Editing Francis Bacon (section)

===James I comes to the throne===
[[File:Francis Bacon, Viscount St Alban from NPG (2).jpg|thumb|upright=1|alt=Portrait of Sir Francis Bacon|Bacon, {{circa}} 1618]]
The succession of [[James I of England|James I]] brought Bacon into greater favour. He was [[Knight Bachelor|knighted]] in 1603. In another shrewd move, Bacon wrote his ''Apologies'' in defence of his proceedings in the case of Essex, as Essex had favoured James to succeed to the throne. The following year, during the course of the uneventful first parliamentary session, Bacon married [[Alice Barnham]].{{sfn|Adamson|Mitchell|1911|p=139}} In June 1607, he was at last rewarded with the office of Solicitor General{{sfn|Peltonen|2007}} and in 1608 he began working as the Clerk of the [[Star Chamber]]. Despite a generous income, old debts still could not be paid. He sought further promotion and wealth by supporting King James and his arbitrary policies. In 1610 the fourth session of James's first [[James I of England and the English Parliament|Parliament]] met. Despite Bacon's advice to him, James and the Commons found themselves at odds over royal prerogatives and the King's embarrassing extravagance. The House was finally dissolved in February 1611. Throughout this period Bacon managed to stay in favour with the King while retaining the confidence of the Commons.

In 1613 Bacon was finally appointed [[Attorney General for England and Wales|Attorney General]], after advising the King to shuffle judicial appointments. As Attorney General, Bacon, by his zealous efforts{{snd}}which included torture{{snd}}to obtain the conviction of [[Edmund Peacham]] for treason, raised legal controversies of high constitutional importance.<ref>{{cite DNB |wstitle= Peacham, Edmond |volume= 44 |last= Lee |first= Sidney |author-link= Sidney Lee |pages= 131–133 |short= 1}}</ref> Bacon and [[Gray's Inn]] produced ''[[The Masque of Flowers]]'' to celebrate the wedding of [[Robert Carr, 1st Earl of Somerset]] and his wife, [[Frances Howard, Countess of Somerset]],<ref>Christine Adams, 'Francis Bacon's Wedding Gift of A Garden of a Glorious and Strange Beauty for the Earl and Countess of Somerset', ''Garden History'', 36:1 (Spring 2008), p. 45.</ref> and he successfully prosecuted them for murder in 1616.

The so-called Prince's Parliament of April 1614 objected to Bacon's presence in the seat for [[University of Cambridge (UK Parliament constituency)|Cambridge]] and to the various royal plans that Bacon had supported. Although he was allowed to stay, Parliament passed a law that forbade the Attorney General to sit in Parliament. His influence over the King had evidently inspired resentment or apprehension in many of his peers. Bacon, however, continued to receive the King's favour, which led to his appointment in March 1617 as temporary Regent of England (for a period of a month), and in 1618 as [[Lord Chancellor]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Principe |first=Lawrence M. |title=The Scientific Revolution: A Very Short Introduction |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2011 |isbn=978-0199567416 |edition=1st |page=128}}</ref> On 12 July 1618 the King created Bacon [[Baron Verulam]] of [[Verulamium|Verulam]] in the [[Peerage of England]]; he then became known as Francis, Lord Verulam.{{sfn|Peltonen|2007}}

Bacon continued to use his influence with the King to mediate between the throne and Parliament, and in this capacity he was further elevated in the same peerage as [[Viscount St Alban]] on 27 January 1621.<ref>{{cite book|title=CSPD James I, 1619–1623|page=116}}</ref>