What do you think?
Rate this book
Samuel Pepys and the Strange Wrecking of the Gloucester: The Shipwreck that Shocked Restoration Britain
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.
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.
- GenresHistoryNonfiction
304 pages, Hardcover
Published February 7, 2023
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
March 2, 2023
Something of an impulse read for me, the combination of royal shenanigans in Restoration England and maritime disaster was too much to resist. However, in between the more salacious bits, there's a mystery of why Samuel Pepys, determined to resume his career of administering the King's Navy, went to some lengths not to travel with the Duke of York on his flagship, and said flagship just happening to come to grief. The question being what did Pepys know and when did he know it. I'm not going to give away spoilers, as the story is a juicy one, but I came away from this book both entertained, and informed.
May 5, 2023
From time to time I read a book that would be an excellent 100 pages. And this is such a book. It is a period of history - The Restoration - that I find fascinating. There is an interesting story here that is well told. However, it is not a 242 page story and as a result the author uses fillers, goes off on tangents and uses lengthy, barely relevant quotes.
The Coles Notes version of this book would be 4.5 stars. It is a pity.
The Coles Notes version of this book would be 4.5 stars. It is a pity.
August 23, 2023
Samuel Pepys. His is a name well-known in naval and maritime circles. In 1682, he was forty-nine years old and wanted to reclaim his former power and prestige. He had been ousted as secretary of the admiralty, where he had worked for two decades, until being accused of “Piracy, Popery and Treachery” and briefly imprisoned in the Tower of London. (6) Three years had passed and he was still unemployed, but now his prospects were looking up. Among his influential acquaintances was James, Duke of York, and his older brother, King Charles II, was finally permitting James to return to London. Pepys was determined to be among the first to greet the prince and renew their friendship.
James had been named heir to the throne, but he and his wife, Mary of Modena, were neither Protestant nor popular with many people of the country. In fact, there were more than a few who wanted him dead. Now, that he was back home, James wanted his wife, who was pregnant and still residing in Scotland, to join him. One might assume he would travel by land, but James loved ships and sailing, and never missed an opportunity to enjoy his passion, one that he shared with Pepys. So, in May 1682, he and some of his party boarded the Gloucester. Although invited to sail with James, Pepys decided to board one of the other vessels that comprised the small flotilla heading north. This last-minute decision would later be described as one of divine providence.
The Gloucester had been built in 1654 as a third rate of 755 tons and with a crew of 210 men and 52 guns. But she was an old warship, had been in ordinary (meaning laid up rather than plying the oceans), and corruption was rife in the Royal Dockyards. Still, she and the vessels that would accompany her were made ready to sail. Soon after this flotilla set sail, observers could see that navigation skills left much to be desired. One ship became grounded on a sandbank. Two others got lost. Eventually, only five vessels remained with Gloucester. Then, at 5:30 in the morning, while sailing at around seven knots with a strong wind propelling her forward, Gloucester ran aground, the waves alternately lifting and dropping her onto a sandbank. Forty-five minutes later, she was gone and 200 people lost their lives.
Pickford recounts the events leading up to, during, and after the wrecking of the Gloucester based on historical records (such as letters, diaries, log books, wills, and charts) to recreate what happened and to relate how it affected those who were participants either on the voyage or in the aftermath. The primary focus is on Pepys and James, but many others’ stories unfold here, including those who often go unnamed, such as Thomas Smith, who had signed on as an able seaman to get out of debtor’s prison, leaving behind a wife who was blind and indigent; or Rowland Rowleson, who, two weeks before his departure, legally declared what should happen to his belongings should he die. The book includes two appendices (People On Board the Gloucester and Bounty Payments), eight pages of color illustrations, notes, a bibliography, and an index.
Perhaps more interesting than the groundwork and the wrecking itself is Pickford’s rendering of the aftermath of the wreck. He focuses not just on the facts, but also incorporates the rumors that popped up, such as the Fanatick Party’s avowal that the wreck had been a plot to kill James. Equally compelling is the fact that two court-martials were held on the same day and at the same place, but only the transcript of the second trial remains. And the court-martial for the Gloucester was anything but impartial, given that seven of the judges had commanded other vessels in the same flotilla and one had publicly argued with the defendant before the sinking. Pickford also ably demonstrates how media was manipulated even in the 17th century. Although he tends to jump back and forth in time throughout the narrative, Samuel Pepys and the Strange Wrecking of the Gloucester is an entertaining and enlightening glimpse into the past that reveals that, although centuries have passed, not much has changed.
(This review originally appeared at Pirates & Privateers: http://www.cindyvallar.com/adultpirat...)
James had been named heir to the throne, but he and his wife, Mary of Modena, were neither Protestant nor popular with many people of the country. In fact, there were more than a few who wanted him dead. Now, that he was back home, James wanted his wife, who was pregnant and still residing in Scotland, to join him. One might assume he would travel by land, but James loved ships and sailing, and never missed an opportunity to enjoy his passion, one that he shared with Pepys. So, in May 1682, he and some of his party boarded the Gloucester. Although invited to sail with James, Pepys decided to board one of the other vessels that comprised the small flotilla heading north. This last-minute decision would later be described as one of divine providence.
The Gloucester had been built in 1654 as a third rate of 755 tons and with a crew of 210 men and 52 guns. But she was an old warship, had been in ordinary (meaning laid up rather than plying the oceans), and corruption was rife in the Royal Dockyards. Still, she and the vessels that would accompany her were made ready to sail. Soon after this flotilla set sail, observers could see that navigation skills left much to be desired. One ship became grounded on a sandbank. Two others got lost. Eventually, only five vessels remained with Gloucester. Then, at 5:30 in the morning, while sailing at around seven knots with a strong wind propelling her forward, Gloucester ran aground, the waves alternately lifting and dropping her onto a sandbank. Forty-five minutes later, she was gone and 200 people lost their lives.
Pickford recounts the events leading up to, during, and after the wrecking of the Gloucester based on historical records (such as letters, diaries, log books, wills, and charts) to recreate what happened and to relate how it affected those who were participants either on the voyage or in the aftermath. The primary focus is on Pepys and James, but many others’ stories unfold here, including those who often go unnamed, such as Thomas Smith, who had signed on as an able seaman to get out of debtor’s prison, leaving behind a wife who was blind and indigent; or Rowland Rowleson, who, two weeks before his departure, legally declared what should happen to his belongings should he die. The book includes two appendices (People On Board the Gloucester and Bounty Payments), eight pages of color illustrations, notes, a bibliography, and an index.
Perhaps more interesting than the groundwork and the wrecking itself is Pickford’s rendering of the aftermath of the wreck. He focuses not just on the facts, but also incorporates the rumors that popped up, such as the Fanatick Party’s avowal that the wreck had been a plot to kill James. Equally compelling is the fact that two court-martials were held on the same day and at the same place, but only the transcript of the second trial remains. And the court-martial for the Gloucester was anything but impartial, given that seven of the judges had commanded other vessels in the same flotilla and one had publicly argued with the defendant before the sinking. Pickford also ably demonstrates how media was manipulated even in the 17th century. Although he tends to jump back and forth in time throughout the narrative, Samuel Pepys and the Strange Wrecking of the Gloucester is an entertaining and enlightening glimpse into the past that reveals that, although centuries have passed, not much has changed.
(This review originally appeared at Pirates & Privateers: http://www.cindyvallar.com/adultpirat...)
August 6, 2023
James, Duke of York (later briefly James II of England before he was exiled to France in 1688) traveled aboard the Gloucester in 1682 to retrieve his pregnant wife from Scotland and bring her back to England. Pickford takes the sinking of this ship as a focus to describe the people and events involved, the consequences of the loss and the subsequent portrayal by historians over the centuries of what happened.
The principal source is of course the extensive diary of Samuel Pepys, but the author has researched far beyond this - for example the search for a second bride for the widowed James (the sixteen-year old Mary is about to become a nun when the Pope pleads/ requires her to marry the forty-one year old James), the tribulations of a blind widow trying to get the Navy to compensate her for her husband’s death due to the sinking and the editing out of unfavorable sections of a letter by a nineteenth century historian. The progress of science and industrial enterprise in those days is also discussed with just enough detail to maintain the reader’s interest.
The book made me pause frequently to evaluate the differences and similarities between the 1680s and our times. Consequently, the book is best savored a few pages at a time. I’ll be looking for more of Pickford’s books when they are made available in the US.
The principal source is of course the extensive diary of Samuel Pepys, but the author has researched far beyond this - for example the search for a second bride for the widowed James (the sixteen-year old Mary is about to become a nun when the Pope pleads/ requires her to marry the forty-one year old James), the tribulations of a blind widow trying to get the Navy to compensate her for her husband’s death due to the sinking and the editing out of unfavorable sections of a letter by a nineteenth century historian. The progress of science and industrial enterprise in those days is also discussed with just enough detail to maintain the reader’s interest.
The book made me pause frequently to evaluate the differences and similarities between the 1680s and our times. Consequently, the book is best savored a few pages at a time. I’ll be looking for more of Pickford’s books when they are made available in the US.
June 12, 2023
This was the third of the three nautical books recommended by the Globe and Mail, and it was a good one because of its historical context.
Samuel Pepys (1663 - 1703) was an administrator in the Royal Navy, a diarist and a womanizer who lived during the English Restoration period. Following the death of Oliver Cromwell, fed up with the joyless Commonwealth, British citizens invited Charles II (his father had been executed and he took refuge in France) to return to rule England. As Charles had no children, he was succeeded by his younger brother James II, but James was Catholic and not popular at home. They eventually ran him off and replaced him with his son-in-law, William of Orange.
James was aboard Gloucester, heading for Edinburgh, when it went aground on a sand bank with the loss of many lives, possibly a portent for his reign. Pepys was on another ship, maybe because he knew that Gloucester wasn't especially seaworthy.
Samuel Pepys (1663 - 1703) was an administrator in the Royal Navy, a diarist and a womanizer who lived during the English Restoration period. Following the death of Oliver Cromwell, fed up with the joyless Commonwealth, British citizens invited Charles II (his father had been executed and he took refuge in France) to return to rule England. As Charles had no children, he was succeeded by his younger brother James II, but James was Catholic and not popular at home. They eventually ran him off and replaced him with his son-in-law, William of Orange.
James was aboard Gloucester, heading for Edinburgh, when it went aground on a sand bank with the loss of many lives, possibly a portent for his reign. Pepys was on another ship, maybe because he knew that Gloucester wasn't especially seaworthy.
July 8, 2023
When I read Ed Yong's "Immense World," in addition to all of the insight into animals, I was fascinated by the scientists who make it their lives' work studying something as specific as the eyes of a scallop. This book reminded me of that because the author has done some incredible research into a little known historical incident that was completely unknown to me.
Very interesting, and I learned a lot about the Restoration Period in England, and it was engaging enough that I was motivated to learn more about Charles II and James II. I learned about Samuel Pepys whose diaries provide historians with most of what they know about life during that period. On the con side, there was so much I didn't understand due to the author's presumption that the reader would know more about the geography of Great Britain and sailing.
Thank you Sheila for the introduction to a book that I would never have otherwise read.
Very interesting, and I learned a lot about the Restoration Period in England, and it was engaging enough that I was motivated to learn more about Charles II and James II. I learned about Samuel Pepys whose diaries provide historians with most of what they know about life during that period. On the con side, there was so much I didn't understand due to the author's presumption that the reader would know more about the geography of Great Britain and sailing.
Thank you Sheila for the introduction to a book that I would never have otherwise read.
March 22, 2023
A newspaper review of this book intrigued me. The wreck of the Gloucester is itself an interesting story, Pepys is an important contributor to our knowledge of life in England in the mid-seventeenth century (I’ve read a recent biography and several volumes of his diary) and the Stuart restoration and James II’s succession to the throne are critical elements of English, American and European history of that era. Unfortunately, Nigel Pickford’s effort to weave these pieces into a coherent narrative fall well short of his goal. I’m not sure if it’s flaws in the concept or the execution, but, to me, the books ends up moving back and forth between it’s several themes in a ways that confuse and are difficult to admire.
Read
October 3, 2023Neat trick of historical detective work. Pickford tracks down a lot of the figures involved in the 1682 shipwreck when the Gloucester ran into a sandbar and sank. James, heir to the British throne, was aboard and was safely spirited away from the sinking ship. This remained a stain on his reputation forever after. Pepys was part of the convoy but not on the Gloucester. Why not? Interesting stuff uncovered here. The book goes into the character of Pepys. He certainly was a contrary man-brilliant at his job with the navy but very corrupt in many ways.
November 7, 2023
Wonderful read, giving a focused glimpse into the first half of 1680's England. The book would have benefited from a short glossary of nautical terms for those who don't quite fathom a fathom. There are several nice color plates of paintings of the principals. But also needs a few maps or illustrations of the English coastlines that are in play. At a minimum a clear illustration of the Thames estuary. There is once historic plate of the area, but it is illegible at the scale the book renders it.
April 23, 2023
Did not particularly enjoy. The whole of book would be of greatest interest to those desiring details of he ships logs. Although I don't favor the writing style(too many awkward/clunky transitions), I did find the first and last few chapters quite interesting. The first few do a great job of tablesetting the relationship between Charles II and James, and that of the nation to these two men. The last couple, I enjoyed reading of potential reason why Pepys did not sail on the Gloucester.
October 1, 2023
Fans of white-knuckle nautical page-turners might find this disappointing, but I liked how the author immerses the reader in the turbulent Restoration period with an emphasis on the seafaring world. You can sense that Britain lay on the cusp of modernity, vis a vis better leadership, navigation, charts, communication, and coastal lights, and there's a good look at prototypical modern man Samuel Pepys's later years.
July 7, 2025
Interesting episode of history. Frustratingly written. Lots of offhand references to things that most people aren't familiar with (I'm a European history teacher, and there are many people, customs, and events in this book that I've never heard of, but are merely referenced without any explanation). Also ... How is there not a single map???? I'm still going to read most of it and I will learn from it, but I wish it were written in a more accessible way.
March 20, 2023
Could have been told in 10 pages. Too much filler. Couldn’t finish it. Also too many obscure contemporary quotes.
April 4, 2023
An engaging and surprising story, unusually well told.
September 15, 2023
A painfully slow, though somewhat intriguing book.
November 5, 2023
Very interesting, lots of tidbits of gossip from that period if you’re familiar with it.
December 7, 2023
Longer than it needs to be
March 3, 2026
This book was not for me. It meandered and dithered and spent too short of time on the sinking and trial. I had to force myself to finish it.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews