 After his mother obtained a divorce from her first husband Robert Rich, 1st Earl of Warwick, in 1605, his parents married and although they were unable to legitimise him, his father, who died shortly after the marriage, left him a large estate.His mother died the following year.He became a member of James I's court, where he was something of a royal favourite, who played in a masque before the king mounted by James Hay, 1st Viscount Doncaster (later Earl of Carlisle) at Essex House on 8 January 1620/1621.