Elizabeth Godolphin

Elizabeth Godolphin (born 5 November 1663 – 29 July 1726) was a British school founder and benefactor. She is buried in Westminster Abbey. Godolphin School, Salisbury, is named after her.

Life Her birth date is shown in the entry for Coulston in the Bishops Transcripts for (Coulston, Wiltshire. Her parents were Elizabeth and Francis Godolphin. Her mother's father was John Gayer who had been a Lord Mayor of London. Her mother died in childbirth when she was about four and her father remarried but died when she was seven. Her uncle Sir William Godolphin became the guardian of her and her brother Francis. Their father had left them an annuity but the bulk of the estate went to his eldest child, William, who was Elizabeth's brother. The younger William died in a duel in 1682, and her brother inherited. When Francis took his own life in 1702, The couple lived at St James's Street in Piccadilly. They adopted a relative, Frances (Fanny) Quicke, after their two children (a son and a daughter) died young. between eight and twelve years of age, born in Salisbury or some other part of Wiltshire, and to have had "some portion left to them but not exceeding £400". The girls were to be taught to "dance, work, read, write, cast accounts and the business of housewifery". The new charity was initially to be administered by her nephew William Godolphin and his heirs;

Death and legacy The school dates its foundation to 1726, the year of Godolphin's death. She was buried in Westminster Abbey, joining her husband and their children. The inscription records the terms of her will as set out above. Her husband died several years before this bequest was made.

Godolphin School makes available substantial contributions to the fees of some students as part of its founder's legacy.