Samuel Pepys was born in London in 1633. He attended Magdalene College at Cambridge University. In 1673, Pepys was appointed secretary of the admiralty by Charles II, and in that office he contributed significantly to the improvement of the British navy. Pepys became a member of parliament in 1679 and was elected president of The Royal Society in 1684.
Today, Samuel Pepys is best known for the remarkable, candid diary, which he kept from 1660 to 1669. The diary was first published in 1825 and gives a realistic picture of England during this period.
Pepys played an important role in the early development of probability because of correspondence with Isaac Newton concerning the dice question that now bears his name.
Pepys died on May 26, 1703 in London.