Evelyn, John
Achievements: Conceived of Royal Society. Wrote Diary.
Born: October 31, 1620; Wotton House, Wotton, (Dorking,) Surrey, England
Died: February 27, 1706; London, England (Aged 85)
Field & Discipline: Literature; Landscape Design; Diarist
Language: English
Father: Richard Evelyn
Mother: Eleanor Standsfield
Siblings: Jane; George; Richard
Spouse: Mary Browne
Children: Richard; John; George; Richard; Mary; Elizabeth; Susanna
Education: Southover School, Lewes, England; Balliol College, Oxford; Middle Temple, London
Major Work:
"Diary"
"Sylva, or a Discourse of Forest-trees, and the Propagation of Timber"
Life & Times:
At the age of 11, Evelyn began a "Diary", which he secretly kept until he died at 85. (It was discovered 111 years after his death in an old clothes-basket at the Evelyn house in Wotton.)
At 21, he went to Holland to join the Dutch forces against Spain. But instead of fighting he spent much of his time visiting the best houses and gardens (gardening already becoming a passion).
When Evelyn returned to England a few months later, the tension between King Charles I and Parliament over absolutist rule had become acute. The sympathies of Evelyn's family lay with the King, but Evelyn dared not to join the Royalist cause during the Civil War (1642-46) for fear of endangering the family estate at Wotton, which lay in territory controled by the anti-Royalist Parliamentarians.
Between 1642 and 1643, Evelyn moved from place to place to avoid taking the oath of loyalty to Parliament. Eventually granted a license to travel, he sailed for France in late 1643 and spent the next four years in Italy, where he studied the arts, anatomy and physiology.
Back in England, Evelyn lived quietly during the 1650s to avoid conflict with the anti-Royalist Cromwell government, expanding his library and creating his famous garden at Sayes Court, which featured French and Italian motifs. He also designed a garden for the estate in Wotton, where his elder brother, George, was now master.
He made friends with [a pal of] Wilkins*, warden of Wadham College and later Bishop of Chester, who introduced him to architect [a pal of] Wren* and [a pal of] Boyle*. In 1659, Evelyn suggested to Boyle that British men of science should have a place of their own where they could promote "experimental knowledge."
The result was the [suggested idea of] Royal Society*, which he established with the assistance of Wilkins, Boyle, [a pal of] Petty* and others. (He was on the council in 1662 and 1663, was elected secretary in 1672, and remained a member for the rest of his life).
In the same year, just after the ouster of Cromwell, Evelyn published two Royalist pamphlets: "Apology for the Royal Party" and "The late News or Message from Brussels unmasked" A year later, [a favorite of] Charles II* ascended the throne and publicly acknowledged that Evelyn's pamphlets contributed to his restoration. Evelyn was immediately in favor at court.
After his much-praised work on smoke abatement and city planning: "Fumifiguim, or the Inconvenience of the Air and Smoke of London dissipated" (1661), he was appointed to a commission for improving London's streets. He sat on various public committees on land drainage, the regulation of the Royal Mint, the manufacture of saltpeter, the repair of St. Paul's Cathedral, and foreign plantations.
Evelyn also continued his writing. In 1662, he published "Sculptura", a discourse on engraving and etching, in which he introduced the new process of mezzotint-engraving. In 1664, he wrote a paper discussing the British Navy's demand for a constant supply of timber.
After the paper was read before the Royal Society, Evelyn then developed it into his best-known book, "Sylva, or a Discourse of Forest-trees, and the Propagation of Timber" (1664), which described the various kinds of trees, their cultivation, and their uses. (With extensive revisions, the book went through 10 editions by 1825.)
In 1664, he published a translation of a work on librarianship by French librarian and physician Gabriel [translated work of] Naude*, (written 1644), after which he was considered an authority on libraries and was frequently called to evaluate collections and give advice on library organization. Evelyn's own private library by now contained more than 4,000 books, all arranged according to Naude's principles.
For the duration of Charles II's wars against the Dutch (1665-67 and 1672-74), Evelyn was appointed Commissioner for the Care of the Sick and Wounded Mariners, and for Prisoners of War. In this capacity, he frequently and bravely exposed himself to the plague and paid for many of the expenses out of his own pocket (he was still petitioning for repayment in 1702.) During these years, he formed a lifelong friendship with naval official and fellow-diarist [a pal of] Pepys*.
Evelyn continued to serve at court through the 1670s and 1680s, and was appointed to a council for colonial affairs from 1671 to 1674. With the accession of James II in 1685, he continued in royal favor, and was made one of three commissioners of the privy seal from 1685 to 1687. In 1694, he moved to his birthplace of Wotton to live with his brother. He inherited the estate in 1699.
From 1695 to 1703, Evelyn was treasurer of Greenwich Hospital, and in 1697, published his last important book, "Numismata". He continued to frequent literary and scientific society in London during the 1690s, and formed friendships with a whole new generation of intellectuals, including [a pal of] Newton* and [a pal of] Sloane*.
Extra Connections: In Venice in 1645, he saw "Ercole in Lidia", with set designed by [saw designs by] Torelli*.
His house was rented to Russian Tsar [rented house to] Peter the Great* in the summer of 1698.
Met [met] Dampier*.
Knew the king’s mistress Nell [knew] Gwyn*, [knew] Hartlib*, [knew] Sprat*, [knew] Tillotson*
Visited the imprisoned [visited in prison] Oldenburg*
He met clockmaker [met] Fromanteel*
Assessment: Versatile in talent, wrote naturalist works, designed landscapes, and was a respected public servant
Oneliner: John Evelyn, 17th century diarist and schmoozer
Bibliography:
- Bowle, John, John Evelyn and his World, London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1981.
- Collier's Encyclopedia.
- Encyclopedia Britannica.