Richard Lyst was a London grocer and apothecary who served

Cardinal Wolsey Thomas Wolsey ( – 29 November 1530) was an English statesman and Catholic bishop. When Henry VIII became King of England in 1509, Wolsey became the king's almoner. Wolsey's affairs prospered and by 1514 he had become the controlling figur ...

and became a priest. Some letters that Lyst wrote to Thomas Cromwell survive. Lyst became a lay brother of the Observant Friars in Greenwich. He was a supporter of Anne Boleyn, then Marchioness or Marquess of Pembroke, who he describes as the "most onerabyll lady Marcas of Penbroke". The head of the Greenwich house, John Forest, had taken up the opposing cause of

Catherine of Aragon Catherine of Aragon (also spelt as Katherine, ; 16 December 1485 – 7 January 1536) was Queen of England as the first wife of King Henry VIII from their marriage on 11 June 1509 until their annulment on 23 May 1533. She was previously ...

. Lyst claimed that Forest was poorly-educated, frequently making grammatical errors in his preaching, breaking " Priscian's head or ear". Cromwell encouraged Lyst and a priest at Greenwich, John Lawrence, as malcontents who could build support for the divorce of

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

. Lyst had first contacted Cromwell as a supporter of John Lawrence in November 1532. Lyst wrote to Anne Boleyn explaining that he hoped to become a priest and serve as her chaplain. He had been prevented from joining the priesthood because he had once been engaged to marry, but the woman had now died. He begged Anne Boleyn for 40 shillings to pay a debt for clothes bought for his mother. Lyst made medicinal distilled waters and sent them as a gift to Catherine of Aragon and to Cromwell. He had previously made distilled waters and

hippocras Hippocras ( ca, Pimentes de clareya; lat, vīnum Hippocraticum), sometimes spelled hipocras or hypocras, is a drink made from wine mixed with sugar and spices, usually including cinnamon, and possibly heated. After steeping the spices in the ...

for Wolsley. After leaving the convent at Greenwich, Lyst studied at Clare Hall, Cambridge. He was made rector of the London church

St Dunstan-in-the-West The Guild Church of St Dunstan-in-the-West is in Fleet Street in the City of London. It is dedicated to Dunstan, Bishop of London and Archbishop of Canterbury. The church is of medieval origin, although the present building, with an octagonal ...

in February 1536. The date of his death is unknown.Henry Ellis, ''Original Letters'', vol. 2 (London, 1846), p. 246.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lyst, Richard English apothecaries English Friars Minor Alumni of Clare College, Cambridge