Lord, into thy Hands I Commend my Spirit!: The Art of being a Protestant Martyr (Forty-Three)

Today's featured article on Wikipedia paints over the religious divide present in 16th Century England.

The "Streatham" portrait is an oil painting on panel from the 1590s believed to be a later copy of a portrait of the English noblewoman Lady Jane Grey dating to her lifetime (1536/1537–54). It shows a three-quarter-length depiction of a young woman in Tudor-period dress holding a prayer book, with the faded inscription "Lady Jayne" or "Lady Iayne" in the upper-left corner. It is in poor condition and damaged, as if it has been attacked. Although of historical interest, it is generally considered to be of poor artistic quality. As of January 2015 the portrait is in Room 3 of the National Portrait Gallery in London.

So, where is the religious divide, I mentioned?

Lady Jane Grey was the great-granddaughter of Henry VII through his youngest daughter Mary Tudor, and first cousin once removed to his grandson, King Edward VI. After Edward's death, a Protestant faction proclaimed her queen over Henry VIII's daughters, hoping to prevent the Catholic Mary Tudor (elder daughter of Henry VIII) from taking the throne. Two weeks after the death of her brother, Mary, with the support of the English people, claimed the throne, which Jane relinquished only nine days after being installed. She and her husband, Lord Guildford Dudley, were imprisoned in the Tower of London on charges of high treason. Jane's trial was conducted in November, but her sentence of death was suspended. In February 1554, Jane's father Henry, who had been pardoned, participated in Wyatt's rebellion. On 12 February, Mary had Jane, then aged 16, and her husband beheaded; Jane's father suffered the same fate two days later.

Jane was a devout Protestant during the English Reformation, when the Church of England violently rejected the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church. Known for her piety and education, she corresponded with Protestant leaders in Continental Europe, such as Heinrich Bullinger. A modest person who dressed plainly, her last words before her execution are reported as "Lord, into thy hands I commend my spirit!"

As well,

Jane's execution by a Catholic queen made her into what the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography terms a "Protestant martyr"

In short, art, regardless of the quality, is often two things: 1.) Birthed out of family drama, and 2.) Governed by the day's politics.