and Queries' in September 2007.

A follow up article,'A Further Note on the Date of Birth of Lady Jane Grey' was published in the June 2008 edition of 'Notes and Queries.' Dr Edwards states evidence from Michelangelo Florio's (Jane's Italian tutor) account of Jane's life, in which Florio states that Jane was seventeen years old at the time of her death. He concludes that Lady Jane Grey was born in the second half of 1536.

On the Birthdate of Lady Jane Grey by John Stephan Edwards (Notes and Queries, Vol 54 No 3, Sep 2007).

A Further Note on the Date of Birth of Lady Jane Grey by John Stephan Edwards (Notes and Queries, Vol 55 No 2, June 2008).

A full version of John Aylmer's letter can be found in the following:

Original Letters Relative to the English Reformation, written during the Reigns of King Henry VIII, King Edward VI and Queen Mary (Volume One) translated and edited by Rev Hastings Robinson.