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Sir 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, was a statesman, spymaster and minister to Queen Elizabeth I and King James I. His efforts insured that King James VI of Scotland succeeded the childless Elizabeth as ruler of England.
Robert Cecil in Ruled Britannia
Robert Cecil was an English nobleman. His father was William Cecil, Secretary of State to Queen Elizabeth before the conquest of England by the Spanish Armada in 1588.
Both as English nationalists and as Protestants, both Cecils were strongly opposed to the rule of the Spanish-backed Hapsburg monarchs Queen Isabella and King Albert. Robert Cecil assisted his father in planning an uprising against the Spanish authorities to coincide with the death of Isabella's father, Spain's King Philip II. The elder Cecil predeceased Philip by a month, and the actual execution of the uprising fell to Robert.
Following the success of the uprising and the restoration of Elizabeth to the throne, Cecil was her primary advisor. Since the Privy Council had been decimated by the Spanish, Cecil was the only advisor to report directly to the Queen, making him perhaps the second-most powerful individual in England.
Robert had a pronounced hump on his upper back, and was irreverently referred to as "Hunchback Bob", unbeknownst to him.
| Political offices (OTL) | ||
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| Preceded by Sir Francis Walsingham |
Secretary of State of England 1590–1612 |
Succeeded by Sir Ralph Winwood |
| In commission Title last held by Sir Thomas Heneage
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Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster 1597–1599 |
In commission Title next held by Sir John Fortescue
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| Preceded by William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley |
Lord Privy Seal 1598–1608 |
Succeeded by Henry Howard, 1st Earl of Northampton |
| Preceded by Thomas Sackville, 1st Earl of Dorset |
Lord High Treasurer 1608–1612 |
In commission First Lord: Henry Howard, 1st Earl of Northampton
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