pray the Queen changed course. His biographer, Nicolas, described Davison as becoming depressed, withdrawing from Court to nurse his wounded Presbyterian pride. Davison eventually drifted away from Leicester, his erstwhile patron, and more towards the extreme war party around Walsingham. In the same year he became member of parliament for Knaresborough, a privy councillor, and assistant to Elizabeth's secretary, Francis Walsingham; but from 30 September 1586, he appears to have acted more as a colleague than a subordinate of Walsingham. Davison was a member of the commission appointed to try Mary, Queen of Scots, although he took no part in its proceedings. The judges sat on 11 October and proceedings began on the 14th. It was prorogued four days later, only to meet again on the 25th in the Star Chamber at Westminster. In her absence the Queen was still found guilty. On the 29th Parliament petitioned for execution to be carried out. Meanwhile, the Privy Council, having been summoned by Lord Burghley, decided to draft the warrant on 6 December, two days after the Queen's Proclamation, and carry out the sentence at once. When sentence was passed upon Mary, the warrant for her execution was entrusted to Davison who, after some delay, obtained the Queen's signature on 1 February. . On this occasion, and also in subsequent interviews with her secretary, Elizabeth suggested that Mary should be executed in some more secret fashion, and her conversation afforded ample proof that she disliked the idea of taking any responsibility upon herself for the death of her rival. Elizabeth ordered Davison to hold on to it, unsealed. Davison passed it over to Burghley, who immediately dispatched it to Fotheringhay Castle. Mary was beheaded on 8 February 1587. Officially Davison continued as principal secretary until Walsingham's death in April 1590. Yet, Walsingham the spymaster remained the more dominant personality, and is generally considered to be behind the scheme to execute the Queen of Scots. Scapegoat When the news of the execution reached Elizabeth she was extremely indignant, and her wrath was chiefly directed against Davison, who, she asserted, had disobeyed her instructions not to seal the warrant, but this instruction did not arrive until 2 February 1587, and Burghley had already taken the initiative. The secretary was arrested and thrown into the Tower, but although he defended himself vigorously, he did not say anything about the Queen's wish to get rid of