Website: http://www.pepysdiary.com/
Phil Gyford
Articles
Phil Gyford has written four articles:
- Evelyn to Pepys, 26 March 1666 (26 March 2009)
- John Evelyn’s Fire of London (2 September 2009)
- Q&A with Dr Kate Loveman (14 April 2019)
- A bill of exchange (18 August 2020)
Annotations and comments
Phil Gyford has posted 771 annotations/comments since 27 December 2002.
Comments
First Reading
About Thursday 12 January 1659/60
Phil • Link
The reason I haven't included days of the week is because Pepys didn't in his diary, apart from occasionally marking a Sunday as "Lord's Day" or "Sunday". I can see it can be confusing though, so if there are any suggestions as to the best way to remedy this, let me know.
I use http://www.pepysdiary.com/about/ to mention general diary topics, but obviously this is only of use to me! I could start a Yahoo! Group, or similar, for general discussion if people think this is a good idea. Although it would almost be a shame to remove any discussion from the site where it will be harder to find for future readers. Any thoughts?
About Wednesday 11 January 1659/60
Phil • Link
Although the Tower is not immediately between Westminster and the City, it's not completely out of the way. The Tower is actually a small distance to the south east of the City and Westminster is to its south west. So the lion wouldn't be in completely the opposite direction, just a walk along the river before turning back a little inland.
About St Clement Danes Church
Phil • Link
Judging by a map in Latham & Matthews this is the approxmiate position of where the church stood.
About St Paul's Churchyard
Phil • Link
While there is now a street called St. Paul's Churchyard running south of the cathedral, a map in Latham & Matthews places the churchyard as being to the north east of the then cathedral.
About Westminster Hall
Phil • Link
A footnote to 20 Jan 1660 says "These stationers and booksellers, whose shops disfigured Westminster Hall down to a late period, were a privileged class. In the statutes for appointing licensers and regulating the press, there is a clause exempting them from the pains and penalties of these obnoxious laws."
About James Pearse (surgeon)
Phil • Link
A footnote elsewhere says of Pierce: "Husband of pretty Mrs. Pierce. After the Restoration James Pearse or Pierce became Surgeon to the Duke of York, and he was also Surgeon-General of the Fleet."
About Anne Mountagu
Phil • Link
Daughter of Sir Edward Montagu http://www.pepysdiary.com/encyclo… and sister of Mrs Jem http://www.pepysdiary.com/encyclo…
About Brentford ("Brainford"), Middlesex
Phil • Link
Either mis-spelt by Pepys, or known as Brainford in his time, it is now known as "Brentford."
About Salisbury Court
Phil • Link
Pepys either mis-spelt the name, or it was spelt this way in his time. Today it is "Salisbury Court."
About Problem with the LiveJournal feed
Phil • Link
Hmm, that could be it -- occasionally I add extra links into entries after they've been posted. Seems like LJ can't cope with such things unfortunately.
About John Pepys (a, father)
Phil • Link
Samuel Pepys' father.
About Friday 6 January 1659/60
Phil • Link
Good idea, here we go: http://www.pepysdiary.com/encyclo…
I added a page for Pepys' wife, Elizabeth too:
http://www.pepysdiary.com/encyclo…
About Elizabeth Pepys (wife, b. St Michel)
Phil • Link
She was born in 1640 with the surname of St. Michel. Latham & Matthews state that "by December 1655 [Samuel] Pepys had married [her,] the fifteen-year-old daughter of a penniless Hugeuenot exile," adding "This is the date of the civil ceremony. It seems likely that a religious ceremony had taken place in the previous October." (p.xxii)
About Jane Edwards (b. Birch, Pepys' maid)
Phil • Link
Jane Birch was Pepys' maid.
About Friday 6 January 1659/60
Phil • Link
I recently read Henry Mayhew's excellent 'London Labour and the London Poor,' and while it was written 200 years or so after Pepys' time it shows that even then streets were far from what we expect today. Even main thoroughfares were muddy and dirty enough that many people earned a (very minimal) living by sweeping crossings from one pavement/sidewalk to another for the better off (and better dressed). So I dread to think what they were like in Pepys' time.
About Saturday 7 January 1659/60
Phil • Link
The last time I went past the Anchor pub (a few months back) it looked like it had been completely gutted and was being renovated. The rest of the area around Clink Street and Borough Market has been vastly changed over the last few years by new restaurants, bars, etc and while it's still a lovely area, it's now a little bit harder to imagine how it might have been in Pepys' day.
About Axe Yard
Phil • Link
I've altered the location on the map link slightly so it now correctly points to the old location of Axe Yard/Fludyer Street, rather than Downing Street.
About Saturday 7 January 1659/60
Phil • Link
When Pepys says "my Lord" in this entry (and others) I'm assuming he means Montagu. However, part of me wonders whether he might be referring to Lambert -- would Pepys write a letter to Montagu just before "putting in" at his lodgings?
About Axe Yard
Phil • Link
The Axe Yard footnote is tagged 'B', which signifies it was written by Lord Braybrooke, who produced editions of Pepys' Diary in earlier parts of the 19th century, so I assume Fludyer St still existed when he wrote this footnote. The Diary Introduction page was written by Wheatley in 1893. The map link indicates the modern equivalent location of Axe Yard, now Downing St, which hopefully makes things a little clearer.
Thanks for the comments 'language hat'.
About Wednesday 4 January 1659/60
Phil • Link
True and it's fine to use that. But that doesn't stop UKP being "a fairly common online notation," and one I come across at least as often as GBP.