The Murder of King James I by Alastair Bellany and Thomas Cogswell was published in 2015 for an academic audience interested in the political and print culture of Early Modern England. Bellany is a professor of 16th and 17th century British culture and politics at Rutgers University. Cogswell is a professor of early modern British history at Washington University who is known for his love of law and order. Bellany and Cogswell combined their interests and specialties to discuss the development of the rift between parliament and the Stuart kings of England leading up to the English Civil war through the lens of political unrest created by the death of James I. Through their book, Bellany and Cogswell argue that the alleged murder of King James I acted as a springboard for the impending regicide of King Charles I due to the nature of the alleged murder, evidence presented, and the suspects involved (413). Bellany and Cogswell emphasize the impact of print culture and values on the trial proceedings and public reception of political action. The book utilizes various primary sources such as court records, personal correspondence, pamphlets, portrait prints, poems, and other printed materials alongside secondary source publications from scholarly peers in order to construct their argument with tangible evidence. Photocopies of these primary sources often appear within the text in order to immerse the reader into the investigation and examination of “why and how contemporaries claimed or believed that the king was poisoned” as well as the nature and consequences of those beliefs (xxx).
Within the introduction, Bellany and Cogswell break the book down into six sections that follow a relatively linear timeline along with a theme. Each section also has a prologue that introduces the characters discussed and provides contextual information relevant the the theme. The first section, titled “The Authorized Version, 1625,” consists of chapters one and two, which discuss the death and burial of James I. The prologue of this section is large enough to be considered it’s own chapter, unlike the rest, and sets the stage for the rest of the book. The prologue focuses on the political strains of James I’s late reign and the relationship he had with his son and the Duke of Buckingham. Buckingham was unusually close to James I and was gaining more political influence at court as a result. Chapter one examines James’s final days after he falls ill with a severe fever and his “good” death (26). His attending physicians conduct an autopsy and file a report chalking his death up to natural causes due to James’s chronic illnesses and poor lifestyle choices (35). This report later becomes controversial in later chapters. Chapter two discusses funerary arrangements and the transfer of power to Charles I. Section two, titled “Making the Secret History, 1625-26,”consists of chapters three through seven. The theme of this section is the introduction of criminal scandal with the publication of a secret history of James l’s final days and death. The tumultuous rumor of a plaster and potion administered to James by Buckingham, leading to his death surfaces as Buckingham attempts to gain favor and influence over Charles I. Here, we are introduced to George Eglisham, a philosopher physician, who publishes The Forerunner, a pamphlet that illustrates the rumor and is dispersed through Europe, naming the Duke of Buckingham as the suspect guilty of poisoning James I and poisoning other nobles at court. This pamphlet was utilized as propaganda for stirring civil unrest in England to distract from war with Spain (153). Section three, titled “Impeaching Buckingham, 1626,” consists of chapters eight through twelve and discusses the court proceedings and formal investigation of the allegations against the Duke of Buckingham. We can see cracks begin to form between the monarchy and Parliament within this section as Charles fails to reprimand Buckingham and instead dissolves Parliament, thus protecting Buckingham from conviction and creating further political unrest (265). Charles, as a result of his actions, becomes implicated in the murder of his father (248). Section four, titled “The Poisonous Favorite, 1626-28,” consists of chapters thirteen through sixteen and further examines these implications through the testimonial of Thomas of Canterbury as the role of print media in the foundation of evidence. Due to Charles impeding upon Parliamentary action in the trial of Buckingham, the duke is murdered by John Felton (339). Section five, titled “Strange Apparitions, 1629-49,” consists of chapters seventeen through twenty-one and Section Six, titled “Speaking Reproachfully of the Dead, 1649-63,” consists of chapters twenty-two through twenty-six. Both of these sections discuss the resurfacing of Eglisham’s secret history prior to the outbreak of civil war with a shift of focus from Buckingham’s role in the murder to Charles’s role. Charles is placed on trial and executed for tyranny, murder, conspiracy, and injustice (418).
The strengths of this work lie in the abundance of source material and thoroughness of research done to formulate the argument. Cogswell and Bellany present a wealth of knowledge and do an excellent job of utilizing sources to back up claims and piece together a greater picture of revolution beyond the trial. In contrast, the weaknesses of this work include the organization and feeling of being overwhelmed with details and the daunting length of the book. The sectioning off of chapters by theme and years leads the reader to believe that the book would follow a linear timeline, yet in later chapters the timeline jumps around and grows frustratingly fuzzy at times. Cogswell and Ballany also include copious amounts of details that distract from the arguments made. Perhaps with further editing the sheer length of the book could be cut down to a more approachable size that could easily entice interested readers, some even being outside of an academic audience.
