Cecil, William (1520 - 1598)

Biographical Overview

Parents

Titles - 3
Properties - 13
Total events naming patron - 1
Troupes - 1
Bibliographic Sources - 5
Legend

patron legend

Base layers

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Born / Died

Birth Date: 1520-09-18 (possibly born 18 Sept. 1521)
Death Date: 1598-08-04

Notes

Deprived of offices and imprisoned 1549; restored 1551

Siblings

Female

Cecil, Margaret ( - )
Cecil, Elizabeth ( - )
Cecil, Anne ( - )

Marriages/Other Unions

  1. Cheke, Mary (1520 - 1543/4)
    Type: marriage
    Union began: 1541-8-8
    Union ended: n.d.
  2. Cooke, Mildred (1526 - 1589)
    Type: marriage
    Union began: 1545-12-21
    Union ended: n.d.
    Note: Union also produced 2 sons named William and a daughter named Frances, all of whom died in infancy

Offspring

From Cooke, Mildred (1526 - 1589)

  1. Male offspring: Cecil, Robert (1563 - 1612)
  2. Female offspring: Cecil, Anne (1556 - 1588)
  3. Female offspring: Cecil, Elizabeth (1564 - 1583)

From Cheke, Mary (1520 - 1543/4)

  1. Male offspring: Cecil, Thomas (1542 - 1623) (patron)

Primary Title

1st Baron Burghley

Titles

  • Knight
    Assumed 1551-10-11
    Vacated 1598-08-04
  • 1st Baron Burghley
    Assumed 1570/1-02-25
    Vacated 1598-08-04
  • Knight of the Garter
    Assumed 1572-04-23 (date nominated; installed 17 June 1572)
    Vacated 1598-08-04

Details of Offices

Began Ended Notes
High Steward, Hertfordshire n.d. n.d. Held office in the time of Elizabeth (17 Nov. 1558--24 March 1603)
MP, London 1542 n.d.
JP, Lincolnshire 1547 n.d.
MP, Lincolnshire 1547 n.d.
Keeper of the Writs and Rolls of the Common Bench, England 1548-5-6 n.d.
Commissioner of Custos Rotulorum, Lincolnshire 1549 n.d. Appointed for life, but deprived of offices in 1549
Keeper, Northamptonshire 1550-7-29 n.d. Held jointly with father Richard and from 3 July 1566 with son Thomas
Privy Councillor, England 1550-9-5 1553
Secretary of State, England 1550-9-5 1553-08 Held jointly with Sir William Petre and from 2 June 1553 also with Sir John Cheke
MP, Lincolnshire 1552/3-3 n.d.
Chancellor, England 1553-4-12 1598-08-4 For life
JP, Lincolnshire 1553/4 n.d.
MP, Lincolnshire 1555 n.d.
Privy Councillor, England 1558-11-20 1598-08-4 (held office until death)
Secretary of State, England 1558-11-20 1572-07-13
Chancellor, Cambridgeshire 1559 1598-08-4 (held office until death)
MP, Lincolnshire 1559 n.d.
Steward, Lincolnshire by 1560 n.d.
Master of the Court of Wards, England 1560/1-1-10 1598-08-4 For life
High Steward, Westminster 1561 n.d.
Commissioner of Custos Rotulorum, Lincolnshire 1561/2 n.d.
JP, Northamptonshire 1561/2 n.d.
JP, Middlesex 1561/2 n.d.
JP, Surrey 1561/2 n.d.
JP, Lincolnshire 1561/2 n.d.
MP, Northamptonshire 1563 n.d.
Commissioner of Oyer and Terminer, Surrey 1563/4 n.d.
Commissioner of Oyer and Terminer, Essex 1563/4 n.d.
Commissioner of Oyer and Terminer, Sussex 1563/4 n.d.
Commissioner of Oyer and Terminer, Hertfordshire 1563/4 n.d.
Commissioner of Oyer and Terminer, Kent 1563/4 n.d.
JP, Surrey 1564 n.d.
JP, Lincolnshire 1564 n.d.
JP, Northamptonshire 1564 n.d.
JP, Middlesex 1564 n.d.
Verge of the Household, England 1566-6-12 n.d.
Lord Lieut, Middlesex 1568 n.d.
Keeper of the Privy Seal, England 1571-4 1571-06
Treasurer of England, England 1572-9-15 1598-08-4 (held office until death)
Commissioner of Custos Rotulorum, Northamptonshire by 1573 n.d.
Commissioner of Gaol Delivery, England 1575 n.d.
Steward, Lincolnshire 1585 1597
Lord Lieut, Lincolnshire 1587 1598-08-4 (held office until death)
High Steward, Norfolk 1588-9 1597-09
High Steward, Bristol 1588 n.d.
Lord Lieut, Essex 1588-12-31 1598-08-4 (held office until death)
Lord Lieut, Hertfordshire 1588 n.d.
Earl Marshal, England 1590 n.d. Held jointly
Keeper of the Privy Seal, England 1590 n.d.
High Steward, Norfolk 1592 n.d.

Details of Properties

Residence

  • (city) in Middlesex
  • Theobalds, Hertfordshire
  • Burghley House, Northamptonshire
  • Wimbledon, Surrey

Lands

  • Lincolnshire
  • Northamptonshire
  • Nottinghamshire
  • Rutland
  • Shropshire
  • Staffordshire
    Acquired: 1581-06-03
    Granted
  • Wales
    Acquired: 1581-06-03
    Granted
  • Worcestershire
    Acquired: 1581-06-03
    Granted
  • (city-county) in Yorkshire

Events Naming Patron

Event Date Location Troupe
Performance 1580-1580 Ludlow (Unknown), Ludlow , Shropshire Lord Burghley's Players

Patronized Troupes

Troupe Name Patron Troupe Type # of events
Lord Burghley's Players Cecil, William (1520 - 1598) Players 1

Bibliographic Sources

View a list of abbreviations.

Alford, Stephen. Burghley: William Cecil at the Court of Elizabeth. London: Yale UP, 2008.
Bindoff, S.T. The History of Parliament: The House of Commons, 1509–1558. 3 vols. London: Secker & Warburg, 1982.
The Complete Peerage of England, Scotland, Ireland, Great Britain, and the United Kingdom. 1887–98 (8 vols); 1910–59 (13 vols). 6 vols. Gloucester: Alan Sutton, 1982.
Nelson, Alan H. Monstrous Adversary: The Life of Edward de Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford. Liverpool English Texts and Studies 40. Liverpool: Liverpool UP, 2003.
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. 01/05/2005 (http://www.oxforddnb.com)