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Cryptography was widely used by political
rulers in 16th century Europe. Monarchs, ministers and ambassadors
often established cipher offices and employed cipher secretaries
to encrypt diplomatic or military information. Mary,
Queen of Scots, had a cipher secretary handle her ‘secret’
correspondence in an attempt to communicate with her supporters
while she was imprisoned in England. However, the encrypted messages
were not as secure as she hoped.
In England the safety of Queen Elizabeth I
was constantly under threat from enemies at home and abroad. Anti-Catholic
laws created a climate of fear. Mass was banned, those who would not
attend Church of England services were fined or imprisoned, lands
were confiscated, and to harbour priests was deemed treasonable. Elizabeth's
Secretary of State, Sir Francis
Walsingham created a school for espionage in London in the 1570s,
recruiting spies from Oxford and Cambridge and developing an unrivalled
network of agents and informants throughout Europe. The State Papers
are full of letters from informers and accounts of interrogations
and searches.
Conspiracies to overthrow Elizabeth were uncovered
by Walsingham’s men throughout her reign. From 1571 to 1586
the discovery of a series of plots to establish Mary, Queen of Scots,
on the throne led to the trial and execution of Mary and many of her
friends and allies. |
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The National Archives
ExhibitionsSecrets and Spies
