CARR CRASH
CARR CRASH
The first king of Great Britain's fancy for young men
1566 - 1625
In March 1607, when King James was much older, he witnessed a handsome young man called Robert Carr fall from his horse. James ensured that Carr was nursed back to health, teaching him Latin daily to keep his spirits up. Once recovered, Carr was elevated to high-powered positions, such as the earl of Somerset in 1613. Carr was disliked for his dismissive attitude, so many in James' circle sought to oust him.
The anti-Carr faction hatched a plan. The son of an MP, George Villiers, had just arrived at court, with little money or prospects. Manipulating the king's perceived homosexuality, Villiers was manoeuvered into King James' line of sight, a beautiful new person for James to fall head over heels with.
The plan worked. Villiers was made a Knight of the Garter in 1614 and Carr was exiled in the same year.
Villiers was made duke of Buckingham in 1623, and as King James memory began to fail him, Villiers took over de facto rule of the kingdom.
Villiers then began building a close relationship with James' successor, Charles, and some historians have even suggested that Villiers hastened James' death to make way for Charles.
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