George Stepney, 1663-1707: Diplomat and PoetGeorge Stepney was one of the most remarkable men of the end of the seventeenth century. He was considered one of the eight poets worthy of emulation, while 'no Englishman ever understood the affairs of Germany so well, and few Germans better.' A member of the Kit-Cat Club, and respected by Halifax and Marlborough, he - a commoner - was carried to his grave in Westminster Abbey by two dukes, two earls and two barons. Despite his importance for students of the period, and the fascination of his story in its own right, the only study of his life to date has been an article in The Huntingdon Library Quarterly from 1946. Miss Spens's biography is therefore a major contribution to scholarship which will prove invaluable to the international academic community. Diplomatic history has tended to focus on the monarchs and princes rather than on the handful of professional diplomats whose job it was to 'lie abroad for their country', of whom Stepney stands as an unusually well-documented example. Besides arousing the enthusiasm of specialists this volume will complement works on figures as diverse as William III and John Dryden. The fruit of over ten years' research in major archival collections throughout Europe, George Stepney provides new and valuable material on a key period of political and military history. |
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Page 129
... instructions from London as to his mission . Blathwayt , in letters which may not have reached Stepney before he left the Hague , had written brusquely that Stepney was not to go to Sweden : he was posted to the Electors of the Rhine ...
... instructions from London as to his mission . Blathwayt , in letters which may not have reached Stepney before he left the Hague , had written brusquely that Stepney was not to go to Sweden : he was posted to the Electors of the Rhine ...
Page 156
... Instructions were dated the same day as the precious Privy Seal . George was immediately to embark on board the ship appointed to carry him , and with what speed he could repair to Berlin ( or to such other place where the Elector of ...
... Instructions were dated the same day as the precious Privy Seal . George was immediately to embark on board the ship appointed to carry him , and with what speed he could repair to Berlin ( or to such other place where the Elector of ...
Page 157
... instructions on this point , after which he would consult the Pensioner . Meanwhile Lord Portland had told Stepney that he ( George ) might be given the commission on the affair of Neufchatel . ' Further , George had heard that the ...
... instructions on this point , after which he would consult the Pensioner . Meanwhile Lord Portland had told Stepney that he ( George ) might be given the commission on the affair of Neufchatel . ' Further , George had heard that the ...
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Common terms and phrases
affairs appointment army August Baron Benebourg Blathwayt Bruynincx Cardonnel Charles Montagu Cleves Colt command correspondence Count Frise Count Kaunitz Count Wratislaw Cresset Danckelmann diplomat dispatch Dresden Duke Dutch Earl Elector of Bavaria Elector of Brandenburg Elector of Saxony Elector Palatine Electress Ellis Emperor England favour France Frankfurt French George Stepney Goertz Hague Hamburg Hanover Harley Hedges Heinsius Het Loo Holland horses Hungarian Hungary ibid imperial court instructions James Johnston journey July n.s. Kaunitz King William King's Landgrave later Letters to Stepney Lexington London Lord March n.s. Marlborough Max Emmanuel Mediators ministers negotiations Palatine Pressburg Prince Eugene Prince Louis Queen Rákóczy received Rechteren Rhine Schöning secretary sent Spanish Netherlands Stepney continued Stepney in Dresden Stepney in Vienna Stepney Papers Stepney reported Stepney wrote Stepney's Letter Book Trade treaty troops Tyrnau Vernon Whitehall wished Wratislaw writing Wyche Zell