Shabbetai Tzevi (born 1626, Smyrna, Ottoman Empire [now İzmir, Turkey] — died 1676, Ulcinj, Ottoman Empire [now Montenegro]), was a false messiah who developed a mass millenarian following and threatened rabbinical authority in Europe and the Middle East. As a young man, Tzevi steeped himself in the Kabbala. His long periods of ecstasy and his personality combined to attract disciples, and at 22 he proclaimed himself the messiah.
Driven from Smyrna by the rabbinate, he went to Salonika (now Thessaloníki), an old Kabbalistic center, and then to Constantinople (now Istanbul). There Tzevi met an esteemed Jewish preacher and Kabbalist, Abraham ha-Yakini, who possessed a false prophetic document stating Tzevi was the messiah. Tzevi then moved to Palestine and then to Cairo, where he won over Raphael Halebi, the wealthy and powerful treasurer of the Turkish governor.
With a retinue of believers and assured of financial backing, Tzevi returned to Jerusalem. There, a 20-year-old student called Nathan of Gaza took on the role of Elijah, in the traditional forerunner of the messiah. Nathan ecstatically prophesied the imminent restoration of Israel and world salvation through the bloodless victory of Tzevi, riding on a lion with a 7-headed dragon in his jaws. In accordance with millenarian belief, he cited 1666 as the apocalyptic year.
Threatened with excommunication by the rabbis of Jerusalem, Tzevi returned to Smyrna in the autumn of 1665, where he was wildly acclaimed. His movement spread to Venice, Amsterdam, Hamburg, London, and other European and North African cities.
In the Spring of 1666, Tzevi went to Constantinople and was imprisoned. After a few months, he was transferred to the castle at Abydos, which became known to his followers as Migdal Oz, the Tower of Strength.
In September Tzevi was brought before the sultan in Adrianople and, threatened with torture, converted to Islam. The sultan renamed him Mehmed Efendi, appointed him his personal doorkeeper, and provided him with a generous allowance. All but his most faithful disciples were disillusioned by his apostasy. Eventually, Tzevi fell out of favor and was banished, dying in Albania.
MartinVT, it's true Pepys doesn't specify which "my Lady" he is referring to, and it is normally Lady Sandwich. In this case Phil (and therefore L&M) have not linked the reference to Jemima, meaning they think "I stepped to my Lady's" refers to stepping next door to Lady Batten's.
No mention of Elizabeth going with him; I would be surprised if she didn't given the context.
I also suspect Lawson and Holmes were more likely to be friends of Adm. Batten's who was probably at lunch as well, and although they were colleagues of Sandwich in the early days of the Commonwealth, his support of the Restoration probably cooled that intimacy. Plus he's out of town and my guess is Lady Jemima wouldn't have them to lunch without him.
CABAL is a lovely word which has such an attractive double meaning in Charles II's day. But perhaps at this time Kakistocracy would be better? It was first used in the 17th century; derived from a Greek word, and it means government by the worst and most unscrupulous people among us. More broadly, it can mean the most inept and cringeworthy kind of government.
It's possible Pepys might have known it:
'The earliest use of the word dates to the 17th century, in Paul Gosnold's 'A sermon Preached at the Publique Fast the ninth day of Aug. 1644' at St. Maries:
'Therefore we need not make any scruple of praying against such: against those Sanctimonious Incendiaries, who have fetched fire from heaven to set their Country in combustion, have pretended Religion to raise and maintain a most wicked rebellion: against those Nero's, who have ripped up the womb of the mother that bare them, and wounded the breasts that gave them suck: against those Cannibal's who feed upon the flesh and are drunk with the blood of their own brethren: against those Catilines who seek their private ends in the public disturbance, and have set the Kingdom on fire to roast their owe egos: against those tempests of the State, those restless spirits who can no longer live, then be stickling and medling; who are stung with a perpetual itch of changing and innovating, transforming our old Hierarchy into a new Presbytery, and this again into a newer Independency; and our well-temperd Monarchy into a mad kind of Kakistocracy. Good Lord!' [Spelling updated] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kak…
(Sir) Peter Buck and Benjamin Gonson were joint Clerks of the NAVY from 6 July 1596 until 17 April 1604.
Something must have happened as John Legatt on 17 April, 1604 was appointed to the position, but did not succeed for some reason, so Sir Peter Buck and Benjamin Gonson continued from 17 April 1604 until 24 March 1605.
In the 1590s, Peter Buck was Mayor of Rochester and Clerk of the Cheque at Chatham Dockyard. Eastgate House, a Grade I listed Elizabethan townhouse in Rochester, Kent, was built for him.
From 1596, he held the post of Clerk of the Navy (also known as Clerk of the ships) and was knighted by King James in 1603. He also served as Secretary to Algernon Percy, Earl of Northumberland and Lord High Admiral.
Sir Peter died in 1625 and was survived by his wife Frances, the only daughter of William Knight, and their daughter, Margaret.
He was referred to as "The Worshipful Sir Peter". [I think that was because he had been the Mayor, and had nothing to do with being knighted or his Navy work.] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pet…
'While gingerbread also contains ingredients that aren’t good for your health if you eat too much of it (such as sugar), you can feel a little less guilty if you indulge in a gingerbread biscuit as it contains many beneficial ingredients.
'For those who need to watch their diet, you can make gingerbread healthier. 'For example, use almond flour instead of regular flour. This gives a boost of protein, which may make you feel fuller and help stop over-eating. Almond flour is also a great gluten-free option. 'You can swap butter with coconut oil or olive oil, which may have less of an effect on cholesterol levels. 'Adding nuts, seeds and raisins to decorate can be an easy way to add nutrients (such as vitamin E, magnesium and selenium) and fibre.'
We aways had gingerbread men on Twelfth Night when I was a child:
'No confectionery symbolises the holidays quite like gingerbread. ...
'Gingerbread may be an indulgent treat if you’re only considering the calorie content. But it’s Christmas, and indulging in a treat can be a healthy part of life –- especially when this classic biscuit includes many nutrients that may benefit your health.
'Gingerbread is believed to have originated in its earliest form in 2400 BC in Greece. Surprisingly, this recipe didn’t contain any ginger -– it was a honey cake.
'But the version of gingerbread we know today didn’t take shape until the 11th century when the Crusaders returned from the Middle East with ginger in hand. Ginger was first cultivated in ancient China, where it was commonly used as a medical treatment.
'This led to the cooks of nobility in Europe to experiment with ginger. As ginger and other spices became more affordable in the mid-1600s, gingerbread caught on.
'The original term “gingerbread” referred to preserved ginger, which was developed into a confection made with honey and spices. ...
'Queen Elizabeth I is credited with creating the first gingerbread men. She would delight visiting dignitaries with gingerbread figures baked into their likeness. ...
'Ginger has a long history of use in various forms of traditional and alternative medicine. Research shows it may aid in digestion, reduce nausea and help fight the common cold and flu. 'It’s also believed ginger may support weight management, help manage arthritis and may alleviate menstrual symptoms. 'Molasses is an ingredient sometimes found in gingerbread. It’s made by refining sugarcane or sugar beet juice. Molasses is naturally rich in antioxidants, iron, calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorous and vitamin B6. All of these vitamins and minerals may help relieve constipation, treat anaemia and support bone and hair health. 'Cinnamon is another ingredient of gingerbread. It’s a versatile spice with significant health benefits. It has antimicrobial properties and is rich in antioxidants – natural molecules that may help protect against diseases such as type 2 diabetes. Cinnamon may also help lower inflammation and can be a useful anti-ageing ingredient for the skin. Research has shown it may improve dental hygiene, reduce cholesterol and lower blood pressure. 'Similarly, nutmeg is associated with reduced inflammation and may benefit heart health.
'Christmas pudding is a relatively recent concoction of two older, at least medieval, dishes. The first was a runny porridge known as “plum pottage” in which any mixture of meats, dried fruits and spices might appear – edibles that could be preserved until the winter celebration. 'Until the 18th century, “plum” was synonymous with raisins, currants and other dried fruits.
'“Figgy pudding,” immortalized in the “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” carol, appeared in the written record by the 14th century. A mixture of sweet and savory ingredients, and not necessarily containing figs, it was bagged with flour and suet and cooked by steaming. The result was a firmer, rounded hot mass.
'During the 18th century, the two crossed to become the more familiar plum pudding – a steamed pudding packed with the ingredients of the rapidly growing British Empire of rule and trade. The key was less a new form of cookery than the availability of once-luxury ingredients, including French brandy, raisins from the Mediterranean, and citrus from the Caribbean.' https://theconversation.com/how-t…
The distance between London and Earls Colne is 46 miles. (The road distance is 58.8 miles.)
The main weather factor is that Earl's Colne is somewhat protected from ocean storms by being in-land. Storms in the Channel are legendarily bad. I think they are partly caused by the wind-tunnel effect. London is built in the Thames Valley so it also has a bit of a wind-tunnel to deal with, but it's tidal storm surge that is the main problem. Flooding was a problem back then.
When I lived off the Old Gloucester Road (between Earl's Court and Kensington) a lifetime ago, we used to say London was an overcoat warmer than the countryside around it. Not sure how that translates to Pepys' times as City and Whitehall/Westminster were crowded, but the metropolitan area didn't enjoy the acreage or building height leading to greater people density these days. Probably irrelevant, SDS.
The article starts off lamenting the loss of London pubs since COVID, but about a third of the way through focuses on St. Brides Tavern, which was built on the grounds of the old prison.
A brief history of English and Colonial handwriting:
"For centuries, legible handwriting was an essential skill for businesspeople and government officials. Laws, deeds, proclamations, contracts and military orders all had to be recorded somehow. But without a standard, different penmanship styles were like different languages.
"Writing masters in the papal treasurer’s office first developed an italic cursive script that morphed into the handwriting taught to American schoolchildren in the 20th century.
"After the sack of Rome in 1527, the pope’s writing masters moved to Southern France. But without the Roman Catholic Church enforcing handwriting discipline, they began to come up with new styles of writing alphabets.
"The Italic cursive evolved into italic circumflessa, which further evolved into a French style called rhonde.
"French government officials complained they couldn’t read documents because they were written in different hands. The Controller-General of Finances then decided all legal documents had to be written in one of three handwriting styles: the coulee, the rhonde and the speed hand.
"The French rhonde migrated to England, where it developed into the English round hand.
"George Bickham, a giant in the pantheon of penmen, was a key figure in the development of handwriting. A calligrapher and an engraver, in 1733 he collected samples of penmanship from 24 writing teachers in London. He engraved them and published them in a book, "The Universal Penman".
"The book had 19 complete alphabets, such as Gothic, which was falling out of fashion except for legal documents. Bickham’s book – still available, on Amazon — popularized the new English round hand. You can see it in Microsoft Word as the Copperplate typeface.
"Bickham had an alphabet for everyone, or at least anyone who needed to write. There were alphabets for English gentlemen, alphabets for merchants, alphabets for women and girls.
"Like many other things, the English round hand crossed the Atlantic to the colonies. Writing masters taught the English round in writing schools, or they traveled the countryside like peddlers looking for pupils.
"Boston [MASS.] had three writing schools by the time of the American Revolution. They taught more boys than the better-known Latin School. The curriculum was narrow: boys were taught math and penmanship so they could produce dignified-and readable documents. If you wanted to be a merchant, bookkeeper, legal clerk or engrosser, you needed to have decent handwriting.
"It wasn’t easy. You had to know how to make a quill from a goose feather, mix ink, rule lines on paper or parchment and write without spotting or smudging the writing surface. You had to know how to sit or stand, what angle to position the paper and how to hold the pen."
No saint, Mountain Man, just an unabashed student of other people's scholarship. The above is a quote from Mercedes Rochelle's review of Tout's massive "Chapters in the Administrative History of Mediaeval England" which I came across via Google after you mentioned him on the Privy Seal encyclopedia page. https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
Since I rarely think about the origin of footnotes, while thinking they are often interesting, I was happy not to have to read the entire 5 volumes.
I agree, Tonyel -- a lot of seedlings, by the look of it. We agree he found about 50. This list of collective nouns doesn't include a wood set either. https://gabrielhemery.com/collect…
"This morning the judge Advocate Fowler came to see me, and he and I sat talking till it was time to go to the office."
This appointment with Fowler was sufficiently important to keep Pepys from attending the Middlesex magistrates' court at Hick's Hall this morning. Would love to know the reasons behind both of these appointments. YESTERDAY: "Before I went forth this morning, one came to me to give me notice that the justices of Middlesex do meet to-morrow at Hicks Hall, and that I as one am desired to be there, but I fear I cannot be there though I much desire it."
"At the time I though Laud was My Lord's equivalent of one of Sam's houseboys."
MartinVT, Pepys has just graduated from being one of Sandwich's houseboys, during the years between Cambridge and now; he had at least one unusual assignment in 1656 when we think he learned to speak Spanish -- but not to write it (see https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…)
Hewer must now be one of the Pepys' houseboys, as you put it -- who goes on to an honorable career all of his own making. Brother John will be another Pepys graduate.
Think of being in service in one of these great families' homes as being an apprenticeship -- as you say, a gentleman-in-training: it was an honorable way into society, Court, and/or politics. Sandwich places his "graduates" like Pepys into positions where they will be of most use -- or they end up as his employees at The Wardrobe, or becoming his Master of the Horse or "man of business". Creed is another of Sandwich's gents-in-training, and -- small SPOILER -- he ends up marrying into a branch of the family.
We call this nepotism today, while acknowledging that who you know still makes a big difference in what opportunities are made available.
One nice thing about Pepys is that he doesn't seem to have cared -- so long as the food was good and the servant didn't steal from him, he appears to have been open-minded about who he hired. Even his love match was somewhat risky and impulsive. He may now have "Esq." written on his envelopes, but he's out drinking with the boys from the Exchequer, just as before. Sorry, spoilers galore today; it's hard to discuss character and culture without using examples.
The National Archives have an amazing selection of old documents, which -- thanks to decades of peace in our time -- they have been able to catalog, translate, photograph and are available to the public. One they shared on line today gives headache and cold remedies from the 15th century:
It is unclear why these medical recipes are still at The National Archives. Perhaps they were swept up by accident from a sickly medieval clerk’s desk into a chest of documents, and remained there until they were bound into a volume of other medieval documents in the 20th century.
The first remedy to treat a headache calls for a selection of herbs that can be grown in the English countryside. The herbs are mixed together, heated, and then put on the ‘mold’ (crown) of the head. Poultices like this one are a common part of medieval medicine.
The second remedy for ‘stoppyng’ (congestion) in the head and the nose requires the ill person to heat stale ale, mustard seeds and ground nutmeg in a small glass over boiling water, then place cloths over their head and inhale the vapours.
This recipe gives us an insight into medieval trading routes and the surprising global links of 15th-century London. All of the nutmeg in the medieval world was grown in the tiny Banda Islands in what is now Indonesia, more than 8,000 miles away from England. That nutmeg was then traded across the medieval world, often by Venetian merchants. This humble remedy, preserved on a torn piece of paper, shows us how connected the medieval world really was.
"I believe that some of the words for bodily functions (and parts) which we now consider "dirty" were more acceptable in Pepys' time."
To clarify words, in the 17th century swearing meant the very serious taking of an oath to be true to the King or be a member of the Church of England. Or Pepys' vows to enforce his more sober behavior.
Cursing someone had over-tones of witchcraft, but is more akin to what you and I say today when we drop a hammer on our toes.
Did they curse like we do today? Yes they did -- but words like "damned" were far worse because they related to God. Words like the F- and S-bombs represented bodily functions, and as such were much more acceptable then than they are today.
This article traces the history of the F-word, from an anonymous monk scrawling this parenthetical into the margins of a "De Officiis" manuscript: “O d fuckin’ Abbot” in 1528. What was shocking then was what was represented by the "d".
The article I'm pulling this from was based on "In Nine Nasty Words: English in the Gutter", by linguist John McWhorter. He says:
"In the 1500s and before, it was, to be sure, naughty. [However] since the Renaissance, fuck has been the subject of a grand cover-up, the lexical equivalent of the drunken uncle or the pornography collection, under which a word known well and even adored by most is barred from public presentation.”
For instance, the word didn’t appear in an English-language dictionary until 1966 when The Penguin Dictionary broke the taboo. The American Heritage Dictionary wouldn’t offer entry until 1969, and even then not without also printing a “clean” edition to compensate.
A notable exception to this rule was "Queen Anna’s New World of Words", an Italian-English dictionary printed by John Florio in 1611.
One reason for the F-word’s conspicuous absence has to do with the nature of the written word. For most of history, the majority of people could neither read nor write. Those who could were the social elite, and they wrote for other elites. To further separate themselves from the bawdy riffraff, they coded their language to mark their status. One way to do that was to not use the obscene language associated with the lower classes — except maybe in omission, and always from the safe distance of the moral high ground.
As print and literacy became more widespread, these norms remained firmly entrenched. Most historical examples come to us from underground entertainment, such as folk songs, erotic comics, and pulpy literature.
So Pepys reprimanding Elizabeth for referring to the devil during a meal would reflect his efforts to make her fit as an upper class lady, and asserting himself as the arbiter of family values.
Comments
Third Reading
About Sabbatai Zevi
San Diego Sarah • Link
Shabbetai Tzevi (born 1626, Smyrna, Ottoman Empire [now İzmir, Turkey] — died 1676, Ulcinj, Ottoman Empire [now Montenegro]), was a false messiah who developed a mass millenarian following and threatened rabbinical authority in Europe and the Middle East.
As a young man, Tzevi steeped himself in the Kabbala. His long periods of ecstasy and his personality combined to attract disciples, and at 22 he proclaimed himself the messiah.
Driven from Smyrna by the rabbinate, he went to Salonika (now Thessaloníki), an old Kabbalistic center, and then to Constantinople (now Istanbul). There Tzevi met an esteemed Jewish preacher and Kabbalist, Abraham ha-Yakini, who possessed a false prophetic document stating Tzevi was the messiah.
Tzevi then moved to Palestine and then to Cairo, where he won over Raphael Halebi, the wealthy and powerful treasurer of the Turkish governor.
With a retinue of believers and assured of financial backing, Tzevi returned to Jerusalem. There, a 20-year-old student called Nathan of Gaza took on the role of Elijah, in the traditional forerunner of the messiah.
Nathan ecstatically prophesied the imminent restoration of Israel and world salvation through the bloodless victory of Tzevi, riding on a lion with a 7-headed dragon in his jaws.
In accordance with millenarian belief, he cited 1666 as the apocalyptic year.
Threatened with excommunication by the rabbis of Jerusalem, Tzevi returned to Smyrna in the autumn of 1665, where he was wildly acclaimed. His movement spread to Venice, Amsterdam, Hamburg, London, and other European and North African cities.
In the Spring of 1666, Tzevi went to Constantinople and was imprisoned.
After a few months, he was transferred to the castle at Abydos, which became known to his followers as Migdal Oz, the Tower of Strength.
In September Tzevi was brought before the sultan in Adrianople and, threatened with torture, converted to Islam. The sultan renamed him Mehmed Efendi, appointed him his personal doorkeeper, and provided him with a generous allowance.
All but his most faithful disciples were disillusioned by his apostasy.
Eventually, Tzevi fell out of favor and was banished, dying in Albania.
About Thursday 13 December 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
MartinVT, it's true Pepys doesn't specify which "my Lady" he is referring to, and it is normally Lady Sandwich. In this case Phil (and therefore L&M) have not linked the reference to Jemima, meaning they think "I stepped to my Lady's" refers to stepping next door to Lady Batten's.
No mention of Elizabeth going with him; I would be surprised if she didn't given the context.
I also suspect Lawson and Holmes were more likely to be friends of Adm. Batten's who was probably at lunch as well, and although they were colleagues of Sandwich in the early days of the Commonwealth, his support of the Restoration probably cooled that intimacy. Plus he's out of town and my guess is Lady Jemima wouldn't have them to lunch without him.
You could be right. Pepys is obscure.
About Saturday 14 October 1665
San Diego Sarah • Link
CABAL is a lovely word which has such an attractive double meaning in Charles II's day. But perhaps at this time Kakistocracy would be better?
It was first used in the 17th century; derived from a Greek word, and it means government by the worst and most unscrupulous people among us.
More broadly, it can mean the most inept and cringeworthy kind of government.
It's possible Pepys might have known it:
'The earliest use of the word dates to the 17th century, in Paul Gosnold's 'A sermon Preached at the Publique Fast the ninth day of Aug. 1644' at St. Maries:
'Therefore we need not make any scruple of praying against such: against those Sanctimonious Incendiaries, who have fetched fire from heaven to set their Country in combustion, have pretended Religion to raise and maintain a most wicked rebellion: against those Nero's, who have ripped up the womb of the mother that bare them, and wounded the breasts that gave them suck: against those Cannibal's who feed upon the flesh and are drunk with the blood of their own brethren: against those Catilines who seek their private ends in the public disturbance, and have set the Kingdom on fire to roast their owe egos: against those tempests of the State, those restless spirits who can no longer live, then be stickling and medling; who are stung with a perpetual itch of changing and innovating, transforming our old Hierarchy into a new Presbytery, and this again into a newer Independency; and our well-temperd Monarchy into a mad kind of Kakistocracy. Good Lord!' [Spelling updated]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kak…
Evidently Rev. Gosnold was not a Presbyterian!
About Sir Peter Buck
San Diego Sarah • Link
(Sir) Peter Buck and Benjamin Gonson were joint Clerks of the NAVY from 6 July 1596 until 17 April 1604.
Something must have happened as John Legatt on 17 April, 1604 was appointed to the position, but did not succeed for some reason, so Sir Peter Buck and Benjamin Gonson continued from 17 April 1604 until 24 March 1605.
Pepys was the first Clerk of the ACTS.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cle…
In the 1590s, Peter Buck was Mayor of Rochester and Clerk of the Cheque at Chatham Dockyard.
Eastgate House, a Grade I listed Elizabethan townhouse in Rochester, Kent, was built for him.
From 1596, he held the post of Clerk of the Navy (also known as Clerk of the ships) and was knighted by King James in 1603.
He also served as Secretary to Algernon Percy, Earl of Northumberland and Lord High Admiral.
Sir Peter died in 1625 and was survived by his wife Frances, the only daughter of William Knight, and their daughter, Margaret.
He was referred to as "The Worshipful Sir Peter". [I think that was because he had been the Mayor, and had nothing to do with being knighted or his Navy work.]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pet…
For a photo of Eastgate House, which is a very impressive [IMHO] brick Elizabethan house, at
https://historicengland.org.uk/li…
About Twelfth Night
San Diego Sarah • Link
CONCLUSION
On the other hand ...
'While gingerbread also contains ingredients that aren’t good for your health if you eat too much of it (such as sugar), you can feel a little less guilty if you indulge in a gingerbread biscuit as it contains many beneficial ingredients.
'For those who need to watch their diet, you can make gingerbread healthier.
'For example, use almond flour instead of regular flour. This gives a boost of protein, which may make you feel fuller and help stop over-eating. Almond flour is also a great gluten-free option.
'You can swap butter with coconut oil or olive oil, which may have less of an effect on cholesterol levels.
'Adding nuts, seeds and raisins to decorate can be an easy way to add nutrients (such as vitamin E, magnesium and selenium) and fibre.'
Excerpted from
https://theconversation.com/ginge…
About Twelfth Night
San Diego Sarah • Link
We aways had gingerbread men on Twelfth Night when I was a child:
'No confectionery symbolises the holidays quite like gingerbread. ...
'Gingerbread may be an indulgent treat if you’re only considering the calorie content. But it’s Christmas, and indulging in a treat can be a healthy part of life –- especially when this classic biscuit includes many nutrients that may benefit your health.
'Gingerbread is believed to have originated in its earliest form in 2400 BC in Greece. Surprisingly, this recipe didn’t contain any ginger -– it was a honey cake.
'But the version of gingerbread we know today didn’t take shape until the 11th century when the Crusaders returned from the Middle East with ginger in hand. Ginger was first cultivated in ancient China, where it was commonly used as a medical treatment.
'This led to the cooks of nobility in Europe to experiment with ginger. As ginger and other spices became more affordable in the mid-1600s, gingerbread caught on.
'The original term “gingerbread” referred to preserved ginger, which was developed into a confection made with honey and spices. ...
'Queen Elizabeth I is credited with creating the first gingerbread men. She would delight visiting dignitaries with gingerbread figures baked into their likeness. ...
'Ginger has a long history of use in various forms of traditional and alternative medicine. Research shows it may aid in digestion, reduce nausea and help fight the common cold and flu.
'It’s also believed ginger may support weight management, help manage arthritis and may alleviate menstrual symptoms.
'Molasses is an ingredient sometimes found in gingerbread. It’s made by refining sugarcane or sugar beet juice. Molasses is naturally rich in antioxidants, iron, calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorous and vitamin B6. All of these vitamins and minerals may help relieve constipation, treat anaemia and support bone and hair health.
'Cinnamon is another ingredient of gingerbread. It’s a versatile spice with significant health benefits. It has antimicrobial properties and is rich in antioxidants – natural molecules that may help protect against diseases such as type 2 diabetes. Cinnamon may also help lower inflammation and can be a useful anti-ageing ingredient for the skin. Research has shown it may improve dental hygiene, reduce cholesterol and lower blood pressure.
'Similarly, nutmeg is associated with reduced inflammation and may benefit heart health.
About Plum porridge
San Diego Sarah • Link
'Christmas pudding is a relatively recent concoction of two older, at least medieval, dishes. The first was a runny porridge known as “plum pottage” in which any mixture of meats, dried fruits and spices might appear – edibles that could be preserved until the winter celebration.
'Until the 18th century, “plum” was synonymous with raisins, currants and other dried fruits.
'“Figgy pudding,” immortalized in the “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” carol, appeared in the written record by the 14th century. A mixture of sweet and savory ingredients, and not necessarily containing figs, it was bagged with flour and suet and cooked by steaming. The result was a firmer, rounded hot mass.
'During the 18th century, the two crossed to become the more familiar plum pudding – a steamed pudding packed with the ingredients of the rapidly growing British Empire of rule and trade. The key was less a new form of cookery than the availability of once-luxury ingredients, including French brandy, raisins from the Mediterranean, and citrus from the Caribbean.'
https://theconversation.com/how-t…
About Sunday 9 December 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
The distance between London and Earls Colne is 46 miles. (The road distance is 58.8 miles.)
The main weather factor is that Earl's Colne is somewhat protected from ocean storms by being in-land.
Storms in the Channel are legendarily bad. I think they are partly caused by the wind-tunnel effect.
London is built in the Thames Valley so it also has a bit of a wind-tunnel to deal with, but it's tidal storm surge that is the main problem. Flooding was a problem back then.
When I lived off the Old Gloucester Road (between Earl's Court and Kensington) a lifetime ago, we used to say London was an overcoat warmer than the countryside around it. Not sure how that translates to Pepys' times as City and Whitehall/Westminster were crowded, but the metropolitan area didn't enjoy the acreage or building height leading to greater people density these days. Probably irrelevant, SDS.
About Bridewell Prison (formerly Bridewell Palace)
San Diego Sarah • Link
For pictures and maps about the Bridewell Palace and prison, see
https://alondoninheritance.com/lo…
The article starts off lamenting the loss of London pubs since COVID, but about a third of the way through focuses on St. Brides Tavern, which was built on the grounds of the old prison.
About Wednesday 11 June 1662
San Diego Sarah • Link
A brief history of English and Colonial handwriting:
"For centuries, legible handwriting was an essential skill for businesspeople and government officials. Laws, deeds, proclamations, contracts and military orders all had to be recorded somehow. But without a standard, different penmanship styles were like different languages.
"Writing masters in the papal treasurer’s office first developed an italic cursive script that morphed into the handwriting taught to American schoolchildren in the 20th century.
"After the sack of Rome in 1527, the pope’s writing masters moved to Southern France. But without the Roman Catholic Church enforcing handwriting discipline, they began to come up with new styles of writing alphabets.
"The Italic cursive evolved into italic circumflessa, which further evolved into a French style called rhonde.
"French government officials complained they couldn’t read documents because they were written in different hands. The Controller-General of Finances then decided all legal documents had to be written in one of three handwriting styles: the coulee, the rhonde and the speed hand.
"The French rhonde migrated to England, where it developed into the English round hand.
"George Bickham, a giant in the pantheon of penmen, was a key figure in the development of handwriting. A calligrapher and an engraver, in 1733 he collected samples of penmanship from 24 writing teachers in London. He engraved them and published them in a book, "The Universal Penman".
"The book had 19 complete alphabets, such as Gothic, which was falling out of fashion except for legal documents. Bickham’s book – still available, on Amazon — popularized the new English round hand. You can see it in Microsoft Word as the Copperplate typeface.
"Bickham had an alphabet for everyone, or at least anyone who needed to write. There were alphabets for English gentlemen, alphabets for merchants, alphabets for women and girls.
"Like many other things, the English round hand crossed the Atlantic to the colonies. Writing masters taught the English round in writing schools, or they traveled the countryside like peddlers looking for pupils.
"Boston [MASS.] had three writing schools by the time of the American Revolution. They taught more boys than the better-known Latin School. The curriculum was narrow: boys were taught math and penmanship so they could produce dignified-and readable documents. If you wanted to be a merchant, bookkeeper, legal clerk or engrosser, you needed to have decent handwriting.
"It wasn’t easy. You had to know how to make a quill from a goose feather, mix ink, rule lines on paper or parchment and write without spotting or smudging the writing surface. You had to know how to sit or stand, what angle to position the paper and how to hold the pen."
Examples and more info at
https://newenglandhistoricalsocie…
About Privy Seal Office
San Diego Sarah • Link
Sorry -- wrong citation -- you mentioned Tout on the Baron Hartgill encyclopedia page.
https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
About Privy Seal Office
San Diego Sarah • Link
No saint, Mountain Man, just an unabashed student of other people's scholarship. The above is a quote from Mercedes Rochelle's review of Tout's massive "Chapters in the Administrative History of Mediaeval England" which I came across via Google after you mentioned him on the Privy Seal encyclopedia page.
https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
Since I rarely think about the origin of footnotes, while thinking they are often interesting, I was happy not to have to read the entire 5 volumes.
About Friday 7 December 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
I agree, Tonyel -- a lot of seedlings, by the look of it. We agree he found about 50.
This list of collective nouns doesn't include a wood set either.
https://gabrielhemery.com/collect…
About Friday 7 December 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
Diary of Ralph Josselin (Private Collection)
6.12.1660 (Saturday 6 December 1660) document 70012810
https://wwwe.lib.cam.ac.uk/earls_…
"6. Mr. Pelham giving me leave, I went and gathered elms, ashes, crab stocks, and about half hundred wood set." [CLEANED UP VERSION]
What's a wood set?
Google is no help -- I'll be getting ads for dining room furniture for weeks now.
About Friday 7 December 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
And now Sandwich has left town, while the House of Lords is still sitting, with Albemarle and the Duke of York there nearly every day.
No one else has found it necessary to go to their county to pay off the troops -- not even his own regiment, as we know.
His behavior really puzzles me.
About Friday 7 December 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
"This morning the judge Advocate Fowler came to see me, and he and I sat talking till it was time to go to the office."
This appointment with Fowler was sufficiently important to keep Pepys from attending the Middlesex magistrates' court at Hick's Hall this morning.
Would love to know the reasons behind both of these appointments.
YESTERDAY: "Before I went forth this morning, one came to me to give me notice that the justices of Middlesex do meet to-morrow at Hicks Hall, and that I as one am desired to be there, but I fear I cannot be there though I much desire it."
About Friday 7 December 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
"... I signed a deadly number of pardons, ..."
Pepys humor. I can see his grinning as he wrote it.
About Friday 7 December 1660
San Diego Sarah • Link
"At the time I though Laud was My Lord's equivalent of one of Sam's houseboys."
MartinVT, Pepys has just graduated from being one of Sandwich's houseboys, during the years between Cambridge and now; he had at least one unusual assignment in 1656 when we think he learned to speak Spanish -- but not to write it (see https://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/…)
Hewer must now be one of the Pepys' houseboys, as you put it -- who goes on to an honorable career all of his own making. Brother John will be another Pepys graduate.
Think of being in service in one of these great families' homes as being an apprenticeship -- as you say, a gentleman-in-training: it was an honorable way into society, Court, and/or politics.
Sandwich places his "graduates" like Pepys into positions where they will be of most use -- or they end up as his employees at The Wardrobe, or becoming his Master of the Horse or "man of business".
Creed is another of Sandwich's gents-in-training, and -- small SPOILER -- he ends up marrying into a branch of the family.
We call this nepotism today, while acknowledging that who you know still makes a big difference in what opportunities are made available.
One nice thing about Pepys is that he doesn't seem to have cared -- so long as the food was good and the servant didn't steal from him, he appears to have been open-minded about who he hired. Even his love match was somewhat risky and impulsive.
He may now have "Esq." written on his envelopes, but he's out drinking with the boys from the Exchequer, just as before.
Sorry, spoilers galore today; it's hard to discuss character and culture without using examples.
About Nutmeg
San Diego Sarah • Link
The National Archives have an amazing selection of old documents, which -- thanks to decades of peace in our time -- they have been able to catalog, translate, photograph and are available to the public.
One they shared on line today gives headache and cold remedies from the 15th century:
It is unclear why these medical recipes are still at The National Archives. Perhaps they were swept up by accident from a sickly medieval clerk’s desk into a chest of documents, and remained there until they were bound into a volume of other medieval documents in the 20th century.
The first remedy to treat a headache calls for a selection of herbs that can be grown in the English countryside. The herbs are mixed together, heated, and then put on the ‘mold’ (crown) of the head. Poultices like this one are a common part of medieval medicine.
The second remedy for ‘stoppyng’ (congestion) in the head and the nose requires the ill person to heat stale ale, mustard seeds and ground nutmeg in a small glass over boiling water, then place cloths over their head and inhale the vapours.
This recipe gives us an insight into medieval trading routes and the surprising global links of 15th-century London. All of the nutmeg in the medieval world was grown in the tiny Banda Islands in what is now Indonesia, more than 8,000 miles away from England. That nutmeg was then traded across the medieval world, often by Venetian merchants. This humble remedy, preserved on a torn piece of paper, shows us how connected the medieval world really was.
See the original at https://beta.nationalarchives.gov…
About Thursday 25 September 1662
San Diego Sarah • Link
"I believe that some of the words for bodily functions (and parts) which we now consider "dirty" were more acceptable in Pepys' time."
To clarify words, in the 17th century swearing meant the very serious taking of an oath to be true to the King or be a member of the Church of England. Or Pepys' vows to enforce his more sober behavior.
Cursing someone had over-tones of witchcraft, but is more akin to what you and I say today when we drop a hammer on our toes.
Did they curse like we do today? Yes they did -- but words like "damned" were far worse because they related to God. Words like the F- and S-bombs represented bodily functions, and as such were much more acceptable then than they are today.
This article traces the history of the F-word, from an anonymous monk scrawling this parenthetical into the margins of a "De Officiis" manuscript: “O d fuckin’ Abbot” in 1528.
What was shocking then was what was represented by the "d".
The article I'm pulling this from was based on "In Nine Nasty Words: English in the Gutter", by linguist John McWhorter. He says:
"In the 1500s and before, it was, to be sure, naughty. [However] since the Renaissance, fuck has been the subject of a grand cover-up, the lexical equivalent of the drunken uncle or the pornography collection, under which a word known well and even adored by most is barred from public presentation.”
For instance, the word didn’t appear in an English-language dictionary until 1966 when The Penguin Dictionary broke the taboo. The American Heritage Dictionary wouldn’t offer entry until 1969, and even then not without also printing a “clean” edition to compensate.
A notable exception to this rule was "Queen Anna’s New World of Words", an Italian-English dictionary printed by John Florio in 1611.
One reason for the F-word’s conspicuous absence has to do with the nature of the written word. For most of history, the majority of people could neither read nor write. Those who could were the social elite, and they wrote for other elites.
To further separate themselves from the bawdy riffraff, they coded their language to mark their status. One way to do that was to not use the obscene language associated with the lower classes — except maybe in omission, and always from the safe distance of the moral high ground.
As print and literacy became more widespread, these norms remained firmly entrenched. Most historical examples come to us from underground entertainment, such as folk songs, erotic comics, and pulpy literature.
For the whole article, see
https://bigthink.com/the-past/his…
So Pepys reprimanding Elizabeth for referring to the devil during a meal would reflect his efforts to make her fit as an upper class lady, and asserting himself as the arbiter of family values.