A Tudor cesarean section

The history of the only and fatal pregnancy of Queen Jane Seymour, the third wife of King Henry VIII, has been reinvestigated and is presented herein. Her death on 24 october 1537, 12 days after the delivery of Edward VI, is believed to have been due to peritonitis after a cesarean section which was performed for political reasons. Since the written evidence for this lacks complete proof, it is indicated that the physical witness of an abdominal operation may still exist.