Rodrigo Lopez, a Portuguese converso who had resided in England for more than 30 years and was the chief physician to Queen Elizabeth, gave offense to the Earl of Essex, also his patient, by revealing his ailments at a feast to both Don Antonio, the deposed king of Portugal, and Antonio Perez, whom the king of Spain wished to kill for supposed treachery. These two lived in England as guests of the crown and were friends to Essex, whom they told of Lopez's indiscretion. This play presents the Earl's vindictive persecution of the doctor and how it was answered by Lopez, the Cecils and Queen Elizabeth. This historical drama maintains the classical form of tragedy in English with seven scenes of dialogue and seven choral performances.