The Babington Plot was a plan in 1586 to assassinate Queen Elizabeth I, a Protestant, and put Mary, Queen of Scots, her Catholic cousin, on the English throne. It led to Mary's execution, a result of a letter sent by Mary in which she consented to the assassination of Elizabeth.
Walsingham's "Decypherer" forged this cipher postscript to Mary's letter to Babington. It asks Babington to use the – broken – cipher to tell her the names of the conspirators.
Mary in captivity, c. 1578
Sir Francis Walsingham
The cipher code of Mary, Queen of Scots
Elizabeth I was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last monarch of the House of Tudor.
The Darnley Portrait, c. 1575
Elizabeth's parents, Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. Anne was executed within three years of Elizabeth's birth.
A rare portrait of a teenage Elizabeth prior to her accession, attributed to William Scrots. It was painted for her father in c. 1546.
Elizabeth's guardian Thomas Seymour, Baron Seymour of Sudeley, may have sexually abused her.