Friday 22 June 1660

To my Lord, where much business. With him to White Hall, where the Duke of York not being up, we walked a good while in the Shield Gallery. Mr. Hill (who for these two or three days hath constantly attended my Lord) told me of an offer of 500l. for a Baronet’s dignity, which I told my Lord of in the balcone in this gallery, and he said he would think of it. I to my Lord’s and gave order for horses to be got to draw my Lord’s great coach to Mr. Crew’s. Mr. Morrice the upholsterer came himself to-day to take notice what furniture we lack for our lodgings at Whitehall. My dear friend Mr. Fuller of Twickenham and I dined alone at the Sun Tavern, where he told me how he had the grant of being Dean of St. Patrick’s, in Ireland; and I told him my condition, and both rejoiced one for another. Thence to my Lord’s, and had the great coach to Brigham’s, who went with me to the Half Moon, and gave me a can of good julep, and told me how my Lady Monk deals with him and others for their places, asking him 500l., though he was formerly the King’s coach-maker, and sworn to it. My Lord abroad, and I to my house and set things in a little order there. So with Mr. Moore to my father’s, I staying with Mrs. Turner who stood at her door as I passed. Among other things she told me for certain how my old Lady Middlesex —— herself the other day in the presence of the King, and people took notice of it. Thence called at my father’s, and so to Mr. Crew’s, where Mr. Hetley had sent a letter for me, and two pair of silk stockings, one for W. Howe, and the other for me. To Sir H. Wright’s to my Lord, where he, was, and took direction about business, and so by link home about 11 o’clock. To bed, the first time since my coming from sea, in my own house, for which God be praised.

23 Jun 166021 Jun 1660

Temperature: 14°C / 57°F (Jun 1660 avg.)

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- gerry on Mon 23 Jun 2003, 12:28am. Flag this

The missing word after Lady Middlesex is “beshit” per L&M. Makes me think of LBJ’s two basic rules of politics: Never turn down a free meal and never miss an opportunity to visit the bathroom.
- language hat on Mon 23 Jun 2003, 03:46am. Flag this

“a can of good julep”:
julep ‘A sweet drink prepared in different ways; often, simply a liquid sweetened with syrup or sugar, and used as a vehicle for medicine; sometimes, a medicated drink used as a demulcent, “comforting”, or gently stimulating mixture.’ (OED)
- Mary on Mon 23 Jun 2003, 07:36am. Flag this

julep

In England the derived form, ‘jollop’ is still used as a non-specific term for a medicinal liquid of some sort; cough syrup, laxative or what you will.
- Brad W on Mon 23 Jun 2003, 01:34pm

told me of an offer of 500l. for a Baronet’s dignity, …

Were impoverished noble families able to sell titles even back then? Or am I the only one here that doesn’t know that a Baronet’s dignity is a piece of furniture or a statue or something?

Gerry’s LBJ quote reminds this Texan how much Lyndon sounded like a crass vaudeville comedian rather than a statesman. Alas we’re always going to come across as hicks. Guess I’ll go soak my feet in the Cement Pond.
- Paul Brewster on Mon 23 Jun 2003, 02:59pm. Flag this

500l for a Barronets dignity
L&M footnote: “This would be payment for the grant of the title…. £300-400 was said to be a common price…. Hill who solicited it on someone else’s behalf may have been Pepys’s neighbour, John Hill of Axe Yard. Baronetcies had been commonly sold ever since their introduction in 1611, but little of the revenue from their sale (even from the official fee) at this time reached the Crown.”
- Paul Brewster on Mon 23 Jun 2003, 03:03pm. Flag this

asking him 500l., though he was formerly the King’s coach-maker,
In case you were worried about his fate, L&M say “Thomas Brigham was appointed coachmaker to the Duke of York in November.”
- Matthew on Mon 23 Jun 2003, 03:04pm. Flag this

“Balcone”:
Note the original Italian spelling - according to one of Patrick O’Brian’s books the Italian pronunciation, with the stress on the second syllable, was still common in the early 19th century.
- David A. Smith on Mon 23 Jun 2003, 03:21pm. Flag this

500l. for a Baronet’s dignity
The market opens!
War unsettles economics and regime change creates new winners and losers. And my Lord Montagu’s response is appropriately non-committal: “I’ll think about it.” I predict that Montagu will get other such offers, and the price (which seems very high) will fall (especially as the newly restored King could simply create Montagu a title, could he not?)
- gerry on Mon 23 Jun 2003, 03:59pm. Flag this

I believe that when baronetcies were introduced by James 1, they were intended to be a revenue raising product. A baronet is not a member of the Peerage.
Brad, LBJ would surely have slotted in easily in Sam’s world; what a wheeler dealer.
- j a gioia on Mon 23 Jun 2003, 04:28pm. Flag this

Alas we’re always going to come across as hicks.

tut, brad. i read long ago that the current monarch gave advice viz the loo much the same as lyndon’s - what with endless state occasions and appearances and all.
- Colin Gravois on Mon 23 Jun 2003, 05:06pm. Flag this

Re Gerry, Brad, and Qioiu’s references to LBJ and Sam’s era.
Right on, he would have fit neatly into that mid-17th century fabric of London high rollers. He may have been a crass wheeler-dealer SOB, but he was probably the smartest crass wheeler-dealer SOB ever to come down the pike (see Robt. Caro’s triolgy — more to come — with his latest “Master of the Senate.”)
- vincent on Mon 23 Jun 2003, 07:24pm. Flag this

When you are weird, you are a nutcase if you are Pennyless but when you have a few (quid,brass,gold or) dollars you are just eccentric: i.e. if you broke your are a hick but otherwise just a good ol’ boy:
money trumps brains but money and brains trumps all.
- gerry on Mon 23 Jun 2003, 08:01pm. Flag this

This is not LBJ appreciation week but there are a lot of places in Caro’s fascinating books where you could substitute Montague for LBJ. Its a question of knowing when to hold them and knowing when to fold them.
Right on Vincent!
- Susanna on Mon 23 Jun 2003, 09:44pm. Flag this

£500 for a Baronetcy

I read this as Mr. Hill asking Pepys to ask my lord Montague (who already has a superior title; he is Earl of Sandwich) to use his influence with the king to make Mr. Hill a baronet for £500.

As for LBJ, I think he and his dictum “power is where power goes” would have been right at home in the Restoration.
- helena murphy on Mon 23 Jun 2003, 10:25pm. Flag this

Lionel Cranfield (1575-1645) was the first Earl of Middlesex.He started life as an apprentice to a City businessman and rose to be Lord Treasurer under James I. He was impeached and consequently ruined by Buckingham,the court favourite ,on a trumped up charge of financial mishandling. Social acceptance was not always forthcoming for the recently ennobled. They
provoked envy in those without titles ,and condescension from those of a weightier pedigree. When Cranfield told the future Charles I that he was honour bound to marry the Spanish Infanta,the prince told him to keep to money matters and not to talk of honour to a gentleman. Mrs Turner’s comment conceals a spiteful relish as if such behaviour is only to be expected.
- JonTom Kittredge on Tue 24 Jun 2003, 12:02am. Flag this

Montagu’s Earldom
Susanna’s annotation reminds me to ask: Has Montague actually been created an earl yet? I don’t remember seeing any specific about it in the diary, but I could easily have missed it, since there has been so much happening since the Return of the King (so to speak). It’s especially confusing since Pepys has always called him “my Lord” as a courtesy title. On the nineteenth, he mentions Montague entering the House of Commons, which I assume a peer could not do, so maybe the title hasn’t come through yet?
- JonTom Kittredge on Tue 24 Jun 2003, 12:14am. Flag this

Lodgings at Whitehall
Another question about Montaqu: a couple of days ago, Pepys alluded to “the Great Wardrobe”, apparently a house that the Master of the Wardrobe is entitled to use (though Montague will first have to evict some poor orphans). Today there’s mention of “our lodgings at White Hall”. Does this mean lodgings for Montagu in the palace itself? And are these lodgings distinct from the Great Wardrobe? (Or are these lodgings in the vicinity of White Hall Palace, for the Pepyses themselves?)
- Pauline on Tue 24 Jun 2003, 01:01am. Flag this

Axe Yard and White Hall
Lot of discussion of Pepys house in Axe Yard and its proximity to White Hall, and just what is White Hall, in the early months of the diary annotations. See http://www.pepysdiary.com/p/102.php (Axe Yard) and http://www.pepysdiary.com/p/180.php (White Hall Palace). Montagu has lodgings in White Hall, but has not used them actively yet in “diary time.”

A recent map link showed the Great Wardrobe in London, not in Westminster or near White Hall.
- Todd Bernhardt on Tue 24 Jun 2003, 11:42pm. Flag this

re: Montagu’s earldom

To answer JonTom, I don’t think Montagu is Earl of Sandwich just yet. I don’t have the Tomalin bio handy, but I remember her mentioning the transition in her book (it’s rather jarring, because she refers to Montagu as Sandwich from that point on), and I believe it came after this time.

As for Brad’s comment about LBJ, I can only say that I wish that the current Texan in the White House was as competent and erudite as LBJ! Sheesh.
- Paul Brewster on Wed 25 Jun 2003, 02:33pm. Flag this

re: Montagu’s earldom
It looks like his formal title will come on the 9th of July, 1660.
- in Aqua Scripto on Sun 5 Mar 2006, 03:13am. Flag this

The Sandwich apartment be over the gate, known as the king Street Gate, with nice acces to the Tennis court and Privy Garden and the Bowling Green. Extracted from Companion {L&M]
The Shield Gallery 1st floor [2nd USA] east west out to the privey stairs over the Leads, so that one can see the swans a feeding and sculls a sculling.