Edward VI of England church property that had begun under Henry VIII resumed under Edward—notably with the dissolution of the chantries—to the great monetary advantage of the crown and the new owners of the seized property. Church reform was therefore as much a political as a religious policy under Edward VI. By the end of his reign, the church had been financially ruined, with much of the property of the bishops transferred into lay hands. The religious convictions of both Somerset and Northumberland have proved elusive for historians, who are divided on the sincerity of their Protestantism. There is less doubt, however, about the
Foundation of the Schools of King Edward VI Crown but made available for educational purposes. When the assets still had not been returned to the town, a meeting was held in St Martin's Church, the Bull Ring, Birmingham, to petition the Crown to build a school in New Street on the land formerly occupied by the chantry. This was approved and the following year, King Edward VI School was opened. Owning land in the very centre of Birmingham gave it a secure financial base. In 1883, five new King Edward schools were created to meet the educational needs of the expanding population of the city of Birmingham. Due