Northern Rebellion (1569)

The Northern Rebellion, sometimes called The Rising of the North or The Revolt of The Northern Earls, was a major rebellion against Queen Elizabeth in the winter of 1569. It was the first rebellion of her reign and was led by two powerful northern earls: Thomas Percy, Earl of Northumberland (1528-1572), and Charles Neville, Earl of Westmoreland (1542-1601). The rebellion came after an eventful two years in British history. These years saw the forced abdication of Mary, Queen of Scots; her escape from imprisonment; and her subsequent arrival on English soil.

Mary's arrival in England was a political and personal disaster for Queen Elizabeth. Not only was Mary widely believed to be the rightful heir to the English throne, being Elizabeth's next of kin on her father's side, but she was believed by many to be the rightful Queen of England. This is because she was a Catholic and in the eyes of many Catholics, at home and abroad, Elizabeth was illegitimate as they did not recognise her father's marriage to her mother, Anne Boleyn. Mary also had what Elizabeth did not: a son and heir. Many people were worried what would beccome of the country if Elizabeth died without a child to succeed her, especially as the Queen showed no enthusiasm for marriage. Would there be civil unrest or even civil war?

Mary was thus an attractive alternative queen to many of Elizabeth's Catholic subjects. They believed she would restore the Catholic religion, which was still popular in some areas of the country, like the north, despite being illegal, and by virtue of her infant son, James, now King of Scotland, she would settle the matter of the succession. Elizabeth and her advisors knew that Mary was a considerable threat so her arrival in England put them in a great dilemma. Just what were they to do with her?

Given her fate, Queen Mary may always have regretted escaping to England, rather than to France, but at the time she sincerely believed that Queen Elizabeth would help her regain her Scottish throne. But Elizabeth was reluctant to raise an army to fight Mary's battle. She feared the soldiers would prove disloyal and try to put Mary on the English throne as well as on the Scottish. Equally alarming was the thought of letting Mary escape to France where she could raise an army of her own. So, in the event of not knowing quite what to do, Elizabeth and her advisors kept the Scottish Queen in England as a prisoner.

Thomas Howard, Duke of Norfolk
Wiki Commons

Some of Elizabeth's most powerful lords, however, including the Earls of Leicester, Arundel, and Pembroke, had their own idea what to do with the Scottish queen. Their idea was to marry her to an English Protestant lord. They believed this would, in one stroke, solve all the country's problems. Mary would be converted to Protestantism, be restored to her throne with English help, rule Scotland as an ally to England, and after Elizabeth's death she, or her son if she was dead, would rule both realms, thereby settling the issue of the succession. The man they believed would be the perfect husband for Mary was Thomas Howard, Duke of Norfolk. Not only was he the richest man in the land but he was the country's only duke. He was also very eager to marry the Scottish Queen and wasted no time in courting her by letter and gifts. But there was one major problem: the lords did not know if Elizabeth would support their plan. And, as they did not know, they were afraid to tell her of it. Instead, they plotted behind her back.

At first, all went well. James Stewart, Earl of Moray, regent in Scotland as James was only a child, supported the match and said he would help Mary regain her thone if Elizabeth approved of the plan. Mary also agreed to marry Norfolk and to establish Protestantism in Scotland and make an alliance between Scotland and England. However, over the summer Moray changed his mind and said he would no longer support Mary's restoration to the Scottish throne. This was a major blow and effectively put an end to the plot. The Duke of Norfolk, however, still wanted to marry Mary and asked the great northern earls to support him. It was this ambition that ultimately brought about the rebellion.

Alarmed at the way things were getting out of control, Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, fiercely loyal to Elizabeth, told her everything in the September of 1569. Norfolk now feared for his life, as plotting to marry an heir to the throne was treason, and left court without permission. Elizabeth called him back, but he ignored her summons. Elizabeth, and her chief minister, William Cecil (who had never been part of the plot) feared the duke had gone north to raise a rebellion. Norfolk lacked the nerve, however, and in October decided to return to London and throw himself on the Queen's mercy. This he did but he was arrested and imprisoned in the Tower of London.

Norfolk's surrender could have been the end of the matter, but Elizabeth still feared an uprising from her powerful northern earls, Westmoreland and Northumberland. She knew they were Catholic, knew they supported the Queen of Scots and Norfolk, and knew they were unhappy with their lack of influence at court. She also knew there was a lot of discontent in the north that could easily lend itself to rebellion. So, at the beginning of October, the Queen had the two earls questioned by the Council of the North (which governed the north of England). Thomas Radclyffe, Earl of Sussex, was satisfied of their loyalty but Elizabeth was not. She wanted the two earls brought before her Privy Council to explain themselves further. This summons terrified the earls, who believed they would join the Duke of Norfolk in the Tower, and their terror caused them to do exactly what Elizabeth feared: rebel.

The two earls raised an army and marched south, recruiting more men on their way. They wanted complete change at court. They wanted William Cecil, who they blamed most for their troubles, sacked, and they wanted the Religious Settlement of 1559 overturned and Catholicism restored. They also wanted the Queen of Scots recognised as Elizabeth's rightful heir. By the end of November the earls had captured Durham Cathedral, restoring the Mass there, and had an army of over 6,000 men.

Facing a considerable threat, Elizabeth was quick to act. She sent an army north and moved the Queen of Scots further south to keep her out of the reach of the rebels. The Earl of Sussex quickly took control of the rebellion and forced the earls to retreat. The earls had not gained as much support as they had hoped amongst Catholics in the north and neither the Scottish Queen nor the King of Spain openly supported their cause. They were therefore left to fight alone and by Christmas their rebellion had collapsed.

Knowing they faced charges of treason, which was punishable by death, the two earls fled to Scotland. For assisting the earls, 400 or more of their men were hanged as traitors. The intention was not just to punish but to warm: rebel against the Queen and this will be your fate! Unfortunately for the Earl of Northumberland, he was handed over to the English by the Scots, which resulted in his execution for treason in 1572. The Earl of Westmoreland, however, managed to escape to the Continent and lived out the rest of his life in exile.

Although brutal, the Queen's suppression of the rebellion was so successful that it was another thirty years before she faced another: the Essex Rebellion of 1601.