Sunday 27 November 1664

(Lord’s day). To church in the morning, then dined at home, and to my office, and there all the afternoon setting right my business of flaggs, and after all my pains find reason not to be sorry, because I think it will bring me considerable profit.

In the evening come Mr. Andrews and Hill, and we sung, with my boy, Ravenscroft’s 4-part psalms, most admirable musique. Then (Andrews not staying) we to supper, and after supper fell into the rarest discourse with Mr. Hill about Rome and Italy; but most pleasant that I ever had in my life. At it very late and then to bed.


12 Annotations

First Reading

Terry F  •  Link

On behalf of Dirk Van de putte, an entry in the Carte Calendar

John Creed to William Coventry
Written from: [Whitehall?]

Date: 27 November 1664

Shelfmark: MS. Carte 75, fol(s). 255
Document type: Holograph-Minute. With endorsement by Lord Sandwich.

Communicates the directions given by the Lords Commissioners for Tangier, with respect to the despatch of provisions & stores for that settlement, and requests that H.R.H. the Lord Admiral be moved to issue his orders for the needful Convoy.
http://www.bodley.ox.ac.uk/dept/s…

Michael Robinson  •  Link

" ... and we sung, with my boy, Ravenscroft’s 4-part psalms, most admirable musique."

"Of the Praise, Virtue and Efficacie of the Psalms. ... The singing of Psalms (as say the Doctors) comforteth the sorrowful, pacifieth the angry, strengtheneth the weake, humbleth the proud, gladdeth the humble, stirres up the slow, reconcileth enemies, lifteth up the heart to heavenly things, and uniteth the Creature to his Creator, for whatsoever is in the Psalms, conduceth to the education benefit and consolation of mankinde. ... In a word, he that would give these Heavenly Hymns their due, had need to compose a Psalm in praise of the Psalms ..."

From Ravenscroft's introduction.

For a complete scan of the 1621 edition:-
http://www.pbm.com/~lindahl/raven…

cape henry  •  Link

"...and after supper fell into the rarest discourse with Mr. Hill about Rome and Italy; but most pleasant that I ever had in my life." And how fine it is still when this happy confluence of food, wine and conversation turns rare and sparkles.

Michael Robinson  •  Link

"... we sung,..."

Ravenscroft's 'Rules' from the preface to the 1633 edition:-

"[Let] Psalms of Tribulation be sung with a low voyce and long measure … Psalms of Thanks- giving be sung with a voyce indifferent, neither too loud nor too soft, and with a measure neither too swift nor too slow … Psalms of Rejoycing be sung with a loude voyce and a swift jocund sound … In all of which the
observing of Time, Tune, and Eare, will produce
a perfect Harmony..."

Sally Drage, Performance practice in 18th-century Georgian psalmody
www.psalmody.co.uk/articles/GP1/G… -

Miss Ann  •  Link

"At it very late and then to bed" - surely he was in bed already?
Or, am I taking the "at it very late" to mean something which it is not?

Robert Gertz  •  Link

I wonder if Bess was allowed to partake of this excellent conversation or required to leave the boys to their claret in parlor.

language hat  •  Link

Miss Ann: In case you're not joking, "at it" refers to the talking described in the previous sentence.

JWB  •  Link

Baroque Italy

An "odd-shaped pearl" indeed. Imagine they talked about music, not Rome-the-Anti-Christ, but can you imagine what Milton talked about with Galileo when he visited him, house bound, in '38?

Robert Gertz  •  Link

1638...

"Johnny! My, it's good to have you here."

"Gal, you sound good!" Stern-looking guard gently directs Mr. M. "How do you do it?"

"Thanks, Johnny. Si, every day my daughter she gives me these little pills for the liver...by Signor Carter."

(Sorry, couldn't resist harking back to the Bernays/Ford/Edison bit)

JWB  •  Link

Those hand rolled, thus mis-shapen, little, over the counter, pearls that gave name to an age.

Second Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"setting right my business of flaggs, and after all my pains find reason not to be sorry, because I think it will bring me considerable profit."

See https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/… For the payments made to him from December 1664 onwards, see PRO, adm. 20/5, p. 245; ib., 20/6, pp. 31, 166. (L&M note)

Jon  •  Link

Meanwhile, at the fleet in the Solent......
My summary of the Journal of the Earl of Sandwich

Nov 11th HRH goes aboard the fleet. At night divided the fleet into squadrons.
Nov 25th HRH removed into the Royal Charles.
Nov 27th The whole fleet set sail with the wind N.E., a hard gale. The fleet consisted of 41 ships, men of war.

They sail toward Cape Hague and Alderney. There is no stated reason for this excursion so its probably to keep the fleet alert and practised and for HRH to see first hand the readiness of his fleet.

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