The wealth of England : the medieval wool trade and its political importance, 1100-1600 / by Susan Rose.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Rose, Susan, 1938- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Wool industry--History--England--To 1500.

Wool industry.

History.

England.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

xviii, 219 pages : illustrations, maps ; 25 cm

Place of Publication:

Oxford : Oxbow Books, 2018.

Summary:

"The wool trade was undoubtedly one of the most important elements of the British economy throughout the medieval period - even the seat occupied by the speaker of the House of lords rests on a woolsack. In 'The wealth of England' Susan Rose brings together the social, economic and political strands in the development of the wool trade and show how and why it became so important. The author looks at the lives of prominent wool-men; gentry who based their wealth on producing this commodity like the Stonors in the Chilterns, canny middlemen who rose to prominence in the City of London like Nicholas Brembre and Richard (Dick) Whittington, and men who acquired wealth and influence like William de la Pole of Hull. She examines how the wealth made by these and other wool-men transformed the appearance of the leading centres of the trade with magnificent churches and other buildings. The export of wool also gave England links with Italian trading cities at the very time that the Renaissance was transforming cultural life. The complex operation of the trade is also explained with the role of the Staple at Calais to the fore leading to a discussion on the way the policy of English kings, especially in the fourteenth century, was heavily influenced by trade in this one commodity. No other book has treated this subject holistically with its influence on the course of English history made plain."--Page 4 of cover.

Contents:

Part 1 Production

1 The Good Shepherd and His Flock; the Approach to Sheep-Farming 1100-1600 3

2 Estate Accounts; Monasteries and the Production of Wool 23

Part 2 Trade

3 Producers and Traders c.1250-c.1350 47

4 The Direct Intervention of the Crown 63

5 Prices and Quantities 79

6 Merchants and Clothiers c.1400-c.1560 89

Part 3 The Crown and the Wool Trade 129

7 The Crown's Attitude to Trade 131

8 The Wool Trade and Royal Finances 135

9 The Crown and the Company of the Staple, 1399-1558 145

10 The Wool Trade's Increasing Difficulties 157

Part 4 Decline 165

11 Excessive Numbers of Sheep? 167

12 The Activities of Broggers and a 'Disorderly' Market in Wool 175

13 Did the Wool Trade Make England Rich? 181.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 205-213) and index.

ISBN:

9781785707360

1785707361

OCLC:

1003587323