Robert Greville, 4th Baron Brooke was one of the six representatives from the Higher House (i.e. the Lords) sent to The Hague to assure Charles II that he was welcome to come home.
FROM A RELATION IN FORM of JOURNAL, OF THE VOYAGE And RESIDENCE Which The most EXCELLENT and most MIGHTY PRINCE CHARLES THE II KING OF GREAT BRITAIN, &c. Hath made in Holland, from the 25 of May, to the 2 of June, 1660. Rendered into English out of the Original French, By Sir WILLIAM LOWER, Knight. Page 51 https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo…
Sir William says it was Foulk, which is the name of his brother, the 5th Lord Brooke, but Foulk's Parliamentary bio says it was his brother Robert. https://www.historyofparliamenton…
As to the Letter of Credit not getting too soaked, I found a picture of a leather wallet as used by sailors in the 1630s, in an article about a recipe kept by a ship's captain:
"The recipe’s small size and marked fold lines suggests that it was stored folded into a rectangle, and likely tucked into a pocket of a sailor’s wallet for safekeeping. Leather wallets that sailors owned ... had an interior pocket for storing precious or useful documents.
"Another sheet in the same collection is identical in size to the recipe and show the same fold lines, so was also probably folded and stored in the same sailor’s wallet, which includes a handwritten prayer on one side of the document. It seems that both the recipe and prayer were treasured possessions on board a potentially treacherous voyage, both used in markedly different ways to preserve bodily and spiritual health respectively." https://blog.nationalarchives.gov…
The article continues:
"The unexplored miscellanea of the High Court of Admiralty records seems an unlikely place to find a recipe. Nestled amongst a collection of account books that were likely used as exhibits during a legal case involving the ship The Abraham of London (circa 1633–1637) is this recipe ‘to make syrup of marchmallows [marshmallows]’.
"Marshmallow syrup was commonly used in Early Modern England as an herbal panacea, easing stomach pains, coughs, colds, and rheumatism. The recipe calls for marshmallow plant, a white flower indigenous to Europe and North Africa. The plant’s virtues were praised in contemporary herbals and receipt books in both manuscript and print form. This recipe, written in a neat and legible hand, instructs the reader to boil the marshmallow plant in water, strain the liquor through a sieve, and then boil it with 1 lb. of sugar to form a sweet and sticky syrup.
"Hugh Plat’s 1607 broadside ‘Certain Philosophical Preparations of Food and Beverage for Sea-Men, in their Long Voyages’ advocates the mariner’s use of such ‘essences of spices and flowers … incorporated with syrups’ as approved medicines and antidotes for ailments arising at sea. Plat is aware of the value of sugar in such remedies, which makes the syrups ‘more pleasing to nature’ and ‘more familiarly taken’."
I wonder if the Navy used a cookery book? Somehow I doubt it. I bet Montagu's cook did, though.
"After supper, into his chamber, which is mighty fine with pictures and every thing else, very curious, which pleased me exceedingly."
Ian Leslie points out in his 2023 book "Curious", that "the Enlightenment embraced intrigue as no era before and kickstarted a historic explosion of new ideas and innovations. "There is also mounting evidence that embracing curiosity is important to our well-being. Research shows it to be associated with such personal benefits as increased creativity, life satisfaction, academic performance, and job satisfaction." https://www.amazon.com/Curious-De…
Good to know both Pepys and Hewer shared this personality trait. I think they were Enlightened fellows for their time.
A quote from Socrates above -- but Pepys doesn't mention reading him. I wonder why -- was it because his teachings were so elementary they were ingrained, or was he not part of the curriculum?
Socrates is often considered the father of Western philosophy. He developed the Socratic method of questioning and applied it daily to all manner of philosophic problems. Unfortunately, he annoyed the wrong people and was put to death for corrupting the youth and worshiping strange gods.
Now that I've found the citation, I should give credit for some of the points in the preceeding post to
After the Levellers: On the Non-Mysterious Disappearance of Parliamentary Reform in England -- 23 November 2021 – by Mark Goldie https://intellectualhistory.web.o…
"a fine Echo under the house in a vault made on purpose with pillars, where I played on my flageolette to great advantage."
Martin, I did a search for ECHO, and find 13 mentions, indicating that Pepys seeks them out. He probably wasn't alone, and in this case the Dowager Princess Mary seems to have designed the vault specifically to echo -- perhaps she held musical events there?
Now might be a moment to think about how -- in the villages and small towns of Britain -- life was organized.
Educated people read Cicero’s "De Officiis" (On Offices - or Duties). Thousands of Early Modern people held local office. Every parish had a constable, churchwardens, overseers of the poor, chosen by vote or rotation. People served in militias, were watchmen of the ward, governed charitable orphanages and almshouses. To think only of the ‘restricted’ parliamentary franchise disguises the vibrant civic life of England’s parish and borough republics.
That quasi-republican tradition offered a far richer understanding of citizenship than our scratching a few ‘X’s on ballot papers every couple of years.
People experienced power, kept official records, were held accountable for the welfare of others, and had to learn to logically argue truth to power (the local lord of the manor).
London was big enough, with the Court, City, Houses of Parliament, suburbs and Guilds, that these unifying experiences were easy to avoid.
When Pepys lived in Brampton, he experienced family life with these civic responsibilities.
Pepys was born in 1633, so he's 27. Montagu was born in 1625, so he's 35. I think it was their difference in social status that has hampered confessional communication up until now. Pepys needed to be schooled into taking off his cap and calling Montagu "M'Lord" and not "cousin" or "Eddie". But now Montagu has found a way to elevate his smart young cousin so he can become an Esquire. Maybe this change in status makes confidences pallatable -- or perhaps Montagu was mentoring Pepys into politely negotiating the sort of conversations and colleagues he was going to encounter in his new life as Clerk of the Acts, with all that could entail down the road?
When King Charles lost his head, it "let the geni out of the bottle" in Britain. Suddenly the unthinkable was possible. People -- everyone -- started to discuss possibilities. Yes, the Puritan authorities tried to put the geni back in the bottle, but divorce, pensions, equality, universal health care and education, nudity, dissent in all its forms including alternative forms of government (Pepys has been to the Rota Club and met James Harrington), and the nature of God itself, were up for reconsideration. There were still Ranters around in the late 1660's. And it wasn't just in Britain --
In 1660, a Jew from a Portuguese family, Baruch “Benedictus” Spinoza, was forced to move from Amsterdam to Rijnsburg (a small town in the Dutch Republic), after a death threat because of his unconventional thoughts. Discussing his beliefs with his friends, Baruch Spinoza admitted to doubting many of their religious traditional beliefs, such as life after death. He was reported him to the synagogue. After trying to persuade him to keep his opinions to himself, the rabbis had excommunicated him in 1656. But Spinoza persisted.
Rene Descarte had published thought-provoking mathematical and philosophical books from 1628 to 1649 -- again, from the Netherlands.
In 1633, Galileo was condemned by the Roman Catholic Church, but his works were published outside of Italy in the Protestant lands.
England's own John Locke was Pepys' peer in age, but he went to Westminster School and Oxford, while Sam went to St. Paul's and Cambridge. Perhaps they met; they were both from Parliamentarian families.
What an exciting time to be a smart teenager! Questioning authority was in. It was the 1970's on steriods and speed. Wait -- we had the drugs. They did it on sugar.
So you think by being "wholly sceptical [of religion]", Pepys means he is no longer a Puritan, and goes to church hoping to hear something to restore his faith, RBG? I'm good with that theory.
Many people in times of war and civil upheaval either find God, or loose Him completely.
Going to services on board was not really a matter of choice; that was a matter of order and cohesion, and as good as manditory (so long as he was aboard when it began, and couldn't sneak in over the rail, late and unseen).
"... he brought my Lord a tierce of wine and a barrel of butter, as a present from the Admiral. "Regarding the barrels of butter or oysters that are mentioned, how big were they?"
A tierce of wine seems to be a large quantity -- they were expecting lots of guests after all. I therefore guess that the barrel of butter would be of industrial size as well. Bringing a couple of lbs. to this party would not be worthy of mention.
The barrels of oysters generally bought by Pepys for dinner were "family size" -- big enough for a meal. see https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
Butter was kept in barrels -- how big were the barrels? I suspect families had smaller barrels, and institutions like palaces had larger ones.
"Some of the commonest archaeological finds in Ireland are barrels of ancient butter, buried in the bogs. The Norsemen, the Finns, the Icelanders, and the Scots had done the same: they flavored butter heavily with garlic, knuckled it into a wooden firkin, and buried it for years in the bogs -‑ for so long that people were known to plant trees to mark the butter's burial site. The longer it was left, the more delicious it became. A further advantage was doubtless the safety of supplies from robbers, or enemies in wartime. Most of the Irish archaeological specimens date from the 17th and early 18th centuries. Although some of our sources imply that bog butter turned red, the firkins in the Irish National Museum contain "a grayish cheese‑like substance, partially hardened, not much like butter, and quite free from putrefaction" because of the cool, antiseptic, anaerobic, and acidic properties of peat bogs.
"John Houghton, an Englishman, writing on dairying in 1695, speaks of the Irish as rotting their butter by burying it in bogs. This burying of butter in the peat bogs of Ireland may have been for the purpose of storing against a time of need, to hid it from invaders, or to ripen it for the purpose of developing flavor in a manner similar to cheese ripening.
"Archeologists found a deposit of butter buried in peat bogs found wrapped in a skin in County Leitrim, and another packed in a tub with perforated wooden handles in County Tyrone, Ireland. It is believed possible that the practice of burying butter in Ireland ceased about the end of the 18th century and that many of the specimens which have been found are of far greater antiquity (11th to 14th century). The large number of specimens found, some of which weighed over 100 lbs, suggests that the burying of butter must have been a widespread practice in Ireland. Similar deposits of buried butter were also discovered in Finland."
I was wrong -- Edward Montagu skipped his 2 years at University and went straight to the Middle Temple for some "finishing school". Then he went to war. I haven't read a bio of him yet, so am unfamiliar with the details of how and why this happened.
I'm wrong, and David G is correct -- Montagu went straight to the Middle Temple, entered 1635, per his Parliamentary bio.
And no, for 13 year old noblemen going to University, Latin proficiency didn't matter, so long as their Daddy could pay enough -- the building funds were in need, and where money talked, boys walked without degrees. Their parliamentary bios note whether or not they graduated. The "gentlemen" rarely did.
And for that matter, young noblemen probably didn't study the law at the Inns of Court either. It was more like a business finishing school for young men.
"... Admiral Opdam, who spoke Latin well, but not French nor English, to whom my Lord made me to give his answer and to entertain; ..."
Bear in mind Montagu and Pepys went to the same High School and they both went to Cambridge, a few years apart. But the education they received was very different. I've linked to a long (9 part) digest I did on 17th century education, and how the lower middling families used it to better themselves.
'"[Montagu is] wholly sceptical [of religion], as well as I"
'At first reading, this could suggest Montagu was in some way an agnostic or atheist ... but we know that Pepys clearly seems to retain his faith.'
Pepys says he has lost his faith. I believe him. There were many reasons for going to church: -- there's the social aspect (who else was there, and what were they wearing?) -- it was required by law: this is where the news from the Court/parliament is explained from the pulpit (marriage banns and announcements about events in the church hall are about all that remains of this custom, but back then it was the most efficient way of getting official word to the people in a timely manner) -- collections for the relief of people, burned cities, and slaves kidnapped by the Barbary pirates was organized here -- and if you wanted to be employed and in good standing socially, you were at church, come rain or shine, regularly. Soon singing and organs will be reintroduced along with the Anglican service. You know how Pepys feels about music.
We have already seen that Elizabeth rarely goes to church with him. I guess when you live in a cosmopolitan place like London, the ability of the clergy to count heads and keep track was limited.
"the walls done with Dutch tiles, like my chimnies."
A shout-out to Pepys, along with pictures of Dutch tile fragments fished out of the Thames, and a brief history of how Delft tile making came to London at https://spitalfieldslife.com/2023…
Did you know archaeologists have found evidence of 29 sites of delftware manufacturing in London?
"As Delft pottery became more and more popular, a particular version of delftware developed in England, more informal than the Dutch and somewhat naive in style. Expressive portraits were painted on “blue dash chargers”, for display on a wall or shelf, depicting Kings and Queens, Adam and Eve, and of course tulips. The imagery is spontaneous and playful and the royal portraits have a quizzical look, with one eye higher than the other, under a raised eyebrow. This sums up the essential wry character of English Delft.
"While the Dutchness of the Dutch was reflected in tiles and tulipières, the Englishness of English delftware – and the affluence of the Georgians – can be seen in blue dash chargers, pot-bellied wine bottles, mugs, goblets, posset bowls and porringers."
"So Creed, at least, didn't come ashore just to sightsee; let's hope his 200L. didn't get too soaked, and wonder how and when that money order for 500L. "ordered today" will reach his lordship or Creed in a form that can be cashed."
Breda quickly ran out of food and was unable to cater to the influx of nobles and ambassadors, even though the Estates General was willing to pay the tab. It's reasonable to think The Hague suffered from the same supply challenges. https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
Charles II's brief stay in Breda in May 1660 put considerable strain on the city -- he had retainers and servants, then came the exiles, and the visiting international Ambassadors and gentry, all eager to join in the party:
"The Estates General resolved the same day that the King's charges should be defrayed during the whole time he stayed in the United Provinces; and ordained likewise that provision should be made for it; but at first they met with so many difficulties that it was absolutely impossible to execute this resolution.
"For the Town of Breda being already starved almost, because of the great number of persons of quality which came there every day, and the hot season permitting not provisions to be brought there from other places, there was nobody would undertake to treat the King; and those that would have undertaken it could not have accomplished it; so that the Estate would have had the displeasure to see their substance dissipated, at the expense of its reputation."
Charles and co. therefore moved around, visiting relatives.
But that was very generous of the Estates General -- will Charles remember it later?
from A RELATION IN FORM of JOURNAL, OF THE VOYAGE And RESIDENCE Which The most EXCELLENT and most MIGHTY PRINCE CHARLES THE II KING OF GREAT BRITAIN, &c. Hath made in Holland, from the 25 of May, to the 2 of June, 1660. Rendered into English out of the Original French, By Sir WILLIAM LOWER, Knight. [Edited by SDS into modern English. Apologies for any errors.] Page 12. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo…
Comments
Third Reading
About Robert Greville (4th Baron Brooke)
San Diego Sarah • Link
Robert Greville, 4th Baron Brooke was one of the six representatives from the Higher House (i.e. the Lords) sent to The Hague to assure Charles II that he was welcome to come home.
FROM A RELATION IN FORM of JOURNAL, OF THE VOYAGE And RESIDENCE Which The most EXCELLENT and most MIGHTY PRINCE CHARLES THE II KING OF GREAT BRITAIN, &c.
Hath made in Holland, from the 25 of May, to the 2 of June, 1660.
Rendered into English out of the Original French, By Sir WILLIAM LOWER, Knight. Page 51
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo…
Sir William says it was Foulk, which is the name of his brother, the 5th Lord Brooke, but Foulk's Parliamentary bio says it was his brother Robert.
https://www.historyofparliamenton…
About Monday 14 May 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
As to the Letter of Credit not getting too soaked, I found a picture of a leather wallet as used by sailors in the 1630s, in an article about a recipe kept by a ship's captain:
"The recipe’s small size and marked fold lines suggests that it was stored folded into a rectangle, and likely tucked into a pocket of a sailor’s wallet for safekeeping. Leather wallets that sailors owned ... had an interior pocket for storing precious or useful documents.
"Another sheet in the same collection is identical in size to the recipe and show the same fold lines, so was also probably folded and stored in the same sailor’s wallet, which includes a handwritten prayer on one side of the document. It seems that both the recipe and prayer were treasured possessions on board a potentially treacherous voyage, both used in markedly different ways to preserve bodily and spiritual health respectively."
https://blog.nationalarchives.gov…
The article continues:
"The unexplored miscellanea of the High Court of Admiralty records seems an unlikely place to find a recipe. Nestled amongst a collection of account books that were likely used as exhibits during a legal case involving the ship The Abraham of London (circa 1633–1637) is this recipe ‘to make syrup of marchmallows [marshmallows]’.
"Marshmallow syrup was commonly used in Early Modern England as an herbal panacea, easing stomach pains, coughs, colds, and rheumatism. The recipe calls for marshmallow plant, a white flower indigenous to Europe and North Africa. The plant’s virtues were praised in contemporary herbals and receipt books in both manuscript and print form. This recipe, written in a neat and legible hand, instructs the reader to boil the marshmallow plant in water, strain the liquor through a sieve, and then boil it with 1 lb. of sugar to form a sweet and sticky syrup.
"Hugh Plat’s 1607 broadside ‘Certain Philosophical Preparations of Food and Beverage for Sea-Men, in their Long Voyages’ advocates the mariner’s use of such ‘essences of spices and flowers … incorporated with syrups’ as approved medicines and antidotes for ailments arising at sea. Plat is aware of the value of sugar in such remedies, which makes the syrups ‘more pleasing to nature’ and ‘more familiarly taken’."
I wonder if the Navy used a cookery book? Somehow I doubt it. I bet Montagu's cook did, though.
About Wednesday 6 June 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
"After supper, into his chamber, which is mighty fine with pictures and every thing else, very curious, which pleased me exceedingly."
Ian Leslie points out in his 2023 book "Curious", that "the Enlightenment embraced intrigue as no era before and kickstarted a historic explosion of new ideas and innovations.
"There is also mounting evidence that embracing curiosity is important to our well-being. Research shows it to be associated with such personal benefits as increased creativity, life satisfaction, academic performance, and job satisfaction."
https://www.amazon.com/Curious-De…
Good to know both Pepys and Hewer shared this personality trait. I think they were Enlightened fellows for their time.
About Sunday 1 July 1666
San Diego Sarah • Link
A quote from Socrates above -- but Pepys doesn't mention reading him. I wonder why -- was it because his teachings were so elementary they were ingrained, or was he not part of the curriculum?
Socrates is often considered the father of Western philosophy. He developed the Socratic method of questioning and applied it daily to all manner of philosophic problems. Unfortunately, he annoyed the wrong people and was put to death for corrupting the youth and worshiping strange gods.
About Tuesday 15 May 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
Now that I've found the citation, I should give credit for some of the points in the preceeding post to
After the Levellers: On the Non-Mysterious Disappearance of Parliamentary Reform in England -- 23 November 2021 – by Mark Goldie
https://intellectualhistory.web.o…
About Friday 18 May 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
"a fine Echo under the house in a vault made on purpose with pillars, where I played on my flageolette to great advantage."
Martin, I did a search for ECHO, and find 13 mentions, indicating that Pepys seeks them out. He probably wasn't alone, and in this case the Dowager Princess Mary seems to have designed the vault specifically to echo -- perhaps she held musical events there?
About Tuesday 15 May 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
Now might be a moment to think about how -- in the villages and small towns of Britain -- life was organized.
Educated people read Cicero’s "De Officiis" (On Offices - or Duties).
Thousands of Early Modern people held local office.
Every parish had a constable, churchwardens, overseers of the poor, chosen by vote or rotation.
People served in militias, were watchmen of the ward, governed charitable orphanages and almshouses.
To think only of the ‘restricted’ parliamentary franchise disguises the vibrant civic life of England’s parish and borough republics.
That quasi-republican tradition offered a far richer understanding of citizenship than our scratching a few ‘X’s on ballot papers every couple of years.
People experienced power, kept official records, were held accountable for the welfare of others, and had to learn to logically argue truth to power (the local lord of the manor).
London was big enough, with the Court, City, Houses of Parliament, suburbs and Guilds, that these unifying experiences were easy to avoid.
When Pepys lived in Brampton, he experienced family life with these civic responsibilities.
Pepys was born in 1633, so he's 27. Montagu was born in 1625, so he's 35.
I think it was their difference in social status that has hampered confessional communication up until now. Pepys needed to be schooled into taking off his cap and calling Montagu "M'Lord" and not "cousin" or "Eddie".
But now Montagu has found a way to elevate his smart young cousin so he can become an Esquire. Maybe this change in status makes confidences pallatable -- or perhaps Montagu was mentoring Pepys into politely negotiating the sort of conversations and colleagues he was going to encounter in his new life as Clerk of the Acts, with all that could entail down the road?
My respect for Montagu grows daily.
About Tuesday 15 May 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
When King Charles lost his head, it "let the geni out of the bottle" in Britain. Suddenly the unthinkable was possible. People -- everyone -- started to discuss possibilities. Yes, the Puritan authorities tried to put the geni back in the bottle, but divorce, pensions, equality, universal health care and education, nudity, dissent in all its forms including alternative forms of government (Pepys has been to the Rota Club and met James Harrington), and the nature of God itself, were up for reconsideration. There were still Ranters around in the late 1660's. And it wasn't just in Britain --
In 1660, a Jew from a Portuguese family, Baruch “Benedictus” Spinoza, was forced to move from Amsterdam to Rijnsburg (a small town in the Dutch Republic), after a death threat because of his unconventional thoughts. Discussing his beliefs with his friends, Baruch Spinoza admitted to doubting many of their religious traditional beliefs, such as life after death. He was reported him to the synagogue. After trying to persuade him to keep his opinions to himself, the rabbis had excommunicated him in 1656. But Spinoza persisted.
Rene Descarte had published thought-provoking mathematical and philosophical books from 1628 to 1649 -- again, from the Netherlands.
In 1633, Galileo was condemned by the Roman Catholic Church, but his works were published outside of Italy in the Protestant lands.
England's own John Locke was Pepys' peer in age, but he went to Westminster School and Oxford, while Sam went to St. Paul's and Cambridge. Perhaps they met; they were both from Parliamentarian families.
What an exciting time to be a smart teenager! Questioning authority was in. It was the 1970's on steriods and speed. Wait -- we had the drugs. They did it on sugar.
About Tuesday 15 May 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
So you think by being "wholly sceptical [of religion]", Pepys means he is no longer a Puritan, and goes to church hoping to hear something to restore his faith, RBG? I'm good with that theory.
Many people in times of war and civil upheaval either find God, or loose Him completely.
Going to services on board was not really a matter of choice; that was a matter of order and cohesion, and as good as manditory (so long as he was aboard when it began, and couldn't sneak in over the rail, late and unseen).
About Wednesday 16 May 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
"... he brought my Lord a tierce of wine and a barrel of butter, as a present from the Admiral.
"Regarding the barrels of butter or oysters that are mentioned, how big were they?"
A tierce of wine seems to be a large quantity -- they were expecting lots of guests after all. I therefore guess that the barrel of butter would be of industrial size as well. Bringing a couple of lbs. to this party would not be worthy of mention.
The barrels of oysters generally bought by Pepys for dinner were "family size" -- big enough for a meal. see https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
About Butter
San Diego Sarah • Link
Butter was kept in barrels -- how big were the barrels? I suspect families had smaller barrels, and institutions like palaces had larger ones.
"Some of the commonest archaeological finds in Ireland are barrels of ancient butter, buried in the bogs. The Norsemen, the Finns, the Icelanders, and the Scots had done the same: they flavored butter heavily with garlic, knuckled it into a wooden firkin, and buried it for years in the bogs -‑ for so long that people were known to plant trees to mark the butter's burial site. The longer it was left, the more delicious it became. A further advantage was doubtless the safety of supplies from robbers, or enemies in wartime. Most of the Irish archaeological specimens date from the 17th and early 18th centuries. Although some of our sources imply that bog butter turned red, the firkins in the Irish National Museum contain "a grayish cheese‑like substance, partially hardened, not much like butter, and quite free from putrefaction" because of the cool, antiseptic, anaerobic, and acidic properties of peat bogs.
"John Houghton, an Englishman, writing on dairying in 1695, speaks of the Irish as rotting their butter by burying it in bogs. This burying of butter in the peat bogs of Ireland may have been for the purpose of storing against a time of need, to hid it from invaders, or to ripen it for the purpose of developing flavor in a manner similar to cheese ripening.
"Archeologists found a deposit of butter buried in peat bogs found wrapped in a skin in County Leitrim, and another packed in a tub with perforated wooden handles in County Tyrone, Ireland. It is believed possible that the practice of burying butter in Ireland ceased about the end of the 18th century and that many of the specimens which have been found are of far greater antiquity (11th to 14th century). The large number of specimens found, some of which weighed over 100 lbs, suggests that the burying of butter must have been a widespread practice in Ireland. Similar deposits of buried butter were also discovered in Finland."
For more about every aspect of butter see
http://www.butterjournal.com/butt…
"Across the Atlantic, butter consumption started with the pilgrims, who packed several barrels for their journey on the Mayflower."
Butter became so important to the Irish economy that they opened a Butter Exchange in the 1800s.
From http://www.butterjournal.com/butt…
Sadly, no source information
About Pepys' education
San Diego Sarah • Link
I was wrong -- Edward Montagu skipped his 2 years at University and went straight to the Middle Temple for some "finishing school". Then he went to war. I haven't read a bio of him yet, so am unfamiliar with the details of how and why this happened.
About Wednesday 16 May 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
I'm wrong, and David G is correct -- Montagu went straight to the Middle Temple, entered 1635, per his Parliamentary bio.
And no, for 13 year old noblemen going to University, Latin proficiency didn't matter, so long as their Daddy could pay enough -- the building funds were in need, and where money talked, boys walked without degrees. Their parliamentary bios note whether or not they graduated. The "gentlemen" rarely did.
And for that matter, young noblemen probably didn't study the law at the Inns of Court either. It was more like a business finishing school for young men.
About Wednesday 16 May 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
"... Admiral Opdam, who spoke Latin well, but not French nor English, to whom my Lord made me to give his answer and to entertain; ..."
Bear in mind Montagu and Pepys went to the same High School and they both went to Cambridge, a few years apart. But the education they received was very different. I've linked to a long (9 part) digest I did on 17th century education, and how the lower middling families used it to better themselves.
Basically, Montagu didn't need to learn Latin -- he could employ Pepys.
https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
About Tuesday 15 May 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
'"[Montagu is] wholly sceptical [of religion], as well as I"
'At first reading, this could suggest Montagu was in some way an agnostic or atheist ... but we know that Pepys clearly seems to retain his faith.'
Pepys says he has lost his faith. I believe him.
There were many reasons for going to church:
-- there's the social aspect (who else was there, and what were they wearing?)
-- it was required by law: this is where the news from the Court/parliament is explained from the pulpit (marriage banns and announcements about events in the church hall are about all that remains of this custom, but back then it was the most efficient way of getting official word to the people in a timely manner) -- collections for the relief of people, burned cities, and slaves kidnapped by the Barbary pirates was organized here
-- and if you wanted to be employed and in good standing socially, you were at church, come rain or shine, regularly.
Soon singing and organs will be reintroduced along with the Anglican service. You know how Pepys feels about music.
We have already seen that Elizabeth rarely goes to church with him. I guess when you live in a cosmopolitan place like London, the ability of the clergy to count heads and keep track was limited.
About Monday 19 January 1662/63
San Diego Sarah • Link
"the walls done with Dutch tiles, like my chimnies."
A shout-out to Pepys, along with pictures of Dutch tile fragments fished out of the Thames, and a brief history of how Delft tile making came to London at
https://spitalfieldslife.com/2023…
Did you know archaeologists have found evidence of 29 sites of delftware manufacturing in London?
"As Delft pottery became more and more popular, a particular version of delftware developed in England, more informal than the Dutch and somewhat naive in style. Expressive portraits were painted on “blue dash chargers”, for display on a wall or shelf, depicting Kings and Queens, Adam and Eve, and of course tulips. The imagery is spontaneous and playful and the royal portraits have a quizzical look, with one eye higher than the other, under a raised eyebrow. This sums up the essential wry character of English Delft.
"While the Dutchness of the Dutch was reflected in tiles and tulipières, the Englishness of English delftware – and the affluence of the Georgians – can be seen in blue dash chargers, pot-bellied wine bottles, mugs, goblets, posset bowls and porringers."
About Sunday 13 May 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
"We came within sight of Middle’s shore."
My L&M says "We came within sight of Middleburg’s shore" which must be why Phil linked it that way.
About Monday 14 May 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
"So Creed, at least, didn't come ashore just to sightsee; let's hope his 200L. didn't get too soaked, and wonder how and when that money order for 500L. "ordered today" will reach his lordship or Creed in a form that can be cashed."
They used Bills of Exchange, what we call a Letter of Credit today.
https://www.pepysdiary.com/indept…
Getting his half of the transaction wet would have been a problem. Pepys did say getting off the dingy and onto shore was a problem ...
About Monday 14 May 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
Sallat and bones for dinner:
Breda quickly ran out of food and was unable to cater to the influx of nobles and ambassadors, even though the Estates General was willing to pay the tab. It's reasonable to think The Hague suffered from the same supply challenges.
https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
About Breda, Netherlands
San Diego Sarah • Link
Charles II's brief stay in Breda in May 1660 put considerable strain on the city -- he had retainers and servants, then came the exiles, and the visiting international Ambassadors and gentry, all eager to join in the party:
"The Estates General resolved the same day that the King's charges should be defrayed during the whole time he stayed in the United Provinces; and ordained likewise that provision should be made for it; but at first they met with so many difficulties that it was absolutely impossible to execute this resolution.
"For the Town of Breda being already starved almost, because of the great number of persons of quality which came there every day, and the hot season permitting not provisions to be brought there from other places, there was nobody would undertake to treat the King; and those that would have undertaken it could not have accomplished it; so that the Estate would have had the displeasure to see their substance dissipated, at the expense of its reputation."
Charles and co. therefore moved around, visiting relatives.
But that was very generous of the Estates General -- will Charles remember it later?
from A RELATION IN FORM of JOURNAL, OF THE VOYAGE And RESIDENCE Which The most EXCELLENT and most MIGHTY PRINCE CHARLES THE II KING OF GREAT BRITAIN, &c.
Hath made in Holland, from the 25 of May, to the 2 of June, 1660.
Rendered into English out of the Original French, By Sir WILLIAM LOWER, Knight. [Edited by SDS into modern English. Apologies for any errors.] Page 12.
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/eebo…