John Evelyn
Encyclopedia
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
writer, garden
Garden
A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The garden can incorporate both natural and man-made materials. The most common form today is known as a residential garden, but the term garden has...
er and diarist
Diary
A diary is a record with discrete entries arranged by date reporting on what has happened over the course of a day or other period. A personal diary may include a person's experiences, and/or thoughts or feelings, including comment on current events outside the writer's direct experience. Someone...
.
Evelyn's diaries
Diary
A diary is a record with discrete entries arranged by date reporting on what has happened over the course of a day or other period. A personal diary may include a person's experiences, and/or thoughts or feelings, including comment on current events outside the writer's direct experience. Someone...
or Memoirs are largely contemporaneous with those of the other noted diarist of the time, Samuel Pepys
Samuel Pepys
Samuel Pepys FRS, MP, JP, was an English naval administrator and Member of Parliament who is now most famous for the diary he kept for a decade while still a relatively young man...
, and cast considerable light on the art, culture and politics of the time (he witnessed the deaths of Charles I
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
and Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
, the last Great Plague of London
Great Plague of London
The Great Plague was a massive outbreak of disease in the Kingdom of England that killed an estimated 100,000 people, 20% of London's population. The disease is identified as bubonic plague, an infection by the bacterium Yersinia pestis, transmitted through a flea vector...
, and the Great Fire of London
Great Fire of London
The Great Fire of London was a major conflagration that swept through the central parts of the English city of London, from Sunday, 2 September to Wednesday, 5 September 1666. The fire gutted the medieval City of London inside the old Roman City Wall...
in 1666). Over the years, Evelyn’s Diary
John Evelyn's Diary
The Diary of John Evelyn, a gentlemanly Royalist and virtuoso of the seventeenth century, was first published in 1818 under the title Memoirs Illustrative of the Life and Writings of John Evelyn, in an edition by William Bray. Bray was assisted by William Upcott, who had access to the Evelyn family...
has been over-shadowed by Pepys's chronicles of 17th-century life. Evelyn and Pepys corresponded frequently and much of this correspondence has been preserved.
Biography
Gunpowder
Gunpowder, also known since in the late 19th century as black powder, was the first chemical explosive and the only one known until the mid 1800s. It is a mixture of sulfur, charcoal, and potassium nitrate - with the sulfur and charcoal acting as fuels, while the saltpeter works as an oxidizer...
production, John Evelyn was born in Wotton
Wotton, Surrey
Wotton is a small village located on the A25 between Guildford in the west and Dorking in the east. Neighbouring villages include: the Abingers of Abinger Common, Sutton Abinger, and Abinger Hammer; Friday Street and Westcott...
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, and grew up in the Sussex
Sussex
Sussex , from the Old English Sūþsēaxe , is an historic county in South East England corresponding roughly in area to the ancient Kingdom of Sussex. It is bounded on the north by Surrey, east by Kent, south by the English Channel, and west by Hampshire, and is divided for local government into West...
town of Lewes
Lewes
Lewes is the county town of East Sussex, England and historically of all of Sussex. It is a civil parish and is the centre of the Lewes local government district. The settlement has a history as a bridging point and as a market town, and today as a communications hub and tourist-oriented town...
. He was educated at Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College, Oxford
Balliol College , founded in 1263, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England but founded by a family with strong Scottish connections....
and at the Middle Temple
Middle Temple
The Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, commonly known as Middle Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court exclusively entitled to call their members to the English Bar as barristers; the others being the Inner Temple, Gray's Inn and Lincoln's Inn...
. While in London, he witnessed important events such as the execution of Thomas Wentworth
Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford
Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford was an English statesman and a major figure in the period leading up to the English Civil War. He served in Parliament and was a supporter of King Charles I. From 1632 to 1639 he instituted a harsh rule as Lord Deputy of Ireland...
, Earl of Strafford. Having briefly joined the Royalist
Cavalier
Cavalier was the name used by Parliamentarians for a Royalist supporter of King Charles I and son Charles II during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration...
army, he went abroad to avoid further involvement in the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
. He travelled in Italy, attending anatomy lectures in Padua
Padua
Padua is a city and comune in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic and communications hub of the area. Padua's population is 212,500 . The city is sometimes included, with Venice and Treviso, in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area, having...
in 1646 and sending the Evelyn Tables
Evelyn tables
The Evelyn tables are a set of four anatomical preparations on wooden boards that are thought to be the oldest anatomical preparations in Europe. They were acquired by John Evelyn in Padua in 1646 and later donated by Evelyn to the Royal Society. They are currently owned by the Royal College of...
back to London. In 1644, Evelyn visited the English College at Rome, where Catholic priests were trained for service in England. In the Veneto he renewed his acquaintance with the Collector Earl of Arundel
Henry Howard, 6th Duke of Norfolk
Henry Howard, 6th Duke of Norfolk was the second son of Henry Howard, 22nd Earl of Arundel and Lady Elizabeth Stuart. He succeeded his brother Thomas Howard, 5th Duke of Norfolk after his death in 1677...
and toured the art collections of Venice with Arundel's son and heir. He acquired an ancient Egyptian stela and sent a sketch back to Rome which was published by Athanasius Kircher in his Oedipus Aegyptiacus (1650), though to Evelyn's annoyance, without acknowledgement to him
He married Mary Browne, daughter of Sir Richard Browne
Sir Richard Browne, 1st Baronet, of Deptford
Sir Richard Browne, 1st Baronet of Deptford was English ambassador to the court of France at Paris from 1641 to 1660....
the English ambassador in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 1647.
In 1652, Evelyn and his wife settled in Deptford
Deptford
Deptford is a district of south London, England, located on the south bank of the River Thames. It is named after a ford of the River Ravensbourne, and from the mid 16th century to the late 19th was home to Deptford Dockyard, the first of the Royal Navy Dockyards.Deptford and the docks are...
(now in south-east London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
). Their house, Sayes Court
Sayes Court
Located in Deptford, in the London Borough of Lewisham and on the Thames Path, Sayes Court once attracted throngs to visit its celebrated garden created by the seventeenth century diarist John Evelyn...
(adjacent to the naval dockyard), was purchased by Evelyn from his father-in-law Sir Richard Browne
Sir Richard Browne, 1st Baronet, of Deptford
Sir Richard Browne, 1st Baronet of Deptford was English ambassador to the court of France at Paris from 1641 to 1660....
in 1653 and Evelyn soon began to transform the gardens. In 1671, he encountered master wood-worker Grinling Gibbons
Grinling Gibbons
Grinling Gibbons was an English sculptor and wood carver known for his work in England, including St Paul's Cathedral, Blenheim Palace and Hampton Court Palace. He was born and educated in Holland where his father was a merchant...
(who was renting a cottage on the Sayes Court estate) and introduced him to Sir Christopher Wren
Christopher Wren
Sir Christopher Wren FRS is one of the most highly acclaimed English architects in history.He used to be accorded responsibility for rebuilding 51 churches in the City of London after the Great Fire in 1666, including his masterpiece, St. Paul's Cathedral, on Ludgate Hill, completed in 1710...
. There is now an electoral ward
Wards of the United Kingdom
A ward in the United Kingdom is an electoral district at sub-national level represented by one or more councillors. It is the primary unit of British administrative and electoral geography .-England:...
called Evelyn
Evelyn, London
Evelyn is an electoral ward in the northern most part of the London Borough of Lewisham. It is located in the Deptford area on the south bank of the River Thames, and is the only Lewisham ward that borders the Thames....
in the Deptford area of the London Borough of Lewisham.
It was after the Restoration
English Restoration
The Restoration of the English monarchy began in 1660 when the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were all restored under Charles II after the Interregnum that followed the Wars of the Three Kingdoms...
that Evelyn's career really took off. In 1660, Evelyn was a member of the group that founded the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
. The following year, he wrote the Fumifugium
Fumifugium
Fumifugium, or, The inconveniencie of the aer and smoak of London dissipated together with some remedies humbly proposed by J.E. esq. to His Sacred Majestie, and to the Parliament now assembled is a pamphlet published in London, 1661 , by John Evelyn...
(or The Inconveniencie of the Aer and Smoak of London Dissipated), the first book written on the growing air pollution problem in London.
Robert Nanteuil
Robert Nanteuil was a French printmaker in engraving.He was born about 1623, or, as other authorities state, in 1630, the son of a merchant of Reims...
in 1651 in Paris. Various other editions appeared in the 18th and 19th centuries and feature an inaccurate portrait of Evelyn made by Francesco Bartolozzi
Francesco Bartolozzi
Francesco Bartolozzi was an Italian engraver, whose most productive period was spent in London.He was born in Florence...
.
During the Second Anglo-Dutch War
Second Anglo-Dutch War
The Second Anglo–Dutch War was part of a series of four Anglo–Dutch Wars fought between the English and the Dutch in the 17th and 18th centuries for control over the seas and trade routes....
, beginning 28 October 1664, Evelyn served as one of four Commissioners for taking Care of Sick and Wounded Seamen and for the Care and Treatment of Prisoners of War
Sick and Hurt Commissioners
The Sick and Hurt Commissioners were responsible for medical services in the British Royal Navy from 1715 to 1806...
. (The others were Sir William D'Oyly
D'Oyly Baronets
The D'Oyly Baronets were three baronetcies created for persons with the surname D'Oyly, two in the Baronetage of England and one in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom...
, Sir Thomas Clifford
Thomas Clifford, 1st Baron Clifford of Chudleigh
Thomas Clifford, 1st Baron Clifford of Chudleigh , English statesman and politician, was created the first Baron Clifford of Chudleigh on 22 April 1672 for his suggestion that the King supply himself with money by stopping, for one year, all payments out of the Exchequer.He was born in Ugbrooke,...
and Col. Bullen Reymes.)
Following the Great Fire in 1666, closely described in his diaries, Evelyn presented one of several plans (Christopher Wren
Christopher Wren
Sir Christopher Wren FRS is one of the most highly acclaimed English architects in history.He used to be accorded responsibility for rebuilding 51 churches in the City of London after the Great Fire in 1666, including his masterpiece, St. Paul's Cathedral, on Ludgate Hill, completed in 1710...
produced another) for the rebuilding of London, all of which were roundly ignored by Charles II
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
. He took an interest in the rebuilding of St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral
St Paul's Cathedral, London, is a Church of England cathedral and seat of the Bishop of London. Its dedication to Paul the Apostle dates back to the original church on this site, founded in AD 604. St Paul's sits at the top of Ludgate Hill, the highest point in the City of London, and is the mother...
by Wren (with Gibbons' artistry a notable addition). Evelyn's interest in gardens even led him to design pleasure gardens, such as those at Euston Hall
Euston Hall
Euston Hall is a country house, with park by William Kent and Capability Brown located in Euston, small village located just south of Thetford in Suffolk, England. It is the family home of the Dukes of Grafton....
.
Evelyn was a prolific author and produced books on subjects as diverse as theology, numismatics, politics, horticulture, architecture and vegetarianism, and he cultivated links with contemporaries across the spectrum of Stuart political and cultural life. In September 1671 he travelled with the Royal court of Charles II
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
to Norwich where he called upon Sir Thomas Browne
Thomas Browne
Sir Thomas Browne was an English author of varied works which reveal his wide learning in diverse fields including medicine, religion, science and the esoteric....
. Like Browne and Pepys, Evelyn was a lifelong bibliophile, and by his death his library is known to have comprised 3,859 books and 822 pamphlets. Many were uniformly bound in a French taste and bear his motto Omnia explorate; meliora retinete ("explore everything; keep the best") from I Thessalonians 5, 21.
His daughter Maria Evelyn (1665–1685) is sometimes acknowledged as the pseudonymous author of the book Mundus Muliebris of 1690. Mundus Muliebris: or, The Ladies Dressing Room Unlock'd and Her Toilette Spread. In Burlesque. Together with the Fop-Dictionary, Compiled for the Use of the Fair Sex is a satirical guide in verse to Francophile fashion and terminology, and its authorship is often jointly credited to John Evelyn, who seems to have edited the work for press after his daughter's death.
In 1694 Evelyn moved back to Wotton, Surrey
Wotton, Surrey
Wotton is a small village located on the A25 between Guildford in the west and Dorking in the east. Neighbouring villages include: the Abingers of Abinger Common, Sutton Abinger, and Abinger Hammer; Friday Street and Westcott...
because his elder brother George had no living sons available to inherit the estate. Evelyn inherited the estate and the family seat Wotton House
Wotton House, Surrey
Wotton House is in Wotton near Dorking, Surrey, England. It is a grade II listed building. Originally a country house and the seat of the Evelyn family, it is now a training and conference centre.-Construction:...
on the death of his brother in 1699. Sayes Court was made available for rent. Its most notable tenant was Russian tsar
Tsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
Peter the Great
Peter I of Russia
Peter the Great, Peter I or Pyotr Alexeyevich Romanov Dates indicated by the letters "O.S." are Old Style. All other dates in this article are New Style. ruled the Tsardom of Russia and later the Russian Empire from until his death, jointly ruling before 1696 with his half-brother, Ivan V...
who lived there for three months in 1698 (and did great damage to both house and grounds). The house no longer exists, but a public park of the same name can be found off Evelyn Street.
Evelyn died in 1706 at his house in Dover Street
Dover Street
Dover Street is a street in Mayfair, London, England. The street is notable for its Georgian architecture as well as the location of historic London clubs and hotels, which have been frequented by world leaders and historic figures in the arts. It also hosts a number of contemporary art galleries...
, London. Wotton House and estate were inherited by his grandson John
Sir John Evelyn, 1st Baronet of Wotton
-Biography:He was born in Deptford, Kent, the son of John Evelyn the Younger, Barrister of the Middle Temple and Commissioner of the Revenue, and his wife, Martha, daughter of Richard Spencer. He was the grandson of the famous diarist John Evelyn...
(1682–1763) later Sir John Evelyn, bart.
Family
John and Mary Evelyn had eight children: Richard (1652–1658), John Standsfield (1653–1654), John (the younger)John Evelyn the Younger
-Life:Evelyn was the third but eldest surviving son of John Evelyn, born 19 January 1655. On 13 December 1660 his father presented him to the queen mother, who made much of him. Until 1662 he was ‘brought up amongst Mr. Howard's children at Arundel House.’ In 1665 Edmund Bohun became his tutor...
(1655–1699), George (1657–1658), Richard ii (1664), Mary (1665–1685), Elizabeth (1667–1685) and Susanna (1669–1754). Only Susanna outlived her parents.
Mary died in 1709, three years after her husband. Both are buried in the Evelyn Chapel in St John's Church at Wotton.
Evelyn's epitaph (original spelling) reads:
Here lies the Body of JOHN EVELYN Esq of this place, second son of RICHARD EVELYN Esq who having served the Publick in several employments of which that Commissioner of the Privy Seal in the reign of King James the 2nd was most Honourable: and perpetuated his fame by far more lasting Monuments than those of Stone, or Brass: his Learned and useful works, fell asleep the 27th day of February 1705/6 being the 86th Year of his age in full hope of a glorious resurrection thro faith in Jesus Christ. Living in an age of extraordinary events, and revolutions he learnt (as himself asserted) this truth which pursuant to his intention is here declared. That all is vanity which is not honest and that there's no solid Wisdom but in real piety.
Of five Sons and three Daughters borne to him from his most vertuous and excellent Wife MARY sole daughter, and heiress of Sir RICHARD BROWNE of Sayes Court near Deptford in Kent onely one Daughter SUSANNA married to WILLIAM DRAPER Esq of Adscomb in this County survived him the two others dying in the flower of their age, and all the sons very young except one nam'd John who deceased 24 March 1698/9 in the 45th year of his age, leaving one son JOHN and one daughter ELIZABETH.
Wotton House and estate passed down to Evelyn's great-great-grandson Sir Frederick Evelyn (1733–1812). The baronetcy next passed to Frederick Evelyn's cousins, Sir John Evelyn, 4th Bt (1757–1833) and Sir Hugh Evelyn, 5th Bt (1769–1848). Both these two were of unsound mind and the estate was therefore left to a remote cousin descended from the diarist's grandfather's first marriage, in whose family it remains to this day though they no longer occupy the house. The title died out in 1848. However, there are many living descendants of John Evelyn the diarist via his daughter Susanna, Mrs William Draper, and his granddaughter Elizabeth, Mrs Simon Harcourt. There are also many living descendants of his great-grandson Charles Evelyn, who was the grandfather of the last baronet, Sir Hugh Evelyn, 5th Bt.
In 1992 the skulls of John and Mary were stolen by persons unknown who hacked into the stone sarcophagi on the chapel floor and tore open the coffins. They have not been recovered.
Works
Evelyn's Diary remained unpublished as a manuscript until 1818. It is in a quartoQuarto
Quarto could refer to:* Quarto, a size or format of a book in which four leaves of a book are created from a standard size sheet of paper* For specific information about quarto texts of William Shakespeare's works, see:...
volume containing 700 pages, covering the years between 1641 and 1697, and is continued in a smaller book-which brings the narrative down to within three weeks of its author's death. A selection from this was edited by William Bray
William Bray (antiquary)
-Life:Bray was the fourth and youngest son of Edward Bray of Shere in Surrey, who married Ann, daughter of Rev. George Duncomb. When ten years old he was entered Rugby School. On leaving school he was placed with an attorney, Mr...
, with the permission of the Evelyn family, in 1818, under the title of Memoirs illustrative of the Life and Writings of John Evelyn, comprising his Diary from 1641 to 1705/6, and a Selection of his Familiar Letters. Other editions followed, the most notable being those of H. B. Wheatley (1879) and Austin Dobson
Austin Dobson
Austin Dobson was an auto driver from England.Brother of auto racer Arthur Charles, he participated at first edition, in 1936, of the Hungarian Grand Prix with Alfa Romeo....
(3 vols., 1906).
Evelyn's active mind produced many other works, and although these have been overshadowed by the famous Diary they are of considerable interest. They include:
- Of Liberty and Servitude ... (1649), a translation from the French of François de la Mothe le VayerFrançois de La Mothe Le VayerFrançois de La Mothe Le Vayer , was a French writer who was known to use the pseudonym Orosius Tubero...
, Evelyn's own copy of which contains a note that he was "like to be call'd in question by the Rebells for this booke"; - The States of France, as it stood in the IXth year of ... Louis XIII. (1652);
- An Essay on the First Book of T. Lucretius Carus de Rerum Natura. Interpreted and made English verse by J. Evelyn (1656);
- The Golden Book of St John ChrysostomJohn ChrysostomJohn Chrysostom , Archbishop of Constantinople, was an important Early Church Father. He is known for his eloquence in preaching and public speaking, his denunciation of abuse of authority by both ecclesiastical and political leaders, the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, and his ascetic...
, concerning the Education of Children. Translated out of the Greek by J. E. (printed 1658, dated 1659); - The French Gardener: instructing how to cultivate all sorts of Fruit-trees (1658), translated from the French of N. de Bonnefons;
- A Character of England ... (1659), describing the customs of the country as they would appear to a foreign observer, reprinted in Somers' Tracts (ed. Scott, 1812), and in the Harleian Miscellany (ed. Park, 1813);
- The Late News from Brussels unmasked ... (1660), in answer to a libellous pamphlet on Charles I. by Marchmont Needham;
- Fumifugium, or the inconvenience of the Aer and Smoak of London dissipated (1661), in which he suggested that sweet-smelling trees should be planted in London to purify the air;
- Instructions concerning erecting of a Library ... (1661), from the French of Gabriel NaudéGabriel NaudéGabriel Naudé was a French librarian and scholar. He was a prolific writer who produced works on many subjects including politics, religion, history and the supernatural. An influential work on library science was the 1627 book Advice on Establishing a Library...
; - Tyrannus or the Mode, in a Discourse of Sumptuary Laws (1661);
- Sculpture: or the History and Art of Chatcography and Engraving in Copper ... (1662);
- Sylva, or a Discourse of Forest Trees ... to which is annexed Pomona ... Also Kalendarium Hortense ... (1664);
- A Parallel of the Ancient Architecture with the Modern (1664), from the French of Roland Fréart;
- The History of the three late famous Imposters, viz. Padre Ottomano, Mahomed Bei, and Sabatei SeviSabbatai ZeviSabbatai Zevi, , was a Sephardic Rabbi and kabbalist who claimed to be the long-awaited Jewish Messiah. He was the founder of the Jewish Sabbatean movement...
... (1669); - Navigation and Commerce, in which his Majesties title to the Dominion of the Sea is asserted against the Novel and later Pretenders (1674), which is a preface to a projected history of the Dutch wars undertaken at the request of Charles IICharles II of EnglandCharles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
., but countermanded on the conclusion of peace; - A Philosophical Discourse of Earth ... (1676), a treatise on horticulture, better known by its later title of Terra; The Compleat Gardener (1693), from the French of J. de la Quintinie; Numismata ... (1697).
Some of these were reprinted in The Miscellaneous Writings of John Evelyn, edited (1825) by William Upcott
William Upcott
-Life:Born in Oxfordshire, he was the illegitimate son of Ozias Humphry by Delly Wickens, daughter of an Oxford shopkeeper, called Upcott from the maiden name of Humphry's mother. His father bequeathed to him his miniatures, pictures, drawings, and engravings, as well as correspondence with many...
.
Evelyn's friendship with Mary Blagge, afterwards Mrs Godolphin, is recorded in the diary, when he says he designed "to consecrate her worthy life to posterity". This he effectually did in a little masterpiece of religious biography which remained in manuscript in the possession of the Harcourt family until it was edited by Samuel Wilberforce
Samuel Wilberforce
Samuel Wilberforce was an English bishop in the Church of England, third son of William Wilberforce. Known as "Soapy Sam", Wilberforce was one of the greatest public speakers of his time and place...
, bishop of Oxford, as the Life of Mrs Godolphin (1847), reprinted in the "King's Classics" (1904). The picture of Mistress Blagge's saintly life at court is heightened in interest when read in connexion with the scandalous memoirs of the comte de Gramont, or contemporary political satires on the court.
Numerous other papers and letters of Evelyn on scientific subjects and matters of public interest are preserved, a collection of private and official letters and papers (1642–1712) by, or addressed to, Sir Richard Browne and his son-in-law being in the British Museum (Add. MSS. 15857 and 15858).
In the opinion of the author of his biography in the eleventh edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica, next to the Diary Evelyn's most valuable work is Sylva. By the glass factories and iron furnaces the country was being rapidly depleted of wood, while no attempt was being made to replace the damage by planting. Evelyn put in a plea for afforestation, and besides producing a valuable work on arboriculture, he was able to assert in his preface to the king that he had really induced landowners to plant many millions of trees.
Legacy
Christie's
Christie's is an art business and a fine arts auction house.- History :The official company literature states that founder James Christie conducted the first sale in London, England, on 5 December 1766, and the earliest auction catalogue the company retains is from December 1766...
, a major surviving portion of Evelyn's library was sold and dispersed. The British Library
British Library
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and is the world's largest library in terms of total number of items. The library is a major research library, holding over 150 million items from every country in the world, in virtually all known languages and in many formats,...
holds a large archive of Evelyn's personal papers including the manuscript of his Diary. The Victoria and Albert Museum has in its collection a cabinet
John Evelyn's cabinet
John Evelyn's cabinet is a highly decorated portable storage box housed at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. The cabinet was made for the diarist John Evelyn and is an early example of a piece of furniture commissioned by a British visitor making the 'Grand Tour' of Europe.Objects often...
owned by Evelyn which is thought to have housed his diaries.
In 2005 a new biography by Gillian Darley, based on full access to the archive, was published.
Things named after John Evelyn after he died
- Evelyn, LondonEvelyn, LondonEvelyn is an electoral ward in the northern most part of the London Borough of Lewisham. It is located in the Deptford area on the south bank of the River Thames, and is the only Lewisham ward that borders the Thames....
, an electoral ward of the London Borough of Lewisham covering Deptford where John Evelyn lived. - Evelyn College for WomenEvelyn College for WomenEvelyn College for Women, often shortened to Evelyn College, was the coordinate women's college of Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey between 1887 and 1897. It was the first women's college in the State of New Jersey.-Background:...
, the short-lived coordinate college of Princeton UniversityPrinceton UniversityPrinceton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, USA - A house at Addey and Stanhope SchoolAddey and Stanhope SchoolAddey and Stanhope School is a voluntary-aided, co-educational secondary school, located in Lewisham, London, UK. A former grammar school, with origins dating to 1606, Addey and Stanhope became a specialist science and technology school in 2006. The school is also part of the Crossways Federation,...
in LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental... - Crabtree & EvelynCrabtree & EvelynCrabtree & Evelyn is an American retailer of body and home products with stores globally. According to its website, Crabtree & Evelyn uses over 160 “natural botanical ingredients” in its skin care products. It is wholly owned by KLK, Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad., a Malaysian company that also owns...
, the skincare company - Evelyn rose, a scented rose used in Crabtree & Evelyn products
- Evelyn, the gossip column of Oxford student newspaper CherwellCherwell (newspaper)Cherwell is an independent newspaper, largely published for students of Oxford University. First published in 1920, it has had an online edition since 1996. Named after the local river, Cherwell is published by OSPL , who also publish the sister publication ISIS along with the Etcetera Supplement...
- Evelyn Street, a road in DeptfordDeptfordDeptford is a district of south London, England, located on the south bank of the River Thames. It is named after a ford of the River Ravensbourne, and from the mid 16th century to the late 19th was home to Deptford Dockyard, the first of the Royal Navy Dockyards.Deptford and the docks are...
- John Evelyn Primary School on the corner of Rolt Street, Deptford.
- The John Evelyn public housePublic houseA public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
on Evelyn Street in Deptford (as featured in the BBC Television's The Tower) - Evelyn Community garden windlass place Deptford
Sources
- John Evelyn, ed. Guy de la Bédoyère (1997), Particular Friends: The Correspondence of Samuel Pepys and John Evelyn, Boydell and Brewer, ISBN 0-85115-697-5
- John Evelyn, ed. Guy de la Bédoyère (1995), The Writings of John Evelyn, Boydell and Brewer, ISBN 0-85115-631-2 (full annotated texts of several of Evelyn's books and tracts; the only modern collected edition produced.)
- John Evelyn, The Diary of John Evelyn (excerpts)
- John Evelyn, Diaries and Correspondence Volume 1, editor, William Bray (originally published in London: George Bell and Sons, 1882).
- John Evelyn, Diaries and Correspondence Volume 2
- John Evelyn, Diaries and Correspondence Volume 3
- John Evelyn, Diaries and Correspondence Volume 4
- Works by or about John Evelyn at Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...
(scanned books original editions color illustrated) (plain text and HTML)
External links
- The History of the Evelyn Family by Helen Evelyn, London 1915
- Evelyn family tree
- The John Evelyn archives at the British LibraryBritish LibraryThe British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom, and is the world's largest library in terms of total number of items. The library is a major research library, holding over 150 million items from every country in the world, in virtually all known languages and in many formats,...
- Who was John Evelyn? by Guy de la BédoyèreGuy de la BédoyèreGuy Martyn Thorold Huchet de la Bédoyère is a British historian, who has published widely on Roman Britain and other subjects, and has appeared regularly on the Channel 4 archaeological television series, Time Team. In 1999 he presented a three-part series called The Romans in Britain for BBC2,...