Widow of Richard Hollworthy, a merchant.
Daily entries from the 17th century London diary
Widow of Richard Hollworthy, a merchant.
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Chart showing the number of references in each month of the diary’s entries.
3 Annotations
Second Reading
Terry Foreman • Link
Mary Hollworthy
'A woman of state and wit and spirit.'
https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…
San Diego Sarah • Link
I suspect the widow Mary Hollworthy might be what Pepys calls a "perhaps civil lady"? He is certainly intrigued with her. I wish we knew more:
https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…:
Mary Hollworthy, widow of Richard Hollworthy, a wealthy merchant who died in 1665 in a fall from a horse.
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https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…
"This evening Mrs. Turner come to my office, and did walk an hour with me in the garden, telling me stories how Sir Edward Spragge hath lately made love to our neighbor, a widow, Mrs. Hollworthy, who is a woman of estate, and wit and spirit, and do contemn him the most, and sent him away with the greatest scorn in the world;"
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https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…
"Then to other talk, and among the rest about Sir W. Penn’s being to buy Wansted House of Sir Robert Brookes, but has put him off again, and left him the other day to pay for a dinner at a tavern, which she says our parishioner, Mrs. Hollworthy, talks of; and I dare be hanged if ever he [PENN] could mean to buy that great house, that knows not how to furnish one that is not the tenth part so big."
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https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…
"Mrs. Hollworthy is the veriest confident bragging gossip of them all, which I should not have believed; but that Sir R. Brookes, her partner, was mighty civil to her, and taken with her, and what not."
In 1667 Sir Robert Brooke MP was a widower:
m. 26 Apr. 1659, Ann Mildmay (d. 7 Jan. 1666) daughter of the Regicide, Henry Mildmay, which is why Brooke now lives at Mildmay's old home, Old Wanstead House. http://www.historyofparliamentonl…
It doesn't sound as if Pepys judges either of them badly for his relationship with the widow Mary Hollworthy. So not every committed relationship is judged like Brouncker and Mrs. Williams. I wonder where Pepys draws the line.
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https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…
"… and anon comes in Mrs. Turner, the mother, and brings with her Mrs. Hollworthy, which pleased me mightily. And so to dancing again, and singing, with extraordinary great pleasure, till about two in the morning, and then broke up; and Mrs. Pierce and her family, and Harris and Knepp by coach home, as late as it was. And they gone, I took Mrs. Turner and Hollworthy home to my house, and there gave wine and sweetmeats; but I find Mrs. Hollworthy but a mean woman, I think, for understanding, only a little conceited, and proud, and talking, but nothing extraordinary in person, or discourse, or understanding. However, I was mightily pleased with her being there, I having long longed for to know her, …"
San Diego Sarah • Link
https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…
"... and thence to Mr. Milles’s, where I never was before, and here find, whom I indeed saw go in, and that did make me go thither, Mrs. Hallworthy and Mrs. Andrews, and here supped, and, extraordinary merry till one in the morning,"
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https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…
"So homeward, and stopped at Mr. Milles’s, where he and she at the door, and Mrs. Turner, and Betty, and Mrs. Hollworthy, and there I stayed and talked, and up to the church leads, and saw the fire, which spent itself, till all fear over."
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https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…
"He [Rev. EDWARD WATERHOUSE] preaches in a devout manner of way, not elegant nor very persuasive, but seems to mean well, and that he would preach holily; and was mighty passionate against people that make a scoff of religion. And, the truth is, I did observe Mrs. Hollworthy smile often, and many others of the parish, who, I perceive, have known him, and were in mighty expectation of hearing him preach, but could not forbear smiling, and she particularly upon me, and I on her."
And who knows what happened after the Diary ... he's not done.