William Adams - Witch, Warlock, and Magician

I am not prepared to say, with its modern editor, that Dr. Dee’s Diary 26 26 ‘The Private Diary of Dr. John Dee,’ edited by J. O. Halliwell (Phillipps) for the Camden Society, 1842. sets the scholar magician’s character in its true light more clearly than anything that has yet been printed; but I concede that it reveals in a very striking and interesting manner the peculiar features of his character – his superstitious credulity, and his combination of shrewdness and simplicity – as well as his interesting habits. I shall therefore extract a few passages to assist the reader in forming his opinion of a man who was certainly in many respects remarkable.

(i.) I begin with the entries for 1577:

‘1577, January 16th. – The Erle of Leicester, Mr. Philip Sidney, Mr. Dyer, 27 27 This was Sir Edward Dyer, the friend of Spenser and Sidney, remembered by his poem ‘My Mind to me a Kingdom is.’ etc., came to my house (at Mortlake).

‘1577, January 22nd. – The Erle of Bedford came to my house.

‘1577, March 11th. – My fall uppon my right nuckel bone, hora 9 fere mane , wyth oyle of Hypericon ( Hypericum , or St. John’s Wort) in twenty-four howers eased above all hope: God be thanked for such His goodness of (to?) His creatures.

‘1577, March 24th. – Alexander Simon, the Ninevite, came to me, and promised me his service into Persia.

‘1577, May 1st. – I received from Mr. William Harbut of St. Gillian his notes uppon my “Monas.” 28 28 The ‘Monas Hieroglyphica.’

‘1577, May 2nd. – I understode of one Vincent Murfryn his abbominable misusing me behinde my back; Mr. Thomas Besbich told me his father is one of the cokes of the Court.

‘1577, May 20th. – I hyred the barber of Cheswik, Walter Hooper, to kepe my hedges and knots in as good order as he saw them then, and that to be done with twice cutting in the yere at the least, and he to have yerely five shillings, meat and drink.

‘1577, June 26th. – Elen Lyne gave me a quarter’s warning.

‘1577, August 19. – The “Hexameron Brytanicum” put to printing. (Published in 1577 with the title of “General and Rare Memorials pertayning to the perfect Art of Navigation.”)

‘1577, November 3rd. – William Rogers of Mortlak about 7 of the clok in the morning, cut his own throte, by the fiende his instigator .

‘1577, November 6th. – Sir Umfrey Gilbert 29 29 The celebrated navigator, whose heroic death is one of our worthiest traditions. cam to me to Mortlak.

‘1577, November 22nd. – I rod to Windsor to the Q. Majestie.

‘1577, November 25th. – I spake with the Quene hora quinta ; I spoke with Mr. Secretary Walsingham. 30 30 A warm and steady friend to Dr. Dee. I declared to the Quene her title to Greenland, Estotiland, and Friesland.

‘1577, December 1st. – I spoke with Sir Christopher Hatton; he was made Knight that day.

‘1577, December – th. – I went from the Courte at Wyndsore.

‘1577, December 30th. – Inexplissima illa calumnia de R. Edwardo, iniquissima aliqua ex parte in me denunciebatur: ante aliquos elapsos diro, sed … sua sapientia me innocentem.’

I cannot ascertain of what calumny against Edward VI. Dee had been accused; but it is to be hoped that his wish was fulfilled, and that he was acquitted of it before many days had elapsed.

I have omitted some items relating to moneys borrowed. It is sufficiently plain, however, that Dee never intended his Diary for the curious eyes of the public, and that it mainly consists of such memoranda as a man jots down for his private and personal use. Assuredly, many of these would never have been recorded if Dee had known or conjectured that an inquisitive antiquarian, some three centuries later, would exhume the confidential pages, print them in imperishable type, and expose them to the world’s cold gaze. It seems rather hard upon Dr. Dee that his private affairs should thus have become everybody’s property! Perhaps, after all, the best thing a man can do who keeps a diary is to commit it to the flames before he shuffles off his mortal coil, lest some laborious editor should eventually lay hands upon it, and publish it to the housetops with all its sins upon it! But as in Dr. Dee’s case the offence has been committed, I will not debar my readers from profiting by it.

(ii.) 1578-1581.

‘1578, June 30th. – I told Mr. Daniel Rogers, Mr. Hackluyt of the Middle Temple being by, that Kyng Arthur and King Maty, both of them, did conquer Gelindia, lately called Friseland, which he so noted presently in his written copy of Mon … thensis (?), for he had no printed boke thereof.’

What a pity Dr. Dee has not recorded his authority for King Arthur’s Northern conquests! The Mr. Hackluyt here mentioned is the industrious compiler of the well-known collection of early voyages.

Occasionally Dee relates his dreams, as on September 10, 1579: ‘My dream of being naked, and my skyn all overwrought with work, like some kinde of tuft mockado, with crosses blue and red; and on my left arme, about the arme, in a wreath, this word I red — sine me nihil potestis facere .’

Sometimes he resorts to Greek characters while using English words:

‘1579, December 9th. – Θις νιγτ μι υυιφ δρεμιδ θατ ονε καμ το ’ερ ανδ τουχεδ ’ερ, σαινγ, “Μιστρές Δεε, γου αρ κονκεινεδ οφ χιλδ, ύος ναμε μυστ βε Ζαχαριας; βε οφ γοδ χερε, ἑ σαλ δο υυελ ας θις δοθ!”

‘1579, December 28th. – I reveled to Roger Coke the gret secret of the elixir of the salt οφ ακετελς, ονε υππον α υνδρεδ.’

Other entries refer to this Mr. Roger Coke, or Cooke, who seems to have been Dee’s pupil or apprentice, and at one time to have enjoyed his confidence. They quarrelled seriously in 1581.

‘1581, September 5th. – Roger Cook, who had byn with me from his 14 years of age till 28, of a melancholik nature, pycking and devising occasions of just cause to depart on the suddayn, about 4 of the clok in the afternone requested of me lycense to depart, wheruppon rose whott words between us; and he, imagining with himself that he had, the 12 of July, deserved my great displeasure, and finding himself barred from view of my philosophicall dealing with Mr. Henrik, thought that he was utterly recast from intended goodness toward him. Notwithstanding Roger Cook his unseamely dealing, I promised him, if he used himself toward me now in his absens, one hundred pounds as sone as of my own clene hability I myght spare so much; and moreover, if he used himself well in life toward God and the world, I promised him some pretty alchimicall experiments, whereuppon he might honestly live.

‘1581, September 7th. – Roger Cook went for altogether from me.’

In February, 1601, however, this quarrel was made up.

(iii.) Of the learned doctor’s colossal credulity the Diary supplies some curious proofs:

‘1581, March 8th. – It was the 8 day, being Wensday, hora noctis 10-11, the strange noyse in my chamber of knocking; and the voyce, ten times repeted, somewhat like the shriek of an owle, but more longly drawn, and more softly, as it were in my chamber.

‘1581, August 3rd. – All the night very strange knocking and rapping in my chamber. August 4th, and this night likewise.

‘1581, October 9th. – Barnabas Saul, lying in the … hall, was strangely trubled by a spirituall creature about mydnight.

‘1582, May 20th. – Robertus Gardinerus Salopiensis lactum mihi attulit minimum de materia lapidis, divinitus sibi revelatus de qua.