NEW BEGINNINGS, 1603

Shortly after the failure of the Essex Rebellion of 1601, James VI of Scotland sent his two best political operatives on the long road back to London, charging them to try to repair the damage the Rebellion might have done to his chances for succeeding to the English throne. James himself may have been involved in the Rebellion, which Essex had led in part in order to assure that a Protestant partisan like James would inherit the crown; James had been in contact with Essex about this for some time. But whether or not James had a hand in it – England's last feudal “rising” in the opinion of many historians – the Rebellion's failure made him afraid for his chances for succession, and worried about the country's stability as a whole. So he decided to take action. He was determined to redouble his agents' efforts at intelligence-gathering and diplomacy, while continuing to try to lobby the Queen. And he was also ready to instigate a number of conspiratorial motions and wrest control of England without the Queen's blessings, by extra-legal means if necessary. “Find out,” he told the Earl of Mar and Edward Bruce, in secret correspondence,