Francis Cottington, 1st Baron Cottington

[4] He strongly disapproved of the prince's expedition to Spain, as an adventure likely to upset the whole policy of marriage and alliance, but was overruled and chosen to accompany him.

His opposition greatly incensed George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham,[5] and still more his perseverance in the Spanish policy after the failure of the expedition, and on Charles I's accession Cottington was through his means dismissed from all his employments and forbidden to appear at court.

[2] In March 1635 he was appointed master of the Court of Wards and Liveries, and his exactions in this office added greatly to the unpopularity of the government.

Laud completely lacked these qualities, and although really possessing much greater influence with Charles, he was often embarrassed and sometimes exposed to ridicule by his opponent.

When the parliamentary opposition became too strong to be any longer defied, Cottington, as one of those who had chiefly incurred their hostility, hastened to retire from the administration, giving up the court of wards in May 1641 and the chancellorship of the exchequer in January 1642.

They met, however, with an extremely ill reception, and Cottington found he had completely lost his popularity at the Spanish court, one cause being his shortcomings and waverings in the matter of religion.

He announced his intention of remaining in Spain and of keeping faithful to Roman Catholicism, and took up his residence at Valladolid,[8] where he was maintained by the Jesuits.

Cottington was evidently a man of considerable ability, but the foreign policy he pursued was opposed to the national interests and futile in itself.