Rediscovering Rycote

Sir Henry Norris was appointed Elizabeth I's ambassador to France on 30 November 1566 (CSP Foreign Elizabeth 1566-8, pp. 151-2). He was not a popular figure at the French court where his activities were viewed with great suspicion. The root cause, as outlined in this seventeenth-century copy of Cecil's letter, was Norris's contact with the rebelling Huguenots. At a private dinner, the French ambassador to England urged Cecil to write to Norris "by way of advice That you would forbeare the manner of dealeing with the Kings Rebells." Norris flatly denied the allegation (CSP Foreign Elizabeth 1569-71, p. 104). The validity of his denial, however, is somewhat open to debate given that he permitted his sons, William and John, to accompany the Huguenot armies on campaign (Nolan, Sir John Norreys, p. 11).