Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex

The Earl of Essex
Portrait of Robert Devereux 3rd Earl of Essex
Born	(1591-01-11)11 January 1591
Died	14 September 1646(1646-09-14) (aged 55)
Title	Earl of Essex
Spouse(s)	Frances Howard Elizabeth Paulet
Parent(s)	Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex Frances Walsingham

Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex, KB, PC (11 January 1591 – 14 September 1646) was an English Parliamentarian and soldier during the first half of the 17th century. With the start of the English Civil War in 1642 he became the first Captain-General and Chief Commander of the Parliamentarian army, also known as the Roundheads. However, he was unable and unwilling to score a decisive blow against the Royalist army of King Charles I. He was eventually overshadowed by the ascendancy of Oliver Cromwell and Thomas Fairfax and resigned his commission in 1646.

Robert Devereux was the son and heir of Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, the courtier and soldier from the later reign of Queen Elizabeth I. His mother was Frances Walsingham (1569–1631), the only daughter of Sir Francis Walsingham, Elizabeth's spymaster. He was born at the home of his grandmother, Lady Walsingham, in Seething Lane, London.

He was educated at Eton College and Merton College, Oxford, being created MA by the university in 1605.

The 2nd Earl led an unsuccessful rebellion against Elizabeth in 1601. He was subsequently executed for treason and the family lost its title. However, King James I chose to restore it after he became King of England. In 1604, Robert Devereux became the 3rd Earl of Essex. The young earl became a close friend of Henry Stuart, Prince of Wales, who was three years Essex's junior.