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Terry Foreman has posted 16,447 annotations/comments since 28 June 2005.

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Second Reading

About Friday 6 March 1667/68

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"....and at conferences with the Lords did stand bare."

I,a. the petition stipulated that these Irish and Scottish peers defer to the English peers by removing their hats..

About Friday 6 March 1667/68

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"my Lord Keeper delivered a message to the King, the Lords being about him, wherein the Barons of England, from many good arguments, very well expressed in the part he read out of, do demand precedence in England of all noblemen of either of the King’s other two kingdoms, be their title what it will; and did shew that they were in England reputed but as Commoners, and sat in the House of Commons, and at conferences with the Lords did stand bare. It was mighty worth my hearing: but the King did only say that he would consider of it, and so dismissed them. "

L&M: The objection was to the habit of those Irish and Scottish peers who were English by birth and residence of claiming equality of rank and place with English peers. A petition had been drawn up by the Lords' Committee of Privileges and agreed to by the House on the 4th: LJ, xii. 197, 198, 199. No reply from the King is reported in the Journals this session. The anomaly ceased with the acts of union with Scotland and Ireland in 1707 and 1801.

About Friday 6 March 1667/68

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"so Captain Cocke, and others of my friends, say that no man had ever such an opportunity of making his abilities known; and, that I may cite all at once, Mr. Lieutenant of the Tower did tell me that Mr. Vaughan "

L&M: John Vaughan, himself a powerful orator.

About Wednesday 4 March 1667/68

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"called by the way at my bookseller’s and took home with me Kercher’s Musurgia — very well bound,"

L&M: Of the binding Mr. H. M. Nixon writes: 'The volumes are in thick calf, with gold tooling on the spines;..... But there is nothing else in the PL uniform with them. Bought in sheets for 35s. from Shrewsbury or Allestree, they were now bound by (or for) Martin, the bookseller. Pepys has a note (on the flyleaf of the first volume) of the total cost (£3), which would make the binding-costs 12s. 6d. per vol.'

About Tuesday 3 March 1668

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"Down by water to Deptford, where the King, Queene, and Court are to see launched the new ship built by Mr. Shish, called “The Charles.” God send her better luck than the former!"

L&M: The new ship (a 1st-rate) was built to replace the Royal Charles captured by the Dutch in 1667. The launch is mentioned in London Gazette, 5 March, where the ship is called Charles the Secone.

About Monday 2 March 1667/68

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"Remember that wedding in this time were much less the affair than they are today. In the 1800s ... weddings were depicted as small affairs with as few as a half dozen attending."

L&M note the Jacksons were married at Brampton.

About Friday 28 February 1667/68

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"several letters in the House about the Fanatickes, in several places, coming in great bodies, and turning people out of the churches, and there preaching themselves, and pulling the surplice over the Parsons’ heads: this was confirmed from several places; which makes them stark mad, especially the hectors and bravadoes of the House, who shew all the zeal on this occasion."

L&M: CJ, IX. 58: reports of debates in Grey, i. 98; Milward, p. 201. One allegation (of riotous behaviour at Betley, Staffs.) was referred to a committee on 5 March and is denied by the biographer of Philip Henry, one of the nonconforming ministers involvewd: M. Henry, Account of...P. Henry (1712), pp. 90-81; cf. CJ, ix. 61.

About Friday 28 February 1667/68

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"another storm hath been all this day almost against the Officers of the Navy upon this complaint, — that though they have made good rules for payment of tickets, yet that they have not observed them themselves, which was driven so high as to have it urged that we should presently be put out of our places: and so they have at last ordered that we shall be heard at the bar of the House upon this business on Thursday next."

L&M: CJ, IX. 58: reports of debates in Grey, i. 98; Milward, p. 201. The Board had established an order of priorities for payment -- first the dead, second the wounded and thereafter according to the length of service -- but were alleged to have observed it for only one week. For Pepys's speech in defence of the Board on 5 March, see https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…

About Friday 28 February 1667/68

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"I did also present a demand of mine for consideration for my travelling-charges of coach and boat-hire during the war,"

L&M: Pepys informed the Duke that he had kept 'a dayly accompt' of all expenses incurred through travel on official business 'in a book distinct from what ever like expenses he hath been at on his perticuler occasions', and had frequently spent 6s. 8d. per day

About Thursday 27 February 1667/68

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"I could not believe that ever any musick hath that real command over the soul of a man as this did upon me: and makes me resolve to practice wind-musique, and to make my wife do the like."

L&M: Pepys started to learn the recorder on 16 April." http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1… and his wife resumed lessons on the flageolet on 13 August: http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…
Pepys had Mr Greeting, the flageolet instructor, bringing some duets by Matthew Locke, presumably so he and his wife can make spiritual music together. Poignant in prospect indeed!

About Thursday 27 February 1667/68

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"not that the play is worth much, but it is finely acted by Becke Marshall."

L&M: She played the part of St Dorothea. The play was a tragedy by Dekker and Massinger.

About Wednesday 26 February 1667/68

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"The sum is much smaller than I expected, and than the King needs; but is grounded upon Mr. Wren’s reading our estimates the other day of 270,000l., to keep the fleete abroad, wherein we demanded nothing for setting and fitting of them out, which will cost almost 200,000l., I do verily believe: and do believe that the King hath no cause to thank Wren for this motion."

L&M: The cost of setting out the summer fleet had been debated in a Committee of the Whole on 21 February. Matthew Wren's speech has not been traced. He was secretary to the Duke of York and M.P. for St Michael's, Cornwall.

About Richard Alexander (Common Cryer of the City)

Terry Foreman  •  Link

Among the High Officers of the City of London are three Esquires at the Mansion House: The City Marshall, the Sword Bearer and the Mace Bearer (who is properly called 'the Common Cryer and Sergeant-at-Arms'); these officers run the Lord Mayor's official residence, the office, and accompany him on all occasions (usually senior military officers with diplomatic experience).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cit…

About Tuesday 25 February 1667/68

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"with great joy I do find, looking over my memorandum books,"

L&M{ The office memorandum-books which survived in 1688 (but are no longer extant) consisted of a series of four, beginning in January 1666. Pepys also kept two more comprehensive memorandum-books : 'Memorandums and Conclusions of the Navy Board' (1660-8): (PRO. Adm. 106/3520); and his Navy White Book [1661-72] (PL 2581)

About Monday 24 February 1667/68

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"comes a letter to me from Captain Allen, formerly Clerk of the Ropeyard at Chatham, and whom I was kind to in those days, who in recompense of my favour to him then do give me notice that he hears of an accusation likely to be exhibited against me of my receiving 50l. of Mason, the timber merchant, and that his wife hath spoke it. I am mightily beholden to Captain Allen for this, though the thing is to the best of my memory utterly false, and I do believe it to be wholly so,"

L&M: It was Hewer who had received Mason's present: https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…