The Diary · Chapter
April 1661 explained
Pepys juggles work at the Privy Seal, supervising workmen on his house, and family tensions between his father and mother over maids.
What happens
Pepys juggles work at the Privy Seal, supervising workmen on his house, and family tensions between his father and mother over maids. He attends plays, observes the Duke of York playing pall-mall, and witnesses the King's grand procession from the Tower to Whitehall for the coronation. The chapter ends with Pepys preparing to travel to Portsmouth.
Themes in this chapter
Political Intrigue and Restoration
The chapter captures the political maneuvering around the Dutch gift and the Portugal match, as well as the grand coronation that solidified Charles II's restored rule.
Naval Administration and Corruption
Pepys's interactions with Sir W. Batten and Sir W. Penn reveal the informal, often drunken dealings among naval officials, and his preparations for a trip to Portsmouth highlight administrative duties.
Daily Life and Domesticity
Pepys's domestic troubles—his parents' quarrels over maids, his own workmen issues, and his wife's movements—are woven throughout the chapter.
Theatre and Public Entertainment
Pepys attends several plays ('Rule a Wife and Have a Wife,' 'The Little Thiefe,' 'The Humersome Lieutenant') and enjoys music and social gatherings.
Characters to notice
- Samuel Pepys
Diary author; manages workmen, attends plays, observes the coronation procession, and prepares for a trip to Portsmouth.
- Elizabeth Pepys
Pepys's wife; stays at her father's house, later returns to join Pepys at a collation.
- Sir William Batten
Naval colleague; dines with Pepys, drinks with him, and accompanies him to view the coronation show.
- Sir William Penn
Naval colleague; dines with Pepys, drinks with him, and joins the coronation viewing party.
- Edward Montagu, Earl of Sandwich
Pepys's patron; dines at his house, appears in the coronation procession with rich embroidery and diamonds.
- Mr. Creed
Companion; attends plays with Pepys, watches the King's play, and travels with Pepys toward Portsmouth.
- Mr. Hewer
Clerk; directed by Pepys to prepare for the Portsmouth trip, travels with his wife.
Key passages
“This day I hear that the Dutch have sent the King a great present of money, which we think will stop the match with Portugal; and judge this to be the reason that our so great haste in sending the two ships to the East Indies is also stayed.”
Pepys learns that the Dutch have given the King a large sum of money, which he believes will halt the planned marriage with Portugal and has already delayed the dispatch of two ships to the East Indies.
Reflects political and economic intrigue in the early Restoration.
“In which it is impossible to relate the glory of this day, expressed in the clothes of them that rid, and their horses and horses-clothes, among others, my Lord Sandwich's. Embroidery and diamonds were ordinary among them.”
The splendor of the coronation procession was beyond description, with riders and horses adorned in embroidered and diamond-studded attire, including that of Lord Sandwich.
Highlights the opulence of the Restoration court.
“After supper my father told me of an odd passage the other night in bed between my mother and him, and she would not let him come to bed to her out of jealousy of him and an ugly wench that lived there lately, the most ill-favoured slut that ever I saw in my life, which I was ashamed to hear that my mother should be become such a fool.”
Pepys's father recounts a quarrel where his mother refused to let him into bed due to jealousy over a former maid, whom Pepys considered extremely unattractive, leaving him embarrassed by his mother's foolishness.
Illustrates domestic strife and Pepys's discomfort with his parents' marital issues.
