Wednesday 30 March 1664

Up very betimes to my office, and thence at 7 o’clock to Sir G. Carteret, and there with Sir J. Minnes made an end of his accounts, but staid not dinner, my Lady having made us drink our morning draft there of several wines, but I drank nothing but some of her coffee, which was poorly made, with a little sugar in it.

Thence to the ’Change a great while, and had good discourse with Captain Cocke at the Coffee-house about a Dutch warr, and it seems the King‘s design is by getting underhand the merchants to bring in their complaints to the Parliament, to make them in honour begin a warr, which he cannot in honour declare first, for fear they should not second him with money. Thence homewards, staying a pretty while with my little she milliner at the end of Birchin Lane, talking and buying gloves of her, and then home to dinner, and in the afternoon had a meeting upon the Chest business, but I fear unless I have time to look after it nothing will be done, and that I fear I shall not. In the evening comes Sir W. Batten, who tells us that the Committee have approved of our bill with very few amendments in words, not in matter.

So to my office, where late with Sir W. Warren, and so home to supper and to bed.

14 Annotations

First Reading

Terry F  •  Link

"my little she milliner"

Cf. 4 February 1663/64, "So homeward, and called at my little milliner's, where I chatted with her, her husband out of the way, and a mad merry slut she is."
http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…

We shall have to be attentive when Pepys buys lids.

Todd Bernhardt  •  Link

"it seems the King's design is by getting underhand the merchants to bring in their complaints to the Parliament, to make them in honour begin a warr, which he cannot in honour declare first, for fear they should not second him with money."

If Capt. Cocke and Sam can figure this out, why can't the Parlimentarians? Oh, the hubris that leads us into war ... you'd think we'd learn after, I don't know, *thousands* of years of it.

cape henry  •  Link

You have hit directly upon it TB - we are living through such a conflagration now, right down to the cooked intelligence and the corrupt political bargaining for the money to conduct it. Your first observation is on the mark, too. Just how much of a secret is this, really? "Same as it ever was." -- David Byrne

Robert Gertz  •  Link

Yes, but the King has evidence of the Hollanders' weapons of mass trade destruction. Why in the House, Clarendon offered sketches by Halys.

Actually, to be fair, based on earlier entries it does seem to be the merchants who really wanted the war and Charlie, bowing to the winds...And, with support sliding downwards, looking for an "easy win" to bolster the regime (like some other rulers we could think of) is now anxious to have them pressure Parliament for money before fighting gets too general.

***

"...staying a pretty while with my little she milliner at the end of Birchin Lane, talking and buying gloves of her..."

Sam taking it slow...Perhaps the lady is friendly but within her boundaries, firm? Or respect for Tom's memory?...Tighter bonding with Bess during these sad days?

Certainly if it were Mrs. L. he'd've had her over a chair by now. Or maybe in truth, though our boy preferred not to mention it, she'd had him...

"Mrs. Lane?! What are you...Doing...?"

Wow...

"Mr. Pepys, sir, I...Oh, no...Not again!!" agonized scream...Door slam...

"Who was that?" Betty stares...Allowing the prostrate Samuel to stagger to his feet from the chair.

"Hewer! Wait!!"

***

Robert Gertz  •  Link

"So to my office, where late with Sir W. Warren..."

Such an attentive friend, Sir Will W...To kindly share a dull evening with our laboring boy, discussing those tedious latest naval contracts and news of the coming war.

"Uh, Sir Will... What if...By the slightest chance...The war goes badly and our 'arrangements' giving you a monopoly on all contracts be blamed as detrimental to the effort? Unfairly, of course...Ummn..."

"Not to worry, Pepys. If things start to 'unravel' I've plans to move the whole company, lock, stock, barrel to Tangier."

David A. Smith  •  Link

"which he cannot in honour declare first, for fear they should not second him with money"
With respect to previous commenters, Charles II's sitiuations is entirely different from the present circumstances (whatever one may think of them). Charles wants war, the merchants want war, the Parliament wants war, and it's Charles' prerogative to instigate it ... BUT Charles' relations with Parliament are complex, he needs them to provide funding. If he does what they want without their asking for it, *then* they'll happily benefit from his war and not pay for it. So he wants them to make a request.

Pedro  •  Link

"it seems the King's design is by getting underhand the merchants to bring in their complaints to the Parliament,"

Is the King being underhand or just practical?

We know that the merchants want war, and Sam has told us that "all the Court are mad for war". He has also told us "that there are but two seamen in the Parliament house, viz., Sir W. Batten and Sir W. Pen, and not above twenty or thirty merchants; which is a strange thing in an island".

There must be many members of Parliament who have vested interests in trade, but there are notable dissenters including Clarendon. Many may need convincing. The money must come from Parliament, and the King will only request it when he is sure he can get it, and the mood of the country is for war.

(There are some letters of the King, to his sister, that give an insight into his attitude to war with the Dutch, but as they are dated I will try to put them on the actual day.)

Pedro  •  Link

The fourth Session of the second Parliament.

March 16, after an interval of near eight Months, the Parliament assembled again, and the King open'd the Session...

Resolution of the Lords and Commons against the Dutch. ; The King's Answer.

About this time, the Dutch growing out of favour at Court, it was represented in the House, that by the Advances they had lately made in Trade; our own was become in danger; which gave place to the following Resolution both of Lords and Commons, viz. 'That the Wrongs, Dishonours, and Indignities done to his Majesty by the Subjects of the United Provinces, by invading his Rights in India, Africa, and elsewhere; and the Damages, Affronts, and Injuries done by them to our Merchants, are the greatest Obstructions of our foreign Trade: and that the same be humbly and speedily presented to his Majesty; and that he be most humbly mov'd to take some speedy and effectual Course for Redress thereof, and all other of the like nature, and for prevention of the like in future: And in prosecution thereof, they will, with their Lives and Fortunes, assist his Majesty against all Oppositions whatsoever.' Upon this Occasion both Houses waited upon his Majesty at the Banquetting House on the 27th of April...

From: 'The second parliament of Charles II: Fourth session - begins 16/3/1664', The History and Proceedings of the House of Commons : volume 1: 1660-1680 (1742), pp. 72-80. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/…. Date accessed: 31 March 2007.

http://www.british-history.ac.uk/…

Michael Robinson  •  Link

... our bill with very few amendments in words, ...

'Charles II, 1664: An Act to prevent the Disturbances of Seamen and others and to preserve the Stores belonging to His Majestyes Navy Royall.',

Recital that divers Disturbances often happen about His Majefty's Offices, Yards, and Stores:
II. May discharge Fine or Imprisonment, and for Nonpayment of Fine may imprison. Fines paid to Clerk of the Chest
III. May bind to good Behaviour.
IV. May inquire concerning embezzling of Stores and Ammunition, and search for the same; and imprison till Recognizance entered into
V. Two Officers may proceed.

Complete text available:-

Statutes of the Realm: volume 5: 1628-80 (1819), pp. 520-21. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/…. Date accessed: 01 April 2007.

Second Reading

Terry Foreman  •  Link

Perhaps a reason captain Robert Holmes seeks naval disrespect by the Dutch, even in places (not quite as) remote (as the Tonkin Gulf)? Might he, when he does, be serving an emerging English national interest? It's as though he's contriving to make it appear the Hollanders were throwing down a gauntlet, so perhaps there will be a very large and extensive naval duel (aka warr)?

Terry Foreman  •  Link

"had a meeting upon the Chest business, but I fear unless I have time to look after it nothing will be done,, and that I fear I shall not."

Cf. http://www.pepysdiary.com/diary/1…
The Chathm Chest Commission had its inaugural meeting 13 November 1663. That first meeting was attended by Sir J. Mennes, Sir Francis Clark, MP for Rochester, John Heathe, Attorney-General to the Duchy of Lancaster, William Prynne, M.P. Bath, Som.; Sir W. Rider and Captn. G. Cocke, merchants, and Pepys. Besides these members appointed on 20 October 1663 to examine the affairs of the Chatham Chest there were 12 others. (unnamed).

After the first meeting the Commission was then moribund. Pepys himself proved the most active of them all. He now met with Mennes and Penn (a bare quorum). They read the Chatham Chest commission of 1617, and gathered together all the available records kept by the clerk: BM, Add. 9317, ff. 2v, 3r. Pepys qas unable to attend the following meeting on 1 April. (Per L&M notes)

San Diego Sarah  •  Link

In addition to Terry's excellent summation, recently:

"Friday 4 March 1663/64 I never had so much discourse with the Duke before, and till now did ever fear to meet him. He found me and Mr. Prin together talking of the Chest money, which we are to blame not to look after."

So I took it that James, Duke of York, motivated Pepys to call the meeting and revisit priorities. Since James has him in his sights, Pepys feels the necessity to follow through -- given the time.

Chris Squire UK  •  Link

Re: ’ . . getting underhand the merchants to bring in their complaints to the Parliament . .’

‘underˈhand, adv. < Middle Dutch . .

. . 3. In a secret, covert, or stealthy manner; by secret means; quietly or unobtrusively.
Common from c1580 . .
. .1654 T. Gataker Disc. Apol. 44 Being underhand backed and fed with money by two Tenants.
. . 1733 D. Neal Hist. Puritans II. 605 His Majesty was underhand preparing for war . . ‘

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