William Seymour, 2nd Duke of Somerset was the great-grandson of Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset (c.1500-1552), the uncle of King Edward VI and Lord Protector of England. Seymour made a secret marriage at Greenwich on 22 June 1610 to Arbella Stuart (d.1615), daughter of Charles Stuart, 1st Earl of Lennox and Elizabeth Cavendish. Arbella was thirteen years his senior, and King James I disapproved of the marriage as the union of two potential Tudor pretenders to the throne, who were respectively fourth and sixth in line, could only be seen as a threat to the ruling dynasty. As a result, William was condemned to life
Edward Seymour, 1st Duke of Somerset his uncle's death in his "Chronicle": "the duke of Somerset had his head cut off upon Tower Hill between eight and nine o'clock in the morning". Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset was interred at St. Peter ad Vincula, Tower of London. Historians have contrasted the efficiency of Somerset's takeover of power in 1547 with the subsequent ineptitude of his rule. By autumn 1549, his costly wars had lost momentum, the crown faced financial ruin, and riots and rebellions had broken out around the country. Until recent decades, Somerset's reputation with historians was high, in view of his many proclamations that