Sunday 4 November 1666

(Lord’s day). Comes my taylor’s man in the morning, and brings my vest home, and coate to wear with it, and belt, and silver-hilted sword. So I rose and dressed myself, and I like myself mightily in it, and so do my wife. Then, being dressed, to church; and after church pulled my Lady Pen and Mrs. Markham into my house to dinner, and Sir J. Minnes he got Mrs. Pegg along with him. I had a good dinner for them, and very merry; and after dinner to the waterside, and so, it being very cold, to White Hall, and was mighty fearfull of an ague, my vest being new and thin, and the coat cut not to meet before upon my breast. Here I waited in the gallery till the Council was up, and among others did speak with Mr. Cooling, my Lord Chamberlain’s secretary, who tells me my Lord Generall is become mighty low in all people’s opinion, and that he hath received several slurs from the King and Duke of York. The people at Court do see the difference between his and the Prince’s management, and my Lord Sandwich’s. That this business which he is put upon of crying out against the Catholiques and turning them out of all employment, will undo him, when he comes to turn-out the officers out of the Army, and this is a thing of his own seeking. That he is grown a drunken sot, and drinks with nobody but Troutbecke, whom nobody else will keep company with. Of whom he told me this story: That once the Duke of Albemarle in his drink taking notice as of a wonder that Nan Hide should ever come to be Duchesse of York, “Nay,” says Troutbecke, “ne’er wonder at that; for if you will give me another bottle of wine, I will tell you as great, if not greater, a miracle.” And what was that, but that our dirty Besse (meaning his Duchesse) should come to be Duchesse of Albemarle? Here we parted, and so by and by the Council rose, and out comes Sir G. Carteret and Sir W. Coventry, and they and my Lord Bruncker and I went to Sir G. Carteret’s lodgings, there to discourse about some money demanded by Sir W. Warren, and having done that broke up. And Sir G. Carteret and I alone together a while, where he shows a long letter, all in cipher, from my Lord Sandwich to him. The contents he hath not yet found out, but he tells me that my Lord is not sent for home, as several people have enquired after of me. He spoke something reflecting upon me in the business of pursers, that their present bad behaviour is what he did foresee, and had convinced me of, and yet when it come last year to be argued before the Duke of York I turned and said as the rest did. I answered nothing to it, but let it go, and so to other discourse of the ill state of things, of which all people are full of sorrow and observation, and so parted, and then by water, landing in Southwarke, home to the Tower, and so home, and there began to read “Potter’s Discourse upon 666,” which pleases me mightily, and then broke off and to supper and to bed.

17 Annotations

First Reading

Robert Gertz  •  Link

New coat. (thumb's up to looking-glass)

New vest.

And that silver-hilted sword is of the very best...

Periwig... (flip back wig)

New shoes.

In this outfit the CoA is not to be abused...

The actresses all dote upon our Sam...

"For every lady's crazy 'bout..."

Bess glaring...Sam realizing thought has taken word.

Ummn... "Your adoring little Sam?" nervously...

"Pity they don't know the sword is only for show." Bess, grimly.

***

I assume things like today's dinner weren't really off the cuff, "pulling in" affairs on spur of the moment.

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"our dirty Besse (meaning his Duchesse) should come to be Duchesse of Albemarle"

Cf. Pepys's reporting that the Earl of Sandwich "calls my Lady Duchesse the veryest slut and drudge and the foulest worde that can be spoke of a woman almost." http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…
Monck's wife had been his laundress when he was imprisoned in the Tower (1644-46), whom he married only after the birth of their son. She was "a blacksmith's daughter" (Aubrey) and "not at all handsome or cleanly." (L&M note 25 February this year)

CGS  •  Link

Gen. Monck probable not a good catch either, may they be both matched well or suit each other to the T.?
Never can account for tastes of many a couple I know of.

A luvs B; D Luvs E; but A cannot stand E so why the connection ?
A thinks D is the cats Meow so !

Jesse  •  Link

"Duchesse of Albemarle”

I took it from http://www.bigenealogy.com/family… (from an entry in the Encyclopedia) their son was born a year after they got married. Her first husband's alleged 'death' never seemed to be verified or documented.

Robert Gertz  •  Link

Hard to say about the maligned Duchess. Sandwich would hardly be likely to judge her on substance rather than her social standing. Add some coarse language natural to her and a lack of (for want of a better word) "breeding" and she'd probably have little chance of winning the applause of the Court's "coach set". Her appearances in the Diary to date, despite Sam's annoyance with her, suggest a devoted wife, shrewd about her husband's affairs and not willing to mince words or be cowed by the great ones she now rubs shoulders with. If she started as a laundress, she has risen to the job of Duchess with considerable aplomb.

It should of course be noted that the said "breeding" didn't bar careers of piracy and general criminality, savage brutality, adultery, corruption, rape, enslavement, murder...But done with a certain "style" (ie, officially condoned-often via connections and relations in government or business or both)and veneer of manner and education. Brutal exploitation, the slave, opium, and other drug trades could go hand in hand with very fine manners at Court and an interest in natural philosophy, languages, literature, art, and music. One of the shining examples as late as 19th century America might be Warren Delano, grandfather of FDR who twice returned to China to make fortunes from the drug trade there while leading a highly respectable life as a country gentleman of considerable means. I suppose later distinguished generations of Escobars will pause in showing their art musuems, factories, hospitals, and estates to make a quiet joke or two about their embarassing roguish ancestor.

JWB  •  Link

Dirtie Bessie

Monck was no Leveler, in fact he purged Levelers & Qaukers from his command in Scotland. One fact we do know of her family is that Monck used her brother as a liason vs. army in Scotland and Richard Cromwell-hardly position of an uncultured boor.

JWB  •  Link

What's in a name?

We know Monck chewed tobacco. Perhaps the Mrs. did too.

Terry Foreman  •  Link

She was a farrier's daughter and all the horsemen knew her.

CGS  •  Link

'umans are the only animal that wears clothes that belie their true nature. They will wear outfits like spandex to say they be slender, be sleek like a leopards wearing leotards,use words that do not reflect their actions, 'euphonised' statements to fake out the listener, the list goes on, but to find out the true mind be a task worthy of getting food out of a winkle with a stick.

As we are easily distracted by good diction,and fail to look into the real substance, we will continue to enjoy being deceived.
But when they expose the underlying nature we are shocked.
Example the Modern H o C and the latest exposure to their under belly.
RG has said it well.

Glyn  •  Link

Seeing as we have the Lord Mayor of London's inauguration next Saturday (November 14th 2009), is the current ceremony anything to do with that?

CGS  •  Link

Calls for best bib and tucker, with all the accouterments of wealth and standing [pecking order] and a good dose of refinement.

JWB  •  Link

"..all the horsemen knew her"

From the "Dcuhesse of Malfi"

"Diamonds are of most value
They say, that have pass'd through most jewellers
hands"
-- The Duchess, talking about remarrying...

"Whores, by that rule, are precious."
-- Ferdinand, in response

Second Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"He spoke something reflecting upon me in the business of pursers, that their present bad behaviour is what he did foresee, and had convinced me of, and yet when it come last year to be argued before the Duke of York I turned and said as the rest did."

L&M note: This is possibly the meeting recorded 22 April this year: http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…

San Diego Sarah  •  Link

'... and there began to read “Potter’s Discourse upon 666,” which pleases me mightily, ...'

This is funny. Obviously I haven't read Potter’s Discourse, but we just had Halloween, and tomorrow is the Gunpowder Plot holiday. It sounds like Pepys might as well be reading "The Shining" or watching a horror movie, and loving it. I hope it helps him sleep well tonight.

San Diego Sarah  •  Link

"... and so to other discourse of the ill state of things, of which all people are full of sorrow and observation ..."

Widespread depression. I suggest picking up a shovel and doing some manual labor. Or hammer some planks. Maybe open a soup kitchen.

http://www.historic-uk.com/Histor…

St. Katharine Cree Church, built in 1631 (tower from 1504).
Although the church was damaged during the Great Fire of London, enough of the structure remained to provide a temporary 'soup kitchen' to the local workers who were rebuilding the city.

Gerald Berg  •  Link

"...but to find out the true mind be a task worthy of getting food out of a winkle with a stick."

Hilarious Mr. Salt. Thanks.

So there our man is-- freezing his cods off, but absolutely burning hot in the gossip. Some ague!

Log in to post an annotation.

If you don't have an account, then register here.