Diary of Samuel Pepys, Volume 1 - Primary Source Edition

The Diary of Samuel Pepys #1

by George Gregory Smith

This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book.

834 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1906

About the author

Prof George Gregory Smith was a Scottish literary critic, known for his critical historical works including The Transition Period (of European literature of the fifteenth century), Specimens of Middle Scots and Elizabethan Critical Essays.

Reviews

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this more interesting than expected. I usually skip through prefaces, but I read all 159 pages of this one. 1660 was an interesting year: the year Charles II returned. I had assumed that this was just a swing back towards the Royalists, but Pepys makes it clear that, for many people, it was a return to democracy, which the elitist Rump parliament had been denying the country for so long. So - not just a return of a king (which as we know, led to other problems), but a return to more or less representative parliament.
We also see Pepys's rapid rise in the Civil Service. From being little more than an accountant for Lord Montagu, later the first Earl of Sandwich, in this year of 1660, he begins his meteoric rise to where he will eventually virtually run the Navy.
I did have a few problems with the copious footnotes which not only told me many things I didn't really want to know, but omitted to tell me things that I had to Google. For example, on Page 254 we are told how the King knighted Sir Richard Stayner and the note tells us how he was previously knighted under Cromwell. This is clearly of interest, although Pepys provides evidence of numerous Cromwell supporters who have changed sides and yet prospered under the King, including Sandwich himself. But I was struck by a line above that: "My Lord told me how the ship that brought the Princesse and him did knock six times upon the Kentish Knock..." - would it really have been that hard to have included a footnote telling us what the Kentish Knock is? (apparently a shoal near the mouth of the Thames). Nevertheless, the whole thing is admirably researched.

[Ricki · Rating 5 out of 5]

When one considers that Pepys was not yet 27 when this diary begins, the luck of having it in existence is even more overwhelming. To read of his being, though not commenting at the quality, of the first performance of 2 of Jonson's plays, let alone on the ships that brought Charles II back to England lent a vividness to the history of the period. It isn't a quick read as mulling over the who's who in the book required some thought - somewhere after a hundred pages or so I realised that the Sir W. Pen he referred to was the father of William Penn. The social history as well as the diplomatic/military history that it covers is fascinating.