Phineas Pett | Timeline

Phineas Pett (1 November 1570 – 21 August 1647) was a shipwright and a member of the Pett dynasty. Phineas left a memoir of his activities which is preserved in the British Library and was published in 1918. (Intro from Wikipedia)

November 1, 1570 - Deptford - Phineas Pett is born
January(?) 1(?), 1586 - Cambridge - Phineas Pett, aged 16, enters the Emmanuel College
January(?) 1(?), 1589 - Cambridge - Phineas' father, peter, dies, and his confortable world falls apart
December 26(?), 1590 - Deptford - Unable to afford to maintain her son at Cambridge University, Pett's mother Elizabeth sends Phineas to the master shipwright Richard Chapman for Apprenticeship
April 1(?), 1592 - Deptford - Phineas' apprenticeship ends when Richard Chapman dies
December 20(?), 1592 - London - Phineas sails on the galleon "Constance", of London
December 22, 1594 - London - Phineas returns to London, after 20 months of Voyage
January(?) 1(?), 1595 - Limehouse - Decides that a sailor's life is not for him. Starts working as carpenter in a small yard where his brother Joseph was master shipwright
February(?) 1(?), 1595 - Limehouse - Works on the refitting of race-galleon "Defiance" and rebuilding of the "Triumph" =(START)
January(?) 1(?), 1596 - Deptford - Phineas is hired by Matthew Baker to work on the "Repulse"
April 1(?), 1596 - Deptford - The work on the "Repulse" is ready
April 1(?), 1597 - Deptford - Baker introduces his protegé to the Earl of Nottingham
January(?) 1(?), 1599 - Deptford - The Earl of Nottingham recommends Phineas for the job of inspecting East Anglian timber, to see if it was good enough to be used in the royal shipyards
January(?) 1(?), 1600 - Chatham Dockyard - The Earl of Nottingham Appoints Pett as the keeper of the plank yard at Chatham Dockyard, where Joseph Pett had become the master Shipwright
March 1(?), 1601 - Chatham - Phineas Pett is appointed Assistant to the Master Shipwright of the Chatham Dockyard
January(?) 1(?), 1603 - Chatham Dockyard - Already Master Shipwright, Pett is requested to build a model of the Armada's "Ark Royal" for the Earl of Nottingham
April 10, 1603 - Chatham - Letter to Matthew Baker
January(?) 1(?), 1604 - Theobalds House, Cedars Park, Cheshunt - Phineas meets the 10-year old Prince of Wales, Henry Frederick
March 22, 1604 - Theobalds House - Phineas offers a model of the Armada's "Ark Royal" to the Young Prince
April 26, 1604 - Theobalds House - King James I gives Phineas a grant of 1 shilling a day
March 24, 1605 - Chatham - Phineas parts with his wife and children and departs to Sheerness
March 31, 1605 - Queenborough, S of Sheerness - Phineas sails to Lisbon on the "resistance"
April 17(?), 1605 - A Coruña, Spain - Takes refuge at Coruña after getting separated from the Ambassador's squadron
April 24, 1605 - Lisbon, Portugal - Phineas arrives in Lisbon. At the portuguese capital, Phineas sells a demi-culverin of brass, captured at Cadiz in 1596, with ammunition and a quantity of bread, biscuit, and peas belonging to the fleet, for which he received 300 pounds, which he sent, ' by the way of exchange,' to Trevor and Mansell, then at Valladolid, with Nottingham, who had gone there to ratify the peace recently concluded between the two countries
May 11, 1605 - Sanlúcar de Barrameda, near Seville - Phineas arrives in Sanlúcar
June 10, 1605 - A Coruña - Revisits Coruña on the homeward voyage "according to instructions"
June 26, 1605 - Rye - Phineas returns to England, amidst rain, lightning and thunders
September(?) 1(?), 1605 - Chatham - Phineas' brother Joseph dies, and he becomes master shipwright at Chatham
July 1(?), 1606 - Woolwich - Phineas receives private instructions from the Lord High Admiral to have all the King's ships "put into comely readiness" for the reception of the King of Denmark, who was expected on a Royal visit
August 10, 1606 - Woolwich - Reception to the King of Denmark
November 12, 1607 - Richmond Palace, London - Phineas presents a model of ship to the King and he orders the building of a full-scale replica
May 12, 1608 - London (?) - Phineas signs a deposition before the Commission to answer charges against him regarding the money sent to Valladolid in 1605
October 20, 1608 - Woolwich - The keel of the "Prince Royal" is laid, according with the King's wishes
September 24, 1610 - Woolwich - The "Prince Royal", of 1,200 tons, is launched in the presence of the Royal Family
January(?) 1(?), 1612 - Woolwich - Between 1612 and 1615, Phineas rebuilds the 1590, 800-tons galleon "HMS Merhonour"
March 27, 1616 - Woolwich - Receives 500 pounds from Sir Walter Raleigh to build a 500-tons ship
December 1(?), 1616 - Woolwich - The "Destiny", Raleigh's new ship, is finished and launched
October 16, 1620 - Ratcliffe - A 120-ton pinnace is launched for Sir Robert Mansell
October 18, 1620 - Ratcliffe - A 80-ton pinnace is launched for Sir Robert Mansell
August 25, 1623 - Stokes Bay, SW Gosport - Phineas is commanded to sail aboard the "Prince Royal" on an expedition to Spain - Charles Prince of Wales and the Duke of Buckingham go disguised by land
August 26, 1623 - Off Weymouth - The Ships rode again at their anchors off Weymouth
August 28, 1623 - Plymouth Sound - The fleet of 6 ships and 2 pinnaces comes to anchor
September 2, 1623 - Plymouth Sound - The fleet departs for the Bay of Biscay
September 11, 1623 - Santander, Spain - The Squadron comes to anchor in Northern Spain
September 18, 1623 - Santander, Spain - The fleet departs for England with Prince Charles and the Duke of Buckingham aboard
October 1, 1623 - St.Mary's, Scilly Islands - As they spot 7 dutch warships chasing 4 dunkirkers, it is decided to land Prince Charles and Buckingham
October 5, 1623 - Spithead - The "Prince Royal" anchors at Spithead. Departs later to the Downs
June 6, 1625 - Dover - After preparing the "Prince Royal", Phineas sails to France to escort the french Princess, the Queen of England
June 9, 1625 - Boulogne, France - Charles' fleet of 20 ships sail into the harbour, firing off a 100-gun salute
June 11, 1625 - Boulogne - Princess Henrietta boards the "Royal Prince" and the fleet departs to Dover
June 12, 1625 - Dover - The New Queen lands at Dover
January(?) 1(?), 1626 - Chatham - Appointed a joint commissioner, with the Lord High Admiral, the Lord Treasurer Marlborough, and others
October 29, 1630 - Woolwich - A 750-tons ship is ordered, baptized as "HMS Vanguard"
January 16, 1631 - Chatham - Promoted by Charles I to First Commissioner of the Navy, earning 200 pounds per year
April 21, 1631 - Woolwich - Charles I visits Woolwich to attend the launch of HMS Vanguard
February 22, 1634 - Woolwich(?) - Phineas is sequestered from is place for having sold materials without sufficient authority
March 1, 1634 - London(?) - Phineas is pardoned by King Charles I
June 1(?), 1634 - St. James's Palace, Westminster, London - Phineas and Peter start preparing a Model Ship to offer Prince Charles (the trick worked with Phineas in 1604 and he recommended it to his son)

June 24, 1634 - Woolwich - King Charles I visits Woolwich and asks Phineas Pett to commence planning a new First Rate Ship. Phineas entrusts the leading role to his son Peter Pett
October 29, 1634 - St. James's Palace - Phineas and Peter offer the model ship on wheels to Prince Charles, and the ship that would become the "Sovereign of the Seas" is ordered
April 7, 1634 - Woolwich - Charles I writes to Phineas Pett, resolving the dimensions of the "Sovereign of the Seas"
May 1(?), 1635 - Woolwich - Supervises the building of the "Sovereign of the Seas" by his son, Peter Pett
July 1(?), 1635 - Cambridge - Phineas and Peter visit Emmanuel College on the trip back from the North, where they surveyed the forests

December 21, 1635 - Woolwich - The keel of the "Sovereign of the Seas" is laid at Woolwich Dockyard. Peter Pett starts the building the ship, supervised by his father, Phineas Pett

September 25, 1637 - Woolwich - The launching of the "Sovereign of the Seas" fails before the King and his entourage, when the ship jams on the ways
October 13, 1637 - Woolwich - Launching of the "Sovereign of the Seas" during the night, using bonfires

May 1(?), 1638 - Erith, SE of London - The "Sovereign of the Seas" is moved to Erith to be masted and rigged

June 1(?), 1638 - Greenhithe, Kent - The "Sovereign of the Seas" is sailed to Greenhithe to be armed and provisioned

June 6, 1638 - Greenhithe - Charles I visits the "Sovereign of the Seas" and dines aboard with the queen and members of the Court

July 12, 1638 - Greenhithe - Sea trials begin
July 21, 1638 - Off Gravesend - Charles I visits the "Sovereign of the Seas" and is delighted by the ship
August 18, 1638 - The Downs - The "Sovereign of the Seas" arrives off the Downs after Sea trials
January(?) 1(?), 1639 - Woolwich - Rebuilding of the "Prince Royal", until 1641.

July(?) 1(?), 1639 - Greenhithe, Kent(?) - King Charles I insists that the complement of the "Sovereign of the Seas" be increased to 100. Another 12 guns are added to bring the total to 102
August 21, 1647 - Chatham - Phineas Pett dies, aged 76 =(END)