The Alchemical Patronage of Sir William Cecil, Lord Burghley

Another work of mine owne practice containing great and true secrets after
the doctrine of our father Hermes theorick is redy likewise to presse into
your honors presence...whiche seene, I hope your lordship shall see that the
truth of the ancient magick natural is not at this day unknown and
unpractised among the serchers and studiers of truth. 139
It is unclear whether Norton ever sent Cecil this second treatise. However, it is apparent
that a number of Norton‘s alchemical works have not survived, including ‗The Flower of
True and Auncient Physick and Phiosophie‘, mentioned in this treatise. 140
The extent of Cecil‘s relationship with Norton is unknown. Previous historians
have not established any link between them, nor is there any extant correspondence
between the pair. Norton may have appealed to Cecil based purely on his contemporary
reputation. What is clear, however, is that this reputation suggested that Cecil would be
interested in a treatise that combined Paracelsian and more traditional alchemical ideas,
even though it involved a rejection of classical authorities.
Whilst a lack of evidence about Cecil‘s medical treatment makes it difficult to
analyse his medical patronage, the case studies examined in this chapter strongly suggest
that he favoured chemical medicine. Cecil‘s career certainly came at a time of increasing
alchemical influence in medical practice. Paracelsian physicians, basing their practice on an
alchemical understanding of both nature and the body, began to rival establishment
Galenic physicians. Cecil‘s consultation with two prominent and controversial
Paracelsians, Valentine Russwurin and Eliseus Bomelius, demonstrates at the very least a
readiness to try these new alchemical methods. Even amongst Cecil‘s more conventional
physicians, such as William Paddy and William Gilbert, there was a willingness to make use
of chemical treatments.
A number of suits demonstrating medical knowledge also support the conclusion
that chemical medicine interested Cecil. When suitors such as Nicholas Gybbard and
139 Ibid.
140 Ibid.
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