The Right Honourable Robert Carr, 1st Earl of Somerset, KG, PC (sometimes spelt Kerr) (c. 1590 – July 17, 1645), was a Scottish politician, and favourite of King James I of England. The Right Honourable (abbreviated The Rt. ... The Garter is the most recognizable insignia of the Order of the Garter. ... Her Majestys Most Honourable Privy Council is a body of advisors to the British Sovereign. ... Events March 14 - Battle of Ivry - Henry IV of France again defeats the forces of the Catholic League under the Duc de Mayenne. ... // Events January 10 - Archbishop Laud executed on Tower Hill, London. ... James VI and I King of England, Scotland and Ireland James VI of Scotland and I of England (Charles James) (19 June 1566–27 March 1625) was a King who ruled over England, Scotland and Ireland, and was the first Sovereign to reign in the three realms simultaneously. ...

He was born in Wrington, Somerset, England the younger son of Sir Thomas Kerr of Ferniehurst by his second wife, Janet, sister of Sir Walter Scott of Buccleuch. He accompanied James I as page to England, but being then discharged from the royal service, sought for a time to make his fortune in France.

Returning to England at age 17 he happened to break his arm at a tilting match, at which James was present, and was recognized by the king. According to the Earl of Suffolk, Thomas Howard, King James fell in love with the young man, and taught him Latin, and helped nurse him. As the years progressed James showered the man with gifts, till 1615 when the two men had a falling out and Robert was replaced by George Villiers. James wrote a letter that year detailing a list of complaints he now had against Carr, including Carr withdrawing himself from James' chamber despite the Kings "soliciting to the contrary" Jousting scene, by Jörg Breu the Elder (1510s, pen and black ink over black chalk) Jousting is a competition between two knights on horse-back, wherein each knight tries to knock the other off his mount. ... James VI of Scotland/James I of England and Ireland (Charles James) (June 19, 1566 – March 27, 1625) was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland and was the first to style himself King of Great Britain. ... Events June 2 - First Récollet missionaries arrive at Quebec City, from Rouen, France. ... George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham by Rubens George Villiers (August 28, 1592 – August 23, 1628) was the 1st Duke of Buckingham of the second creation (1623) of that title and a favourite of King James I of England and then of Charles I. He was born in Brooksby, Leicestershire...

Entirely devoid of all high intellectual qualities, Carr was endowed with good looks, excellent spirits, and considerable personal accomplishments. These advantages were sufficient for James, who knighted the young man and at once took him into favour. In 1607 an opportunity enabled the king to confer upon him a more substantial mark of his affection. Sir Walter Raleigh had through his attainder forfeited his life-interest in the manor of Sherborne, but he had previously executed a conveyance by which the property was to pass on his death to his eldest son. This document was, unfortunately, rendered worthless by a flaw which gave the king eventual possession of the property. Acting on Salisbury’s suggestion, James resolved to confer the manor on Carr. The case was argued at law, and judgment was in 1609 given for the Crown. Lady Raleigh received some compensation, apparently inadequate, and Carr at once entered on possession. Events January 20 - Tidal wave swept along the Bristol Channel, killing 2000 people. ... Walter Raleigh, by Nicholas Hilliard, c. ... // Events April 4 – King of Spain signs an edit of expulsion of all moriscos from Spain April 9 – Spain recognizes Dutch independence May 23 - Official ratification of the Second Charter of Virginia. ...

His influence was already such that in 1610 he persuaded the king to dissolve the parliament, which had shown signs of attacking the Scottish favourites. On March 24, 1611 he was created Viscount Rochester, and subsequently a privy councillor, while on Lord Salisbury’s death in 1612 he began to act as the king’s secretary. On the November 3, 1613 he was advanced to the earldom of Somerset, on December 23 was appointed Treasurer of Scotland, and in 1614 Lord Chamberlain. // Events January 7 - Galileo Galilei discovers the Galilean moons of Jupiter. ... March 24 is the 83rd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (84th in Leap years). ... Events June 23 - Henry Hudsons crew maroons him, his son and 7 others in a boat November 1 - At Whitehall Palace in London, William Shakespeares romantic comedy The Tempest is presented for the first time. ... The Duke of Somerset is a title in the peerage of England that has been created several times. ... A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a nation, especially in a monarchy. ... ] The Right Honourable Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury, KG, PC (1 June 1563–24 May 1612), son of William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley and half-brother of Thomas Cecil, 1st Earl of Exeter, statesman, spymaster and minister to Queen Elizabeth I and King James I. Lord Salisbury is the... November 3 is the 307th day of the year (308th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 58 days remaining. ... Events January - Galileo observes Neptune, but mistakes it for a star and so is not credited with its discovery. ... December 23 is the 357th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (358th in leap years). ... The Treasurer was was a senior post in the pre-Union government of Scotland. ... Events April 5 - In Virginia, Native American Pocahontas marries English colonist John Rolfe. ... The Lord Chamberlain or Lord Chamberlain of the Household is one of the chief officers of the Royal Household in the United Kingdom, and is to be distinguished from the Lord Great Chamberlain, one of the great offices of state. ...

He supported the 2nd Earl of Northampton and the Spanish party in opposition to the old tried advisers of the king, such as Lord Chancellor Ellesmere, who were endeavouring to maintain the union with the Protestants abroad, and who now in 1614 pushed forward another candidate for the king’s favour. Somerset, whose head was turned by the sudden rise to power and influence, became jealous and peevish, and feeling his position insecure, obtained in 1615 from the king a full pardon, to which, however, the chancellor refused to put the Great Seal. He still, however, retained the king’s favour, and might possibly have remained in power for some time longer but for the discovery of the murder of Sir Thomas Overbury. Before 1609, while still only Sir Robert Carr, Somerset had begun an intrigue with Frances Howard, Lady Essex. Supported by the king, the latter obtained a decree of nullity of marriage against Lord Essex in September 1603, and in December she married the earl of Somerset. Ten days before the court gave judgment, Sir Thomas Overbury, who apparently knew facts concerning Lady Essex which would have been fatal to her success, and had been imprisoned in the Tower, was poisoned. No idea seems to have been entertained at the time that Lady Essex and her future husband were implicated. Spencer Compton, 2nd Earl of Northampton (1601 - 1643), was the son of William, 1st earl, lord president of the marches, whose father had been created Baron Compton by Elizabeth, and of Elizabeth, daughter and heir of Sir John Spencer, lord mayor of London. ... Thomas Egerton, 1st Baron Ellesmere (1540 – 1617) was an English nobleman who served as Member of Parliament for Cheshire. ... Events April 5 - In Virginia, Native American Pocahontas marries English colonist John Rolfe. ... Events June 2 - First Récollet missionaries arrive at Quebec City, from Rouen, France. ... The Great Seal of the Realm is a British institution by which the monarch can authorise official documents without having to sign each document individually. ... Thomas Overbury Sir Thomas Overbury (1581 - September 15, 1613), English poet and essayist, and the victim of one of the most sensational crimes in English history, was the son of Nicholas Overbury, of Bourton-on-the-Hill, and was born at Compton Scorpion, near Ilmington, in Warwickshire. ... // Events April 4 – King of Spain signs an edit of expulsion of all moriscos from Spain April 9 – Spain recognizes Dutch independence May 23 - Official ratification of the Second Charter of Virginia. ... Frances Howard Frances Howard, born in 1591, was the daughter of Thomas Howard, the 1st Earl of Suffolk, and his wife Katherine Knyvet. ... Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex, (January 11 1591 – 14 September 1646), was the son and heir of the unfortunate Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex, and succeeded to his fathers title in 1604, three years after the previous earl had been executed for treason. ... For the film with this title, see Tower of London (1939 film). ...

The crime, however, was not disclosed until September 1615. Coke and Bacon were set to unravel the plot. After four of the principal agents had been convicted and punished, the Earl and Countess of Somerset were brought to trial. The latter confessed, and of her guilt there can be no doubt. Somerset’s share is far more difficult to discover, and probably will never be fully known. The evidence against him rested on mere presumption, and he consistently declared himself innocent. Probabilities are on the whole in favour of the hypothesis that he was not more than an accessory after the fact. James, who had been threatened by Somerset with damaging disclosures, let matters take their course, and both earl and countess were found guilty. The sentence was not carried into effect against either culprit. The countess was pardoned immediately, but both remained in the Tower till January 1622. The earl appears to have refused to buy forgiveness by concessions, and it was not till 1624 that he obtained his pardon. He only once more emerged into public view when in 1630 he was prosecuted in the Star Chamber for communicating a paper of Sir Robert Dudley’s to the earl of Clare, recommending the establishment of arbitrary government. He died in July 1645, leaving one daughter, Anne, the sole issue of his ill-fated marriage, afterwards wife of the 1st Duke of Bedford. Events June 2 - First Récollet missionaries arrive at Quebec City, from Rouen, France. ... Events January 1 - In the Gregorian calendar, January 1 is declared as the first day of the year, instead of March 25. ... Events January 24 - Alfonso Mendez, appointed by Pope Gregory XV as Prelate of Ethiopia, arrives at Massawa from Goa. ... Events February 22 - Native American Quadequine introduces Popcorn to English colonists. ... // Events January 10 - Archbishop Laud executed on Tower Hill, London. ... The Most Noble Sir William Russell, 1st Duke of Bedford KG PC (August 1616–September 7, 1700) was a British peer and soldier, the son of Francis Russell, 4th Earl of Bedford. ...