Sir Francis Bacon, Viscount Saint Alban, Baron of Verulam



Once Essex's trusted advisor and protege, Sir Francis Bacon led the prosecution of his former patron. Francis Bacon was the youngest son of Nicolas Bacon, the Lord Keeper of the Seal of Elizabeth I. Left penniless upon his father's death, Bacon was financially embarrassed for much of his life. Need drew him into Essex's service, but the Queen distrusted him, and Essex was unable to convince the Queen to appoint Bacon to the high office to which he aspired. After Essex's disgraceful return from Ireland, Bacon served as the Queen's Counsel in his patron's informal trial and, after the failure of Essex's rising, denounced him as a traitor and drew up the official account of the affair. Bacon's abandonment of his patron was seen as dishonorable by some, and Bacon published an Apologie in Certaine Imputations Concerning the Late Earle of Essex in his own defense in 1604.