The Alchemical Patronage of Sir William Cecil - Victoria University

180 Pages·2010·1.71 MB·English

The Alchemical Patronage of Sir William Cecil,
Lord Burghley

James Stuart Campbell

A thesis submitted to the Victoria University of Wellington in fulfilment of
the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in History

Victoria University of Wellington
2009
ii

Image 1:
Attr. Hans Eworth, ‗William Cecil, Lord Burghley‘, c.1565

Source: Pauline Croft (ed.), Patronage, Culture and Power, New Haven, 2002, p. xxvii.
iii

Abstract

This thesis examines the alchemical patronage of Sir William Cecil, Lord Burghley (1520–
1598), Principal Secretary and later Lord Treasurer to Queen Elizabeth I. Through an
examination of Cecil‘s surviving papers, along with other primary manuscript and printed
works, it places Cecil‘s patronage of alchemy within the context of both his previous
examined patronage and the intellectual context of sixteenth century England. This thesis
analyses why Cecil, a key member of government for over fifty years and Elizabeth‘s most
trusted councillor, believed in the legitimacy of alchemical solutions to both national and
personal problems. To explain Cecil‘s trust in alchemy, the thesis focuses first on his
understanding of nature. It argues that a belief in alchemical transmutation was an essential
consequence of an education that emphasised an Aristotelian understanding of the
universe. Cecil was therefore receptive of demonstrations of theoretical as well as practical
alchemical knowledge. Through an assessment of Cecil‘s neglected medical patronage, the
thesis also argues that he was amongst the first in England to utilise new alchemically based
medical treatments. In his role as Elizabeth‘s chief minister, Cecil administered a number
of alchemical projects intended to support both Crown finances and England‘s industrial
competitiveness. In light of Cecil‘s integral role in these projects, the thesis contends that
he saw alchemy as a legitimate method of addressing both his short and long term policy
aims. This thesis therefore both provides a more complete understanding of Cecil‘s
patronage and adds to the limited historiography of alchemy in Elizabethan England.
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Contents

Abstract iii
Acknowledgments v
List of Images vi
List of Abbreviations vii
Note on Dates and Transcription viii

Introduction 1

1. Cecil and Alchemical Philosophy in the Elizabethan Age 17

2. Alchemical Medicine 52

3. Alchemy and Crown Finances 76
—Cornelius de Lannoy 78
—Edward Kelley 87
—Roloff Peterson 107

4. Alchemy and Economic Projects 117
—The Frobisher Ores 118
—William Medley and the Society of the New Art 128

Conclusion 154

Bibliography 160
v

Acknowledgements

Thanks must first go to my supervisor Glyn Parry for his invaluable advice and guidance,
without which this thesis would not have been completed. Thanks also to my fellow
postgraduate students Nick Radburn, Malcolm Craig, Michael Devine, Michael Gill, Sam
Ritchie and Susie Johnston, for providing their invaluable friendship and advice. I am
extremely grateful to Brenda and Aporo Joyce for awarding me the Jack Pearce Scholarship
and to the History Department for providing a comfortable and accommodating working
environment. I am also appreciative of the feedback and correspondence of a number of
academics, especially Steve Behrendt and Peter Grund. Special thanks go to my family and
friends for their encouragement and support throughout my MA.
vi

List of Images

1. Attr. Hans Eworth, ‗William Cecil, Lord Burghley‘, c.1565, ii
as reproduced in Pauline Croft (ed.), Patronage, Culture and
Power, New Haven, 2002, p. xxvii.

2. Anon., ‗Burchart‘s furnice‘, Undated, TNA, SP 12/122/63 128

3. Anon., ‗A ploote of the woorkes and havens now fit for that 139
purpose‘, undated, TNA, SP 45/36 MPF11
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List of Abbreviations

APC Acts of the Privy Council of England

BL The British Library

CMS Calendar of the Manuscripts of the
Most Honourable the Marquis of Salisbury,
Preserved at Hatfield House, Hertfordshire

CPR Calendar of the Patent Rolls
Preserved in the Public Record Office

CSPD Calendar of State Papers Domestic

CSPF Calendar of State Papers Foreign

TNA The National Archives of the United Kingdom

PROB Records of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury

SP State Papers
viii

Note on Dates and Transcription

As most documents cited in this thesis are either of English origin, or predate the
introduction of the Gregorian calendar in Catholic Europe in 1582, dating is given in the
Julian style. Where documents have been dated in the Gregorian style this has been
adjusted. For the sake of clarity 1 January is taken as the New Year throughout, and the
date-year has been adjusted accordingly.
All primary material has been presented using original spelling and grammar, with
some minor exceptions. For the sake of clarity, common sixteenth century transpositions,
such as ‗v‘ for ‗u‘ and ‗i‘ for ‗j‘ have been adjusted to modern spelling. Common
contractions, such as ‗Mjtie‘ for ‗Majesty‘, ‗wth‘ for ‗with‘, and ‗wch‘ for ‗which‘, have been
expanded. Primary documents reproduced in secondary collections have been quoted
verbatim, retaining the modernising conventions of their editors.
1

Introduction
William Cecil, through the careful acquisition of royal favour, became Queen
Elizabeth I‘s most trusted counsellor. As the Queen‘s Principal Secretary, Cecil was the
gatekeeper to royal patronage, and exercised enormous influence over England‘s domestic
and foreign policy. Even before he became Lord Burghley in 1571 and Lord Treasurer the
following year, Cecil‘s affluence and influence allowed him to become an important patron
in his own right.1 Historians, therefore, have considered Cecil to be one of the most
important figures of the Elizabethan regime. As such he has been the subject of an
immense amount of historical research analysing his impact on England‘s economic,
religious, and foreign policy. This thesis examines a hitherto overlooked aspect of Cecil‘s
career: his patronage of alchemy. The research for this thesis has uncovered neglected
evidence of Cecil‘s relationship with a number of alchemists and alchemical projects,
revealing their involvement in his intricate network of patronage.
As a result of his Aristotelian education, Cecil shared with the alchemists a unified
view of nature. This natural philosophy encouraged the Elizabethan elite to believe in
humanity‘s ability to perfect the world both spiritually and physically. The alchemist‘s
quest to achieve perfection—gold in the case of base metals and spiritual redemption in the
case of humanity—correspondingly appealed to many renaissance intellectuals. While, like
many Elizabethans, Cecil could be sceptical about some alchemical promises, the concept
of transmutation was consistent with his understanding of the world. Where Cecil differed
from his contemporaries was in his determination to utilize alchemical knowledge for the
benefit of both himself and the Elizabethan state. Throughout his career he patronised,
invested in, and supported a remarkable range of alchemical activities. A detailed

1 From his ennoblement as Lord Burghley on 25 February 1571, Cecil became known by his title. As this
thesis is not entirely chronological, for the purposes of clarity he will be referred to as Cecil throughout.
2

examination of primary evidence reveals a man deeply enthusiastic about alchemy in many
forms, from philosophy and medicine, through to industrial metallurgy.
This thesis examines the support, both financial and political, which Cecil lent to a
number of alchemical projects throughout the Elizabethan period. The underlying
objective of the thesis is to consider the implications of Cecil‘s continued support for
alchemical projects on our understanding of the mentality of the Elizabethan Court.
Together with contextualising the position of alchemical thought and practice within
Elizabethan society, the thesis examines alchemy as one of Cecil‘s legitimate domestic and
foreign policy tools, and analyses the degree to which the philosophical ideals and concepts
of alchemy appealed to Cecil‘s religious, political and philosophical beliefs. The thesis also
argues that potential clients knew about and took advantage of Cecil‘s interest in alchemy.
Numerous patronage suits directed at Cecil included demonstrations of both practical and
theoretical forms of alchemical knowledge. This thesis therefore argues that
contemporaries widely recognised Cecil‘s predilection towards alchemical patronage.
*
Since the Enlightenment, historians studying Cecil have chosen to ignore the great
statesman‘s belief in the reality of alchemical transmutation. To them such a belief did not
correspond with their conception of a pragmatic and capable manager of government
business. The few historical discussions of Cecil‘s interest in alchemical schemes therefore
tend to be dismissive or superficial.
The work of John Strype (1643–1737) has channelled the interests of subsequent
historians of Cecil. Whilst Strype never completed his biography of Cecil, he based much
of his writing, especially his four volume Annals of the Reformation (1709-31), on that part of
Cecil‘s papers now in the Lansdowne Collection.2 Despite his claims of objectivity, Stype‘s
work reflected both the interests and prejudices of the Enlightenment period. The derisive

2 G. H. Martin and Anita McConnell, ‗Strype, John (1643–1737)‘, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography,
Oxford, Sept 2004; online edn, Jan 2008 [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/26690].