Few monarchs have ascended the English throne amid as much eulogy and rejoicing as James I when he came to his English kingdom in 1603. James brought a ready-made , legitimate dynasty to a nation which had spent much of the previous century agonising about the succession. However, for every line of flattery there was also one of malicious gossip, and this mixture has made his reign difficult to evaluate fairly. This book looks beneath the flattery and gossip by going back to the first-hand evidence; original papers and letters held at The National Archives.