Samuel Pepys was an English diarist and civil servant, who kept one of the most candid, self-revealing diaries known, and who in his official capacity helped to give Britain one of the strongest navies in the world. Pepys was born in London February 23, 1633. He was the second son of John Pepys, a tailor, and Margaret Pepys, daughter of a Whitechapel butcher. Samuel was baptized at St. Bride's Church on March 3rd. In about 1644 Pepys attended Huntingdon Grammar School, before being educated at St Paul's School, London. In 1651 he entered Magdalene College & in 1654 he took his Bachelor of Arts degree. After graduation from Magdalene College, University of Cambridge, he worked as a secretary for a relative, Admiral Edward Montagu. In 1660 Montagu had him appointed a clerk in the navy office.Samuel advanced rapidly, becoming one of the key people in that office. In 1655 he married the fourteen-year-old Elisabeth Marchant de St Michel. She was the descendant of French Huguenot immigrants. On January 1, 1660, Pepys began to keep a diary. In 1673 Charles II made Pepys secretary of the admiralty, a post in which he worked effectively to strengthen the navy. In 1679 he became a member of Parliament. That year he was accused of being a Roman Catholic and of passing naval secrets to the French; after being briefly imprisoned in the Tower of London, he was released and the charges dropped. Pepys was chosen president of the Royal Society in 1684 and was again named secretary of the admiralty. When James II came to the throne in 1685, Pepys continued in his post but retired after James was deposed in 1688. From 1660 to 1669 Samuel kept a diary in a contemporary form of shorthand because of his failing eyesight. It was deciphered and first published in part in 1825. In 1983 a modern 11-volume edition of his diary was completed. They reveal Pepys's thoughts and daily activities, his love of music and the theater, his domestic felicity as well as his casual amours. Pepys died May 26, 1703, in London.
Samuel Pepys
Great Fire of London
Sir Christopher Wren
17th Century Medicine
Diary of Pepys
