Table of Contents
A PLUME BOOK
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
1572: Murder in Paris
Chapter 1 - AN ILL-FITTING SHOE
Chapter 2 - LESS PERIL AS ENEMIES
1532-72: Making of a Spymaster
Chapter 3 - A PARTICULAR KIND OF GENTLEMAN
Chapter 4 - THE QUEEN’S PERILOUS COURSE
Chapter 5 - A MOST UNWELCOME GUEST
1573-83: Mr. Secretary
Chapter 6 - INTELLIGENCERS AND SCOUNDRELS
Chapter 7 - ADVERSARIES AND MOLES
1583-87: The Bosom Serpent
Chapter 8 - THE THROCKMORTON PLOT
Chapter 9 - LETTERS IN CIPHER
Chapter 10 - THE FINAL ACT
1584-90: War, at Last
Chapter 11 - OLD FRIENDS AND ENEMIES
Chapter 12 - A TRAITOR IN PARIS
Chapter 13 - FOREARMED
CHRONOLOGY
NOTES ON SOURCES
BIBLIOGRAPHY
A PLUME BOOK
HER MAJESTY’S SPYMASTER
STEPHEN BUDIANSKY, journalist and military historian, is the author of nine books about history, science, and nature. He publishes frequently in the New York Times and the Washington Post and currently serves as a correspondent for the Atlantic Monthly.
“Fascinating and superbly written. I know just the man who could revivify and unite our country’s floundering, sundered intelligence services. Unfortunately, he has been dead for 415 years. Walsingham was ‘Wild Bill’ Donovan, William Casey, and James Angleton, not to mention the fictional George Smiley of MI6. We can learn from Walsingham, even if we cannot hire him.” —The Wall Street Journal
“Does this bring to mind a certain masterful, discreet White House policy advisor, dubbed ‘the Architect’ by Bush? In this time of war, terrorism, and administration leaks, CIA-related and otherwise, it’s hard not to relate Tudor-era struggles over faith and empire to contemporary goings-on.” —Los Angeles Times
“Racy. Tells the tale of Walsingham and his spies with all the bravura of a historical novelist. [Budiansky’s] accounts of events and personalities associated with Elizabethan espionage are full of suspense and melodrama.” —The Washington Post
“Illuminates a new route to appreciating the distinct personality of England’s Elizabeth I and the exciting climate found at her court. In this vivid account, Walsingham emerges full-blown as a ‘strange and powerful combination’ of both Puritan and Renaissance man.”
—Booklist (starred review)
“Riveting. A satisfying and shrewd portrait of a key historical and very human figure. A historical study that makes us wish for more like it on subjects too often only glanced at.” —Kirkus Reviews
A fresh look at the Virgin Queen’s reign. Even readers already well-versed in Elizabeth’s reign will find Budiansky’s new angles on a much-examined era enlightening.” —Publishers Weekly
“I thoroughly enjoyed Stephen Budiansky’s Her Majesty’s Spymaster, the incredible account of how Sir Francis Walsingham, the ruthlessly efficient spymaster for Queen Elizabeth I, put the intelligence industry on the modern map. Walsingham, the spiritual godfather of secret services around the globe, practically invented the indispensable trade-craft tools used today: covert operations, double agents, the theory and practice of disinformation, and code breaking. Must reading for amateurs of espionage fiction, not to mention the professional spooks themselves.” —Robert Littell, author of The Company
OTHER BOOKS BY STEPHEN BUDIANSKY
HISTORY
Air Power: The Men, Machines, and Ideas That Revolutionized War from Kitty Hawk to Gulf War II
Battle of Wits: The Complete Story of Codebreaking in World War II
NATURAL HISTORY
The Character of Cats
The Truth About Dogs
The Nature of Horses
If a Lion Could Talk
Nature’s Keepers
The Covenant of the Wild
FOR CHILDREN
The World According to Horses
PLUME
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Published by Plume, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc. Previously published in a Viking
edition.
First Plume Printing, July 2006
Copyright © Stephen Budiansky, 2005
All rights reserved
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The Library of Congress has catalogued the Viking edition as follows:
Budiansky, Stephen.
Her majesty’s spymaster : Elizabeth I, Sir Francis Walsingham, and the birth of modern
espionage / Stephen Budiansky.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
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To David Alvarez
LIST OF NAMES
Alençon, Francis, Duke of; Elizabeth’s suitor, later Duke of Anjou
Allen, Dr. William, Cardinal; head of English Catholic seminary at Douai and Rheims
Alva, Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, Duke of; Spanish governor of Netherlands, 1567-1573
Anjou, Henry, Duke of; suitor to Elizabeth, later Henry III, King of France
Arran, James Stewart, Earl of; powerful courtier of James VI
Babington, Anthony; Catholic conspirator, executed 1586
Baillie, Charles; Mary’s courier, arrested at Dover 1571
Beale, Robert; Walsingham’s secretary
Berden, Nicholas; alias of Thomas Rogers, prison informer and spy
Bothwell, James Hepburn, 4th Earl of; third husband of Mary Queen of Scots
Bruno, Giordano; lapsed Dominican friar, philosopher, possible spy
Bu
rghley, William Cecil, 1st Baron; Privy Councilor, Principal Secretary, 1558-72, Lord Treasurer, 1572-98
Campion, Edmund; Jesuit missionary priest, executed 1581
Catlyn, Maliverny; prison informer
Cecil, Robert; son of William Cecil, named Principal Secretary 1596
Charles IX; King of France, 1560-1574
Châteauneuf, Claude de l’Aubespine, baron de; French Ambassador to England, 1585-1589
Chérelles, Jean Arnault de; secretary to Mauvissière and later the French Council
Cockyn, Henry; London bookseller, arrested for aiding Mary
Coligny, Gaspard de, seigneur de Châtillon; Admiral of France, Huguenot leader, assassinated 1572
Courcelles, Claude de; a secretary to Mauvissière
Creighton, William; Scottish Jesuit and conspirator, arrested 1584
Darnley, Henry Stuart, Earl of; second husband of Mary Queen of Scots, murdered 1567
Davison, William; Walsingham’s assistant
Drake, Sir Francis; voyager, vice-admiral against the Armada
Edward VI; Elizabeth’s half-brother, King of England, 1547-1553
Elizabeth; Queen of England, 1558-1603
Essex, Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of; Walsingham’s son-in-law, executed for treason 1601
Fagot, Henry; pseudonymous informer in the French embassy
Faunt, Nicholas; Walsingham’s secretary
Feron, Laurent; secretary, and possible mole, in the French embassy
Fowler, William; Scottish poet, unsuccessful spy on French embassy
Gifford, Gilbert; agent provocateur, carrier of messages to Mary
Glasgow, James Beaton, Archbishop of; Mary’s ambassador in Paris
Gregory XIII; Pope, 1572-1585
Gregory, Arthur; Walsingham’s expert seal-lifter
Guise, Henri of Lorraine, 3rd Duke of; leader of French Catholic faction, uncle of Mary Queen of Scots, plotter against Elizabeth
Heneage, Sir Thomas; Vice-Chamberlain, friend of Walsingham’s
Henry III; King of France, 1574-1589
Henry VIII; Elizabeth’s father, King of England, 1509-1547
Howard of Effingham, Charles, 2nd baron; Lord Admiral, commander against the Armada
Howard, Lord Henry; Catholic nobleman, brother of Norfolk
James VI; King of Scotland, 1567-1625, James I of England, 1603-1625
John of Austria, Don; Spanish governor of Netherlands, 1576-1578
Leicester, Robert Dudley, Earl of; courtier and Privy Councilor, leader of Puritan faction
Lennox, Esmé Stuart, seigneur d’Aubigny, Earl of; influential Catholic courtier of James of Scotland, ousted 1582
Lorraine, Charles, Cardinal of; brother of Duke of Guise, uncle of Mary Queen of Scots
Manucci, Jacobo (also sometimes Jacomo or Giacomo); servant and confidential agent of Walsingham
Mary; Queen of Scots, 1561-1567
Mary Tudor; Elizabeth’s half-sister, Queen of England, 1553-1558
Mauvissière, Michel de Castelnau, seigneur de; French Ambassador to England, 1575-1585
Médicis, Catherine de; Queen Mother of France
Medina-Sidonia, Alonso Pérez de Guzmán, Duke of; commander of Spanish Armada
Mendoza, Bernardino de; Spanish Ambassador to England, 1578-1584
Moray, James Stewart, Earl of; Mary’s half-brother, Regent of Scotland, 1567-1570
Morgan, Thomas; English Catholic exile and conspirator, Mary’s agent in Paris
Navarre, Henry of; French Protestant prince, later King Henry IV
Norfolk, Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of; ineffectual conspirator, executed 1572
Ousley, Nicholas; English spy in Spain
Oxford, Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of; courtier
Paget, Thomas, 3rd Baron; Catholic refugee
Parma, Alexander Farnese, Prince of; Spanish governor of Netherlands
Parry, Dr. William; spy and possible Catholic conspirator, executed 1585
Paulet, Sir Amias; ambassador to France 1576-1579, last keeper of Mary Queen of Scots
Phelippes, Thomas; Walsingham’s confidential agent and expert decipherer
Philip II; King of Spain, 1556-1598
Pius V; Pope, 1566-1572
Poley, Robert; spy and agent provocateur
Quadra, Álvarez de, Bishop of Aquila; Spanish Ambassador to England, 1559-1563
Ridolfi, Roberto; Florentine banker, papal agent in 1571 invasion plot
Ross, John Leslie, Bishop of; Mary’s ambassador in London
Sainte-Aldegonde, Philip van Marnix, baron de; Flemish Protestant nobleman and decipherer
Santa Cruz, Álvaro de Bazán, Marquis of; Spanish admiral
Seymour, Lord Henry; vice-admiral in Armada battle
Sheffield, Lady Douglas; cast-off mistress of Leicester, Catholic-leaning wife of Sir Edward Stafford
Shrewsbury, George Talbot, 6th Earl of; keeper of Mary Queen of Scots
Sidney, Sir Philip; poet, courtier, soldier, Walsingham’s son-in-law
Silva, Guzmán de; Spanish Ambassador to England, 1564-1568
Sixtus V; Pope, 1585-1590
Smith, Sir Thomas; Principal Secretary, 1572-1577
Somers, John; Walsingham’s secretary
Spes, Guerau de; Spanish Ambassador to England, 1568-1572
Stafford, Sir Edward; English Ambassador to France, 1583-89
Standen, Anthony; English spy in Florence and Spain
Throckmorton, Francis; Catholic conspirator against Elizabeth, executed 1584
Topcliffe, Richard; torturer
Walsingham, Anne Carleill; first wife of Walsingham
Walsingham, Frances; daughter of Walsingham, wife of Sir Philip Sidney, the Earl of Essex, and the Earl of Calnricarde
Walsingham, Sir Francis; ambassador to France, 1570-1573, Principal Secretary, 1573-1590
Walsingham, Ursula St. Barbe; second wife of Walsingham
William; Prince of Orange, leader of Dutch rebellion
Williams, Walter; prison informer and Walsingham factotum
Winchester, John White, Bishop of; officiator at Mary Tudor’s funeral
A NOTE ON LANGUAGE, MONEY, AND DATES
In the sixteenth century, the English language was undergoing a rapid transformation from the spoken dialect of provincials to a written medium of serious literature, official transactions, and even the occasional scholarly treatise. The rise of the printing trade had meanwhile begun the evolution toward standardized spelling, but this was a much slower process. Clearly, most writers of English of this period still thought of words as sounds rather than unique written forms: it was not at all unusual for educated writers to spell the same word two different ways in the course of a single letter, or even to spell their own names differently on different occasions.
To a modern reader, such irregular spelling looks irredeemably quaint, if not bizarre. Of course, it did not seem so to a contemporary. I have chosen to modernize the spelling of quoted documents for the most part; though at first blush paradoxical, I think doing so brings us closer to the men and women who wrote these words, by stripping away the haze of picturesque quaintness that the passage of time has artificially interposed, and allowing us to receive their words more as a contemporary would have.
The language itself can still be a challenge, however, as many words have changed their meaning over time, some radically. A few explanations may be in order: although intelligence begins to appear at this time in its modern sense, advertisement is frequently used to the same general effect, with the particular meaning of information or warning; entertain can mean to employ or pay; a practice is a scheme or deception; a plat is a dramatic scenario and thus by extension a stratagem or plan; jealous connotes simple suspicion; discover means to reveal or expose; family usually refers to one’s immediate household, including servants.
Equating the value of money between two very different eras is strictly speaking impossible, since along with overall inflation the relative worth of different items alters considerably from one era to another: In sixteenth-century England, for example, a printed book like Foxe’s Acts and Monuments could cost as much as a good horse. But as a very rough guide, an Elizabethan pound can be taken to be the equivalent of £250 or $400 in modern terms.
Perhaps a better sense of how the Elizabethans themselves gauged the value of money may be had by reference to a few contemporary benchmarks. A farm laborer earned £5 a year; a school headmaster or a shipmaster £20; a large landholding lord, or a lawyer at the pinnacle of his profession, £1,000. A pound would buy a cow, a plain cloth coat, or a gun; £150 kept the young Earl of Oxford, an extravagant fop, supplied with clothing for a year; £10,000 bought a great London mansion.
A crown was an English silver coin worth a quarter of a pound; more loosely, the term could refer to any of a number of similar continental coins, such as the French écu, that all had about the same value as an English crown.
A mark was a unit of account equal to two-thirds of a pound.
In late 1582 (October in Spain, December in France), most of the Catholic countries adopted the Gregorian calendar. England retained the “Old Style” or Julian calendar. From that point on (until England finally rejoined the rest of the world in 1752), dates in England and the rest of Europe differed by ten days: January 1 in England was January 11 on the Continent. Since my focus is England, I have used Old Style dates throughout. The English calendar had another peculiarity at this time—namely, that for official purposes the new year was deemed to begin not on January 1 but, rather, not until Lady Day, March 25. To avoid confusion, I have followed the modern convention in rendering dates that fall between January 1 and March 25; thus a date that a contemporary might have denoted 10 February 1569 (or, sometimes, 10 February) is given as 10 February 1570.
1572: Murder in Paris
1
AN ILL-FITTING SHOE
Afterward, when the Seine flowed with corpses and thousands were dead, there were some who said that if only the assassin had not bungled his job in the first place all of the subsequent trouble might have been avoided.