Elizabeth's Spymaster (53 page)

Dramatis Personæ

Details of known spies and agents used by Sir Francis Walsingham can be found in the Appendix: Walsingham’s Spy Network.

Agazzari, Alfonso, SJ.
First Rector of the English College in Rome until 1586, when he was transferred to the government of Siena.

Alava, Francés de.
Spanish ambassador to Paris.

Allen, Dr William, later ‘Cardinal of England’
(1532–94). Leader of the exiled English Catholics in Europe during Elizabeth’s reign. Fled to the Low Countries in 1565. His name headed a list in 1567 of those to be arrested for their ‘contempt and obstinacy’. During the following year he founded a college at Douai to instruct English students in the Catholic religion. This college was expelled in 1578 but set up again in Rheims. Allen supported plans to enthrone Philip II in England, with him appointed Papal Legate, Archbishop of Canterbury and Lord Chancellor of a Catholic government. Buried in the Church of the Holy Trinity attached to the Venerable English College in Rome, where a memorial to him remains on the north wall, near the sacristy.

Andrews, Thomas.
Sheriff of Northamptonshire, legally responsible for ensuring the execution of Mary Queen of Scots.

Aquaviva, Claudius, SJ
(1543–1615). Fifth Superior General of the Society of Jesus from February 1581 until his death.

Arundel, Charles
(?1540–87). Second cousin to Thomas Howard, Fourth Duke of Norfolk. English Catholic exile and devotee of Mary Queen of Scots. Fled England in the aftermath of the Throgmorton plot in 1583.

Aston, Roger.
Confidential agent of fames VI.

Babington, Anthony
(1561–86). Catholic conspirator who, as a young man, helped fugitive Catholic missionaries to move about England. His correspondence with Mary Queen of Scots, detailing a conspiracy for a foreign invasion, a Catholic uprising and the assassination of Elizabeth, was the major factor in her subsequent indictment and execution. Executed at Tyburn, 20 September 1586.

Ballard, John,
alias Fortescue. Commonly called ‘Captain’. Catholic priest and a leading figure in the Babington plot. Executed with Babington.

Beale, Robert
(1541–1601). Brother-in-law to Francis Walsingham and his secretary during his ambassadorship in Paris, 1570–3. Clerk to the Privy Council; stood in for Walsingham as Secretary of State during his absences in 1578, 1581 and 1583. Delivered Mary Queen of Scots’ execution warrant to Fotheringay

Beaton, Cardinal James
(1517–1603). Archbishop of Glasgow. Mary’s ambassador in France.

Bowes, Sir George
(1527–80). Provost Marshal of the Earl of Sussex’s army, which was sent to suppress the Catholic Northern Rebellion in 1569.

Bromley, Sir Thomas
(1530–87). Solicitor-General in 1569. Lord Chancellor of England from 1579 until his death. Presided over trial of Mary Queen of Scots.

Buckhurst, Thomas Sackville, First Lord
(1536–1608). Barrister, Privy Councillor and diplomat. Announced sentence of death to Mary Queen of Scots, 1586. Lord Treasurer from 1599 until his death.

Bull.
Executioner of Mary Queen of Scots, accompanied at the execution by an assistant. Normally employed at the Tower of London.

Burghley, Baron –
see William Cecil.

Campion, St Edmund
(1540–81). Jesuit martyr. Speaker at Elizabeth’s state visit to Oxford, 1557. Joined Jesuits 1573 and ordained priest 1578. Chosen for mission to England with Robert Persons, 1580. Arrested at Lyford, Berkshire, on 17 July 1581 and taken to Tower, where he was racked three times. The torture so broke him that he could not raise his right hand to plead ‘not guilty’ at his trial. Executed at Tyburn, 14 November 1581. Beatified in December 1886 and canonised by Pope Paul VI in 1970. His relics remain in Rome, Prague, London, Oxford and Stoneyhurst.

Carleill or Carlyle, Anne
(d.1564). Francis Walsingham’s first wife, whom he married in 1562. She was the widow of Alexander, a London wine merchant, by whom she had a son, Christopher.

Carleill or Carlyle, Christopher,
Stepson of Francis Walsingham from his first marriage. Served as a soldier in Ireland and the Low Countries and later in the West Indies against the Spaniards. Involved in financing English voyages to colonise North America. Possessed lands producing an annual income of £300 in Ireland.

Castelnau, Michel, Seigneur de la Mauvissière.
French ambassador to England 1575–85-

Cecil, William, Baron Burghley
(1520–98). Elizabeth’s Chief Minister. Lord High Treasuer 1572–98. Organiser of domestic and foreign intelligence network.

Champhuan, Jean de, Sieur du Ruisseau.
Mary’s chancellor in France.

Charles IX
(1550–74). King of France. Second son of Henry II and Catherine de Medici.

Châteauneuf, Claude de l’Aubespine de.
French ambassador in England from August 1585.

Cottam, Blessed Thomas
(1549–82). Ordained a Catholic priest at Soissons in France. Surrendered to authorities in London in June 1580 and celebrated first Mass in Marshalsea Prison, Southwark. Executed 30 May 1582 at Tyburn. Beatified by Pope Leo XIII, 29 December 1886.

Cumberland, George Clifford, Third Earl of
(1558–1605). Naval commander. Named as a commissioner for the execution of Mary Queen of Scots, but took no part in the proceedings. [See also Derby, Pembroke.]

Curie, Elizabeth.
Sister of Gilbert Curie. One of Mary Queen of Scots’ gentlewomen, present at her execution.

Curie, Gilbert
(d.1609). Secretary and cipher clerk to Mary Queen of Scots. Arrested and interrogated by Walsingham’s agents in August 1586 and testified that the ‘Babington letters’ were genuine. Imprisoned for one year.

Davison, William
(1541–1608). English Junior Secretary of State and Privy Councillor, 1586–7. Fined and imprisoned in the Tower of London for ‘misprision and contempt’ over the dispatch of the execution warrant of Mary Queen of Scots. Subsequently Clerk to the Treasury.

Derby, Henry Stanley, Fourth Earl of
(1531–93). Sat as commissioner at trial of Mary Queen of Scots but took no part in her execution, although named as a commissioner. Appointed Lord High Steward, 1589. [See also Cumberland, Pembroke].

Douglas, Archibald.
Scottish ambassador in England.

Drake, Sir Francis
(?1540–96). English naval commander and navigator. Friend of Francis Walsingham.

Drury, Sir Dru
(?1531–1617). Gentleman Usher of the Privy Chamber to Elizabeth and later James I. Sir Amyas Paulet’s assistant, joint custodian of Mary Queen of Scots at Fotheringay, November 1586 to February 1587.

Englefield, Sir Francis
(d.?1596). English Catholic exile. Mary Queen of Scots’ agent in Spain. Attainted 1585. Buried at Valladolid in Spain.

Elizabeth I
(1533–1603). Queen of England 1558–1603.

Féenelon, Bertrand de Salignac de la Mothe.
French ambassador to London 1568–75.

Figliazzi, Giovanni.
Florentine diplomat who facilitated intelligence-gathering about the Spanish Armada in Madrid and became a friend to Walsingham.

Fletcher, Richard, Dean of Peterborough
(d.1596). Played a prominent role at the execution and funeral of the Scottish queen. Chaplain to Elizabeth, 1583. Bishop of Bristol, 1589; Bishop of Worcester, 1593; and Bishop of London, 1594. Suspended by Elizabeth after his second marriage.

Fontenay, Monsieur de.
Brother-in-law of Claude Nau and emissary of Mary Queen of Scots to James VI in 1584.

Francis
II (1544–60). King of France 1559–60. First husband of Mary Queen of Scots.

Gray, Patrick, Master of; later Sixth Lord Gray.
Confidant of James VI, Scottish ambassador to England 1584–5 and 1586–7. Disgraced in 1587.

Guise, Charles, Cardinal de Lorraine
(1525–74). Mary Queen of Scots’ uncle. Champion of the Catholic cause against the Huguenots in France.

Guise, Henry, Third Duke of
(1550–88). Mary Queen of Scots’ cousin. Helped plan the St Bartholomew’s Day massacre of Huguenots in Paris and formed the Catholic League. Murdered in 1588.

Guise, Mary
of (1515–60). Married James V of Scotland. Mother of Mary Queen of Scots. Regent of Scotland 1554–60.

Hamilton, Lord Claud
(?1543–1622). Mary Queen of Scots’ agent in Scotland. Commissioned by the Guises to reconcile Mary and her son, James VI, in 1586. Later became insane.

Harborne, William
(d.1617). First English ambassador at Constantinople, 1582–8.

Hatton, Sir Christopher
(1540–89). Vice-Chamberlain and later Lord Chancellor of England.

Heneage, Sir Thomas
(d.1595). Vice-Chamberlain to Elizabeth. Friend of Walsingham.

Henry II
(1519–59). King of France 1547–59. Father-in-law of Mary Queen of Scots.

Henry III
(1551–89). King of France 1574–89. Brother-in-law of Mary Queen of Scots.

Howard, Charles, Second Baron Howard of Effingham
(1536–1624). Lord High Admiral of England.

Howard, Henry, Lord
(1540–1614). Younger brother of Thomas Howard, Fourth Duke of Norfolk. Suspected of involvement in Catholic intrigues and imprisoned on several occasions.

Howard, St Philip, Earl of Arundel
(1557–95). Eldest son of Thomas Howard, Fourth Duke of Norfolk. Became a Catholic in 1584. Imprisoned after attempting to escape England in 1585. Condemned to death for saying Mass for the success of the Armada but not executed. Died in the Tower of London. Beatified in 1929 by Pope Pius XI and canonised in 1970 by Pope Paul VI.

Hunsdon, George Carey, First Lord
(?1524–96). Active in suppressing the Northern Rebellion, 1569. Lord Chamberlain of Queen Elizabeth’s household, 1583.

James VI of Scotland, later James I of England
(1566–1625). Son of Mary Queen of Scots and Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley. Succeeded Elizabeth to throne of England, 1603.

Jennings, St Edmund
(1567–91). Catholic Priest executed at upper end of Holborn by Topcliffe. Canonised by Pope Paul VI, 25 October 1970.

Jones, Edward
(d.1590). Received into the English College at Rheims in 1587, ordained the following year and entered England. Arrested in a grocer’s shop in Fleet Street in 1590 and executed outside the premises on 6 May 1590.

Keith, William, of Delnies.
Scottish ambassador to England 1586–7.

Kennedy, Jane.
One of Mary Queen of Scots’ gentlewomen, present at her execution.

Kirby, St Luke
(?1549–82). Born in Bedale, Yorkshire. Entered Douai College in 1576 and ordained priest two years later. Went to Rome and entered the English College there on 23 April 1579. The following June, he was arrested on arrival at Dover and imprisoned in the Tower of London. Condemned 17 November 1581 and executed 30 May 1582 at Tyburn. Beatified 29 December 1886 and canonised by Pope Paul VI, 25 October 1970.

Leicester, Robert Dudley, Earl of
(?1532–88). Supposed by some to have caused the death of his wife, Amy, in 1560. English Privy Councillor. Queen Elizabeth’s favourite and her Master of the Horse. Suggested setting up an association for the protection of the queen’s person, 1584; commanded the English expedition to support Protestant rebels against the Spanish in the Low Countries, 1585; made absolute governor the following year.

Lewis, Dr Owen.
Welsh Catholic exile. Bishop of Cassano, influential in Catholic affairs at Rome – rival to William Allen.

Liggons, Daniel.
Mary Queen of Scots’ representative in the Low Countries.

Lincluden, Robert Douglas, Provost of.
Scottish Privy Councillor.

Lorraine, Charles, Cardinal of.
Uncle of Mary Queen of Scots.

Lumley, John, First Baron.
English Catholic nobleman, involved in the Ridolphi plot of 1571.

Maitland, William.
Scottish Secretary; Chancellor of Scotland from July 1587.

Mayne, St Cuthbert
(1544–77). The first Catholic missionary to be executed by Elizabeth’s government. Ordained priest at Douai in 1575 and entered England the following year, becoming chaplain to Francis Tregian, disguised as his steward, in his household at Golden in mid-Cornwall. Executed at Launceston, Cornwall, 30 November 1577. Canonised by Pope Paul VI, 25 October 1970.

Medici, Catherine de
(1519–89). Queen Mother of France. Married in 1533 to the Duke of Orleans, later King Henry II.

Melville, Andrew.
Mary Queen of Scots’ steward.

Mendoza, Bernardino de.
Spanish ambassador in London 1578–84 and supporter of the cause of the Scottish queen. Implicated in the Throgmorton plot and exiled in January 1584. As Spanish ambassador in Paris from November 1584, he was involved in the Babington plot. Born before 1541, the son of the Count of Corunna, he served as a cavalry captain with Spanish forces in the Low Countries from 1567. He became blind in 1590 and died in the convent of San Bernardo of Madrid in 1604.

Middleton, Anthony
(d.1590). Entered the English College at Rheims 9 January 1582 and ordained 30 May 1586. Went into England the same year and was detained in Clerkenwell. Executed in London’s Fleet Street, 6 May 1590.

Mildmay, Sir Walter
(?1520–89). Chancellor of the Exchequer and brother-in-law to Francis Walsingham.

Morgan, Thomas
(1543-C.1606). Cipher clerk to Cardinal James Beaton and professedly one of Mary Queen of Scots’ most faithful and diligent servants. Imprisoned in the Bastille in 1584 for plotting against Elizabeth. It is possible that he may have been a double agent for the English government.