Sir Richard Cecil (ca. 1495 – 19 March 1553) was an English nobleman, politician, courtier, and Master of Burghley (Burleigh) in the parish of

Stamford Baron Stamford Baron St Martin is a former civil parish, now in the parish of Stamford, in the South Kesteven district, in the county of Lincolnshire, England. It included the southern part of Stamford, south of the River Welland, and therefore histor ...

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshi ...

. His father Sir David Cecil, of

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, of or about Wales * Welsh language, spoken in Wales * Welsh people, an ethnic group native to Wales Places * Welsh, Arkansas, U.S. * Welsh, Louisiana, U.S. * Welsh, Ohio, U.S. * Welsh Basin, during t ...

ancestry, rose in favour under King

Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his Wives of Henry VIII, six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. ...

of England, becoming

High Sheriff of Northamptonshire This is a list of the High Sheriffs of Northamptonshire. The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the respon ...

in 1532 and 1533, and died in 1541. Richard too was a

courtier A courtier () is a person who attends the royal court of a monarch or other royalty. The earliest historical examples of courtiers were part of the retinues of rulers. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the officia ...

. In 1517 he was a royal page; in 1520 he was present at the

Field of the Cloth of Gold The Field of the Cloth of Gold (, ) was a summit meeting between King Henry VIII of England and King Francis I of France from 7 to 24 June 1520. Held at Balinghem, between Ardres in France and Guînes in the English Pale of Calais, it was a ...

; he rose to be

Groom of the Robes Groom of the Robes is an office in the Royal Household of the Sovereign of England (later Great Britain, ultimately the United Kingdom). In 1953, the Groom of the Robes to Elizabeth II had the task of bringing forward the robes and other items of c ...

and constable of

Warwick Castle Warwick Castle is a medieval castle developed from a wooden fort, originally built by William I of England, William the Conqueror during 1068. Warwick is the county town of Warwickshire, England, situated on a meander of the River Avon, Warwic ...

. He was

High Sheriff of Rutland This is a list of sheriffs and high sheriffs of the English county of Rutland. The high sheriff, sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown: there has been a Sheriff of Rutland since 1129. Formerly the sheriff was the principal law enf ...

in 1539, and was one of those who received no inconsiderable share of the plunder of the monasteries. He married Jane Heckington, daughter and heiress of William Heckington of

Bourne, Lincolnshire Bourne is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the South Kesteven Non-metropolitan district, district of Lincolnshire, England. It lies on the eastern slopes of the limestone Kesteven Uplands and the western edge of the ...

. He had one son,

William Cecil, Lord Burghley William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley (13 September 15204 August 1598), was an English statesman, the chief adviser of Queen Elizabeth I for most of her reign, twice Secretary of State (1550–1553 and 1558–1572) and Lord High Treasurer from ...

(1520–1598), and three daughters. When Richard died, he left an ample estate behind him in the counties of

Rutland Rutland is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Leicestershire to the north and west, Lincolnshire to the north-east, and Northamptonshire to the south-west. Oakham is the largest town and county town. Rutland has a ...

, Northamptonshire and elsewhere. He died at his house in

Canon Row Canon Row is a historic street in the City of Westminster in London. It is best known as the location of Canon Row Police Station. History In 1878 Canon Row extended from the back of Richmond Terrace to Bridge Street, Westminster, and about mid ...

and was buried at

St Margaret's, Westminster The Church of St Margaret, Westminster Abbey is in the grounds of Westminster Abbey on Parliament Square, London, England. It is dedicated to Margaret the Virgin, Margaret of Antioch, and forms part of a single World Heritage Site with the Pal ...

. Jane was a widow for 35 years dying 10 March 1587. Richard and Jane have a joint monument in

St Martin's Church, Stamford St Martin's Church, Stamford, is a Grade I listed parish church in the Church of England located in Stamford, Lincolnshire, Stamford, Lincolnshire, England. The area of the town south of the River Welland was in Northamptonshire until 1889 and i ...

Family

He sent his son William to the grammar schools of Stamford and Grantham, and in 1535 William entered

St John's College, Cambridge St John's College, formally the College of St John the Evangelist in the University of Cambridge, is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge, founded by the House of Tudor, Tudor matriarch L ...

. Academically a success, William ran foul of his father, when his heart was lost to Mary Cheke, daughter of a local widow, with only a fortune of 40 pounds to recommend her. William was immediately removed before he could take his degree, and was entered as a student at

Gray's Inn The Honourable Society of Gray's Inn, commonly known as Gray's Inn, is one of the four Inns of Court (professional associations for barristers and judges) in London. To be called to the bar in order to practise as a barrister in England and Wale ...

in 1541. If the motive was to prevent a marriage, it failed. Two months after he came up to

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, William married Mary, probably secretly. Thomas, the future

Earl of Exeter Marquess of Exeter is a title that has been created twice, once in the peerage of England and once in the peerage of the United Kingdom. The first creation came in the peerage of England in 1525 for Henry Courtenay, 2nd Earl of Devon. For more ...

and only fruit of this union was born at Cambridge on 5 May 1542, therefore presumably at his grandmother's house. The marriage was so distasteful to Richard, that he is said to have altered his will, or at any rate, to have intended to do so. But the young wife did not live long, dying on 22 February 1544. Of his daughters, Anne (also called Agnes) married Thomas White of

Tuxford Tuxford is a historic market town and a civil parish in the Bassetlaw District, Bassetlaw district of Nottinghamshire, England. It had a population of 2,809 in the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census. Geography Its nearby towns are Oll ...

, Notts.; Margaret married Roger Cave (see

Cave-Browne-Cave baronets The Cave, later Cave-Browne, later Cave-Browne-Cave Baronetcy, of Stanford in the County of Northampton, is a title in the Baronetage of England. Origin It was created on 30 June 1641 for Thomas Cave, a Royalist who fought in the English Civil ...

), nephew of Sir

Ambrose Cave Sir Ambrose Cave (died 2 April 1568) was an English politician and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster. Life Ambrose Cave was the son of Richard Cave (see Cave-Browne-Cave baronets) and Margaret Saxby of Stanford, Northamptonshire. He was educ ...

, and secondly Ambrose Smythe of Husbands Bosworth, co Leic; and Elizabeth married

Robert Wingfield Sir Robert Wingfield (died 1454), of Letheringham in Suffolk, was an English landowner, administrator and politician.G. E. Cokayne; with Vicary Gibbs, H.A. Doubleday, Geoffrey H. White, Duncan Warrand and Lord Howard de Walden, editors. The C ...

and secondly Hugh Alington.Lincolnshire Pedigrees, "Alington of Swinhope"
Accessed 6 January 2023.

References

Wallace T. MacCaffrey Wallace Trevethic MacCaffrey (April 20, 1920 – December 13, 2013) was Professor Emeritus of History at Harvard University. He was a graduate of Reed College and Harvard University. He also taught at the University of California, Los Angeles ...

(2004
"Cecil, William, first Baron Burghley (1520/21–1598)"
''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press,

Family

References

Further reading