Keith Knight

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Keith Knight has posted 16 annotations/comments since 19 May 2023.

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Third Reading

About Friday 18 May 1660

Keith Knight  •  Link

Building on my post of 19 May 2023, I have just read The Observer's art critic, Laura Cummings' fine book, 'Thunderclap' on Dutch painting and other things.

She mentions Pepys' visit at the start of Chapter 3. She confirms that, in passing the Old Church to visit the New, he would have passed Vermeer's front door.

'Certainly there are three paintings by Fabritius in Vermeer's house as Pepys passes. But the English diarist never sees or hears of the radical art of Fabritius, or Vermeer. He himself is depicted by old-fashioned London painters...in antique portraits as lifeless as the wig.

Even as Pepys is crossing the market square, [View of Delft] is very possibly in some state of progress.'

If only Samuel had known what was behind that door!

About Monday 22 July 1661

Keith Knight  •  Link

I had the pleasure of visiting the grounds of Hatfield House two days ago for the annual Folk By The Oak festival and went to the house and gardens last year. It is still a very beautiful place with brave paintings. Easily reachable by train from London.

About Saturday 18 May 1661

Keith Knight  •  Link

There is still a pub called Doggett's Coat and Badge on the South Bank at Blackfriars Bridge. According to the website, the only connection is that the pub 'sits along the course of the race'.

The race website still refers to 'The Doggett's Coat and Badge wager'. This year's race is on Tuesday 9 July.

https://doggettsrace.com

About Friday 17 May 1661

Keith Knight  •  Link

Australian Susan mentioned in 2004 that the Lord Mayor of Newcastle had a schoolgirl piper in the 80s. That was Kathryn Tickell, who is still playing, recording and touring. Very much the go-to person if you want to hear Northumbrian pipes.

About Tuesday 30 April 1661

Keith Knight  •  Link

Today's entry inevitably brings to my mind the folk song, 'Riding Down to Portsmouth', although I'm pleased to say Sam is having a better time of it than the narrator.

"Oh, as I was a-riding along in the height of my glory,
Oh, as I was a-riding along come hear my sad story.
A fair and handsome maiden I did see
And I asked her if she d come along with me
Some pleasure and some pastime to see
As we’re riding down to Portsmouth

“Oh, sailor, if I come along with you, oh, it’s I must be carried,
Oh, sailor, if I come along with you, oh, it’s I must be married.”
So it’s off we went together straightway
And she rolled all in my arms until next day,
But she left me all the reckonings to pay
As we’re riding down to Portsmouth.

Next morning when the lady she awoke, well, she found the sailor snoring,
Next morning, well, the lady up and spoke, “Oh, he’ll pay for his whoring.
Well, his money, what he’s not spent on wine
Oh, the rest of it, it surely shall be mine
And his gold watch, well, I’ll take that too besides
As we’re riding down to Portsmouth.”

Saying, “Damn me,” to myself, “oh, the lady’s gone missing,”
Saying, “Damn me,” to myself, “oh, I’ve paid for my kissing.
Well, she’s robbed me of my gold watch and purse
And she gave me what was ten times worse,
And don’t you think that I’m under a curse?
As we’re riding down to Portsmouth.”

“Oh, landlord, tell me what there is to pay, that I might be knowing,
Oh, landlord, tell me what there is to pay, that I might be a-going.
Well, my horse I will leave her all in pawn
Until from the seas I do return,
And all gallus girls I will shun
And I’ll ride no more to Portsmouth.”

It can be found on a number of albums including Brass Monkey's 'See How They Run' sung by John Kirkpatrick. Versions were collected by Vaughan Williams, Cecil Sharp and Percy Grainger in the early 20th century from folk singers.

About Thursday 25 April 1661

Keith Knight  •  Link

The usage of 'King's Head' as a pub name pre-dates this era. Pub and Inn names were made compulsory in 1393 and there would probably have been versions of the King's Head / King's Arms from that point on.

There's an informative article about the subject here - https://thehistorypress.co.uk/art…

'The Royal Oak' is about to become a popular name...

About Saturday 27 April 1661

Keith Knight  •  Link

Evocative use of 'palm-pilot' by Daniel in the second annotation. Some younger people reading this now, only 20 years later, wouldn't know what this is, which highlights the issue of grappling with meaning of words and phrases from over 350 years ago.

About Friday 8 February 1660/61

Keith Knight  •  Link

The reparations to slave owners made by the British government (mentioned by Sarah on 1 Nov 2020) was the subject of an eye-opening BBC documentary, Britain's Forgotten Slave Owners, in 2015 written and presented by historian David Olusoga.

An early version of the Civil Service created what was reckoned to be the first paper form, which claimants had to fill in with details of all their slaves - gender, age, location, whether they had children etc. Each characteristic was assigned a value and the total to be paid out was not subject to appeal. The claimants had to turn up on an appointed day in Old Jewry in the City of London to get their money (Olusoga paints a vivid picture of the street scene).

In practice, many slave owners were now widows who had been left them in their husbands' will. The owners were all over the UK (UCL has built a map from the paperwork). Aristocrats were treated the same as commoners in the process.

The bail-out was unsurpassed until the bank-bailout of 2008. Much of the compensation was then invested in the big scheme of the day, the building of the West Coast railway mainline from London to the NW of England and Glasgow.

About Sunday 9 December 1660

Keith Knight  •  Link

Re the comments on Essex back in 2003, Ralph Josselin was the vicar of Earls Colne, which is north of Braintree and quite some distance from London. It is still pretty rural (I was up that way a couple of months ago).

It's feasible therefore that the weather there could be quite different to London.

About Sunday 21 October 1660

Keith Knight  •  Link

The regicides escaped to New England, Edward Whalley and William Goffe, are now the subjects of a good novel by Robert Harris, 'Act of Oblivion'.

About Thursday 11 October 1660

Keith Knight  •  Link

The Pillars of Hercules remains a pub name in London. There is one near Holborn and another in Greek St, Soho, although annoyingly that has been renamed Bar Hercules.

About Friday 18 May 1660

Keith Knight  •  Link

So, Pepys visited Delft at the same time that Vermeer was painting ‘View of Delft’. He would have been physically so close to Vermeer.