Sasha Clarkson

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Sasha Clarkson has posted 752 annotations/comments since 16 February 2013.

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Second Reading

About Thursday 1 September 1664

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

Sorry Sarah :)

I'm a bit of a grammar fanatic at times (but only for myself).
Studying other languages certainly helped me understand the structure of English better.

This discussion gives me a good excuse to post a link to a smutty grammatical joke about Boston, white fish and the pluperfect subjunctive :D

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tal…

About Thursday 1 September 1664

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

Ha ha Louise :D

Some of us from the north of England still think the only real cake *is* a fruitcake - at its best eaten with a piece of Wensleydale or Cheddar cheese!

I did compromise yesterday and make a drunken cherry-chocolate cake for a friend's birthday.

About Tuesday 30 August 1664

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

The Penn Pepys met today was a callow privileged youth of 19.
The Penn who founded Pennsylvania was forged after his religious conversion, in the fires of familial strife, hardship and persecution.

About Thursday 25 August 1664

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

Despite the stigma of bastardy, attitudes were also dependent upon the wealth and status of the parents. The Duke of Monmouth for example was a Royal bastard, raised to the highest peerage, whom many wanted to succeed his father.

Many wealthy people had illegitimate offspring for whom they took responsibility. The truth about poor Tom alas, is that he could barely look after himself. The other question here, is what became of Margaret, Tom's maid and the alleged mother of this poor child.

The entry of 06/04/1664, suggests that she is still alive, but is no longer in contact with anyone else involved.
http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…

If indeed Margaret did bear Tom's child, did Tom force her to give it up and leave? Did he give her any money to help her on her way? The only other reference to Margaret, in September 1662, suggests that she was fond enough of Tom. It might have caused a family argument if Tom had married his maid, but many did so and it would have been a fait-accompli. There are several aspects of this story which don't make sense.

About Wednesday 24 August 1664

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

Creed is a relatively minor landowner in Northamptonshire, more or less a neighbour to various branches of Montagues who had extensive land-holdings in the surrounding area. Previous generations of the family will undoubtedly had connections with the Montagues too, perhaps military, via the Eastern Association in the Civil War.

People like Pepys and Creed did not get a chance to "make their mark" in national affairs without a more powerful patron. Hence the importance of Sandwich to both of them. The Fisheries Committee business suggests that Sandwich is still trying to "look after" Creed as a matter of personal loyalty. However, there are no more major foreign missions, and after Sandwich's death in 1672, Creed sinks into, no doubt comfortable, obscurity. For Pepys on the other hand, Sandwich's death did not inhibit his advancing career. By this point his performance had been impressive enough to make friends (and enemies) in high places on his own account, and indeed to be a patron of others, like Tom Hayter.

About Wednesday 24 August 1664

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

Despite a certain distaste, Sam promotes Creed's interests because he (Creed) is part of team Sandwich. I imagine that this is well understood. Those opposing Creed are either opposing Sandwich's influence, or regard Creed as a less than ideal candidate because of the controversy over his Portugal mission accounts. Although Sam saved Creed's bacon there, again to protect Sandwich who led the mission, I suspect that Creed's reputation was damaged nonetheless.

About Tuesday 23 August 1664

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

"I care not much whether she be French or no, so a Protestant."

The political situation being what it is, Pepys does *not* want a Catholic maid in the house, especially as his house is part of the Navy Office complex.

In view of subsequent history , this was a wise precaution by Sam. In later years he was groundlessly accused of Papism by Shaftesbury and others as a proxy to attack James.

About Tuesday 23 August 1664

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

St Bartholomew's day was a traditional day for fairs in the English calendar, so I doubt Pepys' oath had anything to do with the massacre. That being said, it would be a truer anniversary of the massacre than St Bartholomew's day in (Pepys') current France, as the massacre, in 1572, antedated the introduction of the Gregorian Calendar (in 1582) by 10 years. England of course kept the Julian calendar until 1752.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bar…

About Monday 15 August 1664

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

I've not heard that one Mary :)

Thank you Louise:
now we know that "bun in the oven" is a US expression too, that rather implies that it's an old phrase. I'll check in my OED later.

Yes - it's remarkable how many women allegedly "get themselves pregnant", despite human parthenogenesis being somewhere between rare and impossible ...

About Monday 15 August 1664

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

"let her brew as she has baked"

An interesting phrase to use in an era before brewers' yeast had supplanted sourdough for the leavening of bread!

BTW, in Britain, having "a bun in the oven" is a euphemism for pregnancy. I don't know how old the phrase is, or whether it's used in America.

About Sunday 7 August 1664

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

"I would to God they would either conform, or be more wise, and not be catched! "

Later in life, because of his loyalty to James, Pepys was accused of Papist sympathies. Here he shows that he shares Cromwell's attachment to "liberty of conscience", so long as it's not associated with military rebellion.

About Saturday 30 July 1664

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

Google translate is always worth a try these days, and makes quite a reasonable job of the French passage:

"The vessels which came from the Indies, and chiefly the latter, are loaded with fairly good merchandise, as appears from the inventory, but for the presents sent to the King, which were so magnificent, Has done me the honor of showing them to me to divert myself. They are contained in a small purse of red crimson satin. There is a yellow pebble twice as large as the Sancy, of a fairly good shape to be worth a million, but I think it would be well paid to a white shield. There is another red stone, which is called a carbuncle, which seems to me quite beautiful, but I have seen several similar ones on reliquaries, which makes me believe that they are not of great value. A white and blue sapphire, admirably beautiful to make a bishop's ring, accompanies a large pearl which the King has given to the Queen, which nature had intended to make round and white, but she has not succeeded."

One can they tidy it up to please oneself.

About Wednesday 27 July 1664

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

Re Bergie's comment on "draught":

What you draw is a draught, whether that be a picture, or a pint of beer. It's an old style Germanic relationship between verb and noun, like weave and weft. :)

'Draw' is related to 'drag', and although one might draw water from the village pump, one 'pulls' a pint of beer with the hand-pump from the barrel. Cf 'withdraw'

About Wednesday 20 July 1664

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

"Mountagu, as Earl of Sandwich" wouldn't have had any special privileges at Sandwich Castle merely because of the name of the title. Even by the 16th century, the link between a peer's title and the eponymous place was becoming more tenuous than in previous centuries, when a title implied land ownership.

So why was Montagu's earldom named after Sandwich? The answer is that M'Lord was "Admiral Of The Narrow Seas" (The English Channel), and, crucially "Lieutenant Admiral to The Duke of York", ie James' deputy.

As well as being Lord High Admiral, James was Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, which gave privileges over the various towns in the Cinque Ports confederation, of which Sandwich was a part. So the title 'Earl of Sandwich' is an acknowledgement of Montagu's military relationship with James, and of James' patronage.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cin…

About Monday 18 July 1664

Sasha Clarkson  •  Link

The "Dutch losses in Japan" referred to by Charles (Tonyt), were a result of Tokugawa Iemitsu's expulsion of nearly all foreigners, starting in 1631. The Dutch did not lose everything, and were the only Europeans allowed to continue to trade, albeit under severe restrictions.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sak…

The previous highly privileged position of the Dutch East India Company in Japan was due to Englishman William Adams, whose life was fictionalised as "John Blackthorne" in James Clavell's 'Shogun'

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wil…