Henry Brooke, 11th Baron Cobham
Encyclopedia
Henry Brooke, 11th Baron Cobham (22 November 1564 – 24 January 1618 (Old Style
)/3 February 1619 (New Style)) was an English
peer who was implicated in the Main Plot
against the rule of James I of England
.
, he was educated at King's College, Cambridge
. In 1597 he succeeded his father as Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports
under Queen Elizabeth
. Shortly after the accession of James I, he was implicated in the 'treason of the main
' in 1603. His brother George
was executed, and Henry was imprisoned in the Tower of London
by James I
, probably in an attempt to obtain the Cobham estates for the Duke of Lennox.
He was the second husband of Lady Frances Howard, daughter of Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham
and Katherine Carey, Countess of Nottingham.
He may have been the subject of a number of Elizabethan satires such as Thomas Nashe's
Lenten Stuffe, Ben Jonson's
Every Man in his Humour
, and may have been the model of Shakespeare's Falstaff
, who was originally given the name 'Oldcastle'. Sir John Oldcastle
was an ancestor of Lord Cobham. Though Falstaff is more likely modeled on his father William Brooke, 10th Baron Cobham
(also descended from John Oldcastle) who was married to Francis Newton, whose family name was originally Caradock; referenced in 2 Henry IV when Falstaff sings "The Boy and the Mantle," a ballad in which Sir Caradoc's wife comes away with her fidelity and reputation intact (McKeen 1981). This could point to William Brooke, being married to a Caradock such as the Sir Cacadoc in the ballad sung by Falstaff, as the model for Falstaff rather than Henry, being the son of a Caradock.
. Cobham's dislike of James may have arisen from quarrels over religious policy, but Lord Grey was anti-Catholic. Cobham shows little political activity prior to James's time, and he seems generally to have been an uninvolved peer. His brother, Sir George Brooke
, on the other hand, was involved in radical religious politics.
In 1603, the first year of James I's rule, both Brookes were involved in plots against the king. George Brooke entered into the radical and absurd Bye Plot
with two Catholic priests, William Watson
and William Clark
, to kidnap the king and privy council, and force them to ease the political persecution of English Catholics.
At the very same time, Grey and Cobham entered into the Main Plot
to raise a regiment of soldiers and force a coup d'etat
. Cobham and Grey were to raise one-hundred and sixty thousand pounds (a figure that could be safely multiplied by twenty to convert to contemporary money) to bribe or hire an army. Cobham was to be the go-between with the Count of Aremberg
, who would do the actual negotiations with the Spanish
court for the money. The conspirators, upon seizing government, would depose James and put Lady Arabella Stuart on the throne in his stead.
It is very likely that none of the offers from Aremberg were in good faith, and it is exceptionally unlikely that the Spanish court, already deeply indebted to banks in Belgium
and Netherlands
and having lost its armada
and many of its galleons to English pirates, was in any position to offer such an astronomical sum to an unlikely intrigue. However, Cobham believed the offers. He spoke with Sir Walter Raleigh
about contacting Aremberg, and he was readying to set forth.
However, the Bye plot was discovered through its hireling "swordsmen," and the Bye plot conspirators were imprisoned. George Brooke may have sought to avoid a death sentence by informing on his brother. In any case, he provided information on the Main plot, and Grey, Cobham, and Ralegh were imprisoned in the Tower
. During the trial, the evidence was shown to be inconsistent, especially in regard to Raleigh. The Bye plot conspirators were executed in 1603, and the Main plot conspirators were left in the Tower. In 1604 (new style), Cobham's honors in the Knights of the Garter were taken down and expelled.
Cobham, aged and sick, was released from the Tower in 1618, and died a year later in a "dingy apartment in the Minories
."
Old Style and New Style dates
Old Style and New Style are used in English language historical studies either to indicate that the start of the Julian year has been adjusted to start on 1 January even though documents written at the time use a different start of year ; or to indicate that a date conforms to the Julian...
)/3 February 1619 (New Style)) was an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
peer who was implicated in the Main Plot
Main Plot
The Main Plot was an alleged conspiracy of July 1603 by English courtiers, to remove King James I from the English throne, replacing him with his cousin Arabella Stuart. The plot was supposedly led by Henry Brooke, Lord Cobham, and funded by Spain...
against the rule of James I of England
James I of England
James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...
.
Life
The son of William Brooke, 10th Baron CobhamWilliam Brooke, 10th Baron Cobham
William Brooke, 10th Baron Cobham was Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, and a Member of Parliament for Hythe. Although he was viewed by some as a religious radical during the Somerset protectorate, he entertained Elizabeth at Cobham Hall in 1559, signalling his acceptance of the moderate regime.His...
, he was educated at King's College, Cambridge
King's College, Cambridge
King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college's full name is "The King's College of our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge", but it is usually referred to simply as "King's" within the University....
. In 1597 he succeeded his father as Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports
Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports
The Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports is a ceremonial official in the United Kingdom. The post dates from at least the 12th century but may be older. The Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports was originally in charge of the Cinque Ports, a group of five port towns on the southeast coast of England...
under Queen Elizabeth
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
. Shortly after the accession of James I, he was implicated in the 'treason of the main
Main Plot
The Main Plot was an alleged conspiracy of July 1603 by English courtiers, to remove King James I from the English throne, replacing him with his cousin Arabella Stuart. The plot was supposedly led by Henry Brooke, Lord Cobham, and funded by Spain...
' in 1603. His brother George
George Brooke (conspirator)
The Rev. Sir George Brooke was an English aristocrat, executed for his part in two plots against the government of King James I.-Origins and education:...
was executed, and Henry was imprisoned in the Tower of London
Tower of London
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
by James I
James I of England
James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...
, probably in an attempt to obtain the Cobham estates for the Duke of Lennox.
He was the second husband of Lady Frances Howard, daughter of Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham
Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham
Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham , known as Howard of Effingham, was an English statesman and Lord High Admiral under Elizabeth I and James I...
and Katherine Carey, Countess of Nottingham.
He may have been the subject of a number of Elizabethan satires such as Thomas Nashe's
Thomas Nashe
Thomas Nashe was an English Elizabethan pamphleteer, playwright, poet and satirist. He was the son of the minister William Nashe and his wife Margaret .-Early life:...
Lenten Stuffe, Ben Jonson's
Ben Jonson
Benjamin Jonson was an English Renaissance dramatist, poet and actor. A contemporary of William Shakespeare, he is best known for his satirical plays, particularly Volpone, The Alchemist, and Bartholomew Fair, which are considered his best, and his lyric poems...
Every Man in his Humour
Every Man in His Humour
Every Man in His Humour is a 1598 play by the English playwright Ben Jonson. The play belongs to the subgenre of the "humours comedy," in which each major character is dominated by an overriding humour or obsession.-Performance and Publication:...
, and may have been the model of Shakespeare's Falstaff
Falstaff
Sir John Falstaff is a fictional character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare. In the two Henry IV plays, he is a companion to Prince Hal, the future King Henry V. A fat, vain, boastful, and cowardly knight, Falstaff leads the apparently wayward Prince Hal into trouble, and is...
, who was originally given the name 'Oldcastle'. Sir John Oldcastle
John Oldcastle
Sir John Oldcastle , English Lollard leader, was son of Sir Richard Oldcastle of Almeley in northwest Herefordshire and grandson of another Sir John Oldcastle....
was an ancestor of Lord Cobham. Though Falstaff is more likely modeled on his father William Brooke, 10th Baron Cobham
William Brooke, 10th Baron Cobham
William Brooke, 10th Baron Cobham was Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, and a Member of Parliament for Hythe. Although he was viewed by some as a religious radical during the Somerset protectorate, he entertained Elizabeth at Cobham Hall in 1559, signalling his acceptance of the moderate regime.His...
(also descended from John Oldcastle) who was married to Francis Newton, whose family name was originally Caradock; referenced in 2 Henry IV when Falstaff sings "The Boy and the Mantle," a ballad in which Sir Caradoc's wife comes away with her fidelity and reputation intact (McKeen 1981). This could point to William Brooke, being married to a Caradock such as the Sir Cacadoc in the ballad sung by Falstaff, as the model for Falstaff rather than Henry, being the son of a Caradock.
Cobham and the Main Plot
Contemporary accounts portray Cobham as a good natured but unintelligent man. He opposed the ascension of James I to the throne, along with Thomas Grey, 15th Baron Grey de WiltonThomas Grey, 15th Baron Grey de Wilton
Thomas Grey, 15th and last Baron Grey of Wilton was an English aristocrat, soldier and conspirator. He was convicted of involvement in the Bye Plot against James I of England.-Early life:...
. Cobham's dislike of James may have arisen from quarrels over religious policy, but Lord Grey was anti-Catholic. Cobham shows little political activity prior to James's time, and he seems generally to have been an uninvolved peer. His brother, Sir George Brooke
George Brooke
George Brooke may refer to:*George Brook , English cricketer*George H. Brooke , American football player and coach...
, on the other hand, was involved in radical religious politics.
In 1603, the first year of James I's rule, both Brookes were involved in plots against the king. George Brooke entered into the radical and absurd Bye Plot
Bye Plot
The Bye Plot was a conspiracy by a Roman Catholic priest, William Watson, to kidnap James I of England and to force him to repeal anti-Catholic legislation.-Background:...
with two Catholic priests, William Watson
William Watson (priest)
William Watson , English Roman Catholic priest and conspirator, executed for treason.-Life:In 1586 he became a Roman Catholic priest in France, and during the concluding years of Elizabeth's reign he paid several visits to England; he was imprisoned and tortured more than once...
and William Clark
William Clark (priest)
William Clark was an English Roman Catholic priest and conspirator.. He is remembered for his involvement in a plan to kidnap King James I of England, made together with another Catholic priest William Watson in the Bye Plot. He was executed at Winchester on 29 November 1603.-Life:He received his...
, to kidnap the king and privy council, and force them to ease the political persecution of English Catholics.
At the very same time, Grey and Cobham entered into the Main Plot
Main Plot
The Main Plot was an alleged conspiracy of July 1603 by English courtiers, to remove King James I from the English throne, replacing him with his cousin Arabella Stuart. The plot was supposedly led by Henry Brooke, Lord Cobham, and funded by Spain...
to raise a regiment of soldiers and force a coup d'etat
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
. Cobham and Grey were to raise one-hundred and sixty thousand pounds (a figure that could be safely multiplied by twenty to convert to contemporary money) to bribe or hire an army. Cobham was to be the go-between with the Count of Aremberg
Charles de Ligne, 2nd Prince of Arenberg
Princely Count Charles of Arenberg, duke of Aarschot , baron of Zevenbergen, knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece, was the second Princely Count of Arenberg and a leading aristocrat of the Habsburg Netherlands, who served as a courtier, soldier, minister and diplomat.-Background and early...
, who would do the actual negotiations with the Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
court for the money. The conspirators, upon seizing government, would depose James and put Lady Arabella Stuart on the throne in his stead.
It is very likely that none of the offers from Aremberg were in good faith, and it is exceptionally unlikely that the Spanish court, already deeply indebted to banks in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
and Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
and having lost its armada
Spanish Armada
This article refers to the Battle of Gravelines, for the modern navy of Spain, see Spanish NavyThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England to stop English...
and many of its galleons to English pirates, was in any position to offer such an astronomical sum to an unlikely intrigue. However, Cobham believed the offers. He spoke with Sir Walter Raleigh
Walter Raleigh
Sir Walter Raleigh was an English aristocrat, writer, poet, soldier, courtier, spy, and explorer. He is also well known for popularising tobacco in England....
about contacting Aremberg, and he was readying to set forth.
However, the Bye plot was discovered through its hireling "swordsmen," and the Bye plot conspirators were imprisoned. George Brooke may have sought to avoid a death sentence by informing on his brother. In any case, he provided information on the Main plot, and Grey, Cobham, and Ralegh were imprisoned in the Tower
Tower of London
Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...
. During the trial, the evidence was shown to be inconsistent, especially in regard to Raleigh. The Bye plot conspirators were executed in 1603, and the Main plot conspirators were left in the Tower. In 1604 (new style), Cobham's honors in the Knights of the Garter were taken down and expelled.
Cobham, aged and sick, was released from the Tower in 1618, and died a year later in a "dingy apartment in the Minories
Minories
The Minories is the name of both an area and street in the City of London close to the Tower of London. The street called Minories runs north-south between Aldgate and Tower Hill underground stations...
."