The Alchemical Patronage of Sir William Cecil, Lord Burghley

explain why alchemy made sense in the sixteenth century. Occult philosophers such as
Michael Maier, and to some extent the English alchemists John Dee, Richard Eden and
Francis Thynne, sought to appeal to the philosophical interests of patrons such as Cecil. 22
Whilst the character and emphasis of their beliefs varied greatly, they shared an
understanding of alchemical knowledge as one element in a broader occult philosophy that
sought to reveal all forms of hidden knowledge. Bruce Moran has argued that alchemical
philosophy held particular appeal in Protestant courts, where ―occult philosophy provided
a strong ideological basis from which to legitimize their own separatist politics.‖ 23
The second and, according to Nummedal, increasingly prevalent field in the
sixteenth century, was commoditised practical alchemy. 24 Whilst based on the same
understanding of nature, many alchemists attempted to attract patronage by isolating their
practices from the larger alchemical discourse. Rather than an esoteric quest for both
spiritual and material perfection, they attempted to make ―nature ripe by art‖ purely on a
practical level. 25 Despite differences in ambition, utilitarian alchemists and occult
philosophers shared a unified understanding of nature, which provided much of the appeal
to their scholarly trained patrons. Both alchemical philosophy and practice implied a
unified understanding of nature, in which each constituent part reflected the entire
universe.
*
An analysis of Cecil‘s education is essential to determine the extent to which he
shared this understanding of nature. Cecil attended St John‘s College at Cambridge
University from 1535 until 1541, a time when the intellectual trends of the Renaissance and
the religious transformations of the Reformation were causing enormous upheaval. Shortly
after his arrival, King Henry VIII‘s imposition of royal religious supremacy led to the
execution of John Fisher, the Bishop of Rochester, who had supervised the foundation of
22 Ibid.
23 Moran, The Alchemical World, p. 25.
24 Nummedal, Alchemy and Authority, pp. 10-13.
25 William Medley to William Cecil, 19 April 1572, TNA SP12/86/14.
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