Samuel Pepys

The Diary of Samuel Pepys, Volume I: 1660-1663

The Diary of Samuel Pepys is one of the most entertaining documents in English history. Written between 1660 and 1669, as Pepys was establishing himself as a key administrator in the naval office, it is an intimate portrait of life in seventeenth-century England. Pepys' diary covers his professional and personal activities, including, famously, his love of music, theater, food, wine, and his peccadilloes.

This is the first of three volumes of the diary published in its entirety. It covers the opening years of the Restoration and introduces us to many of the key characters--family, government, and royalty. Pepys was present when Charles II returned to England, and he lived through those opening years of the Stuart monarchy. He also recorded the reopening of theaters and how England relaxed from years of the Puritan way of life.