Early copies of Robert Cecil's two dispatches relating the events and progress of his important mission to the King of France, undertaken to dissuade the latter from entering into an alliance with King Philip II of Spain, who sought friends in his long conflict with England. Sir Robert Cecil had recently been appointed secretary of state after years of de facto service in the office. The officials of his embassy included his brother-in-law, Lord Brooke, the Earl of Southampton, Sir Walter Raleigh, and others.