Samuel PepysBorn 23 Feb 1633; died 16 May 1703 at age 70. English diarist whose almost ten years of entries from 1 Jan 1660 document both his personal life and also contemporary life, including during the Great Plague of London (1665-66) and the Great Fire (1666). (Concerned with failing eyesight, Pepys discontinued his diary writings on 31 May 1669.) From 1665, he was a Fellow of the Royal Society. He wrote brief references to the points of interest when he attended a Society meeting. He became its President (1 Dec 1684-30 Nov 1686). Pepys' name is printed on the title page of Isaac Newton's Principia Mathematica which was published during his tenure. He was appointed Secretary of the Admiralty Commission (1673) and served as a Member of Parliament.« |
