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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metal and European currencies, further fuelling inflation. In the early period <strong>of</strong> Elizabeth‘s<br />
reign the Treasury‘s attempts to deal with inflation by recalling the debased coinage and<br />
issuing restored coins increased their requirement for precious metals.<br />
During the comparatively peaceful mid period <strong>of</strong> Elizabeth‘s reign, the government<br />
subsisted on a relatively frugal budget. Royal servants were <strong>of</strong>ten rewarded with grants <strong>of</strong><br />
either land or monopolies, and the Queen‘s household budget remained remarkably stable.<br />
Indeed, historians such as Penry <strong>William</strong>s have questioned the Elizabethan government‘s<br />
financial management, with only small rises in real Crown rents over the Queen‘s reign and<br />
little effort to maximise other income streams, despite high levels <strong>of</strong> inflation. 6 <strong>The</strong><br />
Crown‘s chief financial strength was Elizabeth and <strong>Cecil</strong>‘s tight control <strong>of</strong> expenditure. 7<br />
However, with the outbreak <strong>of</strong> war with Spain in 1585 expenses skyrocketed. Whilst <strong>Cecil</strong><br />
used various methods to maximise Crown revenue in the period, such as the reformation<br />
<strong>of</strong> the inefficient and unpopular system <strong>of</strong> purveyance, the government still relied upon<br />
politically unpopular measures such as parliamentary subsidies, forced loans and the sale <strong>of</strong><br />
swathes <strong>of</strong> Crown lands. 8<br />
<strong>Cecil</strong> turned to alchemical speculation in order to stabilise Crown finances during<br />
these two periods <strong>of</strong> extreme financial strain. This chapter analyses three <strong>of</strong> those projects:<br />
Crown patronage <strong>of</strong> Cornelius de Lannoy‘s attempts at transmutation from 1565 until<br />
1567; <strong>Cecil</strong> and the Queen‘s efforts to convince the alchemist Edward Kelley to return to<br />
England from 1588 until 1593; and finally the government‘s attempts to pr<strong>of</strong>it from Rol<strong>of</strong>f<br />
Peterson‘s alchemical materials between 1593 and 1597. By examining <strong>Cecil</strong>‘s integral role<br />
in these schemes, this chapter argues that he saw the pr<strong>of</strong>its from alchemy as having<br />
genuine potential to aid Crown finances.<br />
6 Penry <strong>William</strong>s, <strong>The</strong> Tudor Regime, Oxford, 1979, pp. 70-76.<br />
7 Ibid.<br />
8 Ibid.<br />
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