References
Chart showing the number of references in each month of the diary’s entries.
1661
1662
1663
- Apr
Capt. John Browne (c)
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Daily entries from the 17th century London diary
6 Annotations
First Reading
Pauline • Link
from L&M Companion
(d. 1663). Naval officer. He served under the Commonwealth, and afterwards held only one command (that of the Rosebush). He married a sister of Sir William Batten and like him had a house at Walthamstow.
Phil Gyford • Link
His wife: http://www.pepysdiary.com/encyclo…
Second Reading
Bill • Link
BROWNE, John,—commanded the Rosebush in the year 1660, by commission from the duke of York, as lord high admiral; but we have not been able to obtain any farther account of him.
---Biographia navalis. J. Charnock, 1794.
San Diego Sarah • Link
Tuesday 16 December 1662
"Up and to the office, and thither came Mr. Coventry and Sir G. Carteret, and among other business was Strutt’s the purser, against Captn. Browne, Sir W. Batten’s brother-in-law, but, Lord! though I believe the Captain has played the knave, though I seem to have a good opinion of him and to mean him well, what a most troublesome fellow that Strutt is, such as I never did meet with his fellow in my life. His talking and ours to make him hold his peace set my head off akeing all the afternoon with great pain. ...
"After dinner came Mrs. Browne, the Captain’s wife, to see me and my wife, and I showed her a good countenance, and indeed her husband has been civil to us, but though I speak them fair, yet I doubt I shall not be able to do her husband much favour in this business of Strutt’s, whom without doubt he has abused."
San Diego Sarah • Link
Monday 27 April 1663
"Will Griffin tells me this morning that Captain Browne, Sir W. Batten’s brother-in-law, is dead of a blow given him two days ago by a seaman, a servant of his, being drunk, with a stone striking him on the forehead, for which I am sorry, he having a good woman and several small children."
Not surprised he came to a bad end!
San Diego Sarah • Link
Thursday 31 July 1662
"... At noon Mr. Coventry and I by his coach to the Exchange together; and in Lumbard-street met Captain Browne of the Rosebush: at which he was cruel angry: and did threaten to go to-day to the Duke at Hampton Court, and get him turned out because he was not sailed. But at the Exchange we resolved of eating a bit together, which we did at the Ship behind the Exchange, and so took boat to Billingsgate, and went down on board the Rosebush at Woolwich, and found all things out of order, but after frightening the officers there, we left them to make more haste, and so on shore to the yard, and did the same to the officers of the yard, that the ship was not dispatched. Here we found Sir W. Batten going about his survey, but so poorly and unlike a survey of the Navy, that I am ashamed of it, and so is Mr. Coventry."
Paul Chapin on 1 Aug 2005 • Link • Flag
Coventry and Brown(e) ... I think the "he" that was "cruel angry" was Coventry, angry at Browne because he had not yet sailed the Rosebush for Jamaica as he was supposed to. Coventry threatened to go to the Duke (James) and have Browne dismissed from his command ("turned out") for dereliction of duty.
Then over lunch Coventry and Pepys decided to check on the ship, and found her unready for sea ("all things out of order"). They put a scare into the officers, on the ship and in the yard, deciding that that was the most effective way to get things in order and the ship under way.