Samuel Pepys and the Strange Wrecking of the Gloucester
Samuel Pepys and the Strange Wrecking of the Gloucester

Author: Nigel Pickford

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Published: 2023-02-07

Total Pages: 227

ISBN-13: 1639363211

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A true story of royal intrigue—with famed diarist Samuel Pepys as the main protagonist—as a fatal shipwreck on the shores of Restoration Britain sparks a mystery that now may finally be solved. In 1682, Charles II invited his scandalous younger brother, James, Duke of York, to return from exile and take his rightful place as heir to the throne. To celebrate, the future king set sail in a fleet of eight ships destined for Edinburgh, where he would reunite with his young pregnant wife. Yet disaster struck en route, somewhere off the Norfolk coast. The royal frigate carrying James and his entourage sank, causing some two hundred sailors and courtiers to perish. The diarist Samuel Pepys had been asked to sail with James but refused the invitation, preferring to travel in one of the other ships. Why? What did he know that others did not? Religious and political tensions were rife in the years leading up to the wreck of the Gloucester. James was a Catholic, as was his wife, and there was a large constituency who wished them dead. Plots and conspiracies abounded. The Royal Navy was itself in disarray, badly equipped and poorly organised. Could someone on board be to blame for the sinking, either from malice or incompetence? Nigel Pickford’s compelling account of the catastrophe draws on a richness of historical material including letters, diaries and ships’ logs, revealing for the first time the full drama and tragic consequences of a shipwreck that shook Restoration Britain.

Tudor and Stuart Seafarers
Tudor and Stuart Seafarers

Author: James Davey

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2018-08-09

Total Pages: 274

ISBN-13: 1472956788

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Tudor and Stuart Seafarers tells the compelling story of how a small island positioned on the edge of Europe transformed itself into the world's leading maritime power. In 1485, England was an inward-looking country, its priorities largely domestic and European. Over the subsequent two centuries, however, this country was transformed, as the people of the British Isles turned to the sea in search of adventure, wealth and rule. Explorers voyaged into unknown regions of the world, while merchants, following in their wake, established lucrative trade routes with the furthest reaches of the globe. At home, people across Britain increasingly engaged with the sea, whether through their own lived experiences or through songs, prose and countless other forms of material culture. This exquisitely illustrated book delves into a tale of exploration, encounter, adventure, power, wealth and conflict. Topics include the exploration of the Americas, the growth of worldwide trade, piracy and privateering and the defeat of the Spanish Armada, brought to life through a variety of personalities from the well-known – Elizabeth I, Sir Francis Drake and Samuel Pepys – to the ordinary sailors, dockyard workers and their wives and families whose lives were so dramatically shaped by the sea.

The Travels of Peter Mundy, in Europe and Asia, 1608-1667
The Travels of Peter Mundy, in Europe and Asia, 1608-1667

Author: Lt. Col. Sir Richard Carnac Temple

Publisher: Taylor & Francis

Published: 2017-05-15

Total Pages: 1915

ISBN-13: 131701314X

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From the Rawlinson MS. A. 315 in the Bodleian Library, with facsimile of original t.-p.: Itinerarium mundi, that is A memoriall or sundry relations of certain voiages,journeies ettc. ... By: Peter Mundy. With an appendix of extracts from the writings of seventeenth-century travellers to the Levant. Continued in Second Series 35, 45, 46, 55, and 78. This is a new print-on-demand hardback edition of the volume first published in 1907.