James Morgan

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James Morgan has posted 94 annotations/comments since 21 October 2015.

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Third Reading

About Friday 8 June 1660

James Morgan  •  Link

For the curious, Google Maps says the bicycle trip from Greenwich to Dover would be 7 hours and 13 minutes for 77 miles. That's going straight through, and Google assumes a brisk pace.

Second Reading

About Monday 24 May 1669

James Morgan  •  Link

It's nice to know that the English dancing and music pleased the prince. I think at the time there was some desire to show they were up to French and Italian standards.

About Sunday 25 April 1669

James Morgan  •  Link

I suppose one would have to have three categories, sermons described as dull or poor, those described in better terms, and those not described. I too have the impression tht dull or poor sermons were common.

About Tuesday 9 March 1668/69

James Morgan  •  Link

The link to the article about life on the farm in Cumbria (provided by Mary) appears to be broken. From the later contribution the farm appears to be Townsend Hall. Can anyone find the article again?

About Tuesday 2 March 1668/69

James Morgan  •  Link

"Sack dress" sounded familiar, and a quick search on Google says Givenchy had a big splash with them in 1957, and that vintage 60s ones are available. They look like something that might still be worn if you are in an environment that calls for dresses.

About Friday 26 February 1668/69

James Morgan  •  Link

So more like the Defense Secretary or the US Secretary of Defense? Except that he's not a member of the cabinet, which doesn't exist, or the CABAL. He has his own colleagues, but seems to be the primus inter pares.

About Monday 11 January 1668/69

James Morgan  •  Link

I think if Sam were in need of a bodyguard he would find someone more martial than Hewer, his clerk. As noted in earlier comments, Hewer is following him as part of his agreement with his wife, and "guard" is used in the sense of "jailer".

About Saturday 5 December 1668

James Morgan  •  Link

I wondered what they thought of dreams in his time, and why Elizabeth was so suspicous, so searched the diary and found this wonderful passage from 8/15/1665:

"Up by 4 o’clock and walked to Greenwich, where called at Captain Cocke’s and to his chamber, he being in bed, where something put my last night’s dream into my head, which I think is the best that ever was dreamt, which was that I had my Lady Castlemayne in my armes and was admitted to use all the dalliance I desired with her, and then dreamt that this could not be awake, but that it was only a dream; but that since it was a dream, and that I took so much real pleasure in it, what a happy thing it would be if when we are in our graves (as Shakespeere resembles it) we could dream, and dream but such dreams as this, that then we should not need to be so fearful of death, as we are this plague time."

Of course "Huzzy" doesn't sound very complimentary, so perhaps he's resisting temptation in his dreams as well.

About Thursday 8 October 1668

James Morgan  •  Link

"For want of a boat": perhaps there was something for the crossing, but it was too large to approach, so the captain was looking for a suitable small boat to bring the king ashore (and presumable not a smelly fishing skiff), and he built a wharf (that he called a stage) instead. That's really fast action.

About Tuesday 8 September 1668

James Morgan  •  Link

I think the earlier part of the sentence, "I will let my wife go.." implies that Elizabeth had some interest in going, and that he decided it's a good idea. I assume the fair is an attraction. But this is all speculation.

About Friday 3 July 1668

James Morgan  •  Link

My understanding is that physicians and surgeons were two distinct groups. Physicians dealt with all medications, psychological and external treatments. Surgeons were less highly regarded and dealt with amputations. Scientific research by dissection was new to both.

About Sunday 28 June 1668

James Morgan  •  Link

The Mahan book goes on to say "These considerations brought the two countries together in that Triple Alliance with Sweden which has been mentioned, and which for a time checked the onward movement of Louis. But the wars between the two sea nations were too recent, the humiliation of England in the Thames too bitter, and the rivalries that still existed too real, too deeply seated in the nature of things, to make that alliance durable. It needed the dangerous power of Louis, and his persistence in a course threatening to both, to weld the union of these natural antagonists. This was not to be done without another bloody encounter." So the trick referred to was presumably something Louis did earlieer to get the British into the war with th Dutch that lead to the disatrous defeats. I don't know enough detail of that war to say what Louis might have done - other than paying off Charles II, but I don't think that was public knowledge.

About Tuesday 21 April 1668

James Morgan  •  Link

It seems odd that Mrs Turner is along while Pepys plays with Knepp. Unless perhaps he left her at the theater while he went out with Knepp.

About Saturday 28 March 1668

James Morgan  •  Link

I wondered at the reference to a "Holyday week" that he is celebrating by going to a play. What holiday week would end 3/28? I checked and Easter was April 1 in 1668 per a couple of internet sources, so this is the week between palm sunday and easter, and this is the day after Good Friday. I wouldn't think they'd be celebrating until Easter itself.

About Monday 3 February 1667/68

James Morgan  •  Link

Looing at Phil's chart of Pepy's estate above, there is a huge jump, almost a doubling from August 1665-December 1665 then it levels off to a steady increases again.
One of the other notes for today mentions war years profiteering as an explantion. Is there a more detailed explanation somewhere of how he picked up almost 2,000 pounds?

About Tuesday 14 January 1667/68

James Morgan  •  Link

It's great to see in the same entry two people recognized for the quality of their dancing. Mary Davis, despite being "a most homely jade", rises in the world because "dances beyond any thing in the world". Then Captain OBryan, "who spoke and did well, but, above all things, did dance most incomparably" and also gains recognition. His entry says he even became captain of a 56 gun ship for it.

About Tuesday 17 December 1667

James Morgan  •  Link

Thanks for the note about Google Ngram Viewer. I tried the terms plague, fire from 1660-1700 in English texts, and found as might be expected plague mentions declined after the 1665. Interestingly when I did the same search on French texts, plague had few hits. Perhaps I should have used a French term, but fire got hits in both sets of texts. Anyway, two minutes of playing around was entertaining. The viewer is at https://books.google.com/ngrams, and the "About Ngram Viewer" link at the bottom of the page has a very detailed explanation of the viewer for researchers.