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
John Byng, 5th Viscount Torrington assessment that "The Torrington Diaries" or "Rides Round Britain" have no enduring historical value. Like Samuel Pepys, Byng conveys a most vivid impression of what it was like for the diarist to live from day to day in the society of his own period. John Byng, 5th Viscount Torrington John Byng, 5th Viscount Torrington (18 February 1743 – 8 January 1813), styled for most of his lifetime "The Hon. John Byng" (before 1812), was a notable English diarist. His fifteen extant diaries, covering the years 1781–1794, describe his travels on horseback throughout England and Wales during twelve summers. He was