An Author’s
Inspiration:
The Diary of Samuel Pepys
By Penny Hampson
If
you asked me what inspired and continues to inspire me to write, I would have
to say it is my fascination for discovering the lives of people from the past.
Strangely, I was never any good at history at school — although I was
passionate about learning about the past, I never seemed to achieve the
standard required by my teacher (a scary woman) and eventually, when forced to
make a choice between subjects, I gave it up. But that didn’t end my love
affair with all things historical. I continued to devour books on historical
subjects in my own time.
Some
years later, at home with two young children, the prospect of returning to work
as a civil servant did not appeal. I decided to return to the formal study of
history and enrolled with the Open University. Studying part-time in this way
meant I could fit my studies in with family life. The rest, as they say, is
history. Studying with the OU was certainly one of the better decisions of my
life (apart from marrying my lovely husband of course, who supported and
encouraged me all the way).
For
many people, history usually means looking at the broad strokes — political
movements, government decisions, wars, cultural aspects, which is always
interesting (honestly), but I’m interested in the details too — the clothes,
the pastimes, the food, and especially the personalities.
I’ve studied and read about all the obvious
ones, like the Tudor and Stuart monarchs, and the figures who peopled their
courts. I’ve also discovered others who, though important, were not royalty,
but movers and shakers in other spheres.
One
such personality is my very first history ‘crush’ — the Restoration diarist
Samuel Pepys (1632-1703). His lively and evocative diary (now available online
at Project Gutenberg and also at The
Diary of Samuel Pepys is one of the most enthralling documents that I have
ever read. His character comes across so vividly — the meticulous, thorough,
archetypal civil servant, who adores theatre-going, is passionate about music,
who occasionally is mean and petty (especially to his poor wife, Elizabeth)… and,
it has to be said, is a bit of a lad (to put it mildly). Pepys tried to hide
his innermost naughty thoughts by putting them in a mix of different languages,
even though the diary itself is entirely written in shorthand anyway,
inaccessible to most people, and certainly to his wife.
 |
| Pepys by John Riley, courtesy of Yale University Art Gallery. |
Pepys
was witness to some of the most significant events of the age. Because of his
cousin, patron, and generous benefactor, Sir Edward Mountagu, Earl of Sandwich
(1625-1672), Pepys was present in May 1660 when Charles II arrived back in
England to reclaim the throne. Shortly after, again, with Mountagu’s patronage, Pepys became one of the
Principal Officers of the Navy, being made Clerk of the Acts to the Navy Board,
and so found himself well placed to observe all the goings-on of court life.
All these events and more Pepys meticulously records in his diary, which he
kept from January 1660 until 31st May 1669.
 |
| Edward Mountagu, 1st Earl of Sandwich, by Peter Lely. |
Through
his diary I experienced his fear of the Plague that raged through the country
in the summer of 1666 and felt his dread at the Great Fire of London in
September the same year.
‘I…walked, through the City, the streets full of
nothing but people and horses and carts loaden with goods, ready to run over
one another, and, removing goods from one burned house to another.’
There
is excitement of another sort when on 21st May 1662 Pepys notes:
‘And in the Privy-garden saw the finest
smocks and linnen petticoats of my Lady Castlemaine’s, laced with rich lace at
the bottom, that ever I saw; and did me good to look upon them.’
Pepys
was a noted admirer of ladies, some might say he used his position of power to
enjoy rather intimate liaisons with the wives and daughters of navy personnel
under his command, and there were numerous escapades with ladies of easy virtue
he happened to meet during the course of the day. On 18th August 1667, he
records that he tried to grope a lady in church, who was to his disappointment,
not so willing: ‘at last, I could perceive her to take pins out of her
pocket to prick me if I should touch her again — which seeing I did forbear.’ It
doesn’t however stop him moving on to another young lady who is a little more
permissive — all that during one church service, then going off to join his
long-suffering wife!
 |
| Image of Elizabeth Pepys, an engraving of 1825 by James Thomson after John Hayls. |
Pepys
enjoyed all the finer things in life, such as visits to the theatre, dining
with friends, and musical evenings. One
of the most moving diary entries for me occurs on 27th February 1667/8
‘But
that which did please me beyond any thing in, the whole world… which is so
sweet that it ravished me, and indeed, in a word, did wrap up my soul so that
it made me really sick, just as I have formerly been when in love with my wife;
that neither then, nor all the evening going home, and at home, I was able to
think of any thing, but remained all night transported, so as I could not
believe that ever any musick hath that real command over the soul of a man as
this did upon me.’
Pepys
perfectly captures that feeling of pleasure one gets when hearing a
particularly fine piece of music, even comparing it to the ecstasy of falling
in love. For all his sins, and he had a few, Pepys certainly had soul.
Despite
all his faults, I’m a big fan of Pepys, mainly I think, because he is so human.
He makes vows to be good, which he adheres to, sometimes for quite lengthy
periods, and then he breaks them. Who cannot identify with that human frailty?
One
of the highlights of my life was reading some of Pepys’ original papers, which
are held in the Rawlinson Collection at the Bodleian Library in Oxford; I have
yet to visit the Pepys Library at Magdalene College, Cambridge, where his
original diaries, books, manuscripts, documents and prints are held. It is on
my list!
So,
it was discovering Pepys, and others like him, that fired my enthusiasm for
history. Why not read a little of Pepys’ diary and transport yourself to
Restoration England - you’ll be amused, probably shocked, but also come to
understand that essentially, human emotions and concerns remain pretty constant
through the ages.
Image
of Pepys by John Riley, courtesy of Yale University Art Gallery.
Image
of Elizabeth Pepys, an engraving of 1825 by James Thomson after John Hayls.
Image
of Edward Mountagu, 1st Earl of Sandwich, by Peter Lely, courtesy of Yale
Centre for British Art.
An Officer’s Vow
By Penny Hampson
The
future looks bleak to Major Nate Crawford. Depressed after being sent home from
the Peninsular Campaign as unfit for service, he contemplates ending it all.
Then an unexpected opportunity for adventure beckons in the shape of a
delightfully intriguing runaway heiress. He will prove his worth as an officer
and a gentleman by offering his help. He has a plan…
Lottie Benham is desperate. Her
life is in danger and she needs a place of safety until her next birthday. The
unexpected proposal from this attractive, but intimidating officer could be the
answer to her prayers. Not normally a risk-taker, she decides to gamble all by
placing her trust in this charismatic gentleman, who she suspects might be more
in need of help than she.
But the best laid plans…
Caught up in conflict, danger,
and deception, will Lottie and Nate survive to find the perfect solution to
their problems?
Penny Hampson
Having worked in various sectors before becoming a full time
mum, Penny Hampson decided to follow her passion for history by studying with
the Open University. She graduated with honours and went on to complete a
post-graduate degree.
Penny then landed her dream role, working in an environment
where she was surrounded by rare books and historical manuscripts. Flash
forward nineteen years, and the opportunity came along to indulge her other
main passion – writing historical fiction. Encouraged by friends and family,
three years later Penny published her debut novel A Gentleman’s Promise.
Penny lives with her family in Oxfordshire, and when she is
not writing, she enjoys reading, walking, swimming, and the odd gin and tonic
(not all at the same time).
Thank you so much for hosting me on your blog, Mary Anne, to explain my fascination for all things historical... and Mr Pepys!
ReplyDeleteSuch a fabulous post, Penny. SO interesting!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Beatrice, I'm really pleased you found it interesting!
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