George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham
Encyclopedia
George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham KG
(icon; 28 August 1592 – 23 August 1628) was the favourite
, claimed by some to be the lover, of King James I of England
. Despite a very patchy political and military record, he remained at the height of royal favour for the first two years of the reign of Charles I
, until he was assassinated. He was one of the most rewarded royal courtiers in all history.
, in August 1592, the son of the minor gentleman Sir George Villiers
(1550–1604). His mother, Mary
(1570–1632), daughter of Anthony Beaumont of Glenfield, Leicestershire, who was left a widow early, educated him for a courtier's life, sending him to France with Sir John Eliot
.
George Villiers took very well to the training set by his mother; he could dance well, fence
well, and speak a little French. In August 1614, Villiers, reputedly "the handsomest-bodied man in all of England", was brought before the king, in the hope that the king would take a fancy to him, diminishing the power at court of then favourite Robert Carr, 1st Earl of Somerset
.
are a much debated topic, with Villiers making the last of a succession of favourites on whom James lavished affection and rewards. The extent to which there was a sexual element, or a physical sexual relationship, involved in these cases remains controversial. Villiers reciprocated the King's love and wrote to James: "I naturally so love your person, and adore all your other parts, which are more than ever one man had" and "I desire only to live in the world for your sake". Restoration of Apethorpe Hall
in 2004–2008 revealed a previously unknown passage linking his bedchamber with that of James.
Villiers gained support from those opposed to the current favourite, Robert Carr, 1st Earl of Somerset, and under the King's patronage he prospered greatly. Villiers was knighted in 1615 as a Gentleman of the Bedchamber
, and was rapidly advanced through the peerage
: he was created Baron Whaddon and Viscount Villiers in 1616, Earl of Buckingham in 1617, Marquess of Buckingham in 1618 and finally Earl of Coventry and Duke of Buckingham in 1623. After the reductions in the peerage that had taken place during the Tudor
period, Buckingham was left as the highest-ranking subject outside the royal family.
In the 1620s, Villiers acquired York House, Strand
, the street linking the City of London
to that of Westminster
. Apart from an interlude during the English Civil War
, the property remained in the family until his son
sold it to developers for £30,000 in 1672. He made it a condition of the sale that his name and title be commemorated by George Street, Villiers Street
, Duke Street, Of Alley, and Buckingham Street, some of which have survived into the 21st century.
, as Lord Deputy
, 1616–1622. Thence, he acquired control of the Irish customs farm (1618), dominated Irish patronage at court, particularly with the sale of Irish titles and honours, and (from 1618) began to build substantial Irish estates for himself, his family and clients—with the aid of a plantation
lobby, composed of official clients in Dublin. To the same end, he secured the creation of an Irish Court of Wards in 1622. Buckingham's influence thus crucially sustained a forward Irish plantation policy into the 1620s.
, Earl of Middlesex, in 1623–1624 were largely nullified by the impeachment and disgrace of the pacific Lord Treasurer in the violently anti-Spanish 1624 parliament—spurred on by Buckingham and Prince Charles.
, then Prince of Wales, to Spain
for marriage negotiations regarding the Infanta Maria. The negotiations had long been stuck, but it is believed that Buckingham's crassness was key to the total collapse of agreement; the Spanish ambassador asked Parliament to have Buckingham executed for his behaviour in Madrid
; but Buckingham gained popularity by calling for war with Spain on his return. He headed further marriage negotiations, but when, in 1624, the betrothal to Henrietta Maria of France was announced, the choice of a Catholic was widely condemned. Buckingham's popularity suffered further when he was blamed for the failure of the military expedition under the command of Ernst von Mansfeld
, a famous German mercenary general, sent to the continent to recover the Palatinate (1625), which had belonged to Frederick V, Elector Palatine
, son-in-law of King James I of England
. However, when the Duke of York became King Charles I, Buckingham was the only man to maintain his position from the court of James.
Buckingham led an expedition
to repeat the actions of Sir Francis Drake
by seizing the main Spanish port at Cádiz
and burning the fleet in its harbour. Though his plan was tactically sound, landing further up the coast and marching the militia army on the city, the troops were ill-equipped, ill-disciplined and ill-trained. Coming upon a warehouse filled with wine, they simply got drunk, and the attack was called off. The English army briefly occupied a small port further down the coast before re-boarding its ships.
This was followed by Buckingham leading the Army and the Navy to sea to intercept an anticipated Spanish silver fleet
from its American territories. However, the Spanish were forewarned by their intelligence and easily avoided the planned ambush. With supplies running out and men sick and dying from starvation and disease, the fleet limped home in embarrassment.
Buckingham then negotiated with the French Prime Minister to the King
, Cardinal Richelieu, for English ships to aid Richelieu in his fight against the French Protestants (Huguenot
s), in return for French aid against the Spanish occupying the Palatinate. Seven English warships participated in operations against La Rochelle
and in the Siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré (1625), but Parliament was disgusted and horrified at the thought of English Protestants fighting French Protestants. The plan only fuelled their fears of crypto-Catholicism at court. Buckingham himself, believing that the failure of his enterprise was the result of treachery by Richelieu, formulated an alliance among the churchman's many enemies, a policy that included support for the very Huguenots whom he had recently attacked.
him for the failure of the Cádiz Expedition (1625)
, the King dissolved Parliament in June to prevent his impeachment.
allies besieged at La Rochelle
in France, by leading the Siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré (1627)
. He lost more than 4,000 of a force of 7,000 men. While organising a second campaign in Portsmouth
in 1628, he was stabbed to death, on August 23, at the Greyhound Pub
; the assassin was John Felton, an army officer who had been wounded in the earlier military adventure. Felton believed he had been passed over for promotion by Buckingham. Felton was hanged in October of that year.
Buckingham was buried in Westminster Abbey
. His lavish tomb bears a Latin
inscription that may be translated as "The Enigma of the World".
's The Three Musketeers
, which paints him as a lover of Anne of Austria
and deals with his assassination by Felton. In Arturo Pérez-Reverte
's novel, El capitán Alatriste, Buckingham appears briefly while on his expedition to Spain
in 1623 with Charles I
. He is also a central character in novels by Philippa Gregory
, Earthly Joys, and Evelyn Anthony
, Charles, The King. He also appears, played by Marcus Hutton
, in the Doctor Who
audio drama The Church and the Crown
, in which he leads an aborted English invasion of France in 1626.
He is a key character in the Bertrice Small
novel Darling Jasmine. He also plays a part in the novel, The Arm and the Darkness by Taylor Caldwell
, as the English ally sought by the Huguenots to help defend their refuge city, La Rochelle
, against the siege ordered and led by Cardinal Richelieu, the minister of Louis XIII, King of France. As George Villiers, Buckingham appears as a major character in Howard Brenton's 2010 play Anne Boleyn
as King James I's mate in sexual horseplay.
The Duke of Buckingham was a very controversial historical figure. Though Alexandre Dumas writes in paradoxically positive terms about him in The Three Musketeers, on the other hand, the English novelist and historian Charles Dickens
makes no effort to hide his total rejection of the Duke in his book A Child’s History of England. He claims that, as King Charles the First commissioned the Duke of Buckingham (“that insolent upstart”) to bring the royal fiancée, Princess Henrietta Maria, from Paris to England, Buckingham — “with his usual audacity” — made love to the Queen of France, the Spanish Anne of Austria
, thus creating an extremely serious diplomatic conflict to the advantage of Cardinal Richelieu. Later, “that pestilent Buckingham, to gratify his own wounded vanity”, engaged England in war with France, as well as with Spain.
And Dickens comments: “For such miserable causes and such miserable creatures are wars sometimes made.”
Far from regretting Buckingham’s assassination, Dickens concluded that “he was destined to do little more mischief in this world”.
, Lady Katherine Manners
, later suo jure
Baroness de Ros
, on 16 May 1620, despite the objections of her father. Buckingham was happy to grant valuable royal monopolies to her family, with issue:
Buckingham's daughter, Lady Mary Villiers, was the wife of the Royalist
1st Duke of Richmond
. Richmond was the grandson of the 1st Duke of Lennox
of the Seigneur
s d'Aubigny Stuarts. His elder son Charles (1626–1627) died as an infant and the title was inherited by his younger son George
.
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Order of the Garter
The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry, or knighthood, existing in England. The order is dedicated to the image and arms of St...
(icon; 28 August 1592 – 23 August 1628) was the favourite
Favourite
A favourite , or favorite , was the intimate companion of a ruler or other important person. In medieval and Early Modern Europe, among other times and places, the term is used of individuals delegated significant political power by a ruler...
, claimed by some to be the lover, of King 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...
. Despite a very patchy political and military record, he remained at the height of royal favour for the first two years of the reign of Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
, until he was assassinated. He was one of the most rewarded royal courtiers in all history.
Early life
He was born in Brooksby, LeicestershireLeicestershire
Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. It takes its name from the heavily populated City of Leicester, traditionally its administrative centre, although the City of Leicester unitary authority is today administered separately from the rest of Leicestershire...
, in August 1592, the son of the minor gentleman Sir George Villiers
George Villiers (of Brokesby)
Sir George Villiers, of Brokesby was a minor member of the English gentry, notable as the father of the royal favourite George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham...
(1550–1604). His mother, Mary
Mary Villiers, Countess of Buckingham
Mary Villers, Countess of Buckingham is perhaps best known as the mother of the royal favourite Sir George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham. She was the daughter of Anthony Beaumont of Glenfield, Leicestershire, a direct descendant of Henry de Beaumont.She became the second wife of Sir George...
(1570–1632), daughter of Anthony Beaumont of Glenfield, Leicestershire, who was left a widow early, educated him for a courtier's life, sending him to France with Sir John Eliot
John Eliot (statesman)
Sir John Eliot was an English statesman who was serially imprisoned in the Tower of London, where he eventually died, by King Charles I for advocating the rights and privileges of Parliament.-Family and early life:...
.
George Villiers took very well to the training set by his mother; he could dance well, fence
Fencing
Fencing, which is also known as modern fencing to distinguish it from historical fencing, is a family of combat sports using bladed weapons.Fencing is one of four sports which have been featured at every one of the modern Olympic Games...
well, and speak a little French. In August 1614, Villiers, reputedly "the handsomest-bodied man in all of England", was brought before the king, in the hope that the king would take a fancy to him, diminishing the power at court of then favourite Robert Carr, 1st Earl of Somerset
Robert Carr, 1st Earl of Somerset
Robert Carr, 1st Earl of Somerset, , was a politician, and favourite of King James I of England.-Background:Robert Kerr was born in Wrington, Somerset, England the younger son of Sir Thomas Kerr of Ferniehurst, Scotland by his second wife, Janet, sister of Walter Scott of Buccleuch...
.
Court life
Following Villiers' introduction to James during the king's progress of that year, the king developed a strong affection for Villiers, calling him his "sweet child and wife"; the personal relationships of JamesPersonal relationships of James I of England
The personal relationships of James I of England included relationships with his male courtiers and his marriage to Anne of Denmark, with whom he fathered children. The influence his favourites had on politics, and the resentment at the wealth they acquired, became major political issues during...
are a much debated topic, with Villiers making the last of a succession of favourites on whom James lavished affection and rewards. The extent to which there was a sexual element, or a physical sexual relationship, involved in these cases remains controversial. Villiers reciprocated the King's love and wrote to James: "I naturally so love your person, and adore all your other parts, which are more than ever one man had" and "I desire only to live in the world for your sake". Restoration of Apethorpe Hall
Apethorpe Hall
Apethorpe Hall in Apethorpe, Northamptonshire, England is a Grade I listed country house, dating back to the 15th century.The house is built around three courtyards lying on an east-west axis and is approximately by in area...
in 2004–2008 revealed a previously unknown passage linking his bedchamber with that of James.
Villiers gained support from those opposed to the current favourite, Robert Carr, 1st Earl of Somerset, and under the King's patronage he prospered greatly. Villiers was knighted in 1615 as a Gentleman of the Bedchamber
Gentleman of the Bedchamber
A Gentleman of the Bedchamber was the holder of an important office in the royal household of the Kingdom of England from the 11th century, later used also in the Kingdom of Great Britain.-Description and functions:...
, and was rapidly advanced through the peerage
Peerage
The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...
: he was created Baron Whaddon and Viscount Villiers in 1616, Earl of Buckingham in 1617, Marquess of Buckingham in 1618 and finally Earl of Coventry and Duke of Buckingham in 1623. After the reductions in the peerage that had taken place during the Tudor
Tudor dynasty
The Tudor dynasty or House of Tudor was a European royal house of Welsh origin that ruled the Kingdom of England and its realms, including the Lordship of Ireland, later the Kingdom of Ireland, from 1485 until 1603. Its first monarch was Henry Tudor, a descendant through his mother of a legitimised...
period, Buckingham was left as the highest-ranking subject outside the royal family.
In the 1620s, Villiers acquired York House, Strand
York House, Strand
York House in the Strand in London was one of a string of mansions which once stood along the route from the City of London to the royal court at Westminster. It was built as the London home of the Bishops of Norwich not later than 1237, and around 300 years later it was acquired by King Henry VIII...
, the street linking the City of London
City of London
The City of London is a small area within Greater London, England. It is the historic core of London around which the modern conurbation grew and has held city status since time immemorial. The City’s boundaries have remained almost unchanged since the Middle Ages, and it is now only a tiny part of...
to that of Westminster
City of Westminster
The City of Westminster is a London borough occupying much of the central area of London, England, including most of the West End. It is located to the west of and adjoining the ancient City of London, directly to the east of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and its southern boundary...
. Apart from an interlude during the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
, the property remained in the family until his son
George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, 20th Baron de Ros of Helmsley, KG, PC, FRS was an English statesman and poet.- Upbringing and education :...
sold it to developers for £30,000 in 1672. He made it a condition of the sale that his name and title be commemorated by George Street, Villiers Street
Villiers Street
Villiers Street is a street in London connecting The Strand with The Embankment. It was built by Nicholas Bourbon in the 1670s on the site of York House, the property of George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham whose name the street commemorates...
, Duke Street, Of Alley, and Buckingham Street, some of which have survived into the 21st century.
Ireland
From 1616, Buckingham established a dominant influence in Irish affairs, beginning with the appointment of his client, Sir Oliver St JohnOliver St John, 1st Viscount Grandison
Sir Oliver St John, 1st Viscount Grandison was an English soldier who became Lord Deputy of Ireland.-Early years:He was the second son of Nicholas St John of Lydiard Park in Wiltshire and Purley Park in Berkshire, by his wife Elizabeth , daughter of Sir Richard Blount of Mapledurham House in...
, as Lord Deputy
Lord Deputy of Ireland
The Lord Deputy was the King's representative and head of the Irish executive under English rule, during the Lordship of Ireland and later the Kingdom of Ireland...
, 1616–1622. Thence, he acquired control of the Irish customs farm (1618), dominated Irish patronage at court, particularly with the sale of Irish titles and honours, and (from 1618) began to build substantial Irish estates for himself, his family and clients—with the aid of a plantation
Plantations of Ireland
Plantations in 16th and 17th century Ireland were the confiscation of land by the English crown and the colonisation of this land with settlers from England and the Scottish Lowlands....
lobby, composed of official clients in Dublin. To the same end, he secured the creation of an Irish Court of Wards in 1622. Buckingham's influence thus crucially sustained a forward Irish plantation policy into the 1620s.
Relations with Parliament, 1621–1624
The 1621 Parliament began an investigation into monopolies and other abuses in England and extended it later to Ireland; in this first session, Buckingham was quick to side with the Parliament to avoid action being taken against him. However, the king's decision in the summer of 1621 to send a commission of enquiry, including parliamentary firebrands, to Ireland threatened to expose Buckingham's growing, often clandestine interests there. Knowing that, in the summer, the king had assured the Spanish ambassador that the Parliament would not be allowed to imperil a Spanish matrimonial alliance, he therefore surreptitiously instigated a conflict between the Parliament and the king over the Spanish Match, which resulted in a premature dissolution of the Parliament in December 1621 and a hobbling of the Irish commission in 1622. Irish reforms nevertheless introduced by Lionel CranfieldLionel Cranfield, 1st Earl of Middlesex
Lionel Cranfield, 1st Earl of Middlesex was a successful merchant in London, England.-Life:He was the second son of Thomas Cranfield, a mercer at London, and his wife Martha Randill, the daughter and heiress of Vincent Randill of Sutton-at-Hone, Kent. He was apprenticed in to Richard Sheppard, a...
, Earl of Middlesex, in 1623–1624 were largely nullified by the impeachment and disgrace of the pacific Lord Treasurer in the violently anti-Spanish 1624 parliament—spurred on by Buckingham and Prince Charles.
Foreign affairs
In 1623, Buckingham accompanied Charles ICharles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
, then Prince of Wales, to Spain
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...
for marriage negotiations regarding the Infanta Maria. The negotiations had long been stuck, but it is believed that Buckingham's crassness was key to the total collapse of agreement; the Spanish ambassador asked Parliament to have Buckingham executed for his behaviour in Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
; but Buckingham gained popularity by calling for war with Spain on his return. He headed further marriage negotiations, but when, in 1624, the betrothal to Henrietta Maria of France was announced, the choice of a Catholic was widely condemned. Buckingham's popularity suffered further when he was blamed for the failure of the military expedition under the command of Ernst von Mansfeld
Ernst von Mansfeld
Ernst, Graf von Mansfeld , was a German military commander during the early years of the Thirty Years' War.-Biography:...
, a famous German mercenary general, sent to the continent to recover the Palatinate (1625), which had belonged to Frederick V, Elector Palatine
Frederick V, Elector Palatine
Frederick V was Elector Palatine , and, as Frederick I , King of Bohemia ....
, son-in-law of King 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...
. However, when the Duke of York became King Charles I, Buckingham was the only man to maintain his position from the court of James.
Buckingham led an expedition
Cádiz Expedition (1625)
The Cádiz Expedition of 1625 was a naval expedition against Spain by English and Dutch forces.The plan was put forward because after the Dissolution of the Parliament of 1625, the Duke of Buckingham, Lord High Admiral wanted to undertake an expedition that would match the exploits of the heroes of...
to repeat the actions of Sir Francis Drake
Francis Drake
Sir Francis Drake, Vice Admiral was an English sea captain, privateer, navigator, slaver, and politician of the Elizabethan era. Elizabeth I of England awarded Drake a knighthood in 1581. He was second-in-command of the English fleet against the Spanish Armada in 1588. He also carried out the...
by seizing the main Spanish port at Cádiz
Cádiz
Cadiz is a city and port in southwestern Spain. It is the capital of the homonymous province, one of eight which make up the autonomous community of Andalusia....
and burning the fleet in its harbour. Though his plan was tactically sound, landing further up the coast and marching the militia army on the city, the troops were ill-equipped, ill-disciplined and ill-trained. Coming upon a warehouse filled with wine, they simply got drunk, and the attack was called off. The English army briefly occupied a small port further down the coast before re-boarding its ships.
This was followed by Buckingham leading the Army and the Navy to sea to intercept an anticipated Spanish silver fleet
Spanish treasure fleet
The Spanish treasure fleets was a convoy system adopted by the Spanish Empire from 1566 to 1790...
from its American territories. However, the Spanish were forewarned by their intelligence and easily avoided the planned ambush. With supplies running out and men sick and dying from starvation and disease, the fleet limped home in embarrassment.
Buckingham then negotiated with the French Prime Minister to the King
Prime Minister of France
The Prime Minister of France in the Fifth Republic is the head of government and of the Council of Ministers of France. The head of state is the President of the French Republic...
, Cardinal Richelieu, for English ships to aid Richelieu in his fight against the French Protestants (Huguenot
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
s), in return for French aid against the Spanish occupying the Palatinate. Seven English warships participated in operations against La Rochelle
La Rochelle
La Rochelle is a city in western France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department.The city is connected to the Île de Ré by a bridge completed on 19 May 1988...
and in the Siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré (1625), but Parliament was disgusted and horrified at the thought of English Protestants fighting French Protestants. The plan only fuelled their fears of crypto-Catholicism at court. Buckingham himself, believing that the failure of his enterprise was the result of treachery by Richelieu, formulated an alliance among the churchman's many enemies, a policy that included support for the very Huguenots whom he had recently attacked.
War with Habsburg Austria, France, and Spain
When the Commons attempted to impeachImpeachment
Impeachment is a formal process in which an official is accused of unlawful activity, the outcome of which, depending on the country, may include the removal of that official from office as well as other punishment....
him for the failure of the Cádiz Expedition (1625)
Cádiz Expedition (1625)
The Cádiz Expedition of 1625 was a naval expedition against Spain by English and Dutch forces.The plan was put forward because after the Dissolution of the Parliament of 1625, the Duke of Buckingham, Lord High Admiral wanted to undertake an expedition that would match the exploits of the heroes of...
, the King dissolved Parliament in June to prevent his impeachment.
Death
In 1627, Buckingham led another failure: an attempt to aid his new HuguenotHuguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
allies besieged at La Rochelle
Siege of La Rochelle
The Siege of La Rochelle was a result of a war between the French royal forces of Louis XIII of France and the Huguenots of La Rochelle in 1627-1628...
in France, by leading the Siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré (1627)
Siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré (1627)
The Siege of Saint-Martin-de-Ré, also Siege of St. Martin's , occurred in the French isle of Ile de Ré around the fortress of the city of Saint-Martin-de-Ré, when Duke of Buckingham tried to occupy the island in 1627...
. He lost more than 4,000 of a force of 7,000 men. While organising a second campaign in Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
in 1628, he was stabbed to death, on August 23, at the Greyhound Pub
Greyhound Pub
The Greyhound was a Public House , in High Street, Old Portsmouth, famous as the site of the murder of George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham in 1628.-In Letters:...
; the assassin was John Felton, an army officer who had been wounded in the earlier military adventure. Felton believed he had been passed over for promotion by Buckingham. Felton was hanged in October of that year.
Buckingham was buried in Westminster Abbey
Westminster Abbey
The Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, popularly known as Westminster Abbey, is a large, mainly Gothic church, in the City of Westminster, London, United Kingdom, located just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English,...
. His lavish tomb bears a Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
inscription that may be translated as "The Enigma of the World".
In fiction
A fictionalised Buckingham is one of the characters in Alexandre Dumas, pèreAlexandre Dumas, père
Alexandre Dumas, , born Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie was a French writer, best known for his historical novels of high adventure which have made him one of the most widely read French authors in the world...
's The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers is a novel by Alexandre Dumas, first serialized in March–July 1844. Set in the 17th century, it recounts the adventures of a young man named d'Artagnan after he leaves home to travel to Paris, to join the Musketeers of the Guard...
, which paints him as a lover of Anne of Austria
Anne of Austria
Anne of Austria was Queen consort of France and Navarre, regent for her son, Louis XIV of France, and a Spanish Infanta by birth...
and deals with his assassination by Felton. In Arturo Pérez-Reverte
Arturo Pérez-Reverte
Arturo Pérez-Reverte Gutiérrez is a Spanish novelist and journalist. He worked as a war correspondent for twenty-one years . His first novel, El húsar, set in the Napoleonic Wars, was released in 1986. He is well known outside Spain for his "Alatriste" series of novels...
's novel, El capitán Alatriste, Buckingham appears briefly while on his expedition to Spain
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...
in 1623 with Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
. He is also a central character in novels by Philippa Gregory
Philippa Gregory
Philippa Gregory is an English novelist.-Early life and academic career:Philippa Gregory was born in Kenya. When she was two years old, her family moved to England. She was a "rebel" at school, but managed to attend the University of Sussex...
, Earthly Joys, and Evelyn Anthony
Evelyn Anthony
Evelyn Anthony is the pen name of Evelyn Ward Thomas, a British female writer.-Life and work:In her youth during the Second World War she was educated largely at home, rather than at school...
, Charles, The King. He also appears, played by Marcus Hutton
Marcus Hutton
Marcus Hutton is an actor and voice over artist who trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Hutton played Nathan Cuddington in Channel 4's soap opera Brookside from 1998 - 2000. He has also voiced hundreds of radio and TV commercials in the UK and around the world...
, in the Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
audio drama The Church and the Crown
The Church and the Crown
The Church and the Crown is a Big Finish Productions audio drama based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who.-Plot:...
, in which he leads an aborted English invasion of France in 1626.
He is a key character in the Bertrice Small
Bertrice Small
Bertrice Small is an U.S.American New York Times bestselling writer of historical and erotic romance novels. Bertrice lives on Long Island, New York with her husband George Small. She is a member of The Authors Guild, Romance Writers of America, PAN, and PASIC...
novel Darling Jasmine. He also plays a part in the novel, The Arm and the Darkness by Taylor Caldwell
Taylor Caldwell
Janet Miriam Holland Taylor Caldwell was an Anglo-American novelist and prolific author of popular fiction, also known by the pen names Marcus Holland and Max Reiner, and by her married name of J. Miriam Reback....
, as the English ally sought by the Huguenots to help defend their refuge city, La Rochelle
La Rochelle
La Rochelle is a city in western France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department.The city is connected to the Île de Ré by a bridge completed on 19 May 1988...
, against the siege ordered and led by Cardinal Richelieu, the minister of Louis XIII, King of France. As George Villiers, Buckingham appears as a major character in Howard Brenton's 2010 play Anne Boleyn
Anne Boleyn (play)
Anne Boleyn is a 2010 play on the life of Anne Boleyn by the English author Howard Brenton, which premiered at the Shakespeare's Globe from 24 July to 21 August 2010 in a production directed by John Dove and with the title role played by Miranda Raison...
as King James I's mate in sexual horseplay.
The Duke of Buckingham was a very controversial historical figure. Though Alexandre Dumas writes in paradoxically positive terms about him in The Three Musketeers, on the other hand, the English novelist and historian Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
makes no effort to hide his total rejection of the Duke in his book A Child’s History of England. He claims that, as King Charles the First commissioned the Duke of Buckingham (“that insolent upstart”) to bring the royal fiancée, Princess Henrietta Maria, from Paris to England, Buckingham — “with his usual audacity” — made love to the Queen of France, the Spanish Anne of Austria
Anne of Austria
Anne of Austria was Queen consort of France and Navarre, regent for her son, Louis XIV of France, and a Spanish Infanta by birth...
, thus creating an extremely serious diplomatic conflict to the advantage of Cardinal Richelieu. Later, “that pestilent Buckingham, to gratify his own wounded vanity”, engaged England in war with France, as well as with Spain.
And Dickens comments: “For such miserable causes and such miserable creatures are wars sometimes made.”
Far from regretting Buckingham’s assassination, Dickens concluded that “he was destined to do little more mischief in this world”.
Marriage and family
Buckingham married the daughter of the 6th Earl of RutlandFrancis Manners, 6th Earl of Rutland
Francis Manners, 6th Earl of Rutland, KG was an English nobleman. Despite a brief imprisonment for his involvement in the Essex Rebellion of 1601, he became prominent at the court of James I. He lived at Belvoir Castle in Lincolnshire...
, Lady Katherine Manners
Katherine Villiers, Duchess of Buckingham
Katherine Manners, Duchess of Buckingham, 19th Baroness de Ros of Helmsley , also known as Catherine, was the daughter and heir of the 18th Baron de Ros. She was known as the richest woman in Britain, apart from royalty...
, later suo jure
Suo jure
Suo jure is a Latin phrase meaning "in her [or his] own right".It is commonly encountered in the context of titles of nobility, especially in cases where a wife may hold a title in her own right rather than through her marriage....
Baroness de Ros
Baron de Ros
The title of Baron de Ros of Helmsley is the most ancient baronial title in the Peerage of England. The title of Baron de Ros of Helmsley is the most ancient baronial title in the Peerage of England. The title of Baron de Ros of Helmsley is the most ancient baronial title in the Peerage of England....
, on 16 May 1620, despite the objections of her father. Buckingham was happy to grant valuable royal monopolies to her family, with issue:
- Mary Villiers (1622-November 1685)
- Charles Villiers, Marquess of Buckingham, (17 Nov 1625-16 March 1627)
- George Villiers, 2nd Duke of BuckinghamGeorge Villiers, 2nd Duke of BuckinghamGeorge Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, 20th Baron de Ros of Helmsley, KG, PC, FRS was an English statesman and poet.- Upbringing and education :...
, (30 January 1628-16 April 1687)
Buckingham's daughter, Lady Mary Villiers, was the wife of the Royalist
Cavalier
Cavalier was the name used by Parliamentarians for a Royalist supporter of King Charles I and son Charles II during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration...
1st Duke of Richmond
James Stewart, 1st Duke of Richmond
James Stewart, 1st Duke of Richmond, 4th Duke of Lennox was a Scottish nobleman. He was the eldest son of Esmé Stewart, 3rd Duke of Lennox and his wife Katherine Clifton, 2nd Baroness Clifton....
. Richmond was the grandson of the 1st Duke of Lennox
Esmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox
Esmé Stewart, 1st Duke of Lennox, 1st Earl of Lennox was the son of John Stewart, 5th Lord of Aubigny who was the younger brother of Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox...
of the Seigneur
Lord
Lord is a title with various meanings. It can denote a prince or a feudal superior . The title today is mostly used in connection with the peerage of the United Kingdom or its predecessor countries, although some users of the title do not themselves hold peerages, and use it 'by courtesy'...
s d'Aubigny Stuarts. His elder son Charles (1626–1627) died as an infant and the title was inherited by his younger son George
George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham
George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, 20th Baron de Ros of Helmsley, KG, PC, FRS was an English statesman and poet.- Upbringing and education :...
.
External links
- The impeachment of Buckingham (1626), Historical Collections of Private Passages of State: Volume 1: 1618–29 (1721), pp. 302–358.
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