29. Charm the King? Marry a Princess? Or Both?
Thomas Seymour actively set out to undermine his older brother in a bid to weaken his hold on power, and thus replace him as Lord Protector. Unsurprisingly, Edward Seymour resented that, and the siblings’ relationship took a nosedive from rivalry to enmity. Thomas adopted a two track strategy to increase his power: gain personal influence over the child king by charming him, or wed one of the king’s sisters, Mary or Elizabeth. He was relentless in his pursuit of both strategies.