The Alchemical Patronage of Sir William Cecil, Lord Burghley

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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