Synopsis: ... new historical scholarship suggests that a deadly combination of hubris and vulnerability did indeed drive Villiers to kill the man who made him. It may have been by accident – the application of a quack remedy while the king was weakened by a malarial attack. But there is compelling evidence that Villiers, overcome by ambition and frustrated by James’s passive approach to government, poisoned him.
For me, this was more a biography of George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham than the solving (or positing a reasonable scenario) of a cold case.
It is the tale of the rise of Villiers who was "... just another provencial turning up in his country weeds .." that caught the attention of the James (and also his current favourite, Carr) whilst he was on progress. He was put forth (by a conspiracy of nobles and the Queen) as a foil to Carr's hold over the King. His rise was swift and his supporters (ie: patrons) assumed he would do their bidding - but they had misjudged both Villiers and his family.
His family life, marriage, and political adventures and rewards are duly covered off before we get the the chapters that actually start to deal with the death of James and the allegations against Villiers. There was, as the author noted, "an abundance of suspicion, little evidence" except for a delirious outburst from James "... will you murder me ..." as he lay on his sickbed. Villiers was in charge of James' treatment and had control over who had access to the ailing King - so the accusation of "poison" was sure to surface, even more so as Villiers was consolidating his hold of James' heir, Charles.
Even so, evidence for an indictment was being collaborated a year following James' death. When Villiers himself become ill in that same period, rumours of "poison" reared their ugly heads - but it was at the hands of an assassin that Villiers met his fate.
I was really hoping for more of a cold case style of work than a biography on Villiers, which though essential, dominated when it should have been the entree only. As one reviewer put it "...the author asserts that compelling evidence exists to suggest that Villiers, overcome by ambition and frustrated by James's passive approach to government, poisoned him. Although the book is informed by primary evidence from the likes of pamphlets and letters, the author does not reveal the precise contents of this “compelling evidence.” (Padraig Lawlor, Purdow University)
see also:
The Murder of King James I by Alastair Bellamy and Thomas Cogswell
The Assassin by Ronald Blythe (fiction)
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