Passion, Poison and Power

By Brian Harris

The Mysterious Death of Sir Thomas Overbury

Little attention was paid at the time to the death in the Tower of London of Sir Thomas Overbury, but it was not long before foul play was suspected. Two years later six people went to the gallows for his murder in a case which was said to involve wizardry, love potions, coded letters and a poisoned enema. Following them into the dock were the most glamorous couple at the court of King James.

The husband, who was widely rumoured to be the King’s lover, was convicted of Overbury’s murder despite his protestations of innocence; but was he actually guilty? His pretty young wife confessed to the murder; but did she actually commit the crime? And the Lord Chief Justice was convinced that the case had a far wider and more sinister significance than appeared on the surface, possibly involving the suspicious death of the Prince of Wales.

Despite an exhaustive inquiry conducted by England’s most feared prosecutor, the whole truth never came to light; even the official report of the trials is suspect. In this entertaining account of one of the most sensational crimes in English history, Brian Harris re-evaluates the evidence and proposes a new solution to this intriguing Jacobean mystery.