A SOURCE BOOK OF
LONDON HISTORY
FROM THE EARLIEST TIMES
TO 1800
EDITED BY
P. MEADOWS, M.A.
[Illustration]
LONDON
G. BELL AND SONS, LTD.
1914
PREFACE
If the study of History is to be made really valuable from either the
recreative or the educational point of view, it is necessary to have
frequent recourse to original sources and contemporary writings; they
introduce a certain quality of reality and vividness, a kind of
historical atmosphere, which is most essential to a true appreciation of
the subject. This fact is now generally recognised, and many collections
of sources are available for the student of English History. In this
volume will be found a selection of passages, generally from
contemporary sources, relating to the history of London. It is quite
impossible, of course, in a small book to do justice to every aspect of
the subject; and it has seemed best to give special prominence to those
events which concern the City as a whole, its growth, its corporate
life, and its connection with national affairs.
Besides a vast mass of general contemporary literature, a large number
of the most important and interesting documents dealing with London
history have already been printed; but all this material is very
scattered, and frequently rather inaccessible to the general reader. The
Histories by Maitland and Noorthouck, published in the eighteenth
century, contain translations of charters and other documents; Riley's
"Memorials" is invaluable for the fourteenth century; and many useful
suggestions have been derived from Besant's "Survey of London."
The spelling of the extracts has generally been modernised, but in a few
cases the original text has been exactly followed.
It is hoped that the chronological arrangement of the passages, the care
which has been taken in selecting them so as to illustrate events or
circumstances of definite importance in the history of the City, and the
introductory remarks attached to each extract, will save this volume
from being merely a collection of historical scraps, and will enable it
to be of real use to all who are interested in the story of London.
P. M.
CONTENTS
DATE PAGE
TO 1066. LONDON BEFORE THE CONQUEST 1
1066. THE CONQUEROR'S CHARTER 4
1085. LONDON ENVIRONS IN DOMESDAY 4
_c._ 1130. HENRY I.'S CHARTER 8
1141. MATILDA IN LONDON 10
_c._ 1173. A NORMAN PICTURE OF LONDON 12
1177. DISTURBANCES IN THE CITY 17
1189. ORDINANCES CONCERNING BUILDING 19
1191. THE LIBERTIES OF THE CITY CONFIRMED 22
1199. JOHN'S THIRD CHARTER 23
1202. LONDON BRIDGE 25
1249. OPPRESSION BY HENRY III. 27
1258. INTERFERENCE BY BARONS 29
1282. THE STEELYARD 31
1282. THE PRESERVATION OF PEACE AND ORDER 33
1311. THE CITIZENS AND EDWARD II. 36
1319. CONSTITUTIONS FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF THE CITY 37
1326. A REVOLT AGAINST EDWARD II. 40
1329. A PROCLAMATION OF EDWARD III. 42
1347. ARTICLES OF THE HEAUMERS AND OF THE HATTERS 44
1350. REGULATIONS CONCERNING WAGES AND PRICES 46
1364. THE CHARTER TO THE DRAPERS 49
1365. A LETTER FROM EDWARD III. 51
1374. A LEASE TO GEOFFREY CHAUCER 52
1375. THE CITY ARMS 54
1381. WAT TYLER IN LONDON 56
_c._ 1400. LONDON LICKPENNY 62
1406. WHITTINGTON'S SECOND MAYORALTY 66
1413. THE PERSECUTION OF THE LOLLARDS 68
1415. IMPRISONMENT FOR REFUSING OFFICE 70
1419. OATHS OF THE MAYOR AND ALDERMEN 72
1450. JACK CADE IN LONDON 74
1464. THE MAYOR'S DIGNITY 78
1485. REGULATIONS CONCERNING STRANGERS 79
1510. THE MARCHING WATCH 82
1514. DESTRUCTION OF FENCES 84
1517. MORE'S DESCRIPTION OF LONDON 85
1517. EVIL MAY DAY 88
1519. THE PAPAL LEGATE IN THE CITY 91
1525. WOLSEY AND THE CITIZENS 93
1527. THE APPRENTICES 95
1533. A WATER PAGEANT 98
1549. LATIMER'S EXHORTATION TO LONDON 100
1553. MARY'S SPEECH TO THE CITIZENS 102
1554. SORANZO'S REPORT ON LONDON 105
1566. THE ROYAL EXCHANGE 106
1575. A LORD MAYOR'S SHOW 107
1587. LONDON AND THE ARMADA 110
1592. THE CITY'S ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE STAGE 111
1593. A PLAGUE ORDER 115
1598. LONDON SCHOOLS 121
1600. A GERMAN VIEW OF LONDON 123
1609. LONDON AND ULSTER 125
1626. THE DEMANDS OF CHARLES I. 129
1629. THE KEEPING OF THE SABBATH 131
1640. THE CITY'S PETITION TO CHARLES I. 132
1642. LONDON UNDER THE EARLY STUARTS 134
1643. A PROCLAMATION AGAINST THE CITY 136
1653. CROMWELL IN LONDON 138
1660. LONDON AND THE RESTORATION 140
1661. STATE OF LONDON BEFORE THE PLAGUE 144
1665. THE PLAGUE 146
1666. THE FIRE 148
1666. A PROCLAMATION OF CHARLES II. 156
1667. EVELYN'S PLANS FOR REBUILDING 159
1671. AN ACT CONCERNING THE STREETS 162
1679. A LORD MAYOR'S PROCLAMATION 164
1681. THE POPISH PANIC 169
1681. POSTAL ARRANGEMENTS 169
1688. LONDON AFTER JAMES II.'S ABDICATION 172
1689. A LORD MAYOR'S DAY 174
1716. GAY'S "TRIVIA" 177
1720. THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE 179
1725. DEFOE'S DESCRIPTION OF LONDON 181
1733. A PETITION AGAINST THE EXCISE BILL 183
1741. THE LONDON STREETS 185
1743. THE LOYALTY OF THE LONDON MERCHANTS 187
1780. THE GORDON RIOTS 188
1791. LONDON'S TRADE 191
HISTORY OF LONDON
LONDON BEFORE THE CONQUEST.
References to London in the early chronicles are comparatively few;
under Roman rule it took the place for which it was fitted by its
geographical situation—a commercial port, and it flourished or decayed
as trade prospered or declined. The Saxon invaders did not care for
walled towns, and London was neglected; moreover, they did not care for
commerce, and there was no need for a commercial centre or port. The
unsettled condition of the country made it impossible for the city to
prosper, and the invasions of the Danes further interfered with its
growth. But in spite of all these drawbacks, London was definitely
marked out from the first as the best and most convenient centre for
trading and commercial activity; and Alfred fully realised the
importance of the city not only for purposes of trade, but as a bulwark
of national defence.
The following are the most important passages in the Anglo-Saxon
Chronicle relating to London. Its importance as a military station
appears to have been very great in the time of Cnut, to judge by the
efforts he made to capture the town; and the proportion of tribute paid
in 1018 seems to show that the population and wealth of the city must
have been very considerable.
=Source.=—_The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle._
AN. 457. Hengist and Æsc his son fought against the Britons at the place
called Cregan Ford, and there slew four thousand men; and the Britons
then forsook Kent and in great terror fled to London.
AN. 886. In this year the army again went west, which had before landed
in the east, and then up the Seine, and there took winter-quarters at
the city of Paris. In the same year king Ælfred restored London; and all
the Angle-race turned to him that were not in the bondage of the Danish
men; and he then committed the burgh to the keeping of the aldorman
Æthered.
AN. 894.... Then those who dwell with the Northumbrians and with the
East Angles gathered some hundred ships, and went south about, and
besieged a work in Devonshire by the north sea; and those who went south
about besieged Exeter. When the King heard that, he turned west towards
Exeter with all the force, save a very powerful body of the people
eastwards. These went on until they came to London, and then, with the
townsmen and with the aid which came to them from the west, marched east
to Benfleet. Hæsten was then come there with his army, which had
previously sat at Middleton (Milton); and the great army also was come
thereto, which had before sat at the mouth of the Limen, at Appledore.
Hæsten had before wrought the work at Benfleet, and was then gone out
harrying, and the great army was at home. They then marched up and put
the army to flight, and stormed the work, and took all that there was
within, as well money, as women and children, and brought all to London;
and all the ships they either broke in pieces, or burned, or brought to
London, or to Rochester.
AN. 994. In this year came Olaf (Anlaf) and Svein to London, on the
Nativity of St. Mary (Sept. 8th), with ninetyfour ships, and they were
obstinately fighting against the town, and would also have set it on
fire. But they there sustained more harm and evil than they ever weened
that any townsmen could do to them. For the holy mother of God, on that
day, manifested her mercy to the townsmen, and delivered them from their
foes.
AN. 1016.... And the ætheling Eadmund went to London to his father. And
then, after Easter, King Cnut went with all his ships towards London.
Then it befell that King Æthelred died before the ships came. He ended
his days on St. George's mass day (April 23rd): and he held his kingdom
with great toil and difficulty, while his life lasted. And then, after
his end, all the "witan" that were in London, and the townsmen, chose
Eadmund for King; and he boldly defended his kingdom while his time was.
Then came the ships to Greenwich in the Rogation days (May 7th); and
within a little space they went to London, and they then dug a great
ditch on the south side, and dragged their ships to the west side of the
bridge, and afterwards ditched the town without, so that no one could
pass either in or out; and they repeatedly fought against the town, but
they boldly withstood them. Then before that, King Eadmund had gone out;
and he rode over Wessex, and all the folk submitted to him. And shortly
after that, he fought against the army at Pen by Gillingham. And a
second battle he fought after Midsummer at Sherston (Sceorstân), and
there was great slaughter made on each side, and the armies of
themselves separated. In that battle the aldorman Eadric and Ælmær
Dyrling gave aid to the army against king Eadmund. And then a third time
he gathered a force and went to London, all north of the Thames, and so
out through Clayhanger, and saved the townsmen, and drove the army in
flight to their ships. And then, two nights after, the king went over at
Brentford, and then fought against the army, and put it to flight; and
there were drowned a great many of the English folk, by their own
carelessness, those who went before the force, and would take booty. And
after that, the king went into Wessex, and collected his force. Then the
army went forthwith to London, and beset the city around, and
obstinately fought against it, both by water and by land. And Almighty
God saved it.
AN. 1018. In this year the tribute was paid over all the Angle-race:
that was in all two and seventy thousand pounds, exclusive of what the
townsmen of London paid, which was ten and a half thousand pounds.
THE CONQUEROR'S CHARTER (1066).
William of Normandy might be able, by force of arms, to make himself
master of England, but not until London opened her gates to him could he
be really King. He preferred negotiation to attack, and in return for
the support of the citizens he promised to abide by the laws of Edward
the Confessor, and maintain the rights of the City. Shortly after his
coronation he gave the citizens his famous Charter, the first of a long
series of charters; in it are conveyed in the fewest possible words the
largest possible rights and privileges. The Charter, which is really a
compact between the King and the citizens rather than a grant from the
former to the latter, indicates three all-important points with the
greatest clearness and precision. They are, first, the rights of a
freeman, as understood at the time, and according to the English
customs, were to be secured to every man; second, every man was to have
the right of inheritance; and third, no one was to stand between the
City and the King.
William the King friendly salutes William the Bishop, and Godfrey
the portreve, and all the burgesses within London, both French and
English. And I declare, that I grant you to be all law-worthy, as
you were in the days of King Edward; and I grant that every child
shall be his father's heir, after his father's days; and I will not
suffer any person to do you wrong. God keep you.
LONDON ENVIRONS IN DOMESDAY (1085).
In 1085 William the Conqueror, according to the Chronicle, "sent over
all England into every shire his men, and let them inquire how many
hundred hides were in each shire, and what land and cattle the King
himself had in the shire, and what rent he ought to receive yearly in
each. He let them also inquire how much land his archbishops had, and
his other bishops and his abbots, and how much every man had who held
land within the kingdom, as well on land as on cattle, and how much each
was worth."
This Domesday Survey did not include the City of London, but the suburbs
are described as in Middlesex. The most striking fact with regard to
these suburbs is that nearly the whole of the land immediately bordering
the City was in the hands of the Church; all round London was a broad
belt of ecclesiastical manors, and this fact interfered considerably
with the extension of the City. The privileges of London citizens were
confined rigidly to the town within the walls; we notice that at the
time of Domesday Book the adjacent country was very sparsely inhabited,
and the expansion of the residential area outside the City boundaries
was a slow process, often hindered by the ecclesiastical authorities.
_Stepney._—In Osuluestan (Ossulston) hundred, the Bishop of London
holds Stibenhede (Stepney) for thirty-two hides. There is land to
twenty-five ploughs. Fourteen hides belong to the demesne, and there
are three ploughs there; and twenty-two ploughs of the villanes.
There are forty-four villanes of one virgate each; and seven
villanes of half a hide each; and nine villanes of half a virgate
each; and forty-six cottagers of one hide; they pay thirty shillings
a year. There are four mills of four pounds and sixteen shillings
save fourpence. Meadow sufficient for twenty-five ploughs. Pasture
for the cattle of the village, and fifteen shillings. Pannage for
five hundred hogs and forty shillings. Its whole value is
forty-eight pounds; and it was worth the same when received; in King
Edward's time fifty pounds. This manor was and is part of the see.
_Fulham._—In Fvleham (Fulham) the Bishop of London holds forty
hides. There is land to forty ploughs. Thirteen hides belong to the
demesne, and there are four ploughs there. Among the freemen (franc)
and the villanes are twenty-six ploughs; and ten more might be made.
There are five villanes of one hide each; and thirteen villanes of
one virgate each; and thirty-four villanes of half a virgate each;
and twenty-two cottagers of half a hide; and eight cottagers with
their own gardens. Foreigners and certain burgesses of London hold
amongst them twenty-three hides of the land of the villanes.
Thirty-one villanes and bordars dwell under them. Meadows for forty
ploughs. Pasture for the cattle of the village. For half the stream
ten shillings. Pannage for one thousand hogs, and seventeen pence.
Its whole value is forty pounds; the like when received; in King
Edward's time fifty pounds. This manor was and is part of the see.
_St. Pancras._—The canons of St. Paul hold four hides to Sem
Pancratium (St. Pancras). There is land to two ploughs. The villanes
have one plough, and another plough may be made. Wood for the
hedges. Pasture for the cattle, and twenty pence. There are four
villanes who hold this land under the canons, and seven cottagers.
Its whole value is forty shillings; the same when received; in King
Edward's time sixty shillings. This manor was and is in the demesne
of St. Paul.
_Islington._—In Isendone (Islington) the canons of St. Paul have two
hides. Land to one plough and a half. There is one plough there, and
a half may be made. There are three villanes of one virgate. Pasture
for the cattle of the village. This land is and was worth forty
shillings. This laid and lies in the demesne of the church of St.
Paul.
In the same village the canons themselves have two hides of land.
There is land there to two ploughs and a half, and they are there
now. There are four villanes who hold this land under the canons;
and four bordars and thirteen cottagers. This land is worth thirty
shillings; the same when received; in King Edward's time forty
shillings. This laid and lies in the demesne of the church of St.
Paul.
_Hoxton._—In Hochestone (Hoxton) the canons of St. Paul have one
hide. Land to one plough, and it is now there; and three villanes
hold this land under the canons. Pasture for the cattle. This land
was and is worth twenty shillings. This laid and lies in the demesne
of the church of St. Paul.
_Manor._—The canons hold Hochestone (Hoxton) for three hides. There
is land to three ploughs, and they are there; and seven villanes who
hold this land; and sixteen cottagers. It is worth in the whole
fifty-five shillings; the same when received; in King Edward's time
sixty shillings. This manor belonged and belongs to the church of
St. Paul.
_Westminster._—In the village where the church of St. Peter is
situate, the abbot of the same place holds thirteen hides and a
half. There is land to eleven ploughs. Nine hides and one virgate
belong to the demesne, and there are four ploughs therein. The
villanes have six ploughs, and one plough more may be made. There
are nine villanes of one virgate each; one villane of one hide; and
nine villanes of half a virgate each; and one cottager of five
acres; and forty-one cottagers who pay forty shillings a year for
their gardens. Meadow for eleven ploughs. Pasture for the cattle of
the village. Pannage for one hundred hogs. And twenty-five houses of
the knights of the abbot and of other vassals, who pay eight
shillings a year. Its whole value is ten pounds; the same when
received; in King Edward's time twelve pounds. This manor was and is
in the demesne of the church of St. Peter, of Westminster.
_Hampstead._—The Abbot of St. Peter holds Hamestede (Hampstead) for
four hides. Land to three ploughs. Three hides and a half belong to
the demesne, and there is one plough therein. The villanes have one
plough, and another may be made. There is one villane of one
virgate; and five bordars of one virgate; and one bondman. Pannage
for one hundred hogs. In the whole it is worth fifty shillings; the
same when received; in King Edward's time one hundred shillings.
In the same village Rannulf Pevrel holds under the abbot one hide of
the land of the villanes. Land to half a plough, and it is there.
This land was and is worth five shillings. This manor altogether
laid and lies in the demesne of the church of St. Peter.
_Tyburn._—The abbess of Berking holds Tiburne (Tyburn) of the King;
it answered for five hides. Land to three ploughs. There are two
hides in the demesne, and there is one plough therein. The villanes
have two ploughs. There are two villanes of half a hide; and one
villane of half a virgate; and two bordars of ten acres; and three
cottagers. Pasture for the cattle of the village. Pannage for fifty
hogs. For herbage forty pence. It is worth in the whole fifty-two
shillings; the same when received; in King Edward's time one hundred
shillings. This manor always belonged and belongs to the church of
Berking.
THE CHARTER OF HENRY I. (_circa_ 1130).
In William I.'s Charter the laws and customs of Edward the Confessor
were confirmed. This was perhaps all that the citizens wanted at the
time, but after a lapse of sixty years they desired a more explicit
definition of their laws and liberties, and obtained it from Henry I. In
his Charter the rights conferred by the Conqueror are not
recited—probably they were taken as a matter of course—but for the rest,
the citizens obtained all that they could reasonably ask or obtain by
purchase. In one respect only was their freedom limited: the King
reserved to himself the right of taxation, and in a medieval kingdom
this was only to be expected. The City was encouraged to grow strong and
wealthy, and the King might take its money freely for himself.
Among the more important points of this Charter may be noted the freedom
of toll to assist the development of trade; the permission to refuse
lodging to the King's household; the right of the citizens to appoint
their own Justiciar; and the grant that they should not plead without
the City walls, obviating the necessity of following the King's Court in
its travels. Altogether, this is a most important Charter, both on
account of the privileges it grants, and the light it throws on the
government of the City.
Henry, by the grace of God, King of England, to the archbishop of
Canterbury, and to the bishops and abbots, earls and barons,
justices and sheriffs, and to all his faithful subjects of England,
French and English, greeting.
Know ye that I have granted to my citizens of London, to hold
Middlesex to farm for three hundred pounds, upon accompt to them and
their heirs; so that the said citizens shall place as sheriff whom
they will of themselves; and shall place whomsoever, or such a one
as they will of themselves, for keeping of the pleas of the crown,
and of the pleadings of the same, and none other shall be justice
over the same men of London; and the citizens of London shall not
plead without the walls of London for any plea. And be they free
from scot and lot and danegeld, and of all murder; and none of them
shall wage battle. And if any one of the citizens shall be impleaded
concerning the pleas of the crown, the man of London shall discharge
himself by his oath, which shall be adjudged within the city; and
none shall lodge within the walls, neither of my household, nor any
other, nor lodging delivered by force.
And all the men of London shall be quit and free, and all their
goods, throughout England, and the ports of the sea, of and from all
toll and passage and lestage, and all other customs; and the
churches and barons and citizens shall and may peaceably and quietly
have and hold their sokes with all their customs, so that the
strangers that shall be lodged in the sokes shall give custom to
none but to him to whom the soke appertains, or to his officer, whom
he shall there put: And a man of London shall not be adjudged in
amerciaments of money but of one hundred shillings (I speak of the
pleas which appertain to money); and further there shall be no more
miskenning in the hustings, nor in the folkmote, nor in any other
pleas within the city, and the hustings may sit once in a week, that
is to say on Monday: And I will cause my citizens to have their
lands, promises, bonds and debts, within the city and without; and I
will do them right by the law of the city, of the lands of which
they shall complain to me:
And if any shall take toll or custom of any citizen of London, the
citizens of London in the city shall take of the borough or town,
where toll or custom was so taken, so much as the man of London gave
for toll, and as he received damage thereby: And all debtors, which
do owe debts to the citizens of London, shall pay them in London, or
else discharge themselves in London, that they owe none; but, if
they will not pay the same, neither come to clear themselves that
they owe none, the citizens of London, to whom the debts shall be
due, may take their goods in the city of London, of the borough or
town, or of the country wherein he remains who shall owe the debt:
And the citizens of London may have their chaces to hunt, as well
and fully as their ancestors have had, that is to say, in Chiltre,
and in Middlesex and Surrey.
Witness the bishop of Winchester, and Robert son of
Richier, and Hugh Bygot, and Alured of Toteneys,
and William of Alba-spina, and Hubert the king's
Chamberlain, and William de Montfichet, and
Hangulf de Taney, and John Bellet, and Robert
son of Siward. At Westminster.
MATILDA IN LONDON (1141).
The power and influence of the City are well illustrated by the part
which it took in the struggles between Stephen and Matilda for the
throne of England. The Londoners at first supported Stephen; but the
party of the Empress Matilda proved to be the stronger, and for some
time everything appeared to be in her favour. But she ruined her cause
by her foolish behaviour towards the Londoners. She gave grants to a
feudal nobleman, Geoffrey de Mandeville, which practically placed the
City at his mercy, and she made unreasonable demands for subsidies from
the citizens, besides treating them in a very contemptuous fashion.
Finally, when they asked for a renewal of the laws of Edward the
Confessor, she refused, and the citizens rose in revolt and compelled
Matilda to withdraw from the City. The opposition of the Londoners at
that particular time completely altered the aspect of affairs, and
Stephen was shortly afterwards restored to the throne.
=Source.=—_Gesta Stephani._
Having now obtained the submission of the greatest part of the
kingdom, taken hostages and received homage, and being, as I have
just said, elated to the highest pitch of arrogance, she came with
vast military display to London, at the humble request of the
citizens. They fancied that they had now arrived at happy days, when
peace and tranquillity would prevail.... She, however, sent for some
of the more wealthy, and demanded of them, not with gentle courtesy,
but in an imperious tone, an immense sum of money. Upon this they
made complaints that their former wealth had been diminished by the
troubled state of the kingdom, that they had liberally contributed
to the relief of the indigent against the severe famine which was
impending, and that they had subsidised the King to their last
farthing: they therefore humbly implored her clemency that in pity
for their losses and distresses she would show some moderation in
levying money from them.... When the citizens had addressed her in
this manner, she, without any of the gentleness of her sex, broke
out into insufferable rage, while she replied to them with a stern
eye and frowning brow "that the Londoners had often paid large sums
to the King; that they had opened their purse-strings wide to
strengthen him and weaken her; that they had been long in
confederacy with her enemies for her injury; and that they had no
claim to be spared, and to have the smallest part of the fine
remitted." On hearing this, the citizens departed to their homes,
sorrowful and unsatisfied.
A NORMAN PICTURE OF LONDON (_circa_ 1173).
William Fitz-Stephen was a native of London, and lived there much of his
life. This description of his birthplace is prefixed to his "Life of
Thomas Becket," perhaps because he did not wish Canterbury to eclipse
London in his narrative. This account of the capital city is clearly a
fanciful picture, containing much exaggeration; but apart from its
quaintness, it is interesting as showing how a medieval writer treated a
subject which would now be discussed precisely and minutely, with
accurate details and statistics.
=Source.=—William Fitz-Stephen's _Descriptio Nobilissimæ Civitatis
Londonæ_.
_Of the Site Thereof._
Among the noble cities of the world that Fame celebrates the City of
London, of the Kingdom of the English, is the one seat that pours
out its fame more widely, sends to farther lands its wealth and
trade, lifts its head higher than the rest. It is happy in the
healthiness of its air, in the Christian religion, in the strength
of its defences, the nature of its site, the honour of its citizens,
the modesty of its matrons; pleasant in sports; fruitful of noble
men. Let us look into these things separately....
_Of Religion._
There is in the church there the Episcopal Seat of St. Paul; once it
was Metropolitan, and it is thought will again become so if the
citizens return into the island, unless perhaps the archiepiscopal
title of St. Thomas the Martyr, and his bodily presence, preserve to
Canterbury, where it is now, a perpetual dignity. But as Saint
Thomas has made both cities illustrious, London by his rising,
Canterbury by his setting, in regard of that saint, with admitted
justice, each can claim advantage of the other. There are also, as
regards the cultivation of the Christian faith, in London and the
suburbs, thirteen larger conventual churches, besides lesser parish
churches one hundred and twenty-six.
_Of the Strength of the City._
It has on the east the Palatine Castle, very great and strong, of
which the ground plan and the walls rise from a very deep
foundation, fixed with a mortar tempered by the blood of animals. On
the west are two towers very strongly fortified, with the high and
great wall of the city having seven double gates, and towered to the
north at intervals. London was walled and towered in like manner on
the south, but the great fish-bearing Thames river which there
glides, with ebb and flow from the sea, by course of time has washed
against, loosened, and thrown down those walls. Also upwards to the
west the royal palace is conspicuous above the same river, an
incomparable building with ramparts and bulwarks, two miles from the
city, joined to it by a populous suburb.
_Of Gardens._
Everywhere outside the houses of those living in the suburbs are
joined to them, planted with trees, the spacious and beautiful
gardens of the citizens.
_Of Pasture and Tilth._
Also there are, on the north side, pastures and a pleasant
meadowland, through which flow river streams, where the turning
wheels of mills are put in motion with a cheerful sound. Very near
lies a great forest, with woodland pastures, coverts of wild
animals, stags, fallow deer, boars, and wild bulls. The tilled lands
of the city are not of barren gravel but fat plains of Asia, that
make crops luxuriant, and fill their tillers' barns with Ceres'
sheaves.
_Of Springs._
There are also about London, on the north side, excellent suburban
springs, with sweet, wholesome, and clear water that flows rippling
over the bright stones; among which Holy Well, Clerken Well, and
Saint Clements are frequented by greater numbers, and visited more
by scholars and youth of the city when they go out for fresh air on
summer evenings. It is a good city indeed when it has a good master.
_Of Honour of the Citizens._
That City is honoured by her men, adorned by her arms, populous with
many inhabitants, so that in the time of slaughter of war under King
Stephen, of those going out to muster twenty thousand horsemen and
sixty thousand men on foot were estimated to be fit for war. Above
all other citizens, everywhere, the citizens of London are regarded
as conspicuous and noteworthy for handsomeness of manners and of
dress, at table, and in way of speaking....
_Of Schools._
In London three principal churches have by privilege and ancient
dignity famous schools; yet very often by support of some personage,
or of some teachers who are considered notable and famous in
philosophy, there are also other schools by favour or permission. On
feast days the masters have festival meetings in the churches. Their
scholars dispute, some by demonstration, others by dialectics; some
recite enthymemes, others do better in using perfect syllogisms.
Some are exercised in disputation for display, as wrestling with
opponents; others for truth, which is the grace of perfectness.
Sophists who feign are judged happy in their heap and flood of
words. Others paralogise. Some orators, now and then, say in their
rhetorical speeches something apt for persuasion, careful to observe
rules of their art, and to omit none of the contingents. Boys of
different schools strive against one another in verses, and contend
about the principles of grammar and rules of the past and future
tenses....
_Of the Ordering of the City._
Those engaged in the several kinds of business, sellers of several
things, contractors for several kinds of work, are distributed every
morning into their several localities and shops. Besides, there is
in London on the river bank, among the wines in ships and cellars
sold by the vintners, a public cook shop; there eatables are to be
found every day, according to the season, dishes of meat, roast,
fried and boiled, great and small fish, coarser meats for the poor,
more delicate for the rich, of game, fowls, and small birds. If
there should come suddenly to any of the citizens friends, weary
from a journey and too hungry to like waiting till fresh food is
brought and cooked, with water to their hands comes bread, while one
runs to the river bank, and there is all that can be wanted. However
great the multitude of soldiers or travellers entering the city, or
preparing to go out of it, at any hour of the day or night,—that
these may not fast too long and those may not go supperless,—they
turn hither, if they please, where every man can refresh himself in
his own way.... Outside one of the gates there, immediately in the
suburb, is a certain field, smooth (Smith) field in fact and name.
Every Friday, unless it be a higher day of appointed solemnity,
there is in it a famous show of noble horses for sale. Earls,
barons, knights, and many citizens who are in town, come to see or
buy.... In another part of the field stand by themselves the goods
proper to rustics, implements of husbandry, swine with long flanks,
cows with full udders, oxen of bulk immense, and woolly flocks....
To this city from every nation under heaven merchants delight to
bring their trade by sea.... This city ... is divided into wards,
has annual sheriffs for its consuls, has senatorial and lower
magistrates, sewers and aqueducts in its streets, its proper places
and separate courts for cases of each kind, deliberative,
demonstrative, judicial; has assemblies on appointed days. I do not
think there is a city with more commendable customs of church
attendance, honour to God's ordinances, keeping sacred festivals,
almsgiving, hospitality, confirming, betrothals, contracting
marriages, celebration of nuptials, preparing feasts, cheering the
guests, and also in care for funerals and the interment of the dead.
The only pests of London are the immoderate drinking of fools and
the frequency of fires. To this may be added that nearly all the
bishops, abbots, and magnates of England are, as it were, citizens
and freemen of London; having there their own splendid houses, to
which they resort, where they spend largely when summoned to great
councils by the king or by their metropolitan, or drawn thither by
their own private affairs.
_Of Sports._
Let us now come to the sports and pastimes, seeing it is fit that a
city should not only be commodious and serious, but also merry and
sportful; ... but London ... hath holy plays, representations of
miracles which holy confessors have wrought, or representations of
torments wherein the constancy of martyrs appeared. Every year also
at Shrove Tuesday, that we may begin with children's sports, seeing
we all have been children, the schoolboys do bring cocks of the game
to their master, and all the forenoon they delight themselves in
cock-fighting: after dinner, all the youths go into the field to
play at the ball.
The scholars of every school have their ball, or baton, in their
hands; the ancient and wealthy men of the city come forth on
horseback to see the sport of the young men, and to take part of the
pleasure in beholding their agility. Every Friday in Lent a fresh
company of young men comes into the field on horseback, and the best
horseman conducteth the rest. Then march forth the citizen's sons,
and other young men, with disarmed lances and shields, and there
they practise feats of war. Many courtiers likewise, when the king
lieth near, and attendants of noblemen, do repair to these
exercises; and while the hope of victory doth inflame their minds,
do show good proof how serviceable they would be in martial affairs.
In Easter holidays they fight battles on the water; a shield is hung
upon a pole, fixed in the midst of a stream, a boat is prepared
without oars, to be carried by violence of the water, and in the
fore part thereof standeth a young man, ready to give charge upon
the shield with his lance; if so be he breaketh his lance against
the shield, and doth not fall, he is thought to have performed a
worthy deed; if so be, without breaking his lance, he runneth
strongly against the shield, down he falleth into the water, for the
boat is violently forced with the tide; but on each side of the
shield ride two boats, furnished with young men, which recover him
that falleth as soon as they may. Upon the bridge, wharfs, and
houses, by the river's side, stand great numbers to see and laugh
thereat.
In the holidays all the summer the youths are exercised in leaping,
dancing, shooting, wrestling, casting the stone, and practising
their shields; the maidens trip in their timbrels, and dance as long
as they can well see. In winter, every holiday before dinner, the
boars prepared for brawn are set to fight, or else bulls and bears
are baited.
When the great fen, or moor, which watereth the walls of the city on
the north side, is frozen, many young men play upon the ice; some,
striding as wide as they may, do slide swiftly; others make
themselves seats of ice, as great as millstones; one sits down, many
hand in hand to draw him, and one slipping on a sudden, all fall
together; some tie bones to their feet and under their heels; and
shoving themselves by a little picked staff, do slide as swiftly as
a bird flieth in the air, or an arrow out of a crossbow. Sometime
two run together with poles, and hitting on the other, either one or
both do fall, not without hurt; some break their arms, some their
legs, but youth desirous of glory in this sort exerciseth itself
against the time of war. Many of the citizens do delight themselves
in hawks and hounds; for they have liberty of hunting in Middlesex,
Hertfordshire, all Chiltern, and in Kent to the water of Cray.
DISTURBANCES IN THE CITY (1177).
The following story is not altogether free from suspicion, but it was
probably inspired by accounts of the depredations of the young bloods of
the City. Nocturnal disturbances were by no means unknown as late as the
eighteenth century, and the Mohocks were following a tradition which was
as old as the City itself.
=Source.=—Translated from _Benedict of Peterborough_, vol. i., p. 155.
During this council the brother of earl Ferrers was slain by night
in London. When the King heard this he was greatly distressed, and
swore that he would take vengeance on the citizens of London. For it
was the custom then in London for a hundred or more of the sons and
relations of the citizens to make nocturnal assaults on the houses
of the rich, and rob them; and if they found anybody wandering about
the streets they would kill him without pity; so that very few dared
to walk through the city at night for fear of them. Three years
before this the sons of the "nobility" of London assembled by night
for purposes of robbery, and attacked the house of a certain rich
citizen; having broken down the wall with iron bars they entered
through the aperture thus made. But the occupier of the house had
been forewarned of their arrival; he donned a coat of mail and
collected several trusty armed servants, with whom he waited in a
corner of the house. Soon he saw one of the robbers, named Andrew
Bucquinte, who was eagerly leading the rest; he hurled at him a pan
full of hot coals and rushed on him fiercely. When Richard Bucquinte
saw this, he drew his dagger and struck the citizen, but he received
no injury because of his coat of mail; he drew his sword and cut off
the right hand of Richard Bucquinte. Then he raised a cry, "Thieves,
thieves!" and on hearing it all the robbers fled except the one who
had lost his hand, and the citizen captured him. Next day he was
brought before Richard de Lucy, the King's justiciar, and was
imprisoned. This thief, being promised pardon, informed against his
companions, many of whom were taken, although many escaped. Among
those who were taken was a certain John, an old man, the noblest and
wealthiest of the citizens of London. He offered five hundred marks
of silver to the King in return for his life, but the King would not
take the fine, and ordered justice to be carried out, so he was
hanged.
ORDINANCES CONCERNING BUILDING
(1189, 1212).
The documents quoted below give good evidence of the style in which the
better class of houses was built during the twelfth and thirteenth
centuries. The greater part of the city was built of wood, the houses
being roofed with straw, reeds, and similar materials. The frequent
fires which took place owing to this manner of building, especially the
great fire of 1135 which destroyed a great part of the City, compelled
the citizens to take some precautions against the recurrence of such a
calamity. Stone was used to a larger extent, and various privileges were
conceded to those who used stone in the construction of their houses.
This material was made compulsory in the party-walls, but the rest of
the buildings might be made of anything, and was usually constructed of
wood. The regulations of 1189 did not produce any great or immediate
effect on the style of building, and a further ordinance was issued in
1212, after a disastrous fire had destroyed London Bridge and a large
number of houses.
=Source.=—The London Assizes of 1189 and 1212, quoted in Hudson
Turner's _History of Domestic Architecture_.
(_a_) In the year of the Lord 1189, in the first year of the reign
of the illustrious King Richard, in the mayoralty of Henry
Fitz-Aylwin, who was the first Mayor of London, these provisions and
ordinances were made by the wise men of the City, for appeasing the
contentions which sometimes arise among neighbours touching
boundaries made or to be made between their lands, so that such
disputes might be settled according to that which was then provided
and ordained. And the said provision and ordinance was called an
Assize.
When two neighbours shall have agreed to build between themselves a
wall of stone, each shall give a foot and a half of land, and so
they shall construct, at their joint cost, a stone wall three feet
thick and sixteen feet in height. And, if they agree, they shall
make a gutter between them, to carry off the water from their
houses, as they may deem most convenient. But if they should not
agree, either of them may make a gutter to carry the water dripping
from his house on to his own land, except he can convey it into the
high street.
They may also, if they agree, raise the said wall as high as they
please, at their joint expense; and if it shall happen that one
shall wish to raise the wall, and the other not, it shall be lawful
for him who is willing, to raise his own part as much as he please,
and build upon it, without damage of the other, at his own cost.
And if any one shall build his own stone wall, upon his own land, of
the height of sixteen feet, his neighbour ought to make a gutter
under the eaves of the house which is placed on that wall, and
receive in it the water falling from that house, and lead it on to
his own land, unless he can lead it into the high street.
Also, no one of two parties having a common wall built between them,
can, or ought, to pull down any portion of his part of the said
wall, or lessen its thickness, or make arches in it, without the
assent and will of the other.
And if any one shall have windows looking towards the land of a
neighbour, and although he and his predecessors have long been
possessed of the view of the aforesaid windows, nevertheless his
neighbour may lawfully obstruct the view of those windows, by
building opposite to them on his own ground, as he shall consider
most expedient; except he who hath the windows can shew any writing
whereby his neighbour may not obstruct the view of those windows.
Let it be borne in mind that in former times a great part of the
city was built of wood, and the houses were roofed with straw, reeds
and such things; so that when any house caught fire, a great part of
the city was destroyed by that fire; as happened in the first year
of the reign of King Stephen. For it is written in the chronicles
that in a fire which began at London Bridge, St. Paul's Church was
burnt down, and the fire proceeded thence, burning all the houses
and buildings as far as St. Clement Danes. Therefore many citizens,
to avoid such danger, built according to their means, on their
ground, a stone house covered and protected by thick tiles against
the fury of fire, whereby it often happened that when a fire arose
in the city and burnt many edifices, and had reached such a house,
not being able to injure it, it became there extinguished, so that
many neighbours' houses were wholly saved from fire by that house.
(_b_) A decree made by the counsel of the citizens, for the setting
into order of the city and to provide, by God's help, against fire.
First, they advise that all ale-houses be forbidden, except those
which shall be licensed by the common council of the city at
Guildhall, excepting those belonging to persons willing to build of
stone, that the city may be secure. And that no baker bake, or
ale-wife brew, by night, either with reeds or straw or stubble, but
with wood only.
They advise also that all the cook-shops on the Thames be
whitewashed and plastered within and without, and that all inner
chambers and hostelries be wholly removed, so that there remain only
the house (hall) and bed-room.
Whosoever wishes to build, let him take care, as he loveth himself
and his goods, that he roof not with reed, nor rush, nor with any
manner of litter, but with tile only, or shingle, or boards, or, if
it may be, with lead, within the city and Portsoken. Also all houses
which till now are covered with reed or rush, which can be
plastered, let them be plastered within eight days, and let those
which shall not be so plastered within the term be demolished by the
aldermen and lawful men of the venue.
All wooden houses which are nearest to the stone houses in Cheap,
whereby the stone houses in Cheap may be in peril, shall be securely
amended by view of the mayor and sheriffs, and good men of the city,
or, without any exception, to whomsoever they may belong, pulled
down.
The watches, and they who watch by night for the custody of the city
shall go out by day and return by day, or they by whom they may have
been sent forth shall be fined forty shillings by the city. And let
old houses in which brewing or baking is done be whitewashed and
plastered within and without, that they may be safe against fire.
Let all the aldermen have a proper hook and cord, and let him who
shall not have one within the appointed term be amerced by the city.
Foreign workmen who come into the city, and refuse to obey the
aforesaid decree, shall be arrested until brought before the mayor
and good men to hear their judgment. They say also that it is only
proper that before every house there should be a tub full of water,
either of wood or stone.
THE LIBERTIES OF THE CITY CONFIRMED
(1191).
When Richard I. set out on his crusade, he left the government of
England in the hands of William Longchamp, as Chancellor. This man made
himself most unpopular by his tyrannical acts, and John, the King's
brother, for purposes of his own, joined the malcontents. Longchamp
attempted to gain the support of London, and at a meeting of citizens in
the Guildhall he denounced John as aiming at the crown, and prayed them
to uphold the King. The citizens, however, received John with welcome,
and he was given to understand that he would receive the support of the
City on certain terms, to which, of course, he agreed. This "commune,"
which was granted by John and the barons, was the first public
recognition of the citizens of London as a body corporate.
=Source.=—Translated from _Benedict of Peterborough_,
vol. ii., p. 213.