John Evelyn I, Oliver Cromwell's rise and eventual natural death, the last Great Plague of London, and the Great Fire of London in 1666. Evelyn's posthumously "rival" diarist, Samuel Pepys, wrote a different kind of diary, covering a much shorter period, 1660–1669, but in much greater depth, within the same era. Over the years, Evelyn's Diary has been overshadowed by Pepys's chronicles of 17th-century life. Born into a family whose wealth was largely founded on gunpowder production, John Evelyn was born in Wotton, Surrey and grew up in Lewes, Sussex. While living in Lewes, in Southover Grange, he was educated at Lewes
Elisabeth Pepys published a fictional literary spoof, "The Diary of Elizabeth Pepys" (1991 Grafton Books, London). Purportedly written by Elisabeth, the book is a feminist critique of women's lives in 17th century London. There are also two encyclopaedic sites about Samuel Pepys, including information on his wife: Elisabeth Pepys Elisabeth Pepys (nee Marchant de Saint Michel; 23 October 1640 – 10 November 1669) was the wife of Samuel Pepys, whom she married in 1655, shortly before her fifteenth birthday. Her father, Alexandre Marchant de Saint Michel, was born a French Roman Catholic but later converted to the Church of England. He married