Thomas Cogswell's dramatic new biography brings James to life as a complex, learned, curious man and a great survivor, one who drastically changed court life in London and presided over the Authorized Version of the Bible and the establishment of English settlements across the globe. Cogswell tells the story of James's personal life and private passions as much as his public achievements. James was often accused of being too informal and insufficiently regal—but when his son, Charles I, decided to redress these criticisms in his own reign, he was destroyed. This is a vivid portrait of an often underappreciated monarch.