---
product_id: 1440368
title: "Burghley: William Cecil at the Court of Elizabeth I"
brand: "stephen alford"
price: "€ 47.08"
currency: EUR
in_stock: true
reviews_count: 12
url: https://www.desertcart.ie/products/1440368-burghley-william-cecil-at-the-court-of-elizabeth-i
store_origin: IE
region: Ireland
---

# Burghley: William Cecil at the Court of Elizabeth I

**Brand:** stephen alford
**Price:** € 47.08
**Availability:** ✅ In Stock

## Quick Answers

- **What is this?** Burghley: William Cecil at the Court of Elizabeth I by stephen alford
- **How much does it cost?** € 47.08 with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship
- **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.ie](https://www.desertcart.ie/products/1440368-burghley-william-cecil-at-the-court-of-elizabeth-i)

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- stephen alford enthusiasts

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## Description

Burghley: William Cecil at the Court of Elizabeth I

## Images

![Burghley: William Cecil at the Court of Elizabeth I - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51qBr-j6j0L.jpg)
![Burghley: William Cecil at the Court of Elizabeth I - Image 2](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/31adE3A2ZrL.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 







  
  
    Burghley brought alive as a person.  Good book if you like Tudor history and politics.
  

*by B***R on Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on December 5, 2013*

As a descendant of William Cecil almost 500 hundred years after he lived, it is exciting to know more about him and read his own written words.  What was most amazing to me was the fact that this brilliant man managed to survive the snakepit of tudor politics for over forty years, govern well and thrive.  He guided England and its Queen through a golden Age, while founding a powerful dynasty of his own family..

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 







  
  
    Five Stars
  

*by G***P on Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 20, 2016*

I thought I was getting a used soft-bound book, but it's hard-bound and new.  Very inexpensive.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 







  
  
    Engrossing Book on Elizabeth I's Right Hand Man
  

*by A***K on Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 7, 2015*

I just finished reading Prof. Stephen Alford's tome, "Burghley: William Cecil at the Court of Elizabeth I," and I recommend it for serious 'Elizabethophiles' -- with one significant quibble.On p. 167, Alford argues that Cecil "singlehandedly" ran the secret service and intelligence gathering in the age of Elizabeth I. This is patently untrue, as Sir Francis Walsingham was Elizabeth's spymaster.However, in 2014, Alford corrected this egregious error by producing a splendid little book called "The Watchers: a Secret History of the Reign of Elizabeth I," in which he corrects the record and gives Walsingham due credit.Alford's "Burghley" brims with quotable material, because he uses *primary* sources. So on p. 283, we have Elizabeth's response to Parliament's request that she execute Mary, Queen of Scots. Elizabeth says "[We] princes I tell you are set on stages, in the sight and view of all the world....It behoveth us therefore to be careful that our proceedings be just and honourable." This sense that Renaissance people had of 'the world as a stage' did not originate with Shakespeare -- but he reflected the philosophy of his age with poetic vigour.Cecil was an avid reader, and one of the tutors he kept in his household was Lawrence Nowell. Nowell taught the (thoroughly nasty) Earl of Oxford, but in his spare time, he pored over and attempted to translate "the only surviving original manuscript of 'Beowulf' " (See p. 147). What a scintillating, shimmering household this must have been, with Burghley, his brilliant wife Mildred (nee Cooke), the young Earl of Essex (Robert Devereux), the brothers Bacon (Nicholas and Francis) and a host of Protestant intellectuals.So... buy this book if you love the Elizabethans. Just buy "The Watchers" as well in order to have a balanced view of the espionage activities of the English Renaissance.And kudos to Professor Alford for an engaging biography of one of the seminal personalities of England.

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*Product available on Desertcart Ireland*
*Store origin: IE*
*Last updated: 2026-03-17*