The Cecil's in the Sixteenth Century.
The first Lord Burghley, William Cecil (1520-1598), took his name from the land he had inherited from his father Richard Cecil when he was knighted in 1571. His father and grandfather David Cecil, who had worked as lawyers for Henry VII and Henry VIII, moved from their native Herefordshire to Stamford, and acquired estates at Burghley and Wothorpe.
William had supported Princess Elizabeth during the reign of Mary I, and at her succession she made him her principal secretary, and later Lord Treasurer. From the revenue of his royal work, he built both Burghley and Theobalds in the country, and Exeter House in London.
William married firstly Mary Cheke, who bore him a son, Thomas (1542-1622); she died soon after. William then married Mildred, the well-educated daughter of Sir Anthony Cooke, by whom he had a second son, Robert (1563-1612). Thomas and Robert became the First Earls of Exeter and Salisbury respectively.
Lord Essex would remember William in writing to Elizabeth as her greatest, gravest and most esteemed Councillor.
The Cecil's in the Seventeenth Century.
John Cecil (1648-1700), the Fifth Earl of Exeter, was the great great grandson of Thomas Cecil, the First Earl of Exeter. He restored the family fortunes by marrying the heiress Lady Anne Cavendish, daughter of the Third Earl of Devonshire. They were among the first ‘Grand Tourists’ and, despite Anne's fortune, left enormous debts of more than £8,000. Their great grandson Brownlow Cecil (1725-1793), the Ninth Earl of Exeter, was also a ‘Grand Tourist’.
Due to improvements in roads and waterways, the ‘Tour’ had been an indispensable part of the rich gentleman's education for more than a hundred years. It allowed them to understand better their culture, to collect foreign treasures, and to enhance their conversation. Inspecting foreign churches and nunneries was a favourite pastime, and ruins and antiquities were the most desirable items to view and purchase. Women, however, did not travel very far until late in the century.
The Cecil's in the Eighteenth Century.
Henry Cecil (1754-1804), the Tenth Earl of Exeter, separated from his first wife Emma (née Vernon), as they did not have any children. This occurred during the time when divorce was very rare and only possible by applying to Parliament for a private act if the wife had borne no heir. Divorce was not legally recognised until the ‘Matrimonial Causes Act’ of 1857, which set up divorce courts for those who could afford it.
Henry married a peasant girl called Sarah Hoggins (also known as the Cottage Countess after Tennyson's poem ‘The Lord of Burleigh’), whom he is supposed to have met and wooed incognito. She died before he was elevated to the position of marquess, but after she had given him an heir, Brownlow Cecil (1795-1867), the Second Marquess.
The Cecil's since the Nineteenth Century.
William Cecil (1876-1956), the Fifth Marquess of Exeter, was Brownlow's great great grandson, and became a Knight of the Garter and aide-de-camp to King George V. He was the lord at Burghley when the railway lines came to Peterborough and Stamford, and was possibly instrumental in the decision of which route the North line from London should take. William's children David (1905-1981) and Martin (1909-1988) would become the Sixth and the Seventh Marquesses of Exeter respectively.
David Cecil was an Olympic medal winner in a time when sports were reserved for gentlemen with leisure time. He won the gold medal for the 400 metres hurdles in the Amsterdam Olympics in 1928, and the silver medal in 1932 when he was the British Olympic Captain.
After the Second World War, David became president of the Amateur Athletic Association and the International Amateur Athletic Federation, and was a member of the International Olympic Committee. When the Olympics were staged in London in 1948, he was the Chairman of the Organising and Executive Committee. He was also the hunt Master for the East Sussex, the Old Berkshire, and the Burghley. His life inspired the film ‘Chariots of Fire’, in which he is portrayed by Nigel Havers.
Burghley House became a trust after the death of the Sixth Marquess of Exeter. His youngest daughter, Lady Victoria Leatham, and her husband Simon, currently live in and administer the house. The Seventh Marquess moved to America where his son Michael, the Eighth Marquess, now lives.
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