Rebellions Ridolfi Plot

The Ridolfi plot of 1570

The Ridolfi Plot was the name given to a scheme by the Roman Catholic faction in England to get rid of Queen Elizabeth I of England by assassination and in her place, installing Mary I of Scotland to the throne. The key figure in the plot, and where it draws its name from in fact, was Roberto di Ridolfi who conceived this plan in the year 1570.

Although Ridolfi was the one who planned this assassination plot, its roots could actually be traced back to an earlier rebellion that the Duke of Norfolk became involved in. The Duke was a cousin of the Queen but often felt, quite correctly, that Elizabeth I severely undervalued his importance. When he was suggested as a possible husband to Mary in 1568, he welcomed this development as a means to further his own personal ambitions. The Northern Rebellion was then brewing and he was quick to throw in his support for the rebel faction. He was just as quick to withdraw it however, when he realised that he might have gotten in way over his head. Nevertheless, the rebellion was going full force by then and he had neither the means nor the will to stop it. The Northern earls of England as the name implies, headed the Northern Rebellion and their plan was to rally all of the Catholics under their rule, with the goal of preparing for the eventual Catholic Spanish invasion headed by the governor of the Netherlands, the Duke of Alba.

The rebellion ultimately failed and the conspirators were executed shortly afterwards. There then was a purge carried out against all Catholic sympathisers within the church. Norfolk himself was sentenced to nine months in the Tower of London and it was only when he admitted to his complicity in the plot and threw himself to the mercy of the court that he was released from prison and thereafter remained under house arrest.

The Roman Catholic Church did not take to all of these developments lightly and in Regnans in Excelsis, a papal bill issued by Pope Pius V, ordered that Elizabeth I be excommunicated. He further implored all Roman Catholics in England to do everything in their power to work for the overthrow of Elizabeth I from the throne. While not many Roman Catholics in England actually heeded the Pope's call to action, Queen Elizabeth nevertheless instituted a number of measures in retaliation, which only served to make things harder for England's Roman Catholic population.

Roberto di Ridolfi then was a Roman Catholic banker from Florence, who was also involved in the Northern Rebellion. In fact, he had been involved in various plans to overthrow Queen Elizabeth from as early as 1569. With the failure of the Northern Rebellion however, he came to realise that in order to overthrow Queen Elizabeth and subsequently pave the way for both the restoration of Roman Catholicism in England and the rise of Mary to the throne, he needed some help from foreign powers. Because Roberto di Ridolfi was a known international banker who regularly travelled to major cities such as Brussels, Rome and Madrid, his actions in gathering support for his cause remained largely undetected in its early stages. Realising that this was the only way that Mary would be free, the Bishop of Ross, John Lesley, who also served as Mary's advisor gave his approval to the plot. They then hatched a plan to have the Duke of Alba invade England with 10,000 soldiers. This force from the Netherlands would then join up with the Northern English noble classes and carry out the assassination of Elizabeth.

Mary and Norfolk readily agreed to this plan, both seeing it as a way to regain their power. With their support, Ridolfi then sought to secure backing from the Duke of Alba, Pope Pius V and King Philip II.

Unfortunately, the Duke of Alba knew that Mary had strong ties with the French, being a former queen of France. Alba feared that the rise of Mary to the English throne would have serious consequences for Spain, who considered France an enemy.

Original Authors: Doods Pangburn
Edit Update Authors: M.A.Harris
Updated On: 23/07/2008