ABSTRACT
On 5 November 1605, an inauspicious date for catholic conspirators in the area, Richard Neile was installed dean of Westminster. He was the first native of the city of Westminster to become dean, and he had attended Westminster School thanks to the generosity of Dean Goodman, backed by the Cecil family, who later took him into their household.1 Archbishop Bancroft probably had a hand in sponsoring the appoint ment, but the formal recommendation to the crown was made by Robert Cecil, first earl of Salisbury, in his role as high steward of Westminster. Westminster was a royal peculiar and the post of dean entailed extensive duties: direction of the affairs of the collegiate church; a leading part in state ceremonies; oversight of the already famous school; and finally, certain judicial functions within the city of Westmin ster. It also gave control of extensive estates, not to mention noteworthy ecclesiastical patronage. The dean’s basic income in respect of these responsibilities was £232 10s per annum.1 This was actually no mean sum when one considers that it was worth more than some bishoprics - a fact which was taken into account when Neile was allowed to keep
* I would like to thank Charles Knighton and Richard Mortimer for their encourage ment, advice and patience while this piece was being written. Kenneth Fincham made perceptive comments as ever, and I was fortunate to be able to present a version of this essay at the seminar which he runs with Nicholas Tyacke, Susan Hardman More and Michael Questier at the Institute of Historical Research; I regret that I have not been able to make more of valuable suggestions made on that occasion in an article of this length. Pauline Croft offered timely thoughts on the Cecil family, while my wife Julia has kept me on task. The work owes much to research carried out some years ago, augmented more recently.
