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Abstract
The (his)story of Samuel Pepys is interlinked with that of administration, accounting, auditing and their concepts. In terms of nascent ideas of accounting and business administration of the time, Pepys and his contribution are under-researched. Many scholars have considered the life of Samuel Pepys, studying his famous diary and marvelling at the wonderful insight this gives us to the time in which he lived, few have viewed his naval career in terms of its business administration and accounting contribution. This article studies Pepys’s diary, his correspondence and secondary literature to provide an insight into his business world. It explores his role, as he perceived it. Pepys had modern attitudes to business, professionalism and the role of accounting, this forward-thinking attitude helps explain his extraordinary achievements. Pepys was not only a skilled naval administrator but also a natural ‘accomptant’ in the more modern and all-encompassing sense of the word accountant.
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No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Notes
1 Shakespeare W As you like it, Act II, Scene VII (All the world’s a stage).
2 This paper uses The Diary of Samuel Pepys, Wheatley, H. (ed.) (10 volumes, 1893-9), for the online edition (www.pepysdiary.com).
This text is reliable, when compared with The Diary of Samuel Pepys Latham, R. and W. Matthews (eds.), which has better notes, but is only available in book form, so not so easily accessed, searched and analysed.
3 His journey was recorded in a pamphlet of the time, ‘England’s Joy or a Relation of the most remarkable passages, from his Majesty’s arrival at Dover, to his entrance at White-Hall’ (1660).
4 Ibid.
5 Initially for Castle Rising (Norfolk) in 1673, then for Harwich (Essex) in 1679 and 1685.
6 With the Dutch Republic, France, Denmark and Norway fighting against England. In 1667, the Dutch made a raid up the River Medway, breaking through English defences and attacked Chatham naval dockyard. It led to defeat for the English. Pepys wrote ‘Never were people as dejected as they are in the City’ (Diary, 16th June 1667).
7 ‘This morning I rose early, and went about making of an establishment of the whole Fleet, and a list of all the ships, with the number of men and guns: About an hour after that, we had a meeting of the principal commanders and seamen, to proportion out the number of these things’ (Diary 26th March 1660).
8 ‘… and thence to the Navy Office, where I began to take an inventory of the papers, and goods, and books of the office’ (Diary 7th July 1660).
9 ‘My delight is in the neatness of everything, and so cannot be pleased with anything unless it be very neat, which is a strange folly’ (Diary 10 August 1663).
10 ‘Cooper the Mate of the ship, whom I knew in the Charles, I spoke to him about teaching the Mathematiques, and do please myself in my thoughts of learning of him.’ (Diary,1 July 1662).
11 ‘…Mr Cooper, Mate of the Royall Charles, of whom I entered to learn Mathematiques; and so begin with him today, he being a very able man and no great matter, I suppose, will content him. After an hour’s being with him at Arithmetique, my first attempt being to learn the Multipication table, then we parted till tomorrow’. (Diary, 4 July 1662).
12 ‘to see what a man might do, were I a knave, the whole business from beginning to end being done by me out of the office, and signed to by them upon the once reading of it to them, without the least care or consultation either of quality, price, number, or need of them, only in general that it was good to have a store. But I hope my pains was such, as the King has the best bargain of masts has been bought these 27 years in this office.’ (Diary, 10th September 1663).
13 Diary, 21st October 1663 & 30th October 1663.
14 ‘telling us the state of the fleet, lacking provisions, having no beer at all, nor have had most of them these three weeks or month, and but a few days’ dry provisions. And indeed he tells us that he believes no fleete was ever set to sea in so ill condition of provision, as this was when out last.’ Diary 18th September 1665.
15 Diary 5th October 1665.
16 Diary 6th October 1665.
17 Diary 27th October 1665.
18 Diary 9th November 1665.
19 Diary 15th December 1665.
20 Diary 26th July 1666 reads ‘By and by the Duke of Yorke comes and we had a meeting and, among other things, I did read my declaration of the proceedings of the Victualling hired this yeare, and desired his Royall Highnesse to give me the satisfaction of knowing whether his Royall Highnesse were pleased therewith. He told me he was, and that it was a good account, and that the business of the Victualling was much in a better condition than it was the last yeare; which did much joy me, being said in the company of my fellows, by which I shall be able with confidence to demand my salary and the rest of the subsurveyors.’
21 The letter to the King, was from Prince Rupert and the Duke of Albemarle on the Royal Charles (State Papers, 27th August Citation1666) and complains of the lack of supplies. Pepys responds via accounts showing what has been sent to the fleet and defending his secretary, William Coventry’s calculations.
22 Diary, 12th September 1662 ‘Mr Lewes teaching me to understand the method of making up Purser’s accounts, which is very needful for me and very hard.’
23 Diary, 28th January 1663 ‘learning to understand the manner of a purser’s accounts, which is very hard and little understood by my fellow officers, and yet mighty necessary.’
24 Also, 23rd July 1663.
25 Diary, 11th July 1663 and 13th July 1664.
26 This is a reference to George Legge 1st Baron of Dartmouth (1647-91). He was commander of the Channel Fleet when it was mobilised to meet the invasion threat posed by William of Orange in 1688. He took an active interest in defence preparations, and informed Pepys of his concerns. Dartmouth was a strong supporter of James II. He was imprisoned in the Tower of London following William’s accession to the throne.
27 Documents at the National Archives of the UK include pursers’ bonds dating from 1655. (Cock and Rodger, ‘Guide to the Naval Records’).
28 ‘At the end of the last and the beginning of this year, I do live in one of the houses belonging to the Navy Office, as one of the principal officers, and have done now about half a year …
I take myself now to be worth 300 l. clear in money, and all my goods and all manner of debts paid, which are none at all.’ (Diary, 1st Jan 1661).
29 ‘Up by four o’clock, and to the settling of my own accounts, and I do find upon my monthly ballance, which I have undertaken to keep from month to month, that I am worth 650 l., the greatest sum that ever I was yet master of. I pray God give me a thankfull, spirit, and care to improve and encrease it.’ (Diary 29th June, 1662).
30 ‘in the evening I to my accounts, and to my great joy and with great thanks to Almighty God, I do find myself most clearly worth 1014 l., the first time that ever I was worth 1000 l. before, which is the height of all that ever I have for a long time pretended to’ (Diary 31st July 1664).
31 ‘My greatest trouble is now from the backwardness of my accounts, which I have not seen the bottom of now near these two years’ (Diary 31st Dec 1668).
32 ‘we did with great content look over some old ledgers to see in what manner they were kept, and indeed it was in an extraordinary good method, and such as (at least out of design to keep them employed)’ (Diary 7th Jan 1664).
33 ‘and to Sir G. Carteret with the letter and thence to my Lord Treasurer’s; wherewith Sir Philip Warwicke long studying all we could to make the last year swell as high as we could. And it is much to see how he do study for the King, to do it to get all the money from the Parliament all he can: and I shall be serviceable to him therein, to help him to heads upon which to enlarge the report of the expense’ (Diary 22nd Nov 1664).
34 ‘Complaint of the want of supplies, in spite of repeated importunities. The demands are answered by accounts from Mr. Pepys, of what has been sent to the fleet, which will not satisfy the ships, unless the provisions can be found. Hope to be credited as to their wants, being upon the place.’ (Prince Rupert and General Monck, Citation1666).
35 William Coventry, 1628-1686 – English Statesman and Naval Administrator, Secretary of the Admiralty 1660-1667. Pepys testified to the excellence of Coventry’s administration and his enthusiasm for economy and reform.
36 Sir Edward Hyde, 1609-1674 (Earl of Clarendon) – English statesman, Lord Chancellor 1658-67 (He was also Chancellor of the Exchequer (1643-46) and First Lord of the Treasury (1660).
37 ‘and finding my Lord at home I got him to look over my accounts, which he did approve of and signed them, and so we are even to this day. Of this I was
glad, and do think myself worth clear money about £120.’ (Diary 29th July 1660)
and:
‘There I staid with my Lord and Mr. Shepley, looking over my Lord’s accounts and to set matters straight between him and Shepley, and he did commit the viewing of these accounts to me, which was a great joy to me to see that my Lord do look upon me as one to put trust in’ (Diary 20th Nov 1660).
38 ‘Industrious and curious person, none in England exceeding him in the knowledge of the Navy; in which he had passed thro all the most Considerable Offices, Clerk of the Acts and Secretary of the Admiralty, all of which he performed with greate Integrity' (Evelyn, 1620 – 1706, Diary).
39 Diary, 10th October, 1665.
40 Diary 12 December 1663.
41 Diary, 10th September 1663.
42 ‘Our discourse about supplying my Lord Teviott with money, wherein I am sorry to see though they do not care for him, yet they are willing to let him for civility and compliment only have money almost without expecting any account of it; but by this means, he being such a cunning fellow as he is the King is like to pay dear for our courtiers’ ceremony.’ (Diary 10 Aug 1663).
43 ‘Sir W. Warren, by appointment, comes to me, who spent two hours, or three, with me, about his accounts of Gottenburgh, which are so confounded, that I doubt they will hardly ever pass without my doing something, which he desires of me, and which, partly from fear, and partly from unwillingness to wrong the King, and partly from its being of no profit to me, I am backward to give way to, though the poor man do indeed deserve to be rid of this trouble, that he hath lain so long under, from the negligence of this Board’ (Diary 29th Nov 1668).
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Karen McBride
Karen McBride is a Senior Lecturer at Portsmouth Business School, her research interests are accounting and business history, corporate governance, financial reporting and regulation and international accounting.