Essex Rebellion

Essex's Rebellion was an unsuccessful rebellion led by Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex in 1601 against Elizabeth I of England and the court faction led by Sir Robert Cecil to gain further influence at court.

The 2nd Earl of Essex, Robert Devereux (1565-1601) was the main leader of Essex's Rebellion in 1601. The main tensions that led to the rebellion began in 1599, when Devereux was given the position of Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. He was sent to Ireland with the mission of subduing the revolts led by the Earl of Tyrone, leading one of the largest expeditionary forces ever sent to Ireland. It was expected that he would crush the rebellion immediately, however instead Devereux fought a series of inconclusive battles, squandered his funds, and was unable to face the Irish in any sort of engagement. In this dilemma, Devereux eventually made a truce with Tyrone. This truce was seen as a disgrace to England and a detriment to the authority of those in power. He proceeded to leave Ireland and returned to England. His time spent as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland proved disastrous to him; his return was in express defiance of the orders of the Queen. She spoke out on his behaviour, calling it “Perilous and contemptable”. Devereux was deprived of his offices in June 1600 and promptly placed under house arrest. In disgrace as well as in political and financial ruin, Devereux wrote several letters of submission to the Queen, and by August 1600 he was able to move freely except to return to court. He spent further time sending letters in an attempt to gain permission to do so. In November 1600, Queen Elizabeth refused to renew his Government-granted monopoly on sweet wine, an action that placed Devereux in even deeper financial ruin. He began to create plans to seize the court by force.

The Earl's London residence, Essex House, became a focal point for people who were upset with Elizabeth’s government. On 3 February 1601, five of the conspiracy leaders met at Drury House, the lodging of the Earl of Southampton. Hoping to avoid suspicion, Devereux himself was not present. The group discussed Devereux’s proposals for seizing the court, the tower and the city. Their goal was to force the Queen to change the leaders in her government, particularly Robert Cecil, even if this attempt meant causing harm to the Queen’s people.

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