Saturday 28 July 1660
Early in the morning rose, and a boy brought me a letter from Poet Fisher, who tells me that he is upon a panegyrique of the King, and desired to borrow a piece of me; and I sent him half a piece.
To Westminster, and there dined with Mr. Sheply and W. Howe, afterwards meeting with Mr. Henson, who had formerly had the brave clock that went with bullets (which is now taken away from him by the King, it being his goods).1 I went with him to the Swan Tavern and sent for Mr. Butler, who was now all full of his high discourse in praise of Ireland, whither he and his whole family are going by Coll. Dillon’s persuasion, but so many lies I never heard in praise of anything as he told of Ireland. So home late at night and to bed.
22 Annotations
First Reading
Paul Brewster • Link
L&M identify it as the Sun tavern not the Swan
Paul Brewster • Link
L&M: Edward Hanson
"In July 1660, he was forced to surrender a 'bullet clock' which had formerly belonged to Charles I and which he had bought at auction in Dec. 1649. He does not appear in the lists of the Clockmakers' Company and may have been a dealer. By an order of 17 May 1660 all purchasers of those goods not disposed of to pay Charles I's debts had to restore either the property or its value to the Crown. Evelyn on 11 Feb. 1655 saw and admired a similar clock belonging to Cromwell. It was work by ' a Chrystall ball, sliding on parallel Wyers'."
Paul Brewster • Link
praise of Ireland, whither he and his whole family are going by Coll. Dillon's persuasion
according to L&M: Col. Cary Dillon “was at this time paying court to Frances Butler.”
Larry Bunce • Link
Panegyrique- speech or writing in praise of someone, listed as panegyric in my Random House unabridged. They trace it from Latin, n. use of panegyric(us) meaning "of or belonging to the public assembly" from Gk "solemn assembly," but in the 17th century it appears to have been thought of as a French borrowing.
vincent • Link
"...letter from Poet Fisher, who tells me that he is upon a panegyrique of the King, and desired to borrow a piece of me; and I sent him half a piece...."
panegyrique: to give high praise, extol the virture of ? ; I guess he did not succeed. It appears his only acclaim to fame is with SP and his diary: (from France, il a fait un panegyrique - la lo?ange du Roy ):many french references:Many many poets whose works are available but where is this one(FIsher)no wonder he had to scrounge a few pence here and there:(He was no Rochester)
Sam Sampson • Link
The "Bullet" Clock
The Rev. Humphrey Gainsborough was minister at the Congregational Chapel in Henley, For 28 years, between 1748 and 1776. But it is his contribution as an inventor and engineer for which he will be remembered. More at..
http://www.henley-on-thames.com/m…
During the early 17th century rolling ball [bullet] clocks were experimented with at some of the more prestigious scientific courts of Europe. An interesting account by horologist Ray Bates starts at..
http://www.database.com/~lemur/rb…
Sam Sampson • Link
Correction
David M. MacMillan et. al. are authors of the rolling ball clock URL above.
Paul Brewster • Link
panegyrique of the King
L&M add the following: "Untraced; it may have appeared anonymously or pseudonymously or in collaboration. Payne Fisher was most unlikely to have missed this opportunity: that he had composed both a panegyric and a threnody on Oliver Cromwell would not have deterred him."
From the OED (I like the 17th century quotes, specifically 1656 Blount):
Panegyric, n
[adopted from French, pan?gyrique (1512 in Hatz.-Darm.), adaptation of Latin, panegyricus: public eulogy, adopted from Greek, fit for a public assembly or festival]
1. A public speech or writing in praise of some person, thing, or achievement; a laudatory discourse, a formal or elaborate encomium or eulogy. Construed with on, upon, formerly of.
1603 Daniel (title) A Panegyrike Congratulatorie delivered to the Kings most excellent Maiestie. ? 1656 Blount Glossogr., Panegyrick, a licentious kinde of speaking or oration, in the praise and commendation of Kings, or other great persons, wherein some falsities are joyned with many flatteries. 1673 Marvell Reh. Transp. II. 45 The Mountebanks decrying all others with a Panegyrick of their own Balsam?
Threnody, n
A song of lamentation; spec. a lament for the dead, a dirge.
1634 Sir T. Herbert Trav. 10 They repaire vnto the Sepulchre, vsing Thr?nodies and dolorous complaints. 1647 A. Farindon Serm. 34 (L.) The most powerful eloquence is the threnody of a broken heart.
helena murphy • Link
Pepys'ignorence and consequent prejudice against Ireland as evident here was commonly found among the middling sort to which Pepys belonged ,despite his social aspirations. It is to be lamented that a man of his ability did not educate himself about the Welsh and the Principality of Wales, and the peoples of the Kingdoms of Scotland and Ireland. Had he done so he would have been a better educated Englishman which might have helped in the acquisition of a knighthood ,an honour which always escaped him.General Monke had served in Ireland and admired the courage and stamina of the people while many Cromwellian soldiers ended up marrying Irish women. A classical education had its cultural limitations and Pepys shows his ignorence here of the wider world.
Glyn • Link
Ireland, whither he and his whole family are going by Coll. Dillon’s persuasion
Presumably as part of the English Protestant colonization of Ireland, with consequences that are still very clear to the Irish and the British, and are continuing.
People say here that you shouldn't bring present-day politics into these pages, but the Past is still affecting us. And I hope today's politicians have learned at least a few lessons from the history of the 17th century (political rant ends).
Doug Atkinson • Link
Without knowing what Mr. Butler was saying about Ireland, it seems rather precipitate to speak of "Pepys' ignorence (sic) and consequent prejudice against Ireland" (on the basis of this entry, anyway--the first entry to mention Ireland in more than passing). If Butler was enthusing about Irish culture and Pepys dismissed him, that's one thing; if Butler was enthusing about the streets being paved with gold and roving herds of unicorns, that's quite another.
David Bell • Link
Remember that Ireland was, in the context of the time, something of a dangerous place. The prejudice against the Irish was partly driven by the deep distrust of Catholicism, and heavily soured by the civil wars.
Charles, father and son, had used Irish troops in England and Scotland, and the Parliamentarian forces had a sorry record of massacres of Irish prisoners, though perhaps not as common as the Scots.
And then there had been Cromwell,
Neither side could really bring themselves to trust the other. There had been too much hatred.
Bullus Hutton • Link
My compliments to Glyn on his elegant withdrawal from political comment; we all do indeed visit this site to savour the phenomenum of Pepys. Those of us in the New World (geographically speaking) carry our own political baggage, and are well content with the kind of revelation we find in the first two lines of todays entry, which clearly shows the origin of the phrase frequently used in our society: "everybody wants a piece of me .."
vincent • Link
On this day the House of Lords did on 28th July according to John Evelyn, important bills were passed, They were
Bills of Tunnage & Poundage, Restoring L. Ormand (Whose sonne Lord Ossory is J E' s friend) to his Estate in Ireland, The bill concerning commission of Sewers (He has an Interest in the subject) and the continuance of the Excise. Now there is money for running the Navy (maybe).
vincent • Link
Duke of Ormond according to J.Evelyn did go on about the Irelands lack of poyson snakes and " no moules in Ireland and ratts 'til of late" " took Salmon with dogs 15 nov 61: Maybe these kind of stories were circulating? to cause SP to say what he did say.
Second Reading
Terry Foreman • Link
rolling ball clock youtube
https://www.google.com/#sclient=p…
Terry Foreman • Link
Today Commons considers issues in the Mediterranean:
Captives in Turkey. http://www.british-history.ac.uk/…
Ordered, That the List of Captives who have suffered under the Turks in Argeere, Tunis, and Sally, with their Ransoms, now presented by Mr. Pryn, be referred to the Committee for Captives; to consider thereof: And that the Citizens of London, and Merchants, Members of this House, be added to that Committee.
Dick Wilson • Link
A "panegyrique " in poetry is Exactly what Charles II needs! The King has such a low opinion of himself, his ego needs a boost.
Matt Newton • Link
Half a piece?
Slang for a £?
Surely not a piece of 8?
Terry Foreman • Link
HALF-A-PIECE : gold coin worth c. 10s.
(Select Glossary, L&M, v. 1)
San Diego Sarah • Link
I found Vincent's postings about Evelyn's Diary confusing. By posting the whole thing, his comments are revealed:
John Evelyn's Diary – he and Mary Browne Evelyn live at Saye's Court, Deptford.
http://brittlebooks.library.illin…
@@@
28 July, 1660.
I heard his Majesty's speech in the Lords' House, on passing the Bills of Tonnage and Poundage; restoration of my Lord Ormonde to his estate in Ireland; concerning the commission of sewers, and continuance of the excise.
In the afternoon I saluted my old friend, the Archbishop of Armagh, formerly of Londonderry (Dr. Bramhall). He presented several Irish divines to be promoted as Bishops in that kingdom, most of the Bishops in the three kingdoms being now almost worn out, and the Sees vacant.
@@@
On 26 May 1650 Bishop John Bramhall of Derry/Londonderry administered communion to Charles II at Breda prior to the latter's departure for Scotland.
By the middle of the 1650s the apostolic succession and the independence of the English church from Rome was more than a purely academic matter since war and exile were gradually -- and to Bishop Bramhall’s Laudian mind alarmingly -- depleting the Episcopal bench.
When the royal court moved to Brussels in 1659, he (technically still the Episcopal Bishop of Derry, although he hadn’t been there for years) followed.
Bishop Bramhall crossed back into England at the Restoration.
As early as June 1660 there were rumors that as a leading ‘sufferer’, Bramhall would be granted the see of York. Instead on 1 August 1660 Bishop Bramhall was nominated to be the archbishop of Armagh. https://www.dib.ie/biography/bram…
Not one of Charles II’s most enlightened appointments IMHO.
James Butler, 1st Marquiss of Ormonde – he must wait until next year to become the 1st Duke and be reinstated as the Lord Lieutenant of Ireland.
I don't know which Parliamentary families were dispossessed by his getting his lands back, but he had many estates so it could have been a lot of people.
https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…
Third Reading
San Diego Sarah • Link
Charles II continues his "thank you's" at Whitehall today:
John Shaw settled in Antwerp as a merchant with his brother George, and advanced £1,810 to Charles II’s agents for the purchase of arms during the Civil Wars.
With his first wife’s uncle, Sir Joseph Ashe, John Shaw operated the principal channel of communication between the English Royalists and the exiled Court.
Edward Hyde, Earl of Clarendon wrote that at one time without John Shaw, Charles II 'could have not got bread'.
At the Restoration John Shaw became, together with Sir George Carteret, Edward Hyde, Earl of Clarendon’s closest confidant in business matters.
He was appointed as a Gentleman of the Privy Chamber in June 1660, and served there until 1680 when he died. He was knighted on 28 July, 1660.
After the Restoration, the manor of Eltham was bestowed by Charles II on Sir John Shaw, in recognition of his friendship to him when in exile at Brussels and Antwerp; and, with the exception of certain portions of land originally in the royal park which are still vested in the Crown, it continued in the possession of his descendants.
That would seem to be ample repayment, but to say otherwise would be SPOILERS ...
If you want to know some spoilers, they are at https://www.pepysdiary.com/encycl…