The Alchemical Patronage of Sir William Cecil, Lord Burghley
The Alchemical Patronage of Sir William Cecil, Lord Burghley
The Alchemical Patronage of Sir William Cecil, Lord Burghley
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promised ―an ounce or so <strong>of</strong> powder <strong>of</strong> transmutation‖ from Agnello a decade earlier. 3<br />
Despite, or perhaps because <strong>of</strong> this, <strong>Cecil</strong> believed in the potential <strong>of</strong> the Frobisher project<br />
to provide England with a source <strong>of</strong> precious metals comparable to that <strong>of</strong> the Spanish in<br />
South America.<br />
<strong>Cecil</strong>‘s key role in funding and administering the Society <strong>of</strong> the New Art provides<br />
an overlooked example <strong>of</strong> his patronage <strong>of</strong> large scale industrial alchemical projects. By<br />
financing and supporting what he thought to be an alchemical method <strong>of</strong> transmuting iron<br />
into copper, <strong>Cecil</strong> sought to increase England‘s economic independence from Catholic<br />
Europe. Furthermore, the alchemist involved, <strong>William</strong> Medley, was also <strong>Cecil</strong>‘s relative,<br />
brought up in his household. Whilst <strong>Cecil</strong> may have used experts to verify the viability <strong>of</strong><br />
the project, he maintained a belief and interest in Medley‘s methods, long after the other<br />
investors had grown angry with his delays and excuses. Although <strong>Cecil</strong> allowed Medley to<br />
be incarcerated for his failure, the imprisonment was a consequence <strong>of</strong> the intrigues <strong>of</strong><br />
another alchemist, John Prestall. Once Prestall had been discredited, Medley was released<br />
and became one <strong>of</strong> <strong>Cecil</strong>‘s key clients in Cambridgeshire.<br />
Time and time again <strong>Cecil</strong> was at the centre <strong>of</strong> the Elizabethan regime‘s alchemical<br />
projects. <strong>Alchemical</strong> hopefuls targeted <strong>Cecil</strong> with promises and plans, and rather than<br />
ignoring them, he consistently considered their potential. Although not everyone who<br />
sought <strong>Cecil</strong>‘s alchemical patronage did so with honest intent, it would be a mistake to<br />
assume they were all charlatans. In some cases they were utilising legitimate, if<br />
misunderstood, chemical processes, whilst even those alchemists pr<strong>of</strong>essing the ability to<br />
transmute metals did so in the assumption that such a process was possible.<br />
This thesis does not argue that <strong>Cecil</strong> was the only member <strong>of</strong> the Elizabethan<br />
Court fascinated by the potential <strong>of</strong> alchemy. In fact, through examining <strong>Cecil</strong>‘s belief in<br />
alchemy, it has become clear that many at the Court shared his view. <strong>The</strong> Earl <strong>of</strong> Leicester<br />
involved himself in the de Lannoy episode and was a major backer <strong>of</strong> both the Society <strong>of</strong><br />
3 <strong>The</strong> Vidame de Chartres to <strong>Cecil</strong>, in Crosby (ed.), CSPF 1569-71, p. 142.<br />
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