Comet of 1664

‘Saturday December 17, 1664…So home and to my office, where late, and then home to bed. Mighty talke there is of this Comet that is seen a’nights; and the King and Queene did sit up last night to see it, and did, it seems. And to-night I thought to have done so too; but it is cloudy, and so no stars appear. But I will endeavour it…’

The comet Samuel Pepys mentions in his diary was visible over England for several months, beginning around December 14, 1664.  Comets equal portents, to some, including, perhaps, John Dryden, as related in “The Life of John Dryden”, with notes, historical, critical, and explanatory, by Walter Scott, esq,

‘A comet was seen on the 14^th of December, 1664, which lasted almost three months…Comets, it is well known, were in extremely bad repute among the astrologers of this period.  Lilly, an unquestionable authority, treats these stars with extreme severity; hardly justifiable by his blunt averment, that “truth is truth, and a horse is a horse.”  Dryden himself, not contented with turning these two blazing stars (1664 and 1665) into farthing candles, has elsewhere, in this poem, charged with causing pestilence, and the great fire of London:

The utmost malice of the stars is past;

            And two dire comets, which have scourged the town,

In hteir own plague and fire have breathed their last,

            Or dimly in their sinking sockets frown.….’ 

Drake Norris Expedition

'...But war was again raging, the history of Sir Francis Drake, Captain Morgan, and other bold adventurers, an account of whose exploits he had purchased from Bryce Snailsfoot, had made much impression on his mind, and the ofl'er of Captain Cleveland to take him to sea, frequently recurred to him, although the pleasure of such a project was somewhat damped by a doubt, whether, in ihe long run, he should not find many objections to his proposed commander. Thus much he already saw, that he was opinionative, and might probably prove arbitrary; and thai, since even his kindness was mingled with an assumption of superiority, his occasional displeasure might contain a great deal more of that disagreeable ingredient than could be palatable to those who sailed under him. And yet, after counting nll risks, could his father's consent be obtained, with what pleasure, he thought, would he embark in quest of new scenes and strange adventures, in which he proposed to himself to achieve such deeds as should be the theme of many a tale to the lovely sisters of Burgh-Westra—tales at which Minna should weep, and Brenda should smile, and both should marvel!...'

Part of the history of Sir Francis Drake alluded to in Walter Scott's "The Pirate" (above) was an attempted invasion of Spain in 1589, the year after the Spanish Armada was defeated by the English.  Drake led this expedition, which had a primary aim of sinking the survivors of the Armada.  There was also to be an invasion at Lisbon led by Sir John Norreys (Norris).

In "Sir Francis Drake: A Pictorial Biography" by Hans P. Kraus, a view of the financing for this expedition is provided.  It shows funding provided by Queen Elizabeth (£16k), Drake and other "adventurers" (£10k combined).  The document, which is dated December 17, 1588, was saved by diarist John Evelyn, and is available for online viewing at the Library of Congress Rare Books Reading Room http://www.loc.gov/rr/rarebook/catalog/drake/drake-9-begoftheend.html.

O. P. Riots

The OP, or Old Prices riots came about as a result of the burning down of the Covent Garden theater, on September 20, 1808. The theater was rebuilt, reopening a year later with higher ticket prices. At this time, it was illegal to see a Shakespeare production anywhere but Covent Garden or Drury Lane, which theaters held an effective monopoly. The price increase, therefore, severely impacted anyone who wished to see the bard's plays.

The proprietor of Covent Garden was a man named John Kemble. Kemble addressed the price increase when the theater opened:

"Solid our building, heavy our expense;
We rest our claim on your munificence;
What ardour plans a nation's tastes to raise,
A nation's liberality repays."

Kemble's verse failed to appease many theater-goers. A boisterous group of O.P. advocates disrupted all productions once the rebuilt theater began operations. Finally, on December 17th (1809), a Treaty of Peace was framed.

Scott references the O.P. Riots in his "Life of Kemble":

"...A blackguard transaction ought to have its name from the dictionary of the vulgar tongue, and the continued riot raised about the increase of entrance money, which had remained the same for one hundred years, while all the expenses of the theater were increased in a tenfold proportion, became the ground of the O.P. Row, as was called a continuous riot which lasted sixty-six nights..."