Lord Henry Howard, William Temple, and the Earl of Essex

This article reexamines a long and detailed manuscript narrative about the power struggle that took place in the latter half of 1600 around Elizabeth I’s famous favorite, Robert Devereux, second Earl of Essex (1565–1601). First studied in detail in 2012, this document offers insights into the political fall of Essex and the nature and operation of courtly politics in Elizabeth’s final years. Recent speculation has posited William Temple, subsequently the first lay provost of Trinity College Dublin, as the author of the narrative. This article conclusively demonstrates that the narrative’s author was not Temple but Lord Henry Howard, later Earl of Northampton. The article also sheds important new light on Temple’s career, especially in the aftermath of the Essex Rising of February 1601. More broadly, this article places both Temple and the manuscript narrative within the wider context of contemporary debate about which individuals or religious groups should be blamed for Essex’s fall.