Thomas Cecil, 1st Earl of Exeter
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Thomas Cecil, 1st Earl of Exeter KG (May 5, 1542 – February 8, 1623), was the eldest son of William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley, and the brother of Robert Cecil (see below).
Thomas Cecil served in government under Elizabeth I of England, first serving in the House of Commons in 1563 and representing various constituencies for most of the time from then until 1593. He was knighted in 1575. His father's death in 1598 brought him a seat in the House of Lords, the 2nd Lord Burghley, as he then was, served from 1599 to 1603 as Lord Lieutenant of Yorkshire and Lord President of the Council of the North. It was during this period that Queen Elizabeth made him a Knight of the Garter in 1601. He was created Earl of Exeter on May 4, 1605, the same day his half-brother Robert Cecil, 1st Viscount Cranborne was created 1st Earl of Salisbury. Unlike his brother, however, he did not become a Government minister under James I.
The Cecil family fostered arts; they supported musicians such as William Byrd, Orlando Gibbons and Thomas Robinson. The latter, in his youth, was in the service of Thomas Cecil <ref>William Casey (pub.), Alfredo Colman (pub.), Thomas Robinson: New Citharen Lessons (1609), 1997 Baylor University Press, Waco, Texas, ISBN 0-918954-65-7</ref>.
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Thomas Cecil is buried in a tomb in the warrior chapel at St Mary's church in Wimbledon village.
| Preceded by: The Lord Burghley | Custos Rotulorum of Lincolnshire bef. 1594 – aft. 1608 | Succeeded by: Lord Burghley |
| Preceded by: Kenelm Digby | Custos Rotulorum of Rutland bef. 1594–1623 | Succeeded by: The Marquess of Buckingham |
| Preceded by: Vacant | Lord Lieutenant of Yorkshire 1599–1603 | Succeeded by: The Lord Sheffield |
| Preceded by: William Cecil | Baron Burghley 1598–1623 | Succeeded by: William Cecil |
| Preceded by: New Creation | Earl of Exeter 1605–1623 |
