John Creed FRS (died 1701) was a British naval administrator. He was also a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...

Early life

He came from

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

and was possibly of humble origin. His date of birth is unknown and little is known about his life prior to the

Restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...

. He enjoyed the patronage of Edward Montagu, who became 1st Earl of Sandwich.Knighton, C. S
“Creed, John (d. 1701).”
in

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

, edited by H. C. G. Matthew and Brian Harrison. Oxford: OUP, 2004. Online ed., edited by David Cannadine, May 2008. Accessed October 15, 2017 (subscription or membership of a UK public library required). While Montagu successfully transitioned from being a supporter of the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...

to a royalist, Creed's later career appears to have been adversely affected by his reputation as a

Puritan The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Catholic Church, Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become m ...

.This is the view of for example Pepys' biographer

Claire Tomalin Claire Tomalin (née Delavenay; born 20 June 1933) is an English journalist and biographer, known for her biographies of Charles Dickens, Thomas Hardy, Samuel Pepys, Jane Austen and Mary Wollstonecraft. Early life Tomalin was born Claire Del ...

. ''Samuel Pepys: The Unequalled Self'' (2002)

Career

Creed served as secretary to Montagu, which led to involvement in naval matters. Montagu was a

General at Sea A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED On ...

under Cromwell and an

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

under Charles II. According to his monument in

Titchmarsh, Northamptonshire Titchmarsh is a village and civil parish in North Northamptonshire, England. The 2001 census recorded a parish population of 543 people, increasing to 598 at the 2011 Census. History The village's name means 'Young goat marsh'. Maybe, perhaps, ...

, Creed served Charles II in "divers honourable employments at home and abroad". One of the locations where he served was

English Tangier English Tangier was the period in Moroccan history in which the city of Tangier was occupied by England as part of the English colonial empire from 1661 to 1684. Tangier had been under Portuguese control before King Charles II acquired the c ...

. In 1661–2 he went as deputy treasurer with Montagu (recently made Earl of Sandwich) in the voyage to take possession of Tangier and to bring

Catherine of Braganza Catherine of Braganza ( pt, Catarina de Bragança; 25 November 1638 – 31 December 1705) was List of English royal consorts, Queen of England, List of Scottish royal consorts, Scotland and Ireland during her marriage to Charles II of England, ...

to England. Montagu was also patron of the famous diarist

Samuel Pepys Samuel Pepys (; 23 February 1633 – 26 May 1703) was an English diarist and naval administrator. He served as administrator of the Royal Navy and Member of Parliament and is most famous for the diary he kept for a decade. Pepys had no mariti ...

. There are negative comments about Creed in Pepys' Diary, but there is evidence that the two men had interests in common apart from their work for Montagu and the Royal Navy. Creed became a

in 1663 (in the early years it was not necessary for Fellows to be scientists), and it has been suggested that this may have been a factor in Pepys' interest in the Society. (Pepys was elected to a Fellowship in 1665 and later became

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Personal life

In 1668 Creed married Elizabeth Pickering, who was related to Pepys and to the Earl of Sandwich. Pepys attended the marriage which took place at

. He thought that Creed had married above his station, but "let them do what they will". The couple had eleven children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Creed, John 1701 deaths 17th-century English people Fellows of the Royal Society People from Oundle People in English Tangier Burials in Northamptonshire