Now a major TV series, Mary & George, starring Julianne Moore and Nicholas Galitzine.
The Kingâs Assassin is the scandalous story of George Villiers, lover â and murderer â of King James I.
The rise of George Villiers from minor gentry to royal power seemed to defy gravity. Becoming gentleman of the royal bedchamber in 1615, the young gallant enraptured James, Britainâs first Stuart king, royal adoration reaching such an intensity that the king declared he wanted the courtier to become his âwifeâ. For a decade, Villiers was at the kingâs side â at court, on state occasions and in bed, right up to Jamesâs death in March 1625.
Almost immediately, Villiersâ many enemies accused him of poisoning the king. A parliamentary investigation was launched, but the charges came to nothing, and were relegated to a historical footnote.
Now, new historical scholarship suggests that a deadly combination of hubris and vulnerability did indeed drive Villiers to kill the man who made him. It may have been by accident, but there is compelling evidence that Villiers, overcome by ambition and frustrated by Jamesâs passive approach to government, poisoned him.
In The Kingâs Assassin, acclaimed author Benjamin Wooley examines this remarkable, even tragic story. Combining vivid characterization and a strong narrative with historical scholarship and forensic investigation, Woolley tells the story of King Jamesâs death, and of the captivating figure at its centre. What emerges is a compelling portrait of a royal favourite whose charisma overwhelmed those around him and, ultimately, himself.