Elizabeth Godolphin (baptised in 1663 – 29 July 1726) was a British school founder and benefactor. She is buried in

Westminster Abbey Westminster Abbey, formally titled the Collegiate Church of Saint Peter at Westminster, is an Anglican church in the City of Westminster, London, England. Since 1066, it has been the location of the coronations of 40 English and British m ...

Godolphin School Godolphin School is a Private schools in the United Kingdom, private boarding school, boarding and day school for girls in Salisbury, England, which was founded in 1726 and opened in 1784. The school educates girls between the ages of three an ...

, Salisbury, is named after her.

Life

Her birth date is unknown but she was baptised in 1663 in

Coulston Coulston (until 1934 called East Coulston) is a village and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, five miles northeast of the town of Westbury, just north of the B3098 road. The village lies under the north slope of Salisbury Plain and the paris ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...

. Her parents were Elizabeth and Francis Godolphin. Her mother's father was John Gayer who had been a

Lord Mayor of London The Lord Mayor of London is the Mayors in England, mayor of the City of London, England, and the Leader of the council, leader of the City of London Corporation. Within the City, the Lord Mayor is accorded Order of precedence, precedence over a ...

. Her mother died in childbirth when she was about four and her father remarried but died when she was seven. He had built what became Baynton House in Coulston. Her uncle Sir William Godolphin became the guardian to her and her brother Francis. Their father had left them an annuity but the bulk of the estate went to his eldest child, William, who was Elizabeth's brother. The younger William died in a duel in 1682, and her brother inherited. When Francis took his own life in 1702, part of the inheritance passed to Elizabeth. She married her cousin Charles Godolphin (c.1650–1720) in 1687; he was a Member of Parliament for

Helston Helston () is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated at the northern end of the The Lizard, Lizard Peninsula approximately east of Penzance and south-west of Falmouth, Cornwall, Falmouth.Ordnance Survey: ...

, Cornwall, and held government offices including (from 1691) a post as customs commissioner. The couple lived at St James's Street in

Piccadilly Piccadilly () is a road in the City of Westminster, London, England, to the south of Mayfair, between Hyde Park Corner in the west and Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is part of the A4 road (England), A4 road that connects central London to ...

. They adopted a relative, Frances (Fanny) Quicke, after their two children (a son and a daughter) died young.

was founded by her using her own money and some from the estate of her husband, the Hon. Charles Godolphin. She created the school originally for the education of eight young orphaned gentlewomen. According to the terms of her will, the students were to be daughters of members of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

, between eight and twelve years of age, born in

Salisbury Salisbury ( , ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers River Avon, Hampshire, Avon, River Nadder, Nadder and River Bourne, Wi ...

or some other part of Wiltshire, and to have had "some portion left to them but not exceeding £400". The girls were to be taught to "dance, work, read, write, cast accounts and the business of housewifery". The new charity was initially to be administered by her nephew William Godolphin and his heirs; the Dean and Chapter declined to take on the task. The school did not open its doors until 9 August 1784, when it was based in Rosemary Lane, in the Cathedral Close, Salisbury. In 1789 the school promised a regime of early rising, "agreeable exercise" and a diet of wholesome books "such as enlarge the heart to Virtue and excellency of Sentiment".

Death and legacy

The school dates its foundation to 1726, the year of Godolphin's death. She was buried in Westminster Abbey, joining her husband and their children. The inscription records the terms of her will as set out above. Her husband died several years before this bequest was made. Every other year, in November, Godolphin School commemorates its founder Elizabeth Godolphin when the Head Girl, accompanied by members of the Upper Sixth, lays a wreath on her tomb in the cloister of

. Godolphin School makes available substantial contributions to the fees of some students as part of its founder's legacy.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Godolphin, Elizabeth 1663 births 1726 deaths Burials at Westminster Abbey English women philanthropists Founders of English schools and colleges People from Wiltshire