... doubts, as he would lose the political control he had over the gentry he gained from wardship and there were serious drawbacks to having a fixed sum due to inflation. Due to these doubts, both sides drew back until the Contract fell through. A direct consequence of this was Salisbury's loss of power. This was a great loss to James as most historians see Salisbury as a very competent accountant and politician. Salisbury's loss was the Earl of Northampton's gain. Power began to drift towards the Howard faction, led by Northampton. In response to their Catholic links, another oppositional faction grew up led by Edward Coke and the Archbishop of Canterbury. James seemed content to allow this blatant factionalism as he thought he could manipulate both factions by balancing favours. It is clear that this was a miscalculation. This tactic led to the government being split and lacking clear direction and ...

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