The great oyer of poisoning : the trial of the Earl of Somerset for the poisoning of Sir Thomas Overbury, in the Tower of London, and various matters connected therewith, from contemporary mss. / by Andrew Amos.

  • Amos, Andrew, 1791-1860.
Date:
1846
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The great oyer of poisoning : the trial of the Earl of Somerset for the poisoning of Sir Thomas Overbury, in the Tower of London, and various matters connected therewith, from contemporary mss. / by Andrew Amos. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, Harvard Medical School.

    110/572 (page 96)
    Serjeant Montague.—May it please your Grace, my Lord High Steward of England, it falls to my part to discover those secrets that were concurrent and present with the murder of Sir T. Overbury. And there be three things that make evidently that my Lord of Somerset was the principal procurer: ]. A powder that was sent Sir T. from your own hand, which was poison and taken by him; 2. Poison in tarts, which you occasioned to be sent; 3. That you thirsted after the success, and wondered that he was no sooner dispatched. How the first general light of this poisoning came out, Mr. Attorney yesterday excel- lently observed that it was by a compliment; so now I shall show how out of the compunction of an offender's heart these came to be discovered. Franklin confesses the poisons he bought for this purpose, and the trial that he made of them before they were sent. And 1. For the powder, it was sent in a letter written with my Lord's own hand to Overbury. And you writ that it would make him a little sick, (which it did in a high degree;) and that upon this you would take occasion to speak for him to the King. And this letter, with the powder, you sent to him by Davis; and the powder was poison. 2. For the poisoned tarts: at first you sent them good, to disguise the bad; but after came the poisoned tarts which you sent him. And to make this appear that they came from you, continual posts ran between you and my Lady ; and she writes to the Lieutenant, I was bid to tell you, that in the tarts and jellies there are letters ; but in the wine none. And of that you may take yourself, and give your wife and children; but of the other, not. Give him these tarts and jelly this night, and all shall be well. And it appears that the letters did signify poison. 3. The third charge that I lay upon you, is, that you writ to my Lady that you wondered these things were not dispatched. She presently sent for Franklin, and shewed him your letters; which he read, and remembers the words. She then also sent for Weston to