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Meadows - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Source Book of London History - From the earliest times to 1800 - -Author: P. Meadows - -Release Date: February 11, 2016 [EBook #51175] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK SOURCE BOOK OF LONDON HISTORY *** - - - - -Produced by Richard Tonsing, The Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - - - - - - -</pre> - - -<div class='tnotes covernote'> - -<p class='c000'> <strong>Transcriber's Note:</strong></p> - -<p class='c000'> The cover image was created by the transcriber and is placed in the public domain.</p> - -</div> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_iii'>iii</span> - <h1 class='c001'>A SOURCE BOOK OF<br />LONDON HISTORY<br /> <br /><span class='large'>FROM THE EARLIEST TIMES<br />TO 1800</span></h1> -</div> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c002'> - <div><span class='small'>EDITED BY</span></div> - <div class='c003'>P. MEADOWS, M.A.</div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i003.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -</div> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c002'> - <div>LONDON</div> - <div>G. BELL AND SONS, LTD.</div> - <div>1914</div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_v'>v</span> - <h2 class='c004'>PREFACE</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>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.</p> - -<p class='c000'>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."</p> - -<p class='c000'>The spelling of the extracts has generally been modernised, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_vi'>vi</span>but in a few cases the original text has been exactly -followed.</p> - -<p class='c000'>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> - -<div class='lg-container-r'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>P. M.</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_vii'>vii</span> - <h2 class='c004'>CONTENTS</h2> -</div> - -<table class='table0' summary='CONTENTS'> - <tr> - <th class='c006'>DATE</th> - <th class='c007'> </th> - <th class='c008'>PAGE</th> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'><span class='sc'>To</span> 1066.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>London before the Conquest</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_1'>1</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1066.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Conqueror's Charter</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_4'>4</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1085.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>London Environs in Domesday</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_4'>4</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'><em>c.</em> 1130.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Henry I.'s Charter</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_8'>8</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1141.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Matilda in London</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_10'>10</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'><em>c.</em> 1173.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>A Norman Picture of London</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_12'>12</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1177.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Disturbances in the City</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_17'>17</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1189.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Ordinances concerning Building</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_19'>19</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1191.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Liberties of the City Confirmed</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_22'>22</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1199.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>John's Third Charter</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_23'>23</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1202.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>London Bridge</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_25'>25</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1249.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Oppression by Henry III.</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_27'>27</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1258.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Interference by Barons</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_29'>29</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1282.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Steelyard</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_31'>31</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1282.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Preservation of Peace and Order</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_33'>33</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1311.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Citizens and Edward II.</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_36'>36</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1319.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Constitutions for the Government of the City</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_37'>37</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1326.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>A Revolt against Edward II.</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_40'>40</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1329.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>A Proclamation of Edward III.</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_42'>42</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1347.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Articles of the Heaumers and of the Hatters</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_44'>44</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1350.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Regulations concerning Wages and Prices</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_46'>46</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1364.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Charter to the Drapers</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_49'>49</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1365.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>A Letter from Edward III.</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_51'>51</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1374.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>A Lease to Geoffrey Chaucer</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_52'>52</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1375.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The City Arms</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_54'>54</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1381.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Wat Tyler in London</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_56'>56</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'><em>c.</em> 1400.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>London Lickpenny</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_62'>62</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1406.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Whittington's Second Mayoralty</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_66'>66</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1413.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Persecution of the Lollards</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_68'>68</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1415.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Imprisonment for refusing Office</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_70'>70</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1419.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Oaths of the Mayor and Aldermen</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_72'>72</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1450.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Jack Cade in London</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_74'>74</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1464.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Mayor's Dignity</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_78'>78</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1485.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Regulations concerning Strangers</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_79'>79</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1510.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Marching Watch</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_82'>82</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1514.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Destruction of Fences</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_84'>84</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'><span class='pageno' id='Page_viii'>viii</span>1517.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>More's Description of London</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_85'>85</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1517.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Evil May Day</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_88'>88</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1519.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Papal Legate in the City</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_91'>91</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1525.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Wolsey and the Citizens</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_93'>93</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1527.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Apprentices</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_95'>95</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1533.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>A Water Pageant</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_98'>98</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1549.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Latimer's Exhortation to London</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_100'>100</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1553.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Mary's Speech to the Citizens</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_102'>102</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1554.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Soranzo's Report on London</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_105'>105</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1566.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Royal Exchange</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_106'>106</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1575.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>A Lord Mayor's Show</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_107'>107</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1587.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>London and the Armada</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_110'>110</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1592.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The City's Attitude towards the Stage</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_111'>111</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1593.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>A Plague Order</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_115'>115</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1598.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>London Schools</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_121'>121</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1600.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>A German View of London</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_123'>123</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1609.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>London and Ulster</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_125'>125</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1626.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Demands of Charles I.</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_129'>129</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1629.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Keeping of the Sabbath</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_131'>131</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1640.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The City's Petition to Charles I.</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_132'>132</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1642.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>London under the Early Stuarts</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_134'>134</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1643.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>A Proclamation against the City</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_136'>136</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1653.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Cromwell in London</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_138'>138</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1660.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>London and the Restoration</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_140'>140</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1661.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>State of London before the Plague</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_144'>144</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1665.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Plague</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_146'>146</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1666.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Fire</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_148'>148</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1666.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>A Proclamation of Charles II.</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_156'>156</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1667.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Evelyn's Plans for Rebuilding</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_159'>159</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1671.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>An Act concerning the Streets</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_162'>162</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1679.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>A Lord Mayor's Proclamation</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_164'>164</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1681.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Popish Panic</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_169'>169</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1681.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Postal Arrangements</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_169'>169</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1688.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>London after James II.'s Abdication</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_172'>172</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1689.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>A Lord Mayor's Day</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_174'>174</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1716.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Gay's "Trivia"</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_177'>177</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1720.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The South Sea Bubble</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_179'>179</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1725.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>Defoe's Description of London</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_181'>181</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1733.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>A Petition against the Excise Bill</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_183'>183</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1741.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The London Streets</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_185'>185</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1743.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Loyalty of the London Merchants</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_187'>187</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1780.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>The Gordon Riots</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_188'>188</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c006'>1791.</td> - <td class='c007'><span class='sc'>London's Trade</span></td> - <td class='c008'><a href='#Page_191'>191</a></td> - </tr> -</table> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> - <div class='nf-center'> - <div><span class='pageno' id='Page_1'>1</span>HISTORY OF LONDON</div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>LONDON BEFORE THE CONQUEST.</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>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.</p> - -<p class='c000'>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.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_2'>2</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—<cite>The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle.</cite></h3> -</div> - -<p class='c010'><span class='sc'>An.</span> 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.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='sc'>An.</span> 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.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='sc'>An.</span> 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.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='sc'>An.</span> 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 -<span class='pageno' id='Page_3'>3</span>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.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='sc'>An.</span> 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.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_4'>4</span><span class='sc'>An.</span> 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.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE CONQUEROR'S CHARTER (1066).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>LONDON ENVIRONS IN DOMESDAY (1085).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>In 1085 William the Conqueror, according to the -Chronicle, "sent over all England into every shire his -<span class='pageno' id='Page_5'>5</span>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."</p> - -<p class='c000'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'><em>Stepney.</em>—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.</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_6'>6</span><em>Fulham.</em>—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.</p> - -<p class='c011'><em>St. Pancras.</em>—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.</p> - -<p class='c011'><em>Islington.</em>—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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_7'>7</span><em>Hoxton.</em>—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.</p> - -<p class='c011'><em>Manor.</em>—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.</p> - -<p class='c011'><em>Westminster.</em>—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.</p> - -<p class='c011'><em>Hampstead.</em>—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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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 -<span class='pageno' id='Page_8'>8</span>manor altogether laid and lies in the demesne of the church of -St. Peter.</p> - -<p class='c011'><em>Tyburn.</em>—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.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE CHARTER OF HENRY I. (<em>circa</em> 1130).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>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.</p> - -<p class='c000'>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 -<span class='pageno' id='Page_9'>9</span>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_10'>10</span>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:</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<p class='c012'>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.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>MATILDA IN LONDON (1141).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>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 -<span class='pageno' id='Page_11'>11</span>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.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—<cite>Gesta Stephani.</cite></h3> - -<p class='c013'>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.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_12'>12</span> - <h2 class='c004'>A NORMAN PICTURE OF LONDON (<em>circa</em> 1173).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>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.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—William Fitz-Stephen's <cite>Descriptio Nobilissimæ Civitatis<br />Londonæ</cite>.</h3> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Of the Site Thereof.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>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....</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Of Religion.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>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 -<span class='pageno' id='Page_13'>13</span>conventual churches, besides lesser parish churches one -hundred and twenty-six.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Of the Strength of the City.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>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.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Of Gardens.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>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.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Of Pasture and Tilth.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>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.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Of Springs.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>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 -<span class='pageno' id='Page_14'>14</span>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.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Of Honour of the Citizens.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>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....</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Of Schools.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>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....</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Of the Ordering of the City.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>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. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_15'>15</span>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, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_16'>16</span>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.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Of Sports.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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 -<span class='pageno' id='Page_17'>17</span>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>DISTURBANCES IN THE CITY (1177).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>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.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_18'>18</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Translated from <cite>Benedict of Peterborough</cite>, vol. i., p. 155.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>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.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_19'>19</span> - <h2 class='c004'>ORDINANCES CONCERNING BUILDING<br />(1189, 1212).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>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.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—The London Assizes of 1189 and 1212, quoted in Hudson<br />Turner's <cite>History of Domestic Architecture</cite>.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>(<em>a</em>) 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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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 -<span class='pageno' id='Page_20'>20</span>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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 -<span class='pageno' id='Page_21'>21</span>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>(<em>b</em>) 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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The watches, and they who watch by night for the custody of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_22'>22</span>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.</p> - -<p class='c011'>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.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE LIBERTIES OF THE CITY CONFIRMED<br />(1191).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>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.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Translated from <cite>Benedict of Peterborough</cite>,<br />vol. ii., p. 213.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>John, with almost all the bishops and barons of England in -attendance on him, entered London on that day (October 7, -1191), and on the following day John and the Archbishop of -Rouen and all the bishops and barons, and with them the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_23'>23</span>citizens of London, met in St. Paul's church, and accused the -chancellor of many things, especially with regard to the injuries -which he had wrought to the Archbishop of York, the Bishop -of Durham, and his son Henry. Moreover the colleagues of -the chancellor, whom the King had associated with him in the -government of the country, accused him of many crimes, saying -that he had performed everything without their counsel and -consent. Then the Archbishop of Rouen and William Marshall -showed to the assembly the King's letter, by which it -was ordered that if the chancellor did any foolish thing to the -harm of the King or the realm, the said Archbishop of Rouen -was to be appointed in his stead.... Therefore John the -King's brother, and all the bishops and barons and the citizens -of London, decided that the chancellor should be deposed from -the government of the kingdom.... John and the Archbishop -of Rouen, and all the bishops and barons of the kingdom -who were present, granted to the citizens of London their -commune, and swore that they would guard it and the liberties -of the city of London, as long as it pleased the King; and the -citizens of London and the bishops and barons swore allegiance -to King Richard, and to John the King's brother, and undertook -to accept John as their lord and King, if the King died -without issue.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'>From <cite>Richard of Devizes</cite>, vol. iii., p. 416.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>On that day was granted and confirmed the commune of -London, to which the barons of the whole kingdom and the -bishops of every diocese gave their consent. On that occasion -for the first time London realized that the kingdom was without -a king, by this conspiracy which neither Richard himself -nor his father Henry would have allowed to take place for -a million marks. A commune puffs up the people, threatens -the kingdom, and weakens the priesthood.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>JOHN'S THIRD CHARTER (1199).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>John granted five charters to the City, and in this third -charter he restored to the citizens two privileges, of which -<span class='pageno' id='Page_24'>24</span>they had been deprived by Matilda and Henry II. The -latter, wishing to bring the City under the direct supervision -of the Crown, had retained the appointment of -sheriffs in his own hands; Matilda had annulled the -arrangement by which the citizens were to have the farm -of Middlesex on payment of £300 every year. The -restoration of the right of electing the sheriffs was not of -very great importance, for during the period which had -elapsed since Henry II. assumed this privilege the office -of Mayor had become established, and this had considerably -lessened the importance of the sheriffs.</p> - -<p class='c011'>John, by the grace of God, king of England, lord of Ireland, -duke of Normandy and Aquitaine, and earl of Anjou; to his -archbishops, bishops, abbots, earls, barons, justices, sheriffs, -rulers, and to all his bailiffs and loving subjects.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Know ye, that we have granted, and by this our present -writing confirmed, to our citizens of London, the sheriffwicks -of London and Middlesex, with all the customs and things to -the sheriffwick belonging, within the city and without, by land -and by water, to have and to hold, to them and their heirs, of -us and our heirs, paying therefor three hundred pounds of -blank sterling money, at two terms in the year; that is to say, -at the Easter exchequer, one hundred and fifty pounds; and at -the Michaelmas exchequer, one hundred and fifty pounds; -saving to the citizens of London all their liberties and free -customs.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And further, we have granted to the citizens of London, that -they amongst themselves make sheriffs whom they will; and -may amove them when they will; and those whom they make -sheriffs, they shall present to our justices of our exchequer, of -these things which to the said sheriffwick appertain, whereof -they ought to answer us; and unless they shall sufficiently -answer and satisfy, the citizens may answer and satisfy us the -amerciaments and farm, saving to the said citizens their -liberties as is aforesaid; and saving to the said sheriffs the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_25'>25</span>same liberties which other citizens have: so that, if they which -shall be appointed sheriffs for the time being, shall commit any -offence, whereby they ought to incur any amerciament of -money, they shall not be condemned for any more than to the -amerciament of twenty pounds, and that without the damage -of other citizens, if the sheriffs be not sufficient for the payment -of their amerciaments: but, if they do any offence, whereby -they ought to incur the loss of their lives or members, they shall -be adjudged, as they ought to be, according to the law of the -city; and of these things, which to the said sheriffs belong, the -sheriffs shall answer before our justices at our exchequer, -saving to the said sheriffs the liberties which other citizens of -London have.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also this grant and confirmation we have made to the -citizens of London for the amendment of the said city, and -because it was in ancient times farmed for three hundred -pounds: wherefore we will and steadfastly command, that the -citizens of London and their heirs may have and hold the -sheriffwick of London and Middlesex, with all things to the -said sheriffwick belonging, of us and our heirs, to possess and -enjoy hereditarily, freely and quietly, honourably and wholly, -by fee-farm of three hundred pounds; and we forbid that none -presume to do any damage, impediment or diminishment to the -citizens of London of these things, which to the said sheriffwick -do or were accustomed to appertain: Also we will and command, -that if we or our heirs, or any of our justices, shall give -or grant to any person any of those things which to the farm -of the sheriffwick appertain, the same shall be accounted to the -citizens of London, in the acquittal of the said farm at our -exchequer.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>LONDON BRIDGE (1202).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>It is possible that there was a London Bridge in Roman -times, and there certainly was one, built of wood, before -the Conquest. The modern structure was finished in 1831, -and this replaced the old bridge, which was built between -1176 and 1209, about 200 feet east of the present one. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_26'>26</span>It consisted of twenty arches, a drawbridge for large -vessels, and a chapel and crypt in the centre, dedicated to -St. Thomas of Canterbury. It was afterwards covered -with houses and shops on both sides, like a street. The -last of these buildings was removed in 1757.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The following letter was written by King John to the -citizens of London during the construction of the bridge, -and shows that the erection and maintenance of this -important means of communication was a matter for -royal and national, as well as local, consideration.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Document quoted by Maitland, vol. i., p. 45.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>John, by the Grace of God, King of England, etc.</p> - -<p class='c011'>To his faithful and beloved the Mayor and Citizens of -London, greeting.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Considering how the Lord in a short time has wrought, in -regard to the Bridges of Xainctes and Rochelle, by the great -care and pains of our faithful, learned and worthy clerk Isenbert, -Master of the Schools of Xainctes: We therefore, by the -advice of our Reverend Father in Christ, Hubert, Archbishop -of Canterbury, and that of others, have desired, directed and -enjoined him to use his best endeavour in building your bridge, -for your benefit, and that of the public: For we trust in the -Lord, that this bridge, so necessary for you, and all who shall -pass the same, will, through his industry, and the Divine -blessing, soon be finished: Wherefore, without prejudice to -our right, or that of the City of London, We will and grant, -that the rents and profits of the several houses that the said -Master of the Schools shall cause to be erected upon the bridge -aforesaid, be for ever appropriated to repair, maintain and -uphold the same.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And seeing that the necessary work of the said bridge cannot -be accomplished without your aid, and that of others; We -charge and exhort you kindly to receive and honour the above-named -Isenbert, and those employed by him, who will perform -everything to your advantage and credit, according to his -<span class='pageno' id='Page_27'>27</span>directions, you affording him your joint advice and assistance -in the premises. For whatever good office or honour you shall -do to him, you ought to esteem the same as done to us. But -should any injury be offered to the said Isenbert, or the persons -employed by him (which we do not believe there will), see that -the same be redressed, as soon as it comes to your knowledge.</p> - -<p class='c012'>Witness myself at Molinel, the eighteenth day of - April (1202).</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>OPPRESSION BY HENRY III. (1249).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Perhaps no monarch was ever more detested by the -citizens of London than was Henry III.—a weak and -foolish ruler, who subjected every class to his exactions -and oppressions. He was himself preyed upon by swarms -of favourites, and enticed into all manner of expensive -projects, and could only free himself from his debts and -difficulties by abusing his royal prerogative. On one -occasion he sold his plate and jewels to the Londoners. -"These clowns," he said, "who assume to themselves -the name of barons, abound in everything, while we are -reduced to necessities." Henry certainly seemed to regard -their resources as inexhaustible; false charges were repeatedly -made against them, for the purpose of exacting -money; exorbitant sums were demanded for purchasing -the King's good-will, and for the granting of charters; no -occasion of soliciting presents was allowed to pass by; -schemes of begging and robbing were carried on so -assiduously by this infatuated monarch that the citizens -were driven, in the end, to offer and render active assistance -to the barons who leagued themselves against him. During -this disturbed period the City did not prosper; it needed -a firm and steady Government, and not till Edward I. -ascended the throne did London resume its career of -progress.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_28'>28</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Matthew Paris, <cite>History</cite>.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>The King began now sedulously to think how he could -entirely dry up the inexhaustible well of England. For, on -meeting with a just repulse from the community of nobles, as -above mentioned, who stated that they would no longer lavish -their property to the ruin of the kingdom, he studied, by other -cunning devices, to quench the thirst of his cupidity. Immediately -after the festivities of the said season, he entered upon -the following plan of harassing the citizens of London: he -suspended the carrying on of traffic in that city, as has been -before mentioned, for a fortnight, by establishing a new fair at -Westminster, to the loss and injury of many; and immediately -afterwards he sent letters by his agents, containing subtle and -imperious entreaties, asking them for pecuniary aid. On -receipt of this message, the citizens were grieved to the heart, -and said: "Woe to us, woe to us; where is the liberty of -London, which is so often bought; so often granted; so often -guaranteed by writing; so often sworn to be respected? For -each year almost, like slaves of the lowest condition, we are -impoverished by new talliages, and injuriously harassed by -fox-like arguments; nor can we discover into what whirlpool -the property of which we are robbed is absorbed." At length, -however, although immense sums were demanded, the citizens, -although unwillingly and not without bitterness of heart, -yielded their consent to a contribution of two thousand pounds, -to be paid to the King at a brief period....</p> - -<p class='c011'>About the same time, the City of London was excited in no -slight degree, because the King exacted some liberties from the -citizens for the benefit of the abbot of Westminster, to their -enormous loss, and the injury of their liberties. The mayor of -the city and the whole of the community in general, as far as -lay in their power, opposed the wish (or rather violence and -raving) of the King; but he proved harsh and inexorable to -them. The citizens, therefore, in a state of great excitement, -went with sorrowful complaints to Earl Richard, the earl of -Leicester, and other nobles of the Kingdom, telling them how -<span class='pageno' id='Page_29'>29</span>the King, perhaps bent into a bow of wickedness, by the pope's -example, shamelessly violated their charters, granted to them -by his predecessors. The said nobles were much disturbed at -this, fearing that the King would attempt a similar proceeding -with them; they therefore severely reproached him, adding -threats to their reproaches, and strongly blamed the abbot, -who, they believed, was the originator and promoter of this -wrong, heaping insult upon insult on him; which, however, it -does not become us to relate, out of respect to the order. Thus -the prudence of the nobles happily recalled the King from his -conceived design.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>INTERFERENCE BY BARONS (1258).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>When, in medieval England, the central authority was -weak, injustice and oppression were rife throughout the -country, and at such times the men of London were often -hard pressed to maintain intact their privileges. Under -the feeble and vacillating Henry III. there was little -restraint upon corrupt and unscrupulous barons, such as -the Hugh Bygot of the following passage. The right to -attend to the administration of justice within the borders -of the City was one of the most essential elements of the -citizen's freedom; no interference in this direction could -possibly be tolerated if the hardly won charters were to -be of any avail. It is not surprising, therefore, that the -arbitrary conduct of this justiciar, who pretended to act -by royal authority, being a King's servant, aroused great -resentment among the citizens.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Fitz-Thedmar's <cite>Chronicle of the Mayors and Sheriffs</cite>,<br />edited by Riley, p. 42.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>This year, John de Gizors was chosen Mayor, and that too, -even in his absence. This year, after a Parliament held by -the Barons at Westminster, Hugh Bygot, the Justiciar, went -to Saint Saviour's, and having Roger de Turkelby for his -<span class='pageno' id='Page_30'>30</span>associate, held there all the Pleas which pertain unto the -Justiciars Itinerant in the County of Surrey; and not only did -he there amerce several bailiffs and others who had been convicted -of offences committed against those subject to them, but -he caused them to be imprisoned, clerks as well as laymen. -And yet he ransomed one person for twenty marks, and certain -others for forty marks, and more; while several others, for but -trifling reasons, he immoderately aggrieved.</p> - -<p class='c011'>In these pleas the men of Southwark and others of the -County of Surrey made complaint against the Sheriffs and -citizens of London, that they unjustly took custom without the -Stone Gate on the Bridge, seeing that they ought to possess no -such rights beyond the Drawbridge Gate. The citizens, coming -with their Sheriffs who had been summoned by the Justiciars, -appeared at Saint Saviour's, before the Justiciars, and bringing -with them their Charters, said that they were not bound to -plead there, nor would they plead without the walls of the -City; but without formal plea, they were willing to acknowledge -that it was quite lawful for the Sheriffs of London to -take custom without the gate aforesaid, and that too, even as -far as the staples placed there, seeing that the whole water -of Thames pertains unto the City, and always did pertain -thereto; and that too, sea-ward as far as the New Weir. At -length, after much altercation had taken place between the -Justiciars and the citizens, the Justiciars caused inquisition to -be made, on the oath of twelve knights of Surrey—and this, -although the citizens had not put themselves on such inquisition—whether -the Sheriffs of London had taken any custom beyond -their limits. Who said, upon oath, that the Sheriffs aforesaid -might rightfully take custom there, for that as far the staples -before-mentioned, the whole pertains unto the City, and no one -has any right upon the Thames, as far as the New Weir, save -and except the citizens of London.</p> - -<p class='c011'>After this, the Justiciar before-mentioned, having as his -associate Roger before-named, came to the Guildhall of London, -and there held Pleas from day to day, as to all those who wished -to make plaint; and at once, without either making reasonable -<span class='pageno' id='Page_31'>31</span>summons or admitting any lawful excuses, determined the same, -observing no due procedure of justice; and that too against the -laws of the City, as also against the laws and customs of every -freeman of the English realm. This, however, the citizens -persistently challenged, saying that no one except the Sheriffs -of London ought to hold pleadings in the City as to trespasses -there committed; but to no purpose. Still however, the -citizens had judgment done upon all persons abiding in the -City, who had been convicted, or had been cast in making a -false charge. At the same time also, the Justiciar summoned -before himself and before the Earl of Gloucester all the bakers -of the City who could be found, together with their loaves; -and so, by some few citizens summoned before them, judgment -was given in reference to their bread; those whose bread did -not weigh according to the assay of the City, not being placed -in the pillory, as they used to be, but, at the will of the Justiciar -and Earl aforesaid, exalted in the tumbrel, against the ancient -usage of the City and of all the realm.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE STEELYARD (1282).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The Steelyard was the residence of the Hanse Merchants, -who obtained a settlement in London as early -as 1250. Valuable privileges were granted to them by -Henry III., and these were renewed and confirmed by -Edward I., who was anxious to encourage the trade of -the City by all possible means. Many privileges were -also conceded to the Steelyard merchants by the City, in -return for which they undertook to maintain Bishopsgate -in good repair and to assist in its defence when necessity -arose. In spite of the jealousy of the English merchants, -the foreigners flourished exceedingly, but towards the end -of the sixteenth century their power began to fail. As -English traders became more enterprising, the monopoly -of the Steelyard merchants disappeared, and finally, in -1598, Elizabeth expelled them from the country.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_32'>32</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Stow's <cite>Survey</cite>, p. 234.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>Next to this (Cosin) lane on the east, is the steelyard (as -they term it) a place for merchants of Almaine, that used to -bring hither, as well wheat, rye and other grain, as cables, -ropes, masts, pitch, tar, flax, hemp, linen cloth, wainscots, wax, -steel, and other profitable merchandizes: unto these merchants -in the year 1259 Henry the third, at the request of his brother -Richard earl of Cornwall, king of Almaine, granted that all -and singular the merchants, having a house in the City of -London, commonly called Guilda Aula Theutonicorum, should -be maintained and upholden through the whole realm, by all -such freedoms, and free usages or liberties, as by the King and -his noble progenitors time they had, and enjoyed, etc. Edward -the first renewed and confirmed that charter of Liberties granted -by his Father. And in the tenth year of the same Edward, -Henry Wales being Mayor, a great controversy did arise between -the said Mayor, and the merchants of the Haunce of -Almaine, about the reparations of Bishopsgate, then likely to -fall, for that the said merchants enjoyed divers privileges, in -respect of maintaining the said gate, which they now denied to -repair: for the appeasing of which controversy the king sent -his writ to the Treasurer and Barons of his Exchequer, commanding -that they should make inquisition thereof, before -whom the merchants being called, when they were not able -to discharge themselves, since they enjoyed the liberties to them -granted for the same, a precept was sent to the Mayor, and -sheriffs, to distrain the said merchants to make reparations, -namely Gerard Marbod Alderman of the Haunce, Ralph de -Cussarde a citizen of Colen, Ludero de Deneuar, a Burgess -of Triuar, John of Aras, a Burgess of Triuon, Bartram of -Hamburdge, Godestalke of Hundondale, a Burgess of Triuon, -John de Dele a Burgess of Munstar, then remaining in the said -City of London: for themselves, and all other merchants of the -Haunce, and so they granted 210 marks sterling to the Mayor -and Citizens, and undertook that they and their successors -should from time to time repair the said gate, and bear the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_33'>33</span>third part of the charges in money, and men to defend it when -need were. And for this agreement, the said Mayor and -Citizens granted to the said merchants their liberties which -till of late they have enjoyed, as namely amongst other, that -they might lay up their grain which they brought into this -realm, in Inns, and sell it in their garners, by the space of forty -days after they had laid it up: except by the Mayor and Citizens -they were expressly forbidden, because of dearth or other reasonable -occasions. Also they might have their Aldermen as they -had been accustomed, forseen always that he were of the City, -and presented to the Mayor and Aldermen of the City, so oft -as any should be chosen, and should take an oath before them -to maintain justice in their courts, and to behave themselves in -their office according to law, and as it stood with the customs -of the City. Thus much for their privileges: whereby it appeareth, -that they were great merchants of corn brought out -of the East parts hither, in so much that the occupiers of -husbandry in this land were enforced to complain of them for -bringing in such abundance, when the corn of this realm was -at an easy price: whereupon it was ordained by Parliament, -that no person should bring into any part of this realm by way -of merchandise, wheat, rye or barley, growing out of the said -realm, when the quarter of wheat exceeded not the price of -6 shillings 8 pence, rye 4s. the quarter, and barley 3s. the -quarter, upon forfeiture the one half to the King, the other -half to the seizer thereof. These merchants of Haunce had -their Guild hall in Thames street in place aforesaid, by the said -Cosin lane. Their hall is large, builded of stone, with three -arched gates towards the street, the middlemost whereof is far -bigger than the other, and is seldom opened, the other two be -mured up, the same is now called the old hall.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE PRESERVATION OF PEACE AND ORDER<br />(1282).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>It would appear from contemporary evidence that the -Londoners must have been somewhat turbulent during -<span class='pageno' id='Page_34'>34</span>the thirteenth century. Owing to the smallness of the -houses and the insufficient accommodation for families, -the greater part of the population constantly filled the -streets; and, although the watch and ward arrangements -for the protection of the City may have been sufficient in -quiet times, they were quite inadequate when troubles -arose. In spite of stringent regulations frequent quarrels -and riots occurred in the crowded streets, and punishments, -fines, and imprisonments were common. The -commonest offences, to judge by the records of trials, -were night-walking after curfew, robbery with violence, -frequenting taverns, and gambling. The following passages -illustrate some of the efforts which were continually -being made to devise improvements in the administration -of the City and the safeguarding of its inhabitants:</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Sources.</strong>—(<em>a</em>) "Provisions for the Safe-Keeping of the City";<br />(<em>b</em>) "A Royal Mandate for the Preservation of the Peace." <br />Riley's<cite>Memorials</cite>, pp. 21, 36.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>(<em>a</em>) On Wednesday next before the Feast of Pentecost, in -the 10th year of the reign of King Edward, by Henry le Galeys, -Mayor, the Aldermen, and the then Chamberlain of Guildhall, -the following provisions were subscribed:—</p> - -<p class='c011'>As to the trades: that every trade shall present the names -of all persons in that trade, and of all who have been serving -therein; where they dwell, and in what Ward.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also, each Alderman, with two of the best men of his Ward, -shall make inquisition as to persons keeping hostels, and the -persons lodging in the same, making enquiry one by one, and -from house to house; that so he may know how many, and -who, and of what kind or condition they are, clerks or laymen, -who are residing in his Ward, of the age of twelve years and -upwards.</p> - -<p class='c011'>To be remembered:—as to provision made how suspected -persons, when found, ought to be removed, or under what -security to remain.</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_35'>35</span>Secondly, as to the safe-keeping of the City:—All the Gates -of the City are to be open by day; and at each Gate there are -to be two serjeants to open the same, skilful men, and fluent -of speech, who are to keep a good watch upon persons coming -in and going out; that so no evil may befall the City.</p> - -<p class='c011'>At every Parish Church, curfew is to be rung at the same -hour as at St. Martin's le Grand; so that they begin together, -and end together; and then all the Gates are to be shut, as -well as all taverns for wine or for ale; and no one is then to -go about the streets or ways. Six persons are to watch in each -Ward by night, of the most competent men of the Ward thereto; -and the two serjeants who guard the Gates by day, are to lie -at night either within the Gates, or near thereto.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The serjeants of Billingsgate and Queen Hythe are to see -that all boats are moored on the City side at night, and are -to have the names of all boats; and no one is to cross the -Thames at night. And each serjeant must have his own boat -with four men, to guard the water by night, on either side of -the bridge.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The serjeants at the Gates are to receive four pence each -per day, and the boatmen at night, one penny each.</p> - -<p class='c011'>(<em>b</em>) Henry le Galeys, Mayor of the City of London, presented -a writ of our Lord the King, in these words:—</p> - -<p class='c011'>Edward by the grace of God, etc., to the Mayor and Sheriffs -of London, greeting. Forasmuch as we have heard that the -bakers, and brewsters, and millers, in the city aforesaid, do -frequently misconduct themselves in their trades, and that -misdoers by night going about the city aforesaid with swords -and bucklers, and other arms, as well at the procuration of -others as of their own malice, do beat and maltreat other -persons, and are wont to perpetrate many other offences and -enormities, to no small damage and grievance of our faithful -subjects: We, of our counsel, wishing to apply a fitting remedy -to all the premises, and to strike both them and others with -fear of so offending, do command you, and strictly enjoin, that -you will so chastise such bakers, brewsters, and misdoers, with -corporal punishments, and so visit the other offences, at your -<span class='pageno' id='Page_36'>36</span>discretion, that they may excite in others in like case a fear of -so offending. And that all corn to be ground at mills within -the city aforesaid, and without, shall be weighed by the millers, -and that such millers shall answer in like weight in the flour -coming therefrom. And the matters aforesaid, and all other -things which unto the office of the Mayoralty of the same city, -and to the preservation there of our peace, do pertain, you are -to cause to be inviolably observed. Witness myself, at York, -the 28th day of May, in the 26th year of our reign.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE CITIZENS AND EDWARD II. (1311).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The attitude of the City towards the Sovereign was -invariably determined by the respect which the latter -paid to the liberties and privileges of the citizens, who -were generally disposed to be loyal enough if they were -treated with proper consideration. The change from the -powerful and competent rule of Edward I. to the feeble -government of his son produced its inevitable effect on -London as well as on the kingdom; but the letter quoted -below shows that the citizens were prepared to support -the King during the early years of his reign. Later, however, -his arbitrary measures and foolish actions led to -a complete revulsion of feeling, which expressed itself in -actual revolt.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Riley's <cite>Memorials</cite>, p. 84.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>To the most noble Prince, and their very dear liege lord, -our Lord the King of England, his lieges, Richer de Refham, -Mayor of his city of London, and the commonalty of the same -city, all manner of reverence, service, and honour, as unto their -liege lord. Whereas, Sire, we have heard good news of you, -Sire, and of your successful prosecution of your war in Scotland, -God be thanked; we do send you, by the bearers of these -letters, one thousand marks, in aid and in prosecution of your -war; and we do pray you, as being our most dear lord, that -<span class='pageno' id='Page_37'>37</span>you will be pleased to accept the same; and that, if aught shall -please you as regards your said city, you will signify your will -unto us, as being your liege men. Our Lord have you in his -keeping, body and soul; and may he give you a good life, and -long.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>CONSTITUTIONS FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF<br />THE CITY (1319).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>These articles were drawn up by the citizens and submitted -to Edward II. for his approval, which he duly gave -in exchange for £1,000. It is clear that there had been -dissensions in the city; the officials had been endeavouring -to obtain favour at Court, and in doing so they had acted, -as the citizens alleged, against their interests. The mayor, -when it suited the interests of the City magistrates, was -re-elected at pleasure; the citizens were taxed in an oppressive -manner while the magistrates are stated to have -lowered their own assessments. The citizens were unable -to obtain satisfactory redress from the King's judges, and -proposed these new constitutions, which were accepted -by the King and afterwards incorporated into the charter -of Richard II. It is to be noted that henceforth the only -way to the civic franchise was by becoming a member of -the civic gilds.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Edward, by the grace of God, king of England, lord of -Ireland, and duke of Aquitaine, to all to whom the present -letters shall have come, greeting.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Know ye, that whereas our beloved and faithful the mayor -and aldermen, and the other citizens of our city of London, -had lately ordained and appointed among themselves, for the -bettering of the same city, and for the common benefit of such -as dwell in that city, and resort to the same, certain things to -be in the same city perpetually observed, and had instantly -besought us that we would take care to accept and confirm -the same.</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_38'>38</span>We having seen certain letters, patentwise, signed with the -common seal of that city, and the seal of the office of the -mayoralty of that city, upon the premises, and to us exhibited, -have caused certain articles to be chosen out of the foresaid -letters, and caused them in some things to be corrected, as -they are underneath inserted, viz.</p> - -<p class='c011'>1. That the mayor and sheriffs of the same city be elected -by the citizens of the said city, according to the tenor of the -charters of our progenitors, heretofore kings of England, made -to them thereby, and not otherwise.</p> - -<p class='c011'>2. That the mayor remain only one year together in his -mayoralty.</p> - -<p class='c011'>3. That sheriffs have but two clerks and two serjeants; and -that they take such for whom they will answer.</p> - -<p class='c011'>4. That the mayor have no other office belonging to the -city, but the office of mayoralty; nor draw to himself the -sheriff's plea in the chamber of London, nor hold other pleas -than those the mayor, according to ancient custom, ought to -hold.</p> - -<p class='c011'>5. That the aldermen be removed from year to year, on the -day of St. Gregory the Pope, and not re-elected; and others -chosen by the same wards....</p> - -<p class='c011'>7. That no stranger be admitted into the freedom of the city -in the husting; and that no inhabitant, and especially English -merchant, of any mistery or trade, be admitted into the freedom -of the city, unless by surety of six honest and sufficient men of -the mistery or trade that he shall be of, who is so to be admitted -into the freedom; which six men may undertake for him, of -keeping the city indemnified in that behalf. And that the -same form of surety be observed of strangers to be admitted -into the freedom in the husting, if they be of any certain -mistery or trade. And if they are not of some certain mistery, -then that they be not admitted into the freedom without the -assent of the commonalty. And that they who have been -taken into the freedom of the city (since we undertook the -government of the realm) contrary to the forms prescribed, -and they who have gone contrary to their oath in this behalf, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_39'>39</span>or contrary to the state of the city, and are thereof lawfully -convicted, lose the freedom of the said city.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Saving always, that concerning apprentices the ancient -manner and form of the said city be observed.</p> - -<p class='c011'>8. That each year in the same city, as often as need shall -be, inquiry be made, if any of the freedom of the same city -exercise merchandises in the city, of the goods of others not -of the same freedom, by calling those goods their own, contrary -to their oath, and contrary to the freedom of the said -city; and they that are lawfully convicted thereof to lose the -freedom of the said city....</p> - -<p class='c011'>12. That weights and scales of merchandises to be weighed -between merchants and merchants, the issues coming of which -belong to the commonalty of the said city, remain in the -custody of honest and sufficient men of the same city, expert in -that office, and as yet to be chosen by the commonalty, to be -kept at the will of the same commonalty; and that they be by -no means committed to others than those so to be chosen....</p> - -<p class='c011'>14. Merchants who are not of the freedom of the city, not -to sell, by retail, wines or other wares, within the city or -suburbs....</p> - -<p class='c011'>16. That the common harbourers in the city and suburbs, -although they are not of the freedom of the same, be partakers -of the contingent burdens for maintaining the said city, -according to the state of it, as long as they shall be so common -harbourers, as other like dwellers in the city and suburbs shall -partake, on account of those dwellings. Saving always, that -the merchants of Gascony, and other foreigners, may, one with -another, inhabit and be harboured in the said city, as hitherto -they have accustomed to do.</p> - -<p class='c011'>17. That the keeping the bridge of the said city, and the -rents and profits belonging to that bridge, be committed to be -kept to two honest and sufficient men of the city, other than -the aldermen, to be chosen to this by the commonalty, at the -will of the said commonalty, and not to others, and who may -answer thereupon to the said commonalty....</p> - -<p class='c011'>20. That the goods of the aldermen, in aids, tallages, and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_40'>40</span>other contributions, concerning the said city, be taxed by the -men of the wards in which those aldermen abide, as the goods -of other citizens, by the said wards.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Which articles, as they are above expressed, and the matters -contained in the same, we accept, approve and ratify; and we -yield and grant them, for us and our heirs, as much as in us -is, to the aforesaid citizens, their heirs and successors, in the -aforesaid city and suburbs, for the common profit of those that -inhabit therein, and resort thither, to obtain the same, and to -be observed perpetually.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Moreover, we, willing to show ampler grace to the mayor, -aldermen and citizens, at their request have granted to them, -for us and our heirs, that the mayor, aldermen, citizens and -commonalty of the commoners of the city, and their heirs and -successors, for the necessities and profits of the same city, -may, among themselves of their common assent assess tallages -upon their own goods within that city, as well upon the rents -as other things; and as well upon the misteries as any other -way, as they shall see expedient, and levy them, without incurring -the danger of us or our heirs, or our ministers whomsoever. -And that the money coming from such tallages remain -in the custody of four honest and lawful men of the said city, -to be chosen to this by the commonalty, and be laid out, of -their custody, for the necessities and profits of the said city, -and not otherwise. In witness whereof, etc.</p> - -<p class='c012'>Witness the King, at York, the eighth day of June, - in the twelfth year of our reign.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>A REVOLT AGAINST EDWARD II (1326).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Although the citizens were at first sufficiently well disposed -towards Edward II., his misgovernment led ultimately -to grave dissatisfaction, which expressed itself in -riots and revolt. The King was induced by his worthless -advisers to make claims and attacks upon the rights of -the citizens. He was always in want of money, and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_41'>41</span>believed, like many other Kings, that the wealth of the -City was inexhaustible. In 1321 he deprived the citizens -of their cherished right of electing their own Mayor, and -from that time the condition of the City was perfectly -wretched until the close of his reign. There was no -proper authority at all; the King deposed one Mayor and -set up another; the city generally supported Queen -Isabella, and received her and Mortimer with enthusiasm. -All who were thought to favour the King were in danger, -and the attitude of the City was to a considerable extent -responsible for the unhappy King's deposition.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Aungier, <cite>French Chronicle</cite>, edited by Riley, p. 262.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>At this time, at Saint Michael, Lady Isabele, the Queen, -and Sir Edward, her son, sent their letters to the commons of -London, to the effect that they should assist in destroying the -enemies of the land; but received no answer in return, as to -their wishes thereon, through fear of the King. Wherefore -a letter was sent to London by the Queen and her son, and -was fixed at daybreak upon the Cross in Chepe, and a copy of -the letter on the windows elsewhere, upon Thursday, that is to -say, the Feast of Saint Denis [October 9], to the effect that the -commons should be aiding with all their power in destroying -the enemies of the land, and Hugh le Despencer in especial, -for the common profit of all the realm; and that the commons -should send them information as to their wishes thereon. -Wherefore the Commonalty proceeded to wait upon the Mayor -and other great men of the City, at the Black Friars -Preachers in London, upon the Wednesday before the Feast -of Saint Luke [October 18] which then fell on a Saturday; -so much so, that the Mayor, crying mercy with clasped -hands, went to the Guildhall and granted the commons their -demand, and cry was accordingly made in Chepe, that the -enemies to the King, and the Queen, and their son, should all -quit the City upon such peril as might ensue. It happened -also on the same day, at the hour of noon, that some persons -<span class='pageno' id='Page_42'>42</span>had recourse to arms, and seized one John le Marchal, a -burgess of the City, in his own house near Wallbrook, who -was held as an enemy to the City and a spy of Sir Hugh -le Despencer; and he was brought into Chepe, and there -despoiled and beheaded.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>A PROCLAMATION OF EDWARD III. (1329).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The frequent proclamations for the preservation of -peace and order in the City seem to show that some difficulty -was experienced in this direction; it is, at any rate, -interesting to note that the authority of the King is -invoked to assist in the discipline and control of lawless -inhabitants. The restriction as to the bearing of arms is -very significant, and the instructions regarding night-walkers -and tavern-keepers, which continually recur in -similar documents, show whence arose the greatest -dangers to life and property.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Riley's <cite>Memorials</cite>, p. 172.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>This proclamation was ordered by the Mayor and Aldermen, -on Saturday the morrow of St. Dunstan [May 19], in the 3rd -year of the reign of King Edward the Third; and on the -Sunday following throughout the City proclaimed; our said -Lord the King being about to cross over to the parts of -France on the Friday next ensuing, there to do his homage; -and to the end that, while the King was there, his peace might -be the more strictly observed.—</p> - -<p class='c011'>We do command, on behalf of our Lord the King, that his -peace shall be preserved and kept between both denizens and -strangers, throughout all the franchise of this city.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that no person, native or stranger, shall go armed in -the same city, or shall carry arms by night or by day, on pain -of imprisonment, and of losing his arms; save only, the serjeants-at-arms -of our Lord the King, and of my Lady the -Queen, and the vadlets of the Earls and Barons; that is to -<span class='pageno' id='Page_43'>43</span>say, for every Earl or Baron one vadlet, carrying the sword -of his lord in his presence; and save also, the officers of the -City, and those who shall be summoned unto them, for keeping -and maintaining the peace of the City.</p> - -<p class='c011'>We do also forbid, on behalf of our said Lord the King, -that anyone shall be so daring, on pain of imprisonment, as to -go wandering about the City, after the hour of curfew rung out -at St. Martin's le Grand; unless it be some man of the City of -good repute, or his servant; and that, for reasonable cause, -and with light.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And that no one shall hold covin or congregation, to make -persons pay fine, by imputing to them that they have committed -against them divers grievances or offences: but let -those who feel themselves aggrieved, shew their grievances unto -the officers of the City, and they will do them speedy right, -according as the law demands. And that no one of the City, of -whatsoever condition he be, shall go out of this city, to maintain -parties, such as taking seisins, or holding days of love, or -making other congregations, within the City or without, in -disturbance of the peace of our Lord the King, or in affray of -the people, and to the scandal of the City. And if any person, -of whatsoever condition or estate he be, shall from henceforth -be found guilty thereof, let him be taken and put in the Prison -of Newgate; and let him remain for a year and a day, without -being reprieved; and if he be free of the City, let him for ever -lose his freedom.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And whereas misdoers, going about by night, have their -resort more in taverns than elsewhere, and there seek refuge, -and watch their time for misdoing; we do forbid that any -taverner or brewer keep the door of his tavern open after the -hour of curfew aforesaid, on the pain as to the same ordained; -that is to say, the first time, on pain of being amerced in the -sum of 40d.; the second time, half a mark; the third time, -10s.; the fourth time, 20s.; the fifth time, let him forswear the -trade for ever.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_44'>44</span> - <h2 class='c004'>THE ARTICLES OF THE HEAUMERS AND OF<br />THE HATTERS (1347).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The organisation of industries is a most important and -interesting feature of medieval London history, and -during the fourteenth century the craft gilds played a -prominent part in the life of the City. The story of the -development of the various gilds, fraternities, and misteries, -and their connection with the later Livery Companies, -has been the subject of considerable research, and it seems -probable that the origin of most of the City Companies of -to-day can be connected with the medieval organisations. -These articles will be found to be noteworthy chiefly for -the information they give regarding the craft organisations -of the time; it is clear that it was considered to be of the -highest importance that the work should be of good -quality, and great care is taken that workmen shall be as -skilful as possible in their trades. The interference of -strangers is, as usual, resented, and every effort is made to -strengthen and encourage the native crafts.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Riley's <cite>Memorials</cite>, pp. 237, 239.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>The points of the Articles touching the trade of helmetry, -accepted by Geoffrey de Wychingham, Mayor, and the Aldermen, -at the suit and request of the folks of the said trade.—</p> - -<p class='c011'>In the first place, that no one of the said trade shall follow, -or keep seld of, the trade aforesaid within the franchise of the -City of London, until he shall have properly bought his freedom, -according to the usage of the said city; on pain of losing his -wares.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—forasmuch as heretofore some persons coming in, who -are strangers, have intermeddled, and still do intermeddle, in -the making of helmetry, whereas they do not know their trade; -by reason whereof, many great men and others of the realm -have been slain through their default, to the great scandal of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_45'>45</span>the said trade; it is ordained that no person shall from henceforth -intermeddle with, or work at, helmetry, if he be not -proved to be a good, proper, and sufficient workman, by the -Wardens of the said trade, on pain of forfeiture to the use of -the Chamber.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that three, or four, if need be, of the best workmen -of the said trade shall be chosen and sworn to rule the trade -well and properly, as is befitting; for the security and safety -of the great men and others of the realm, and for the honour -and profit of the said city, and of the workers in the said trade.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that no apprentice shall be received by any master of -the said trade for a less term than seven years; and that, -without collusion or fraud; on pain of paying to the said -Chamber 100 shillings.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that no one of the said trade, or other person of the -franchise, shall set any stranger to work, who is of the said -trade, if he be not a proper and lawful person, and one for -whom his master will answer as to his good behaviour; on -pain of paying to the said Chamber 20 shillings.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that no one of the said trade shall receive or set to -work the apprentice or serving-man of another, until the term -of his master shall have been fully ended; on pain of paying -to the said Chamber 20 shillings.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The points of the Articles touching the trade of Hat-makers, -accepted by Thomas Leggy, Mayor, and the Aldermen of the -City of London, at the suit, and at the request, of the folks of -the said trade.</p> - -<p class='c011'>In the first place,—that six men of the most lawful and most -befitting of the said trade shall be assigned and sworn to rule -and watch the trade, in such manner as other trades of the -said city are ruled and watched by their Wardens.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that no one shall make or sell any manner of hats -within the franchise of the city aforesaid, if he be not free of -the same city; on pain of forfeiting to the Chamber the hats -which he shall have made and offered for sale.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that no one shall be made apprentice in the said trade -<span class='pageno' id='Page_46'>46</span>for a less term than seven years, and that, without fraud or -collusion. And he who shall receive any apprentice in any -other manner, shall lose his freedom, until he shall have bought -it back again.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that no one of the said trade shall take any apprentice, -if he be not himself a freeman of the said city.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that the Wardens of the said trade shall make their -searches for all manner of hats that are for sale within the said -franchise, so often as need shall be. And that the aforesaid -Wardens shall have power to take all manner of hats that they -shall find defective and not befitting, and to bring them before -the Mayor and Aldermen of London, that so the defaults which -shall be found may be punished by their award.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—whereas some workmen in the said trade have made -hats that are not befitting, in deceit of the common people, from -which great scandal, shame, and loss have often arisen to the -good folks of the said trade, they pray that no workman in the -said trade shall do any work by night touching the same, but -only in clear daylight; that so, the aforesaid Wardens may -openly inspect their work. And he who shall do otherwise, -and shall be convicted thereof before the Mayor and Aldermen, -shall pay to the Chamber of the Guildhall, the first time 40d., -the second time half a mark, and the third time he shall lose -his freedom.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>REGULATIONS CONCERNING WAGES AND<br />PRICES (1350).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The Black Death, which broke out in England in 1348, -was a terrible calamity, and it is estimated that at least -half of the population of the country perished by the -pestilence, including a large proportion of the inhabitants -of London. The churchyards were speedily filled, and -additional pieces of land were given by the Bishop of -London and other persons for the burial of the victims of -this fearful plague. The most important result of the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_47'>47</span>pestilence was the dearth of labour which was immediately -caused, and the consequent rise in wages was a source of -considerable trouble to the legislature and to all employers -of labour. Parliament passed the Statutes of Labourers, -which were intended to fix the wages of workpeople at the -rates which had been customary before the plague, and in -London an attempt was made towards the same object by -this Proclamation, in which wages are laid down "to be -observed for ever." It seems strange that in a commercial -city like London it should be considered possible to -regulate wages and prices by an arbitrary enactment of -this kind, and it does not appear that the ordinance was -obeyed. There is little doubt that it was generally ignored, -and the craftsmen continued to make the most of the -situation, just as the agricultural labourers and craftsmen -in the country were able, on the whole, to set at defiance -the Statutes of Labourers.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Riley's <cite>Memorials</cite>, p. 253.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>To amend and redress the damages and grievances which -the good folks of the City, rich and poor, have suffered and -received within the past year, by reason of masons, carpenters, -plasterers, tilers, and all manner of labourers, who take immeasurably -more than they have been wont to take, by assent -of Walter Turk, Mayor, the Aldermen, and all the Commonalty -of the City, the points under-written are ordained, to be held -and firmly observed for ever; that is to say.—</p> - -<p class='c011'>In the first place,—that the masons, between the Feasts of -Easter and St. Michael [September 29], shall take no more by -the working-day than 6d., without victuals or drink; and from -the Feast of St. Michael to Easter, for the working-day, 5d. -And upon Feast-days, when they do not work, they shall take -nothing. And for the making or mending of their implements -they shall take nothing.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that the carpenters shall take, for the same time, in -the same manner.</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_48'>48</span>Also,—that the plasterers shall take the same as the masons -and carpenters take.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that the tilers shall take for the working-day, from -the Feast of Easter to St. Michael 5½d., and from the Feast of -St. Michael to Easter 4½d.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that the labourers shall take in the first half year 3½d., -and in the other half 3d.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that the master daubers (layers on) shall take between -the Feasts of Easter and St. Michael 5d., and in the other half -year 4d.; and their labourers are to take the same as the -labourers of the tilers.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that the sawiers shall take in the same manner as the -masons and carpenters take.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that no one shall pay more to the workmen aforesaid, -on pain of paying 40s. to the Commonalty, without any release -therefrom; and he who shall take more than the above, shall -go to prison for forty days....</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that one person of every company may see that the -vessel into which their wine is drawn is clean, and from what -tun their wine is drawn; on pain of imprisonment, and of -paying to the Chamber, for the first time, half a mark; for the -second time, one mark; for the third time, 20s.; and every -other time a person shall be found in like default, let his fine -be increased by half a mark.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that the measures shall be standing upright, and -sealed with the seal of the Alderman of the Ward; and he who -shall sell by other measures, let him go to prison, and further, -be amerced in half a mark.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that the pelterers shall make their furs according to -the ancient ordinances, of olden time ordained, and according -to the purport of their Charter; on pain of forfeiture and -punishment for the same, as of old ordained.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Also,—that no one should go to meet those who are bringing -victuals or other wares by land or by water to the City for sale, -for the purpose of buying them or bargaining for them, before -that they shall have come to certain places assigned thereto, -where they ought to be sold; on pain of forfeiture of the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_49'>49</span>victuals and other wares, and of their bodies being committed -to prison, until they have been sufficiently punished, at the -discretion of the Mayor and Aldermen.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE CHARTER TO THE DRAPERS (1364).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>"Draper" originally meant a cloth-maker, not, as now, -a dealer in cloth. In the Middle Ages the drapers both -made it and sold it, but gradually their particular work -was confined to supervising the manufacture and selling -the finished article. The Drapers' Gild must have been -one of the earliest associations of craftsmen, and was -incorporated by royal charter in 1364. One of the most -important features of this charter seems to be the instruction -that the mistery of drapery should be definitely -separated from those of the tenterers, tellers, and fullers; -it appears to have been impossible to exercise proper -supervision in a trade which involved so many different -operations, and the remedy was obviously to split it up -into several trades, each of which might have its own -organisation.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Herbert, <cite>Livery Companies</cite>, vol. i., p. 480.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>The King, to the Mayor and Sheriffs of London, greeting. -Whereas, amongst other things ordained in our last parliament, -it was for certain causes proposed, and in the same parliament -ordained, that no English merchant should use merceries or -merchandizes by himself or another by any manner of covine, -unless one only, and which he should choose before the feast -of Candlemas last past, as in the said ordinances is more fully -contained.</p> - -<hr class='c015' /> - -<p class='c011'>And whereas it has been shown to us and to our council, -that people of divers misteries of the city of London intermix -themselves with the mistery of Drapery, and cause divers -deceits and frauds in the use of the same mistery,—to the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_50'>50</span>great damage of us and of our people, and contrary to the -ordinances aforesaid.</p> - -<p class='c011'>We, willing the said ordinances should be kept and maintained -in all points, accordingly have, by the assent of the -great and others of our council, ordained and granted, that -none shall use the Mistery of Drapery in the city of London, -nor in the suburbs of the same, unless he has been apprenticed -in the same mistery, or in other due manner been admitted by -the common assent of the same mistery. And that each of the -misteries of tenterers, tisters, and fullers, keep himself to his -own mistery, and in no way meddle with the making, buying, -or selling of any manner with cloth or drapery, on pain of -imprisonment and loss of all the cloth so by them made, -bought, or sold, or the value thereof to us.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And that none who has cloth to sell in the said city, or in the -suburbs, do sell the same unless to drapers enfranchised in the -said mistery of drapery, or that it be in gross to the lords and -others of the commons, who will buy the same for themselves -or servants by retail, under the same penalty.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And that the drapers enfranchised in the mistery of drapery -in the said city, may elect each year four of their own mistery, -who may be sworn twice a year in the presence of the Mayor, -to oversee that no default or deceit be used or committed in -the mistery aforesaid, and to rule and govern the said mistery -of drapery in the same city, to the common profit of the people, -and that due punishment be done on them in whom defaults -shall be found, according to the advice and discretion of the -said four persons, by the aid of the Mayor and Sheriffs when -need is; the which Mayor and Sheriffs we will shall be intendants -to the said four persons, when they shall be required by -them.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And we also will and give power to the said four persons -who may be elected and sworn, to take an oath of all those -who shall be received into the said mistery of drapery in the -same city, to use and do whatever appertains to the same mistery -well and lawfully, without fraud, evil design, or subtle -management against the points and ordinances aforesaid.</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_51'>51</span>Saving always to our beloved in God the prior of St. Bartholomew, -in Smithfield, and other lords who have fairs in the -said suburbs by grant of our progenitors, their fairs, franchises, -and free-customs, which they have exercised in their said fairs, -from the time of the said grants, so that no damage or prejudice -shall be done to them in any way under colour of this our -ordinance and grant; and saving the franchises by us granted -to the merchants, vintners of England and Gascoigny, which -we will shall remain in force in all points in manner as in our -letters patent to the said drapers is more fully contained.</p> - -<hr class='c015' /> - -<p class='c011'>Wherefore we command and firmly enjoin you forthwith -that at your peril you cause to be proclaimed and published -in the said city and suburbs, and all places where it should be -done, that all the said things so by us granted may be firmly -held and kept in form aforesaid.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And hereof in no manner fail.</p> - -<div class='lg-container-r c016'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>Given at Westminster the 14th day of July (1364).</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>A LETTER FROM EDWARD III. (1365).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The Battle of Crecy had first demonstrated the immense -superiority of archers over mounted knights in battle. -It became necessary to insist that Englishmen should be -fully and properly trained in the use of the bow and arrow, -if this superiority was to be maintained. The youths of -London appear to have been addicted at this time to -more exciting and less serviceable sports than the old -exercise of archery, and Edward III.'s letter is at once -a reprimand and an instruction.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The King to the Sheriffs of London, greeting.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Because the people of our realm, as well of good quality -as mean, have commonly in their sports before these times -exercised the skill of shooting arrows; whence it is well -known, that honour and profit have accrued to our whole -realm, and to us, by the help of God, no small assistance in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_52'>52</span>our warlike acts; and now the said skill being, as it were, -wholly laid aside, the same people please themselves in hurling -of stones and wood and iron; and some in hand-ball, foot-ball, -bandy-ball, and in Cambuck, or Cock fighting; and some also -apply themselves to other dishonest games, and less profitable -or useful: whereby the said realm is likely, in a short time, to -become destitute of archers.</p> - -<p class='c011'>We, willing to apply a seasonable remedy to this, command -you, that in places in the foresaid City, as well within the -liberties as without, where you shall see it expedient, you cause -public proclamation to be made, that every one of the said City, -strong in body, at leisure times on holidays, use in their recreations -bows and arrows, or pellets, or bolts, and learn and exercise -the art of shooting; forbidding all and singular on our -behalf, that they do not after any manner apply themselves to -the throwing of stones, wood, iron, hand-ball, foot-ball, bandy-ball, -cambuck, or cock-fighting, nor such other like vain plays, -which have no profit in them, or concern themselves therein, -under pain of imprisonment.</p> - -<p class='c012'>Witness the King at Westminster, the twelfth day - of June (1365).</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>A LEASE TO GEOFFREY CHAUCER (1374).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Modern English poetry may be said to have begun in -London. Chaucer was born in London, was the descendant -of a long line of Londoners, and lived in London the -greater part of his life. Many of his contemporaries, -including Gower, Occleve, and Lydgate, were connected -with London, and spent much of their time there.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Chaucer's father was a citizen and vintner of London, -and owned a house in Thames Street, close to Walbrook. -Geoffrey Chaucer was in all probability born in this -house; it became his own property, and he parted with it -in 1380. Six years before this he acquired the lease of -the dwelling-house above the city-gate of Aldgate, on -<span class='pageno' id='Page_53'>53</span>condition that he kept it in good repair; he seems to have -made this his usual residence till 1385. In it he must -have composed several of his poems, including <cite>The -Parlement of Foules</cite>, <cite>The House of Fame</cite>, and <cite>Troilus</cite>. He -did not commence the <cite>Canterbury Tales</cite> until the following -year.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Riley's <cite>Memorials</cite>, p. 377.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>To all persons to whom this present writing indented shall -come, Adam de Bury, Mayor, the Aldermen, and the Commonalty -of the City of London, greeting. Know ye that we, with -unanimous will and assent, have granted and released by these -presents unto Geoffrey Chaucer the whole of the dwelling-house -above the Gate of Aldgate, with the rooms built over, -and a certain cellar beneath, the same gate, on the South side -of that gate, and the appurtenances thereof; to have and to -hold the whole of the house aforesaid, with the rooms so built -over, and the said cellar, and the appurtenances thereof, unto -the aforesaid Geoffrey, for the whole life of him, the same -Geoffrey. And the said Geoffrey shall maintain and repair the -whole of the house aforesaid, and the rooms thereof, so often -as shall be requisite, in all things necessary thereto, competently -and sufficiently, at the expense of the same Geoffrey, -throughout the whole life of him, the same Geoffrey. And it -shall be lawful for the Chamberlain of the Guildhall of London, -for the time being, so often as he shall see fit to enter the -house and rooms aforesaid, with their appurtenances, to see -that the same are well and competently, and sufficiently, maintained -and repaired, as aforesaid. And if the said Geoffrey -shall not have maintained or repaired the aforesaid house and -rooms competently and sufficiently, as is before stated, within -forty days after the time when by the same Chamberlain he -shall have been required to do so, it shall be lawful for the -said Chamberlain wholly to oust the before-named Geoffrey -therefrom, and to re-seise and resume the same house, rooms, -and cellar, with their appurtenances, into the hand of the City, -to the use of the Commonalty aforesaid; and to hold the same -<span class='pageno' id='Page_54'>54</span>in their former state to the use of the same Commonalty, -without any gainsaying whatsoever thereof. And it shall not -be lawful for the said Geoffrey to let the house, rooms, and -cellar, aforesaid, or any part thereof, or his interest therein, to -any person whatsoever. And we, the Mayor, Aldermen, and -Commonalty aforesaid, will not cause any gaol to be made -thereof, for the safe-keeping of prisoners therein, during the -life of the said Geoffrey; but we and our successors will -warrant the same house, rooms, and cellar, with their appurtenances -unto the before-named Geoffrey, for the whole life of -him, the said Geoffrey, in form aforesaid: this however excepted, -that in time of defence of the city aforesaid, so often as -it shall be necessary, it shall be lawful for us and our successors -to enter the said house and rooms, and to order and dispose of -the same, for such time, and in such manner, as shall then -seem to us to be most expedient. And after the decease of the -same Geoffrey, the house, rooms and cellar aforesaid, with -their appurtenances, shall wholly revert unto us and our successors. -In witness whereof, as well the Common Seal of the -City aforesaid as the seal of the said Geoffrey, have been to -these present indentures interchangeably appended.</p> - -<p class='c012'>Given in the Chamber of the Guildhall of the city - aforesaid, the 10th day of May, in the 48th - year of the reign of King Edward, after the - Conquest the Third.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE CITY ARMS (1375).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Beneath Pierce's statue of Walworth in Fishmongers' -Hall is an inscription:</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line in4'>"Brave Walworth, Knight, Lord Mayor, y<sup>t</sup> slew</div> - <div class='line in6'>Rebellious Tyler in his alarmes;</div> - <div class='line in4'>The King, therefore, did give in liew</div> - <div class='line in6'>The dagger to the City armes.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>"In the 4th year of Richard II., Anno Domini 1381."</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_55'>55</span>It seems that it has always been a popular belief that -the weapon represented in the arms of the City is -"Walworth's dagger"; but, as Stow points out, it is -intended to represent the sword of St. Paul, who was the -patron saint of this Corporation.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Stow's <cite>Survey</cite>, p. 222.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>It hath also been, and is now grown to a common opinion, -that in reward of this service done, by the said William -Walworth against the rebel, King Richard added to the arms -of this City, (which was argent, a plain cross gules) a sword -or dagger, (for so they term it) whereof I have read no such -record, but to the contrary. I find that in the fourth year of -Richard the second in a full assembly made in the upper -chamber of the Guildhall, summoned by this William Walworth, -then Mayor, as well of Aldermen as of the common -Council in every ward, for certain affairs concerning the king, -it was there by common consent agreed and ordained, that the -old seal of the office of the Mayoralty of the city being very -small, old, unsuitable, and uncomely for the honour of the -city, should be broken, and one other new should be had, -which the said Mayor commanded to be made artificially, and -honourable for the exercise of the said office thereafter in -place of the other: in which new Seal, besides the images of -Peter, and Paul, which of old were rudely engraven, there should -be under the feet of the said images, a shield of the arms of -the said City perfectly graved, with two lions supporting the -same with two sergeants of arms, on either part one, and two -tabernacles, in which above should stand two Angels, between -whom above the said images of Peter and Paul, shall be set -the glorious virgin: this being done, the old seal of the office -was delivered to Richard Odiham Chamberlain, who brake it, -and in place thereof, was delivered the new seal to the said -Mayor to use in his office of Mayoralty, as occasion should -require. This new seal seemeth to be made before William -Walworth was knighted, for he is not here entitled Sir, as -afterwards he was: and certain it is that the same new seal -<span class='pageno' id='Page_56'>56</span>then made, is now in use and none other in that office of the -Mayoralty, which may suffice to answer the former fable, -without shewing of any evidence sealed with the old seal, -which was the Cross, and sword of Saint Paul, and not the -dagger of William Walworth.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>WAT TYLER IN LONDON (1381).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Froissart's description of the Peasants' Revolt is one of -our main sources of information concerning this important -event, and seems likely to be fairly accurate. He himself -was, of course, an aristocrat, and was in no way disposed -to be favourable to the "wicked rebels"; but he seems -anxious to represent their case as fairly as possible, -although he is plainly out of sympathy with the ideas and -arguments of the rebels. It is noteworthy that the rising -was almost simultaneous in many parts of the country, -but its chief headquarters were in Kent, one of the most -prosperous counties in the kingdom, where actual distress -was least likely to be prevalent; and it is probable that -the peasants in this county had benefited to no small -extent by the economic changes which succeeded the -Pestilence of 1349, and had improved both their material -conditions and their intellectual outlook. The ideas of -liberty which formed the motive of the revolt were somewhat -vague, but were strengthened by numerous concrete -instances of injustice and injury; and the concentration -of the insurgents upon London forms one of a long series -of indications of the importance of the city as the determining -factor in vital issues.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Froissart's <cite>Chroniques</cite>.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>In the mean season there fell in England great mischief and -rebellion of the common people, by which deed England was -at a point to have been lost without recovery....</p> - -<p class='c011'>It was a marvellous thing, and of poor foundation, that this -<span class='pageno' id='Page_57'>57</span>mischief began in England, and to give ensample to all manner -of people, I will speak thereof as it was done, as I was informed, -and of the incidents thereof. There was an usage in -England, and yet is in divers countries, that the noblemen -have great franchises over the commons, and keep them in -servage, that is to say, their tenants ought by custom to labour -their lords' lands, to gather and bring home their corn, and -some to thresh and to fan, and by servage to make their hay -and to hew their wood and bring it home. All these things -they ought to do by servage, and there be more of these -people in England than in any other realm. Thus the noblemen -and prelates are served by them, and specially in the -counties of Kent, Essex, Sussex, and Bedford. These unhappy -people of these said counties began to stir, because they said they -were being kept in great servage, and in the beginning of the -world, they said, there were no bondmen, wherefore they maintained -that none ought to be bond, without he did treason to -his lord, as Lucifer did to God.... And of this imagination -was a foolish priest in the county of Kent, called John Ball, -for which foolish words he had been three times in the Bishop -of Canterbury's prison: for this priest used oftentimes on the -Sundays, after mass, when the people were going out of the -minster, to go into the cloister and preach, and made the people -to assemble about him, and would say thus: "Ah, ye good -people, the matters goeth not well to pass in England, nor -shall not do till everything be common, and that there be no -villains nor gentlemen, but that we may be all united together, -and that the lords be no greater masters than we be. What -have we deserved, or why should we be kept thus in servage? -We be all come from one father and from one mother, Adam -and Eve: whereby can they say or show that they be greater -lords than we be, saving by that they cause us to win and -labour for that they dispend.</p> - -<p class='c011'>"They are clothed in velvet and camlet furred with grise, -and we be vestured with poor cloth: they have their wines, -spices, and good bread, and we have the rye, the bran, and the -straw, and drink water: they dwell in fair houses, and we -<span class='pageno' id='Page_58'>58</span>have pain and travail, rain and wind in the fields: and by that -that cometh of our labours they keep and maintain their -estates: we be all called their bondmen, and, without we do -readily them service, we be beaten: and we have no sovereign -to whom we may complain, nor that will hear us, nor do us -right. Let us go to the king, he is young, and show him what -servage we be in, and show him how we will have it otherwise, -or else we will provide us of some remedy; and if we go -together, all manner of people that be now in any bondage -will follow us to the intent to be made free; and when the -king seeth us, we shall have some remedy, either by fairness -or otherwise."</p> - -<p class='c011'>Thus John Ball said on Sundays, when the people issued out -of the churches in the villages: wherefore many of the mean -people loved him, and such as intended to no goodness said, -how true; and so they would murmur one with another in the -fields, and in the ways as they went together, affirming how -John Ball said truth.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Of his words and deeds there was much people in London -informed, such as had great envy at them that were rich and -such as were noble; and then they began to speak among them, -and said how the realm of England was right evil governed, -and how that gold and silver was taken from them by them -that were named noblemen: so thus these unhappy men of -London began to rebel, and assembled them together, and sent -word to the foresaid counties that they should come to London, -and bring their people with them, promising them how they -should find London open to receive them, and the commons -of the city to be of the same accord, saying how they would do -so much to the king that there should not be one bondman in -all England.</p> - -<p class='c011'>This promise moved so them of Kent, of Essex, of Sussex, -of Bedford, and of the counties about, that they rose and came -towards London to the number of 60,000. And they had a -captain called Walter Tyler, and with him in company was -Jack Straw and John Ball: these three were chief sovereign -captains, but the head of all was Walter Tyler, and he was -<span class='pageno' id='Page_59'>59</span>indeed a tiler of houses, an ungracious patron. When these -unhappy men began thus to stir, they of London, except such -as were of their band, were greatly affrayed. Then the Mayor -of London and the rich men of the city took counsel together, -and when they saw the people thus coming in on every side, -they caused the gates of the city to be closed, and would suffer -no man to enter into the city. But when they had well -imagined, they advised not so to do, for they thought they -should thereby put their suburbs in great peril to be brent; -and so they opened again the city, and there entered in at the -gates in some places a hundred, two hundred, by twenty or -thirty; and so when they came to London, they entered and -lodged: and yet, of truth, most of their people could not tell -what to ask or demand, but followed each other like beasts. -In like wise these villains and poor people came to London, -a hundred miles off, sixty mile, fifty mile, forty mile, and twenty -mile off, and from all counties about London, but the most part -came from the counties before named, and as they came they -demanded ever for the king.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The gentlemen of the counties, knights and squires, began -to doubt when they saw the people began to rebel; so the -gentlemen drew together as well as they might.</p> - -<p class='c011'>This rebellion was well known in the king's court ere any -of these people began to stir out of their houses; but the king -nor his council did provide no remedy therefor, which was -great marvel.</p> - -<p class='c011'>In the morning on Corpus Christi Day King Richard heard -mass in the Tower of London, and all his lords, and then he -took his barge with the Earl of Salisbury, the Earl of Warwick, -the Earl of Oxford, and certain knights, and so rowed down -along the Thames to Rotherhithe, where were descended down -the hill 10,000 men to see the king and speak with him. And -when they saw the king's barge coming, they began to shout, -and made such a cry, as though all the devils of hell had been -among them. And they had brought with them Sir John -Newton, to the intent that, if the king had not come, they -would have stricken him all to pieces, and so they had promised -<span class='pageno' id='Page_60'>60</span>him. And when the king and his lords saw the demeanour of -the people, the best assured of them were in dread; and so the -king was counselled by his barons not to take any landing -there, but so rowed on down the river. And the king demanded -of them what they would, and said how he was come -thither to speak with them, and they said all with one voice: -"We would that ye should come aland, and then we shall show -you what we lack." Then the Earl of Salisbury answered for -the king, and said: "Sirs, ye be not in such order nor array -that the king ought to speak with you." And so with these -words no more was said: and then the king was counselled to -return to the Tower of London, and so he did.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And when the people saw that, they were inflamed with ire, -and returned to the hill, where the great band was, and then -showed them what answer they had, and how the king was -returned to the Tower of London. Then they all cried out: -"Let us go to London," and so they took their way thither: -and in their going they beat down abbeys and houses of -advocates and of men of the court, and so came into the -suburbs of London, which were great and fair, and there beat -down divers fair houses, and specially they brake up the king's -prisons, as the Marshalsea and others, and delivered out all the -prisoners that were within: and then they did much hurt; and -on the bridge foot they threatened them of London because the -gates of the bridge were closed, saying how they would bren all -the suburbs and so conquer London by force, and slay and -bren all the commons of the city. There were many within -the city of their accord, and so they drew together and said: -"Why do ye not let these good people enter into the city? -They are our fellows, and that that they do is for us." So therewith -the gates were opened, and then these people entered into -the city, and went into houses and sat down to eat and drink. -They desired nothing but it was incontinent brought to them, -for every man was ready to make them good cheer, and to give -them meat and drink to appease them.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Then the captains, as John Ball, Jack Straw, and Wat Tyler, -went throughout London, 20,000 with them, and so came to the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_61'>61</span>Savoy on the way to Westminster, which was a goodly house, -and it pertaineth to the Duke of Lancaster. And when they -had entered, they slew the keepers thereof, and robbed and -pillaged the house; and when they had so done, then they set -fire on it, and clean destroyed and brent it. And when they -had done that outrage, they left not therewith, but went straight -to the fair hospital called St. John's, and there they brent house, -hospital, minster, and all. Then they went from street to street -and slew all the Flemings that they could find in church or in -any other place, there was none respited from death.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And they brake up divers houses of the Lombards, and -robbed them and took their goods at their pleasure, for there -was none that durst say them nay. And they slew in the city -a rich merchant called Richard Lyon, whom before that time -Wat Tyler had served in France; and on a time this Richard -Lyon had beaten him, while he was his varlet, which Wat -Tyler then remembered, and so came to his house and strake -off his head, and caused it to be borne on a spear-point before -him all about the city....</p> - -<p class='c011'>The Saturday the king went to Westminster and heard mass -in the church there, and all his lords with him; and then he -leapt on his horse, and all his lords, and so the king rode -toward London; and when he had ridden a little way, on the -left hand there was a way to pass without London.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The same morning Wat Tyler, Jack Straw, and John Ball -had assembled their company together in a place called Smithfield, -where every Friday there is a market of horses; and -there were together all of one affinity more than 20,000, and -yet there were many still in the town, drinking and making -merry in the taverns, and paying nothing, for they were happy -that made them best cheer.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And therewith the king came the same way unaware of -them, for he had thought to have passed that way without -London, and with him forty horse.... The mayor of London -came to the king with twelve horsemen well armed under their -coats, and so he broke the press and saw and heard how Wat -Tyler demeaned himself, and said to him: "Ha, thou knave, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_62'>62</span>how art thou so hardy in the king's presence to speak such -words? It is too much for thee to do so." Then the king -began to chafe and said to the mayor: "Set hands on him." -And while the king said so, Tyler said to the mayor: "A God's -name, what have I said to displease thee?" "Yes, truly," -quoth the mayor, "thou false knave, shalt thou speak thus in -the presence of the king, my natural lord?" And with these -words the mayor drew out his sword and strake Tyler so great -a stroke on the head, that he fell down at the feet of his horse, -and as soon as he was fallen, they environed him all about, -whereby he was not seen of his company. Then a squire of -the king alighted, called John Standish, and he drew out his -sword and put it through Wat Tyler's body, and so he -died.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Then the ungracious people there assembled, perceiving their -captain slain, began to murmur among themselves and said: -"Ah, our captain is slain, let us go and slay them all;" and -therewith they arrayed themselves on the same place in manner -of battle, and their bows before them. Then the king began -a great deed; howbeit, all turned to the best: for as soon as -Tyler was on the earth, the king departed from all his company, -and all alone he rode to these people, and said to them: "Sirs, -what aileth you? Ye shall have no captain but me: I am -your king: be all in rest and peace." And so the most part -of the people that heard the king speak and saw him among -them, were shamefast and began to wax peaceable and depart.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>LONDON LICKPENNY (<span class='sc'>Early Fifteenth Century</span>).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>This poem is generally ascribed to John Lydgate, a -disciple of Chaucer, but the authorship is doubtful. Whatever -its poetical merit may be, it is full of interest as a -picture of contemporary life in London, and the description -of the adventures of the poor countryman, endeavouring -to obtain legal justice in the metropolis, lacks neither -pathos nor humour.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_63'>63</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—<cite>Minor Poems of Lydgate</cite>, edited by Halliwell, p. 103.</h3> -</div> - -<div class='lg-container-b c003'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>To London once my stepps I bent,</div> - <div class='line'>Where trouth in no wyse should be faynt,</div> - <div class='line'>To Westmynster-ward I forthwith went,</div> - <div class='line'>To a man of law to make complaynt,</div> - <div class='line'>I sayd, "For Marys love, that holy saynt!</div> - <div class='line'>Pity the poore that wold proceede;"</div> - <div class='line'>But for lack of mony I could not spede.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>And as I thrust the prese amonge,</div> - <div class='line'>By froward chaunce my hood was gone,</div> - <div class='line'>Yet for all that I stayd not longe,</div> - <div class='line'>Tyll to the kyngs bench I was come.</div> - <div class='line'>Before the judge I kneled anone,</div> - <div class='line'>And prayd hym for Gods sake to take heede;</div> - <div class='line'>But for lack of mony I myght not speede.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>Beneth them sat clarkes a great rout,</div> - <div class='line'>Which fast dyd wryte by one assent,</div> - <div class='line'>There stoode up one and cryed about,</div> - <div class='line'>Rychard, Robert, and John of Kent.</div> - <div class='line'>I wyst not well what this man ment,</div> - <div class='line'>He cryed so thycke there indede;</div> - <div class='line'>But he that lackt mony myght not spede.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>Unto the common place I yode thoo,</div> - <div class='line'>Where sat one with a sylken hoode;</div> - <div class='line'>I dyd hym reverence, for I ought to do so,</div> - <div class='line'>And told my case as well as I coode,</div> - <div class='line'>How my goods were defrauded me by falshood.</div> - <div class='line'>I gat not a mum of his mouth for my meed,</div> - <div class='line'>And for lack of mony I myght not spede.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>Unto the Rolls I gat me from thence,</div> - <div class='line'>Before the clarkes of the chauncerye,</div> - <div class='line'>Where many I found earnying of pence,</div> - <div class='line'><span class='pageno' id='Page_64'>64</span>But none at all once regarded mee.</div> - <div class='line'>I gave them my playnt uppon my knee;</div> - <div class='line'>They lyked it well, when they had it reade:</div> - <div class='line'>But lackyng money I could not be sped.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>In Westmynster hall I found out one,</div> - <div class='line'>Which went in a long gown of raye;</div> - <div class='line'>I crowched and kneled before hym anon,</div> - <div class='line'>For Maryes love, of help I hym praye.</div> - <div class='line'>"I wot not that thou meanest," gan he say:</div> - <div class='line'>To get me thence he did me bede,</div> - <div class='line'>For lack of mony I cold not speed.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>Within this hall, neither rich nor yett poore</div> - <div class='line'>Wold do for me ought, although I shold dye.</div> - <div class='line'>Which seing, I gat me out of the doore,</div> - <div class='line'>Where Flemynges began on me for to cry,</div> - <div class='line'>"Master, what will you copen or by?</div> - <div class='line'>Fyne felt hattes, or spectacles to reede?</div> - <div class='line'>Lay down your sylver, and here you may speede."</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>Then to Westmynster-Gate I presently went,</div> - <div class='line'>When the sonn was at hyghe pryme;</div> - <div class='line'>Cookes to me, they tooke good entente,</div> - <div class='line'>And proffered me bread, with ale and wyne,</div> - <div class='line'>Rybbs of befe, both fat and ful fyne.</div> - <div class='line'>A fayre cloth they gan for to sprede;</div> - <div class='line'>But wantyng mony I myght not then speede.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>Then unto London I dyd me hye,</div> - <div class='line'>Of all the land it beareth the pryse:</div> - <div class='line'>Hot pescodes, one began to crye,</div> - <div class='line'>Strabery rype, and cherryes in the ryse;</div> - <div class='line'>One bad me come nere and by some spyce,</div> - <div class='line'>Peper and safforne they gan me bede,</div> - <div class='line'>But for lack of mony I myght not spede.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>Then to the Chepe I began me drawne,</div> - <div class='line'>Where mutch people I saw for to stande;</div> - <div class='line'><span class='pageno' id='Page_65'>65</span>One ofred me velvet, sylke, and lawne,</div> - <div class='line'>An other he taketh me by the hande,</div> - <div class='line'>"Here is Parys thred, the fynest in the land;"</div> - <div class='line'>I never was used to such thyngs indede,</div> - <div class='line'>And wantyng mony I myght not spede.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>Then went I forth by London stone,</div> - <div class='line'>Throughout all Canwyke streete;</div> - <div class='line'>Drapers mutch cloth me offred anone;</div> - <div class='line'>Then comes me one cryed hot shepes feete;</div> - <div class='line'>One cryde makerell, ryster grene, an other gan greete;</div> - <div class='line'>One bad me by a hood to cover my head,</div> - <div class='line'>But for want of mony I myght not be sped.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>Then I hyed me into Est-Chepe;</div> - <div class='line'>One cryes rybbs of befe, and many a pye;</div> - <div class='line'>Pewter pottes they clattered on a heape;</div> - <div class='line'>There was harpe, pype, and mynstrelsye.</div> - <div class='line'>"Yea, by cock! nay, by cock!" some began crye;</div> - <div class='line'>Some songe of Jenken and Julyan for their mede;</div> - <div class='line'>But for lack of mony I myght not spede.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>Then into Corn-Hyl anon I yode,</div> - <div class='line'>Where was mutch stolen gere amonge;</div> - <div class='line'>I saw where honge myne owne hoode,</div> - <div class='line'>That I had lost amonge the thronge:</div> - <div class='line'>To by my own hood I thought it wronge,</div> - <div class='line'>I knew it well as I dyd my crede,</div> - <div class='line'>But for lack of mony I could not spede.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>The taverner took mee by the sleeve,</div> - <div class='line'>"Sir," sayth he, "wyll you our wyne assay?"</div> - <div class='line'>I answered, that can not mutch me greve,</div> - <div class='line'>A peny can do no more then it may,</div> - <div class='line'>I drank a pynt and for it dyd paye;</div> - <div class='line'>Yet sone a hungerd from thence I yode,</div> - <div class='line'>And wantyng mony I cold not spede.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'><span class='pageno' id='Page_66'>66</span>Then hyed I me to Belyngsgate;</div> - <div class='line'>And one cryed, "hoo! go we hence!"</div> - <div class='line'>I prayd a barge man, for God's sake,</div> - <div class='line'>That he wold spare me my expence.</div> - <div class='line'>"Thou scapst not here," quod he, "under ij. pence;</div> - <div class='line'>I lyst not yet bestow any almes dede."</div> - <div class='line'>Thus lackyng mony I could not speede.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>Then I convayd me into Kent;</div> - <div class='line'>For of the law wold I meddle no more;</div> - <div class='line'>Because no man to me tooke entent,</div> - <div class='line'>I dyght me to do as I dyd before.</div> - <div class='line'>Now Jesus, that in Bethlem was bore,</div> - <div class='line'>Save London, and send trew lawyers there mede!</div> - <div class='line'>For who so wantes mony with them shall not spede.</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>WHITTINGTON'S SECOND MAYORALTY (1406).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Richard Whittington was the son of a Gloucestershire -knight, and was born in 1350. The familiar stories of -his roadside adventure in Highgate and of his fortune-making -cat are, in common with many other delightful -and picturesque incidents of history, rejected by historians; -but he is certainly a great and famous man, even when his -story is robbed of these interesting particulars. He was -four times Mayor, and his justice and patriotism became -proverbial. He vigorously opposed the admission of -foreigners to the freedom of the City; he was exceedingly -generous, and performed many deeds of charity. The -following account of his second election to the highest -dignity of the City illustrates the form and manner in -which the appointment was made in the Middle Ages.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Riley's <cite>Memorials</cite>, p. 565.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>On Wednesday, the Feast of the Translation of St. Edward -the King and Confessor [October 13], in the 8th year etc., John -<span class='pageno' id='Page_67'>67</span>Wodecok, Mayor of the City of London, considering that upon -the same day he and all the Aldermen of the said city, and as -many as possible of the wealthier and more substantial Commoners -of the same city, ought to meet at the Guildhall, as the -usuage is, to elect a new Mayor for the ensuing year, ordered -that a Mass of the Holy Spirit should be celebrated, with -solemn music, in the Chapel annexed to the said Guildhall; -to the end that the same Commonalty, by the grace of the -Holy Spirit, might be able peacefully and amicably to nominate -two able and proper persons to be Mayor of the said city for -the ensuing year, by favour of the clemency of Our Saviour, -according to the customs of the said city.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Which Mass having in the said Chapel been solemnly -celebrated, there being present thereat the said John Wodecok, -the Mayor, John Prestone, Recorder, Nicholas Wottone and -Geoffrey Broke, Sheriffs, the Prior of the Holy Trinity, John -Hadlee, William Staundone, Richard Whytyngtone, Drew -Barentyn, Thomas Knolles, John Shadworth, William Askham, -William Bramptone, John Warner, William Walderne, -William Venour, Robert Chychely, Thomas Fauconer, Thomas -Polle, William Louthe, William Crowmere, Henry Bartone, -and Henry Pountfreyt, Aldermen, and many reputable Commoners -of the City aforesaid; the same Mayor, Recorder, -Sheriffs, Aldermen, and Commoners, entered the Guildhall, -where the precept of the said Mayor and Aldermen, as the -cause of the said congregation, was becomingly set forth and -declared by the said Recorder to the Commoners aforesaid; to -the end that such Commoners should nominate unto the said -Mayor and Aldermen such able and proper persons as had -before filled the office of Sheriff in the City aforesaid; it being -for the said Commoners to take no care which one of the -persons so to be nominated should be chosen by the Mayor -and Aldermen to be Mayor for the ensuing year. Which -being done, the said Mayor, Recorder, Sheriffs, and Aldermen, -went up into the Chamber of the Mayor's Court, within the -Guildhall aforesaid, there to await the nomination of such two -persons. Whereupon, the Commoners peacefully and amicably, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_68'>68</span>without any clamour or discussion, did becomingly nominate -Richard Whytyngtone, mercer, and Drew Barentyn, goldsmith, -through John Westone, Common Countor of the said city, and -presented the same.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And hereupon, the Mayor and Aldermen, with closed doors, -in the said chamber chose Richard Whytyngtone aforesaid, by -guidance of the Holy Spirit, to be Mayor of the City for the -ensuing year: after which, the Mayor and Aldermen, coming -down from the Chamber into the Hall, to the Commoners -there assembled as the custom is, notified by the Recorder -unto the same Commoners, how that, by Divine inspiration, -the lot had fallen upon the said Richard Whytyngtone, as -above stated.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE PERSECUTION OF THE LOLLARDS (1413).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The Lollards were disciples of Wyclif, and increased -very considerably in numbers and in power at the beginning -of the fifteenth century. A large number of the -citizens of London appear to have become attached to the -new doctrines, which repudiated some of the most important -dogmas of the Church. The clergy were active in -their efforts to suppress the new beliefs, and applied to the -King for assistance. Whatever may have been the -personal views of Henry IV. and Henry V. on the matter, -they were compelled by force of circumstances to keep on -good terms with the Church, and measures of repression -were adopted. The leader of the Lollards, Sir John -Oldcastle, a man of distinguished military ability, was -imprisoned, but rescued from the Tower by a band of -Londoners. A huge meeting was held in St. Giles's -Fields, but was prevented from doing any damage by -Henry V.'s vigilance; the party was vigorously persecuted, -and Oldcastle was captured and hanged. After this -Lollardry languished, and gradually disappeared.</p> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c016'> - <div><span class='pageno' id='Page_69'>69</span>The King to the Mayor and Sheriffs of London: Greeting.</div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c011'>Inasmuch as we have been given to understand that certain -priests, not privileged by law for this purpose, nor licensed by -the diocesan of the place, nor permitted by the Church, who -are said to be of this new sect of the Lollards, have been -preaching in public places within the aforesaid city, and in the -suburbs and vicinity thereof, in order to excite and win over -some who are ill disposed to the Catholic faith and the doctrine -of holy mother Church; and by their own rashness, and contrary -to the laws and ordinances of the Church, they have -preached, nay, rather have profaned the Word of God; or at -least under pretext of preaching they have in such places been -emboldened to propagate discord among our people on the -pestiferous seeds of Lollardism and evil doctrine, after the -manner of preachers; and as some of our people of our said -city and its vicinity, under pretence of hearing such preaching, -have assembled to those places, and have congregated together -in large multitudes; and, in consequence, murmurs and seditions -have in part arisen, and will probably arise, to the -disturbance and no small marring of our peace, unless a remedy -be more quickly applied to abolish such meetings and pull -down such conventicles:</p> - -<p class='c011'>We, desiring especially to provide for the defence of the -Catholic faith, the laws and ordinances of the Church, and for -preserving our peace, command you, that you cause proclamation -publicly to be made, within our city aforesaid, and its -suburbs, in every place where you shall find it expedient:</p> - -<p class='c011'>That no chaplains, of whatsoever degree, state, or condition -they may be, shall henceforward hold, cherish, affirm, preach, -or defend such opinions, heresy, or error, contrary to the -decision of holy mother Church; and that none other our lieges -and subjects in this matter adhere to or abet them, or lend -them counsel or assistance, under penalty of imprisonment of -their bodies, and the forfeiture of all their goods and chattels, -to our will and disposal. We further command and positively -enjoin you that, if henceforth you shall be able to find within -your bailiwick any such chaplains preaching and affirming -<span class='pageno' id='Page_70'>70</span>publicly or secretly, contrary to the aforesaid rescript, or any -other our lieges and subjects making conventicles and meetings, -or receiving the same chaplains, or being under probable or -great suspicion concerning the premises, or in any way counselling, -favouring, or helping such chaplains in this matter, -then arrest ye them without delay, and commit them to prison, -there to remain, until they shall obey the commands of the -diocesan in whose diocese they may have preached....</p> - -<p class='c012'>Witness the King, at Westminster, the 21st day of - August, 1413.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>IMPRISONMENT FOR REFUSING OFFICE (1415).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Reluctance to accept positions of dignity and importance -is rarely met with nowadays; we are accustomed to -witness keen competition for the honour and privilege—even -if there be no more solid advantage—of a seat in -Parliament or a civic office. But in medieval times there -was frequently considerable unwillingness to hold these -now coveted posts; most men had their own affairs to -attend to, and these were almost certain to be seriously -prejudiced by the distractions of public life. More -especially was this the case where Parliamentary representation -of a remote constituency was concerned. The -danger, expense, and time involved in the necessary -journeys to the capital were a very serious consideration, -and fines had to be imposed frequently upon burgesses or -knights of the shire, who resented the greatness which -their constituents thrust upon them. The following -instance shows that even in London pressure had to be -applied in order to induce the acceptance of an important -office; and it was not until the holders of such posts began -to realise the possibility of deriving profit from them, as, -for example, by exempting their own property from taxation, -that these difficulties were entirely overcome.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_71'>71</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Riley's <cite>Memorials</cite>, p. 601.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>Forasmuch as a laudable custom which has hitherto prevailed -in the City of London, has so prescribed and ordained, -that the inhabitants of each of the Wards of the said city are -at liberty to elect an Alderman whensoever they need one, to -rule them in their own Ward; provided always, that the person -so elected is presented to the Mayor and Aldermen, for the -time being, and by them is deemed worthy to be admitted and -approved.—And whereas, on the 3rd day of January, in the 2nd -year of the reign of King Henry etc. one Ralph Lobenham, -late Alderman of the Ward of Farndone Without, having -voluntarily resigned the rule of that Ward, the inhabitants of -the Ward thereupon, according to the usual custom, met -together at the usual place within the Ward, for the purpose -of electing an Alderman thereof, and there unanimously chose -one John Gedeney, citizen and draper, to hold the office of -Alderman of the Ward aforesaid....</p> - -<p class='c011'>The said John Gedeney appeared before the Mayor and -Aldermen, in the Chamber aforesaid, and after the reason for -his being summoned had been first stated to him, precept was -given to him forthwith to take his seat there in Court, that he -might take the oath that pertains unto the office and rank of -Alderman. Whereupon, the same John Gedeney, after first -setting forth his excuses on the ground of his inability, and his -insufficiency for the office, wholly refused to accept it: upon -which, he was informed by the Court that he could not refuse -this office, to which, as being a fit person, he was admitted by -the Court, without breach of his freedom, and of the oath -which by him, when he was admitted to the freedom of the -City, had been made; and this the more especially, as every -freeman is bound to be a partaker in Lot, which is liability to -hold office, and in Scot, which means contribution to taxes and -other charges, by reason of such oath.</p> - -<p class='c011'>But all and singular the matters before stated notwithstanding, -he altogether refused to accept the office, like a -person who was utterly obdurate. And hereupon, the matter -<span class='pageno' id='Page_72'>72</span>having been considered by the Mayor and Aldermen, because -that it appeared to them that if any one, when elected to such -office, should be at liberty at his own will and pleasure to -refuse the post, and pass it by, not improbably the City before -long would be left destitute, as it were, of all rule and governance -whatsoever; the same John Gedeney was by the said -Mayor and Aldermen committed to prison, there to remain -until the Court should be better advised what to do as to the -matters aforesaid.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>OATHS OF THE MAYOR AND ALDERMEN (1419).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The following extracts are from the <cite>Liber Albus</cite>, a book -on the government of the City of London, by John Carpenter, -who was Town Clerk from 1417 to 1438. It contains -a complete description of the administration of the -City at this interesting point in its history, and gives -particulars of the duties and responsibilities of all the civic -officers. The author explains that before the office of -Mayor was established, the chief person in the City was -the Portreeve, who was also the King's representative and -justiciar. Then the "Barons of the City," who may have -been the Aldermen, obtained the privilege of electing their -own Mayor every year; and gradually a custom arose for -the Mayor, Aldermen, Sheriffs, and certain chosen commoners -to meet for the purpose of choosing a new Mayor. -At first the same Mayor was frequently re-elected, so long -as there was no expense attached to the office; but when -it became customary for him to give feasts and liveries, -the cost was generally too great for him to continue in -office for more than one year, and the practice arose for -the Mayor to retire at the end of his term, when the -Aldermen might offer him a second year. The Aldermen -held their office for life, and had almost despotic authority -in their ward, having their own serjeants to attend them.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_73'>73</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—<cite>Liber Albus</cite>, translated by Riley.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>You shall swear, that well and lawfully you shall serve our -lord the King in the office of the Mayoralty of the City of -London, and the same City you shall surely and safely keep -to the behoof of the King of England, and of his heirs, Kings -of England; and the profit of the King you shall do in all -things that unto you belong to do, and the rights of the King, -in so far as unto the Crown they belong within the said City, -you shall lawfully keep. You shall not assent unto the decrease, -or unto the concealment of the rights or of the franchises of the -King; and where you shall know the rights of the King or of -the Crown, be it in lands, or in rents, or in franchises, or in -suits, to be concealed or withdrawn, to your utmost power you -shall do to repel it; and if you cannot do it, you shall tell -it unto the King, or unto them of his Council, of whom you -shall be certain that they will tell it unto the King. And that -lawfully and rightfully you will treat the people of your bailiwick, -and right will do unto everyone thereof, as well unto -strangers as to denizens, to poor as to rich, in that which -belongeth unto you to do; and that neither for highness, nor -for riches, nor for promise, nor for favour, nor for hate, wrong -you shall do unto any one; nor the right of anyone shall you -disturb, nor shall you take anything whereby the King may -lose, or by which his right may be disturbed. And that in all -things which unto the Mayor of the said City it pertaineth to -do, as well in the regulation of victuals as in all other things, -well and lawfully you shall behave yourself.</p> - -<p class='c011'>So God you help, and the Saints.</p> - -<hr class='c015' /> - -<p class='c011'>You shall swear, that well and lawfully you shall serve our -lord the King in the City of London, in the office of Alderman -in the Ward of N, wherein you are chosen Alderman, and shall -lawfully treat and inform the people of the same Ward of such -things as unto them pertain to do, for keeping the City, and for -maintaining the peace within the City; and that the laws, -usages, and franchises of the said City you shall keep and -maintain, within town and without, according to your wit and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_74'>74</span>power. And that attentive you shall be to save and maintain -the rights of orphans, according to the laws and usages of the -said City. And that ready you shall be, and readily shall come, -at the summons and warning of the Mayor and ministers of the -said City, for the time being, to speed the Assizes, Pleas, and -Judgments of the Hustings, and other needs of the said City, if -you be not hindered by the needs of our lord the King, or by -other reasonable cause; and that good lawful counsel you shall -give for such things as touch the common profit in the same -City. And that you shall sell no manner of victuals by retail; -that is to say, bread, ale, wine, fish or flesh, by you, your -apprentices, hired servants, or by any other; nor profit shall -you take of any such manner of victuals sold during your office. -And that well and lawfully you shall (behave) yourself in the -said office, and in other things touching the City. -So God you help, and the Saints.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>JACK CADE IN LONDON (1450).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The rebellion headed by Cade was a manifestation of -discontent at the incompetence of the Government. An -expensive and unsuccessful war had been carried on in -France, and there was very little disposition in England -to aid the inadequate resources of the royal treasury, or to -relieve the King from the load of debt which had been -contracted. The King's Ministers were forced to have -recourse to arbitrary measures, and the affections of the -people were completely estranged. Cade was able, by -holding out the prospect of redress of grievances, to collect -about him a formidable body of malcontents. They were -admitted into the City, where at first they conducted -themselves with comparative moderation; but very soon -indications of violence showed themselves, and the citizens -realised their danger and were able to hold the rebels at -bay until, dispirited by the opposition which they encountered, -they dispersed.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_75'>75</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Hall's <cite>Chronicle</cite>.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>The captain being advised of the King's absence, came first -into Southwark, and there lodged at the White Hart, prohibiting -to all men, Murder, Rape, or Robbery: by which colour he -allured to him the hearts of the common people. But after -that he entered into London, and cut the ropes of the drawbridge, -sticking his sword on London stone, saying: Now is -Mortimer lord of this city, and rode in every street like a -lordly Captain. And after a flattering declaration made to the -Mayor of the city of his thither coming, he departed again to -Southwark. And upon the third day of July, he caused Sir -James Fynes, Lord Say, and Treasurer of England, to be -brought to the Guildhall of London, and there to be arraigned: -which being before the King's justices put to answer, desired -to be tried by his peers, for the longer delay of his life.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The captain perceiving his dilatory plea, by force took him -from the officers, and brought him to the standard in Cheape, -and there before his confession ended, caused his head to be -cut off, and pitched it on a high pole, which was openly borne -before him through the streets. And this cruel tyrant not -content with the murder of the Lord Say, went to Mile end, -and there apprehended Sir James Cromer, then sheriff of -Kent, and son in law to the said Lord Say, and him without -confession or excuse heard, caused there likewise to be beheaded, -and his head to be fixed on a pole, and with these two -heads, this bloody butcher entered into the city again, and in -despite caused them in every street to kiss together, to the great -detestation of all the beholders.</p> - -<p class='c011'>After this shameful murder, succeeded open rapine and manifest -robbery in divers houses within the City, and in especial -in the house of Philip Malpas, Alderman of London, and -divers others: over and beside ransoming, and fining of divers -notable merchants, for the security of their lives and goods, -as Robert Horne alderman, who paid 500 marks, and yet -neither he, nor any other person was either of life or substance -in a surety or safeguard. He also put to execution in Southwark -<span class='pageno' id='Page_76'>76</span>divers persons, some for infringing his rules and precepts, -because he would be seen indifferent, others he tormented of -his old acquaintance, lest they should blaze and declare his -base birth, and lousy lineage, disparaging him from his usurped -surname of Mortimer, for the which, he thought and doubted -not, both to have friends and fautors, both in London, Kent, -and Essex. The wise Mayor, and sage magistrates of the -City of London, perceiving themselves neither to be sure of -goods nor of life well warranted, determined with fear to repel -and expulse this mischievous head, and his ungracious company. -And because the Lord Scales was ordained Keeper of -the Tower of London, with Matthew Gough, the often named -captain in Normandy, (as you have heard before), they purposed -to make them acquainted both of their intent and enterprise. -The Lord Scales promised them his aid, with shooting -of ordinance, and Matthew Gough was by him appointed to -assist the Mayor and the Londoners; because he was both -of manhood, and experience greatly renowned and noised. So -the Captains of the City appointed, took upon them in the -night to keep the bridge of London, prohibiting the Kentish -men, either to pass or approach. The rebels, which never -soundly slept, for fear of sudden chances, hearing the bridge -to be kept and manned, ran with great haste to open their -passage, where between both parties was a fierce and cruel -encounter. Matthew Gough, more expert in martial feats than -the other chieftains of the City, perceiving the Kentish men -better to stand to their tackling than his imagination expected, -advised his company no further to proceed, toward Southwark, -till the day appeared: to the intent, that the citizens hearing -where the place of the jeopardy rested, might occur their enemies, -and relieve their friends and companions. But this counsel -came to small effect: for the multitude of the rebels drave the -citizens from the staples at the bridge foot, to the draw bridge, -and began to set fire in divers houses. Alas what sorrow it -was to behold that miserable chance: for some desiring to -eschew the fire, leapt on his enemies weapon, and so died; -fearful women with children in their arms, amazed and appalled, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_77'>77</span>leapt into the river: others doubting how to save themselves -between fire, water, and sword, were in their houses -suffocated and smouldered. Yet the Captains nothing regarding -these chances, fought on the draw bridge all the night -valiantly, but in conclusion, the rebels held the draw bridge, -and drowned many, and slew John Sutton alderman, and -Robert Heysande a hardy citizen, with many other, beside -Matthew Gough, a man of great wit, much experience in feats -of chivalry, the which in continual wars, had valiantly served -the King and his father, in the parts beyond the sea (as before -you have heard). But it is often seen that he, which many -times hath vanquished his enemies in strange countries, and -returned again as a conqueror, hath of his own nation afterward -been shamefully murdered, and brought to confusion. This -hard and sore conflict endured on the bridge, till 9 o'clock in -the morning, in doubtful chance, and fortunes balance: for -some time the Londoners were beaten back to the stulpes -at Saint Magnes corner, and suddenly again the rebels were -repulsed and driven back, to the stulpes in Southwark, so that -both parties, being faint, weary and fatigued, agreed to desist -from fight, and to leave battle till the next day, upon condition: -that neither Londoners should pass into Southwark, nor the -Kentishmen into London.</p> - -<p class='c011'>After this abstinence of war agreed, the lusty Kentish -Captain, hoping on more friends, broke up the gaols of the -Kings Bench and Marshalsea, and set at liberty a swarm of -galants, both meet for his service and apt for his enterprise. -The Archbishop of Canterbury, being then Chancellor of England, -and for his surety lying in the Tower of London, called -to him the Bishop of Winchester, which also for fear, lurked -at Halywell. These two prelates seeing the fury of the Kentish -people, by reason of their beating back, to be mitigate and -minished, passed the River of Thames from the Tower, into -Southwark, bringing with them under the King's great seal, -a general pardon unto all the offenders: which they caused to -be openly proclaimed and published. Lord how glad the poor -people were of this pardon (the more than of the Jubilee of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_78'>78</span>Rome) and how they accepted the same, in so much that the -whole multitude, without bidding farewell to their captain, -retired the same night, every man to his own home, as men -amazed, and stricken with fear.</p> - -<p class='c011'>But John Cade desperate of help, which by the friends of -the duke of York, were to him promised, and seeing his company -thus without his knowledge suddenly depart, mistrusting -the sequel of the matter, departed secretly in habit disguised -into Sussex: but all his metamorphoses or transfiguration -little prevailed. For after a Proclamation made, that whosoever -could apprehend the aforesaid Jack Cade should have for -his pains a thousand marks, many sought for him, but few -espied him, till one Alexander Iden, esquire of Kent found -him in a garden, and there in his defence, manfully slew the -catiff Cade, and brought his dead body to London, whose head -was set on London Bridge. This is the success of all rebels, -and this fortune chanceth ever to traitors. For where men -strive against the stream, their boat never cometh to his pretenced -port.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE MAYOR'S DIGNITY (1464).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>One of the privileges of the Mayor which has been -very jealously guarded is that upon which is founded his -claim to supremacy in the City; only the Sovereign takes -precedence, and from very early times the Mayors have -insisted upon this pre-eminence. It was not often that -their right was challenged in the City itself, but occasionally -there was friction concerning the Mayor's -position in places which were supposed to be outside his -jurisdiction. The instance mentioned below is interesting, -as showing the importance which a fifteenth-century -Mayor attached to his office.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Gregory's <cite>Chronicle</cite>.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>Thys yere (1464) abute mydsomyr, at the royalle feste of -the Sargentys of the Coyfe, the Mayre of London was desyride -<span class='pageno' id='Page_79'>79</span>to be at that feste. And at denyr time he come to the feste -with his offecers, agreyng and acordyng to hys degre. For -withyn London he ys next unto the Kyng in all maner thynge. -And in tyme of waschynge the Erle of Worseter was take -before the mayre and sette down in the myddis of the hy -tabelle. And the mayre seynge that hys place was occupyd -hylde hym contente, and went home agayne with-out mete -or drynke or any thonke, but rewarde hym he dyd as hys -dygnyte requyred of the cytte. And toke with hym the substance -of hys bretheryn the aldyrmen to his place, and were -sette and servyd also sone as any man couthe devyse, bothe of -sygnet and of othyr delycatys i-nowe, that alle the howse -mervelyd howe welle alle tynge was done in soo schorte a tyme, -and prayde alle men to be mery and gladde hit shulde be -a-mendyd a-nothyr tyme.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Thenn the offesers of the feste, fulle evylle a-schamyd, informyd -the maysters of the feste of thys mysse-happe that ys -be-falle. And they consyderynge the grete dygnyte and costys -and change that longgyd unto the cytte, and anon sende unto -the mayre a present of mete, brede, wyne, and many dyvers -sotelteys. But whenn they that come with the presentys saw -alle the gyftys, and the sarvyse that was at the borde, he was -fulle sore a-schamyd that shulde doo the massage, for the -present was not better thenn the servyse of metys was byfore -the mayre, and thoroughe-owte the hyghe tabylle. But hys -demenynge was soo that he hadde love and thonke for hys -massage, and a grette rewarde with-alle. And thys the -worschippe of the cytte was kepte, and not loste for hym. I -truste that nevyr hyt shalle, by the grace of God.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>REGULATIONS CONCERNING STRANGERS (1485).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>These regulations are taken from Henry VII.'s charter, -which cost the citizens no less than five thousand marks. -The main object of the charter was to protect the City -from the encroachments of foreigners and strangers, who -appear to have been unusually active about this time in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_80'>80</span>their attempts to gain a footing in the rapidly expanding -trade of London. Their efforts met with great hostility -on the part of the citizens, and these enactments are -indicative of the general attitude of the Londoners -towards strangers either from other towns or from across -the sea.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—From the Charter of Henry VII.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>Of all time, of which the memory of man is not to the -contrary, for the commonweal of the realm and city aforesaid, -it hath been used, and by authority of parliament approved -and confirmed, that no stranger from the liberty of the city -may buy or sell, from any stranger from the liberties of the -same city, any merchandise or wares within the liberties of the -same city, upon forfeiture of the same. The said mayor and -commonalty, and citizens, and their predecessors by all the time -aforesaid, have had and received, and have been accustomed -to receive, perceive, and have, to the use of the said mayor, -commonalty, and citizens, all and all manner of merchandises -and wares bought and sold within the liberties of the same -city as aforesaid, and forfeitures of the same merchandises -and wares, until of late past time they were troubled or -molested.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The same lord Henry the seventh, by his letters patent as -aforesaid, for pacifying and taking away from henceforth controversies -and ambiguities in that behalf, and to fortify and by -express words to explain and declare the liberty and custom -aforesaid to them the said mayor and commonalty and citizens, -and their heirs and successors, and willing the said liberties -to be peaceably and quietly had, possessed, and enjoyed to the -said mayor and commonalty and citizens, and their successors, -with the forfeitures aforesaid, against the said late lord King -Henry, his heirs and successors granted, and by his said -charter confirmed to the same mayor and commonalty and -citizens, and their successors, that no stranger from the -liberties of the same city may buy or sell from any other -stranger to the liberty of the same city, any merchandises or -<span class='pageno' id='Page_81'>81</span>wares within the liberties of the same city; and if any stranger -to the liberty of the same city shall sell or buy any merchandises -or wares within the liberty of the same city of any -other stranger to the liberty of the same city, that the same -mayor, commonalty and citizens, and their successors, may -have, hold, and receive all and all manner of such like merchandises -and wares, so bought and to be bought, sold or to -be sold, within the liberty of the said city, between whatsoever -strangers to the liberty of the same city, as forfeited; and all -the forfeitures of the same, and also the penalties, fines, and -redemptions whatsoever anyways forfeited, lost or to be lost, -or to be forfeited or due thereon, to the use and profit of the -same mayor and commonalty and citizens, and their heirs and -successors, without hindrance of the same late king, his heirs -or successors, and without any account or any other thing to -be rendered or paid thereof to the late king, his heirs and -successors, any statute, act, or ordinance of us or our progenitors -made to the contrary notwithstanding; although the -same mayor and commonalty, and citizens of the said city, or -their predecessors, have before that time used, abused, or not -used those customs and liberties: Saving always, that the -great men, lords, and nobles, and other English and strangers, -of what condition they shall be, may freely buy whatsoever -merchandises in gross for their families and proper uses -within the liberties of the said city, without any forfeiture, -loss, or hindrance whatsoever, so that they do not sell again -the said merchandises to any other.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And further, the same late king, of his ample grace, by his -said letters patent, amongst other things, did give and grant to -the mayor, commonalty, and citizens of the same city of London, -and their successors, the office of gauger within the said city, -and the disposing, ordering, surveying, and correcting of the -same, to have, hold, exercise, and occupy the said office, and -other premises, with all fees, profits, and emoluments to the -said office in any manner belonging or appertaining, to the -same mayor and commonalty, and citizens, by themselves, or -by their sufficient deputy or deputies, from the twenty-second -<span class='pageno' id='Page_82'>82</span>day of August, in the first year of his reign, for ever, without -any account to be made thereof, or any other thing rendering -or paying to the said lord Henry the seventh, his heirs or -successors, as by the said letters patent doth more plainly -appear.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE MARCHING WATCH (1510).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The Marching Watch was a kind of annual military -muster of the citizens, embodying all the companies, for -the purpose of forming a regular guard for the City during -the ensuing year. The contest for magnificence on the -occasion described in the following extract created an -expense so great and detrimental that Henry VIII. prohibited -the show, and confined the citizens to the proper -object of the assembly. It was afterwards revived on a -more economical plan, and continued under the name of -the "Standing Watch," till the force was finally superseded -by the City Trained Bands.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Stow's <cite>Survey</cite>, p. 102.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>Besides the standing watches all in bright harness, in every -ward and street in this city and suburbs, there was also a -marching watch that passed through the principal streets -thereof, to wit, from the little conduit by Paul's gate to West -Cheap, by the stocks through Cornhill by Leadenhall to -Aldgate, then back down Fenchurch Street by Grace Church, -about Grace church conduit and up Gracechurch Street into -Cornhill, and through it into West Cheap again, and so broke -up. The whole way ordered for this marching watch extendeth -to three thousand two hundred taylor's yards of assize; for the -furniture whereof with lights, there were appointed seven -hundred cressets, five hundred of them being found by the -Companies, the other two hundred by the Chamber of London.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Besides the which lights every constable in London, in -number more than two hundred and forty, had his cresset; the -charge of every cresset was in light two shillings and fourpence, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_83'>83</span>and every cresset had two men, one to bear or hold in, -another to bear a bag with light, and to serve it, so that the -poor men pertaining to the cressets, taking wages, besides that -every one had a straw hat, with a badge painted, and his -breakfast, amounted in number to almost two thousand. The -marching watch contained in number about two thousand men, -part of them being old soldiers, of skill to be captains, -lieutenants, serjeants, corporals, etc., wiflers, drummers, and -fifes, standard and ensign bearers, demilances on great horses, -gunners with hand guns, or half hakes, archers in coats of -white fustian, signed on the breast and back with the arms of -the city, their bows bent in their hands, with sheafs of arrows -by their sides; pikemen in bright corslets, burganets, etc. -halbards, the like the billmen in almain rivets, and aprons of -mail in great number. There were also divers pageants, -morris dancers, constables, the one-half which was one hundred -and twenty on Saint John's Eve, the other half on St. Peter's -Eve, in bright harness, some over gilt, and every one a jornet -of scarlet thereupon, and a chain of gold, his henchman following -him, his minstrels before him, and his cresset light passing -by him, the waits of the city, the Mayor's officers for his guard -before him, all in a livery worsted, or sea jackets parti-coloured, -the Mayor himself well mounted on horseback, the sword-bearer -before him in fair armour well mounted also, the Mayor's -footmen, and the like torch bearers about him, henchmen -twain upon great stirring horses following him. The Sheriffs' -watches came one after the other in like order, but not so -large in number as the Mayor's; for where the Mayor had, -besides his giant, three pageants, each of the Sheriffs had, -besides their giants, but two pageants; each their morris -dance, and one henchman, their officers in jackets of worsted -or sea, parti-coloured, differing from the Mayor's and each -from other, but having harnessed men a great many.</p> - -<p class='c011'>This midsummer watch was thus accustomed yearly, time -out of mind, until the year 1539, the 31st of Henry VIII., in -which year, on the 8th of May, a great muster was made by -the citizens at the Mile's End, all in bright harness, with coats -<span class='pageno' id='Page_84'>84</span>of white silk; or cloth and chains of gold, in three great battels, -to the number of fifteen thousand, which passed through -London to Westminster, and so through the Sanctuary, and -round about the Park of St. James, and returned home through -Oldborne. King Henry, then considering the great charges of -the citizens for the furniture of this unusual muster, forbad the -Marching watch provided for at midsummer for that year; -which being once laid down, was not raised again till the year -1548, the 2nd of Edward VI., Sir John Gresham then being -Mayor, who caused the marching watch, both on the eve of -St. John Baptist and of St. Peter the Apostle, to be revived -and set forth in as comely order as it hath been accustomed, -which watch was also beautified by the number of more than -three hundred demilances and light horsemen, prepared by the -citizens to be sent into Scotland for the rescue of the town of -Haddington, and others kept by the Englishmen.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>DESTRUCTION OF FENCES ABOUT THE<br />CITY (1514).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>It has already been noticed that the City was surrounded -by ecclesiastical manors in the time of Domesday, -and this was still the case at the beginning of the sixteenth -century. It would appear from the following -extract that the practice of enclosure, which at this time -was being extensively adopted in many parts of England, -was being attempted in the neighbourhood of London -itself, greatly to the disgust of the Londoners, who -naturally resented the proposed restrictions on their -accustomed liberty.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Hall's <cite>Chronicle</cite>.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>Before this time the towns about London as Islington, -Hoxton, Shoreditch and other, had so enclosed the common -fields with hedges and ditches, that neither the young men of -the city might shoot, nor the ancient persons might walk for -their pleasure in the fields except either their bows and arrows -<span class='pageno' id='Page_85'>85</span>were broken or taken away, or the honest and substantial -persons arrested or indited, saying that no Londoner should go -out of the city but in the highways. This saying sore grieved -the Londoners, and suddenly this year a great number of the -city assembled themselves in a morning, and a turner in a fool's -coat came crying in the city, Shovels and spades, and so many -people followed that it was wonder, and within a short space -all the hedges about the towns were cast down, and the ditches -filled, and every thing made plain, the workmen were so -diligent. The King's Council hearing of this assembly came -to the Gray Friars, and sent for the mayor and the council of -the city to know the cause, which declared to them the nusiance -done to the Citizens, and their commodities and liberties taken -from them, though they would not yet the commonalty and -young persons which were dampnified by the nusiance would -pluck up and remedy the same. And when the King's council -had heard the answer, they dissimuled the matter and commanded -the Mayor to see that no other thing were attempted, -and to call home the citizens, which when they had done their -enterprise, came home before the King's council and the Mayor -departed without any more harm doing, and so after, the fields -were never hedged.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>MORE'S DESCRIPTION OF LONDON (1517).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Although the City of Amaurote in "Utopia" is not to -be identified exactly with London, it seems very likely -that More had London in his mind while he was writing -this description, which is generally regarded as drawn, to -some extent, from the capital as it was in his day.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—More's <cite>Utopia</cite>.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>The River Anyder riseth four and twenty miles above -Amaurote, out of a little spring: but being increased by other -small floods and brooks that run into it: and, among others, -two somewhat bigger ones. Before the City, it is half a mile -broad (hardly so much now as it was in former days, being pent -<span class='pageno' id='Page_86'>86</span>in and straitened to a narrower space, by the later buildings on -each side): and further, broader. By all that space that lieth -between the Sea and the City, and a good sort of land also -above, the water ebbs and flows six hours together, with a -swift tide; when the sea flows in to the length of thirty miles, -it fills all the Anyder with salt water, and drives back the fresh -water of the river; and somewhat further, it hangeth the sweetness -of fresh water with saltness: but a little beyond that, the -river waxeth sweet, and runneth foreby the City fresh and -pleasant; and when the sea ebbs and goes back again, this -fresh water follows it almost to the very fall into the sea.</p> - -<p class='c011'>They have also another river, which indeed is not very great, -but it runneth gently and pleasantly: for it riseth even out of -the same hill that the City standeth upon, and runneth down -slope through the midst of the City into Anyder. And because -it ariseth a little without the City, the Amaurotians have -enclosed the head spring of it with strong fences and bulwarks; -and so have joined it to the City: this done, to the intent that -the waters should not be stopped nor turned away, nor poisoned, -if their enemies should chance to come upon them. From -thence the water is derived and brought down in channels or -brooks divers ways into the lower parts of the city. Where -that cannot be done by reason that the place will not suffer it, -then they gather the rain water in great cisterns which doth -them as good service. Then next for the situation and walls. -That it stood by the side of a low hill, in fashion almost square. -The breadth of it began a little beneath the top of the hill, and -still continued by the space of two miles, until it came to the -river Anyder. The length of it, which lieth by the river-side, -was somewhat more.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The City is compassed about with an high and thick wall, -full of turrets and bulwarks. A dry ditch, but deep and broad -and overgrown with bushes, briers, and thorns, goeth about -three sides or quarters of the City. To the fourth side, the -river itself serveth for a ditch.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The streets be appointed and set forth very commodious and -handsome, both for carriage and also against the winds. The -<span class='pageno' id='Page_87'>87</span>streets be full twenty foot broad. The houses be of fair and -gorgeous buildings: and in the street-side, they stand joined -together in a long row through the whole street, without any -partition or separation. On the backside of the houses, through -the whole length of the street, lie large gardens which be closed -in round about with the back parts of the street. Every house -hath two doors, one to the street, and a postern door on the -backside into the garden. These doors be made with two -leaves, never locked nor bolted: so easy to be opened, that -they will follow the least drawing of a finger, and shut again -of themselves.</p> - -<p class='c011'>They set great store by their gardens. In these they have -vineyards and all manner of fruits, herbs, and flowers, so -pleasant, so well furnished, and so finely kept, that I never -saw anything more fruitful, nor better trimmed in any place: -and their study and diligence herein cometh not only of pleasure, -but also of a certain strife and contention that is betwixt street -and street, concerning the trimming, husbanding, and flourishing, -of their gardens, every man for his own part: and verily, -you shall not lightly find in all the City anything that is more -commodious, either for the profit of the citizens, or for pleasure. -And therefore it may seem, that the first founder of the city -minded nothing more so much as he did these gardens. They -say, that King Utopus himself, even at his first beginning, -appointed and drew forth the platform of the City into this -fashion and figure that it hath now, by his gallant garnishing -and the beautiful setting forth of it. Whereunto he saw that -one's man age would not suffice, that he left to his posterity.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Their chronicles, which they keep written with all diligent -circumspection, containing the history of 1760 years, even -from the first conquest of the Island, record and witness, that -the houses in the beginning were very low, and likely homely -cottages, or poor shepherds' houses, made at all adventures of -every rude piece of wood that came first to hand: with mud-walls, -and ridged roofs thatched over with straw. But now -the houses be curiously builded after a gorgeous and gallant -sort, with three stories, one over another.</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_88'>88</span>The outside of the walls be made of either hard flint, or of -plaster, or else of brick: and the inner sides be well strengthened -with timber-work.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The roofs be plain and flat, covered with a certain kind of -plaster that is of no cost: and yet so tempered that no fire can -hurt or perish it: and it withstandeth the violence of the -weather, better than any lead.</p> - -<p class='c011'>They keep the wind out of their windows with glass: for -it is there much used; and some were also with fine linen -dipped in oil or amber: and that for two commodities: for -by this means more light cometh in, and the wind is better -kept out.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>EVIL MAY DAY (1517).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Riots were by no means infrequent in the City in the -Middle Ages, and here is an account of a typical disturbance, -in which, of course, the young and hot-headed -apprentices took their share. Just at this time there -was intense animosity against the foreign merchants and -artisans; the citizens thought that the presence of the -foreigners, pursuing their occupations within the walls, -was not only harmful to their own interests, but a violation -of their charters which had given them the privilege -of exclusive trade. At last the common indignation broke -out in the great riot of May Day, 1517, which was long -remembered as Evil May Day. It had been for centuries -a practice of the citizens to collect in bands on May Day -to hold high holiday, and they would sally forth, headed -by mock officers, into the neighbouring fields to indulge -in various sports; on this particular occasion the holiday -spirit was not turned to such innocent and harmless -purposes.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Hall's <cite>Chronicle</cite>.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>The young and evil disposed people said, they would be -revenged on the merchant strangers, as well as on the artificers -<span class='pageno' id='Page_89'>89</span>strangers. On Monday the morrow after, the King removed -to his manor of Richmond.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Upon this rumour the 28th day of April, divers young men -of the City assaulted the Aliens as they passed by the streets, -and some were stricken and some buffeted, and some thrown -in the canal. Wherefore the Mayor sent divers persons to -ward, as Stephen Studley skinner, and Bettes and Stephenson -and divers other, some to one counter, and some to another -and some to Newgate. Then suddenly was a common secret -rumour, and no man could tell how it began, that on May day -next, the City would rebel and slay all aliens, insomuch as -divers strangers fled out of the City....</p> - -<p class='c011'>Then in all haste, every Alderman sent to his Ward that no -man should stir after 9 of the clock out of his house but to -keep his doors shut, and his servants within till 7 of the clock -in the morning. After this commandment, Sir John Monday, -Alderman, came from his Ward, and found two young men in -Cheap playing at Bucklers, and a great company of young men -looking on them for the commandment was then scarce known, -for then it was but 9 of the clock. Master Monday seeing that, -bade them leave, and the one young man asked him why? and -then he said Thou shalt know, and took him by the arm to have -had him to the counter. Then all the young men resisted -the Alderman and took him from Master Monday, and cried -'Prentices and clubs. Then out at every door came clubs and -weapons and the Alderman fled, and was in great danger. -Then more people arose out of every quarter, and out came -serving men, and water men and courtiers, and by 9 of the -clock there were in Cheap 6 or 7 hundred. And out of Paul's -Churchyard came 3 hundred, which wist not of the other, and -so out of all places they gathered, and brake up the counters, -and took out the prisoners, that the Mayor had thither committed -for hurting of the strangers, and came to Newgate and -took out Studley and Petyt, committed thither for that cause. -The Mayor and Sheriffs were there present, and made proclamation -in the King's name, but nothing was obeyed. Thus -they ran a plump through Saint Nicholas Shambles, and at -<span class='pageno' id='Page_90'>90</span>Saint Martins gate, there met with them Sir Thomas Moore -and other, desiring them to go to their lodgings: And as they -were entreating, and had also brought them to a stay: The -people of Saint Martins threw out stones and bats and hurt -divers honest persons, that were persuading the riotous people -to cease, and they bade them hold their hands, but still they -threw out bricks and hot water. Then a sergeant of arms -called Nicholas Dounes, which was there with Master Moore, -entreating them, being sore hurt, in a fury cried Down with -them. Then all the misruled persons ran to the doors and -windows of Saint Martin, and spoiled all that they found, and -cast it into the street, and left few houses unspoiled. And -after that they ran heading into Cornhill by Leadenhall to the -house of one Mutuas a Frenchman or Picardy born, which was -a great bearer of Frenchmen, where they pick purses, or how -evil disposition soever they were of, and within his gate, called -Grenegate, dwelled divers Frenchmen that calendared worsted, -contrary to the King's laws: and all they were so born out by -the same Mutuas, yet no man durst meddle with them, wherefore -he was sore hated, and if the people had found him in -their fury, they would have stricken off his head: but when -they found him not, the watermen, and certain young priests -that were there fell to rifling: some ran to Blanche-chapelton, -and brake the strangers houses, and threw shoes and boots -into the street. This from 10 or 11 of the clock, continued -these riotous people during which time a knight called Sir -Thomas Parr, in great haste went to the Cardinal and told -him of this riot, which incontinent strengthened his house with -men and ordnance. And after, this knight rode to the King -to Richmond, and made the report much more than it was. -Wherefore the King hastily sent to London and was truly -advised of the matter, and how the riot was ceased, and many -of the doers apprehended. But while this ruffling continued, -Sir Richard Cholmeley knight, Lieutenant of the Tower, no -great friend to the City, in a frantic fury loosed certain pieces -of ordnance, and shot into the City, which did little harm, -howbeit his good will appeared. About 3 of the clock, these -<span class='pageno' id='Page_91'>91</span>riotous persons severed and went to their places of resort, and -by the way they were taken by the Mayor and the heads of the -City, and some sent to the Tower, and some to Newgate, and -some to the Counters, to the number of 300; some fled, and -specially the watermen and priests, and serving men, but the -poor prentices were taken. About five o'clock, the Earls of -Shrewsbury and Surrey, which had heard of this riot, came -to London with such strength as they had, so did the Inns of -Court, and divers noble men: but before they came all the riot -was ceased, and many taken as you have heard.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE PAPAL LEGATE IN THE CITY (1519).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Campeggio is well known in connection with the part -which he played in the divorce proceedings between -Henry VIII. and his first wife Catherine of Aragon in -1529. That occasion was not his first visit to England; -he had previously been entrusted with a mission from the -Pope to Henry, and the reception of himself and his train -is described in the passage below. The subject of this -embassy of 1519 was to urge Henry to assist in waging -war on the Turks, who were apparently endeavouring to -push their way into Europe; and similar messages were -conveyed at the same time to the other powerful rulers -on the Continent. The incident of the opening of the -chests must have created considerable amusement among -the onlookers, and would hardly add to the popular -estimation of a Papal embassy.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Hall's <cite>Chronicle</cite>.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>When the Cardinal of York knew, that there was coming a -legate into England, which should have a greater pre-eminence -than a Cardinal, he whose ambition was never satisfied, caused -a Bishop and certain Doctors to pass the sea to Calais to -welcome him, and to show him that if he would have the -Popes purpose, to take any effect in England, he should in any -<span class='pageno' id='Page_92'>92</span>wise send in post to Rome, to have the said Cardinal of York -to be legate also, and to be joined in commission with him, -which thing was done (not without good rewards) so that in -thirty and five days, the bull was brought to Calais. During -which time the Cardinal of York sent to the Legate to Calais, -red cloth to clothe his servants, which at their coming to Calais, -were but meanly appareled. And when all things were ready -he passed the sea and landed at Dover, and so kept forth his -journey toward London. At every town as they passed, he -was received with Procession, and accompanied with all the -Lords and gentlemen of Kent. And when he came to Blackheath, -there met him the Duke of Norfolk, with a great number -of prelates, knights and gentlemen, all richly appareled. And -in the way he was brought into a rich tent of cloth of gold, -where he shifted himself into a robe of a Cardinal, edged with -ermine, and so took his mule riding toward London.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The night before he came to London the Cardinal of York, -to furnish the carriages of the Cardinal Campeius, sent to him -twelve mulettes with empty coffers covered with red, which -twelve mulettes were led through London, amongst the mulettes -of Campeius, which were but eight and so these twenty mulettes -passed through the streets, as though they had been full of -treasures, apparel and other necessaries. And when they -came into Chepe, one of the mulettes brake from her keeper, -and overthrew the chests, and overturned two or three other -mulettes carriages, which fell with such violence, that divers -of them unlocked, and out of some fell old hosen, broken shoon, -and roasted flesh, pieces of bread, eggs and much vile baggage; -at which sight the boys cried, See, see my Lord Legates treasure, -and so the muleteers were ashamed, and took up all their stuff -and passed forth. And about three o'clock in the afternoon on -the 29th day of July the said legate entered the city, and in -Southwark met him all the clergy of London with crosses, -censors and copes and 'censed him with great reverence. The -Mayor and Aldermen, and all the occupations of the city in -their best liveries stood in the streets, and him highly honoured: -to whom Sir Thomas More made a brief oration in the name of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_93'>93</span>the city. And when he came to St. Pauls, there he was received -by bishops mitred, and under a canopy entered the -church: which canopy his servants took for their fees. And -when he had offered, he gave his benediction to all the people, -and took again his mule, and so was with all his train aforesaid, -conveyed to Bath place, and there rested: where he was welcomed -of the Cardinal of York. And on Sunday next ensuing -these two Cardinals as legates, took their barges and came to -Greenwich, each of them had beside their cross two pillars of -silver, two little axes gilt, and two cloke bags embroidered, -and the Cardinals hats borne before them. And when they -came to the kings hall, the Cardinal of York went on the right -hand; and there the King royally appareled and accompanied, -met them even as though both had come from Rome, and so -brought them both up into his chamber of presence, and there -was a solemn oration made by an Italian, declaring the cause -of the legacy to be in two articles, one for aid against God's -enemies, and the second for reformation of the Clergy. And -when Mass was done, they were had to a chamber, and served -with lords and knights, with much solemnity: and after dinner -they took their leave of the king and came to London and rode -through the city together, in great pomp and glory, to their -lodgings.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>WOLSEY AND THE CITIZENS (1525).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The incidents related in the following passage are concerned -with one of the periodical efforts of Henry VIII. -to raise money in irregular ways. He seems to have left -the matter on this occasion to Wolsey, who issued commissions -for levying the sixth part of the goods of the laity -and the fourth of those of the clergy. This proceeding -caused great alarm, and rebellions appeared imminent in -all parts of the country. Whereupon Henry disavowed -the whole business, and told the citizens of London that -he would not exact anything by compulsion, but merely -ask for a benevolence. This was, of course, recognised -<span class='pageno' id='Page_94'>94</span>as an artifice to obtain the same results by different means, -and the citizens sturdily protested, arguing that benevolences -had been declared illegal. Wolsey experienced -very great difficulty in his dealings with the Londoners, -who well maintained their reputation for guarding their -independence and liberty, even when faced with threats -and menaces.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Hall's <cite>Chronicle</cite>.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>And now since God hath given us victory, the King remembering -the saying of the Poet that sayeth: It is more -mastery to use victory gotten, than to get it, thinketh it necessary -now in all haste, to make an army royal, and he in person -to pass the seas, and to recover his right inheritance, both of -the Crown of France as of Normandy, Guyen, Gascony, -Aniowe and Mayne, the writings whereof comprehending the -very title, you may see here present if ye list, but I doubt not -but you know them well enough. And now I ask you this -question, whether that you think it convenient, that the King -should pass with an army or not, for the King will do by the -advice of his subjects: to the which many said yea.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Well said the Cardinal, then must he be made able to go like -a Prince, which cannot be without your aids, and for to shew -you what the Archbishop of Canterbury and I, which be -primates of the realm hath done, we have given of our lands, -and all lands appertaining to the church, the third part, and the -temporal lords have given of lands and goods, the sixth part, -and to jeopard their bodies in pain and travail, and now since -they which shall adventure their lives, doth proffer the sixth -part, what should they give which abide at home? Forsooth -I think that half your substance were too little, not meaning -that the King so asketh. For he demandeth only no more, -of fifty pound, the sixth part, and so upon every pound above -fifty, to what sum soever it amount to, the sixth part that is -3s. and 3 pence of the pound and from 20 pound to fifty pound, -and so upward. 2s. and 8 pence of the pound, and from 20 pound -to 20s. 12 pence of the pound, and this to be levied according to -<span class='pageno' id='Page_95'>95</span>the first valuation, as appeareth by your own valuation, which -is but a small matter, to the thing that is meant. Then they -being astonished, at last one said, My lord since the last -valuation divers merchants be decayed by the seas, and suretyship, -and other ways, so that valuation cannot be had. Then -answered the Cardinal, Sirs, speak not to break the thing that -is concluded, for some shall not pay the tenth part, and some -more, it were better that some should suffer indigence, than the -King at this time should lack, and therefore beware and resist -not, nor ruffel not in this case, for it may fortune to cost some -their heads: but I will speak to the King, to be good to you, -so that if he go not over the sea in person, then you shall have -your money redelivered, but first let the money be gathered, -and lay it where you will, and if the King need it not, you may -take it again.</p> - -<p class='c011'>When the Cardinal had thus persuaded the Mayor, and his -brethren and other head commoners, they took their leave and -every day after by the space of fortnight, he sent for a certain -number of Commoners, and told them like tale, but some spake -such words to him, and some going from him, that they were -sent to ward.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE APPRENTICES (1527, <span class='fss'>ETC.</span>).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>During the Tudor period the apprentice was a prominent -feature of London life, and is chiefly famous for his -prowess as a disturber of the peace. The apprentice -system was of considerable importance, and many regulations -and ordinances were passed from time to time to -govern the conditions under which apprentices were to be -bound and treated during their term. The story of "Evil -May Day," already given, illustrates the turbulence of the -apprentices and the relaxation of discipline in the City -during this period. The Regulations of 1582 show clearly -that they were getting out of hand, and in 1595 further -troubles induced Elizabeth to issue further instructions of -a drastic nature.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_96'>96</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Sources.</strong>—<br />(<em>a</em>) An Act of Common Council, 1527, quoted by Maitland, i. 230;<br />(<em>b</em>) <em>ibid.</em>, 1582, Maitland, i. 267;<br />(<em>c</em>) Strype's edition of Stow's <cite>Survey</cite>, vol. ii.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>(<em>a</em>) [<em>Admonition to the Apprentices</em>].—Ye shall constantly and -devoutly on your knees, every day, serve God, morning and -evening; and make conscience in the due hearing of the Word -preached, and endeavour the right practice thereof on your life -and conversation. You shall do diligent and faithful service -to your master for the time of your apprenticeship, and deal -truly in what you shall be trusted. You shall often read over -the covenants of your indenture, and see and endeavour yourself -to perform the same, to the utmost of your power. You -shall avoid all evil company, and all occasions which may tend -to draw you to the same; and make speedy return when you -shall be sent of your masters' and mistresses' business. You -shall be of fair, gentle, and lowly speech and behaviour to all -men, and especially to all your governors; and according to -your carriage, expect your reward, for good or ill, from God -and your friends.</p> - -<p class='c011'>(<em>b</em>) Henceforth no apprentice whatsoever shall presume: -1. To wear any apparel but what he receives from his master. -2. To wear no hat within the city and liberty thereof, nor -anything instead thereof than a woollen cap, without any silk -in or about the same. 3. To wear no ruffles, cuffs, loose -collar, nor other thing than a ruff at the collar, and that only -of a yard and a half long.... 10. To wear no sword, -dagger, or other weapon, but a knife; nor a ring, jewel of gold, -nor silver, nor silk in any part of the apparel.</p> - -<p class='c011'>It was likewise further enacted that every apprentice offending -against any of the above-mentioned items was for the first -offence to be punished at the discretion of his master; for the -second to be publicly whipped at the hall of his company; and -for the third to serve six months longer than specified in his -indentures. It was also further ordained that no apprentice -should frequent or go to any dancing, fencing, or musical -schools; nor keep any chest, press, or other place for the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_97'>97</span>keeping of apparel or goods, but in his master's house, under -the penalties aforesaid.</p> - -<p class='c011'>(<em>c</em>) The ancient habit of the apprentices of London was a -flat round cap, hair close cut, narrow falling bands, coarse side -coats, close hose, cloth stockings, and other such severe apparel. -When this garb had been urged by some to the disparagement -of apprentices, as a token of servitude, one, many -a year ago, undertaking the defence of these apprentices, wrote -thus, that this imported the commendable thrift of the citizens, -and was only the mark of an apprentice's vocation and calling -(and which anciently, no question, was the ordinary habit of a -citizen), which point of ancient discipline, he said, the grave -common lawyers do still retain in their profession; for the -professors of that learning, we see, do at this present retain -the parti-coloured coats of serving-men at their serjeants' -feasts; and he wished, that the remembrance of this ancient -livery might be preserved by the grave citizens, in setting -apart a particular time or day for the feast of their apprenticeship, -when they should wear their former apprentice's garb; -making profession in this way, that they gloried in the ensigns -of their honest apprenticeship.</p> - -<p class='c011'>In the time of Queen Mary, the beginning of Queen Elizabeth, -as well as many years before, all apprentices wore blue cloaks -in the summer, and blue gowns in the winter. But it was not -lawful for any man, either servant or other, to wear their gowns -lower than the calves of their legs, except they were above -threescore years of age; but, the length of cloaks being not -limited, they made them down to their shoes. Their breeches -and stockings were usually of white broad cloth, viz. round -slops, and their stockings sewed up close thereto, as if they -were all but one piece. They also wore flat caps both then -and many years after, as well apprentices as journey-men and -others, both at home and abroad; whom the pages of the court -in derision called flat-caps.</p> - -<p class='c011'>When apprentices and journeymen attended upon their -masters and mistresses in the night they went before them -carrying a lanthorn and candle in their hands and a great long -<span class='pageno' id='Page_98'>98</span>club on their necks; and many well-grown sturdy apprentices -used to wear long daggers in the day time on their backs or -sides.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Anciently it was the general use and custom of all apprentices -in London (Mercers only excepted, being commonly merchants, -and of better rank, as it seems) to carry water tankards, to -serve their masters' houses with water, fetched either from the -Thames, or the common conduits of London.</p> - -<p class='c011'>It was a great matter, in former Times, to give £10 to bind -a youth apprentice; but, in King James the First's time, they -gave 20, 40, 60 and sometimes £100 with an apprentice; but -now these prices are vastly enhanced, to 500, 600, or £800.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>A WATER PAGEANT (1533).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The reign of Henry VIII. is famous for the number and -splendour of its pageants. The Field of Cloth of Gold is -familiar to all, and every event of any importance was -made the occasion of a display of splendid clothing, -tapestry, jewels, and allegorical groups. The fashion of -extravagance and love of show, which was set by the -King, was followed by all who could afford, and the City -was in no way behindhand in taking part in these functions. -The coronation in 1509, the reception of the French -ambassadors in 1518, that of the Legate Campeggio, that -of the Emperor Charles, the coronation of Anne Boleyn—all -these afforded an occasion for a pageant, and the -opportunity was never lost. The following description is -of a water pageant in honour of Anne Boleyn.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Grafton's <cite>Chronicles</cite>, vol. ii., p. 448.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>The xix day of May the Mayor and his brethren all in -scarlet, and such as were knights had collars of Esses and the -remnant having good chains, and the council of the City with -them assembled at Saint Mary Hill, and at one of the clock -descended to the New stair to their barge, which was garnished -<span class='pageno' id='Page_99'>99</span>with many goodly banners and instruments, which continually -made good harmony. After that the Mayor and his brethren -were in their barge seeing that all the companies to the number -of fifty barges were ready to wait upon them. They gave commandment -to the companies that no barge should row nearer to -another than twice the length of the barge upon a great pain. -And to see the order kept, there were three light wherries -prepared, and in every one of them two officers to call on them -to keep their order, after which commandment given they set -forth in order as hereafter is described. First before the -Mayor's barge was a foyst or wafter full of ordinance, in which -foyst was a great dragon continually moving, and casting wild -fire: and round about the said foyst stood terrible monsters -and wild men casting fire, and making hideous noises: next -after the foyst a good distance came the Mayor's barge, on -whose right hand was the Batchelors' barge, in the which were -trumpets and divers other melodious instruments. The decks -of the said barge and the sailyards and the top castels were -hanged with rich cloth of gold and silk. At the foreship and -the stern were two great banners rich beaten with the arms of -the King and Queen, and on the top castell also was a long -streamer newly beaten with the said arms.</p> - -<p class='c011'>At three of the clock the Queen appeared in rich cloth of -gold and entered into her barge accompanied with divers ladies -and gentlewomen, and incontinent the citizens set forwards -in their order, their musicians continually playing and the -batchelors' barge going on the Queen's right hand, which she -took great pleasure to behold. About the Queen's barge were -many noblemen, as the Duke of Suffolk, the Marquis Dorset, -the Earl of Wiltshire her father, the Earls of Arundel, Derby, -Rutland, Worcester, Huntington, Sussex, Oxford, and many -Bishops and noblemen, every one in his barge which was a -goodly sight to behold. She thus being accompanied rowed -toward the Tower, and in the mean way the ships which were -commanded to lie on the shore for letting of the barges shot -divers peals of guns, and ere she landed there was a marvellous -shot out of the Tower as ever was heard there. And at her -<span class='pageno' id='Page_100'>100</span>landing there met with her the Lord Chamberlain with the -officers of arms and brought her to the King, which received -her with loving countenance at the postern by the waterside, -and kissed her, and then she turned back again and thanked -the Mayor and the citizens with many goodly words and so -entered the Tower.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>LATIMER'S EXHORTATION TO LONDON (1549).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Quite early in his career Latimer earned considerable -fame as an eloquent preacher, but the boldness with which -he proclaimed his religious views, and his denunciations -of ecclesiastical abuses, frequently placed him in difficult -positions. He lost favour towards the end of the reign -of Henry VIII., but on the accession of Edward VI. he -regained his old position of importance, and devoted -himself to the work of an itinerant preacher. In this -character his popular preaching talents exerted a much -wider and more permanent influence in the spread of his -opinions than his work as Bishop of Worcester could -have done; and it is certain that his labours contributed -very largely to fix the doctrines of the Reformation in the -minds of the people.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Latimer's <cite>Sermon on the Ploughers</cite>.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>Now what shall we say of these rich artisans of London? -What shall I say of them? Shall I call them proud men -of London, malicious men of London, merciless men of -London? No, no, I may not say so, they will be offended -with me then. Yet must I speak. For is there reigning in -London as much pride, as much covetousness, as much cruelty, -as much oppression, as much superstition, as was in Nebo? -Yes, I think so and much more too. Therefore I say, repent, -O London! repent, repent! Thou hearest thy faults told -thee; amend them, amend them. And you rulers and officers, -be wise and circumspect, look to your charge and see you do -your duties and rather be glad to amend your ill living than to -<span class='pageno' id='Page_101'>101</span>be angry when you are warned or told of your fault.... -But London cannot abide to be rebuked; such is the nature of -men. If they be pricked, they will kick. If they be rubbed -on the gall, they will wince. But yet they will not amend -their faults, they will not be ill spoken of. But how shall -I speak well of them? If you could be content to receive and -follow the word of God and favour good preachers, if you could -bear to be told of your faults, if you could amend when you -hear of them: if you would be glad to reform what is amiss: -if I might see any such inclination in you, that leave to be -merciless and begin to be charitable, I would then hope well of -you, I would speak well of you. But London was never so ill -as it is now. In times past men were full of pity and compassion -but now there is no pity; for in London their brother -shall die in the streets for cold, he shall lie sick at the door -between stock and stock, I cannot tell what to call it, and -perish there for hunger. In times past when any rich men -died in London, they were wont to help the poor scholars of -the university with exhibitions. When any man died, they -would bequeath great sums of money towards the relief of the -poor. When I was a scholar at Cambridge myself, I heard -very good report of London and knew many that had relief of -the rich men of London; but now I can hear no such good -report and yet I inquire of it and hearken for it; but now -charity is waxed cold, none help the scholar nor yet the poor. -And in those days what did they when they helped the scholars? -Many they maintained and gave them living that were very -papists and professed the pope's doctrines; and now that the -knowledge of God's word is brought to light, and many -earnestly study and labour to set it forth, now almost no man -helpeth to maintain them. Oh! London! London! repent, -repent, for I think God is more displeased with London than -ever he was with the city of Nebo. Amend therefore; and ye -that be prelates, look well to your office, for right prelating -is busy labouring and not lording. Therefore preach and -teach, and let your plough be doing; ye lords, I say, that live -like loiterers, look well to your office; the plough is your office -<span class='pageno' id='Page_102'>102</span>and charge. If you live idle and loiter, you do not your duty, -you follow not your vocation; let your plough therefore be -going and not cease, that true ground may bring forth good -fruit.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>MARY'S SPEECH TO THE CITIZENS (1553).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The project of the marriage between Mary and Philip -of Spain caused profound uneasiness throughout England, -and the fear of persecution and the anxiety of the nobles -for their possessions brought about a formidable conspiracy. -The standard of revolt was raised in many parts -of the country, but only Sir Thomas Wyatt achieved any -success. He was soon at the head of fifteen hundred -Kentish men, and his avowed object was to save England -from Spain. A force of soldiers sent against him deserted -to his side, and he marched upon London. The situation -was saved by Mary's coolness and courage; she showed -no signs of fear, refused to take refuge in flight, and -addressed the citizens of London assembled in the Guildhall. -Her resolute bearing and discreet promises aroused -enthusiasm among her hearers, who had heard of Jack -Cade, and did not wish to see their city in the hands of an -armed mob. Men were hastily enrolled, the drawbridge -on London Bridge was raised, and Wyatt was unable to -enter the City. He crossed the river at Kingston, but his -men began to drop away, and he surrendered at Temple -Bar. He was executed shortly afterwards.</p> - -<p class='c000'>This incident, like many others, illustrates the immense -importance of London in connection with political affairs; -over and over again the destinies of the kingdom have -been settled by the attitude of the citizens of London.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Speed's <cite>History</cite>, book ix., chap. xxiii.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>In my own person I am come unto you, to tell you that which -yourselves already do see and know; I mean, the traitorous -<span class='pageno' id='Page_103'>103</span>and seditious number of the Kentish Rebels, that are assembled -against us and you. Their pretence, as they say, is to resist -a marriage between us and the Prince of Spain. Of all their -plots, pretended quarrels and evil-contrived articles, you have -been made privy; since which time our Council have resorted -to the rebels, demanding the cause of their continued enterprise; -by whose answers the marriage is found to be the reason -of their quarrel; or rather, a cloak to cover their pretended purposes -against our religion; for swerving from their former -articles, they now manifestly betray the inward treason of -their hearts, most arrogantly demanding the possession of our -person, the keeping of our Tower, and not only the placing and -displacing of our Counsellors, but also to use them and us at -their pleasures: what I am, loving Subjects, you right well -know—your Queen, to whom at my Coronation, when I was -wedded to the Realm, and to the laws of the same, (the spousal -ring whereof I have on my finger, which never hitherto was, -nor hereafter shall be left off) ye promised your allegiance and -obedience unto me; and that I am the right and true inheritor -to the English Crown, I not only take all Christendom to witness, -but also your Acts of Parliament confirming the same.</p> - -<p class='c011'>My Father, as you all know, possessed the Regal estate by -right of inheritance, which now by the same right, is descended -unto me: to him you always shewed yourselves both faithful -and loving subjects, as to your liege Lord and King, and therefore -I doubt not, but you will shew yourselves so to me his -Daughter which if you do, then may you not suffer any rebel to -usurp the government of our person, or interpose our estate, -especially so presumptuous a traitor as this Wyat hath shewed -himself to be; who most certainly, as he hath abused our -ignorant subjects to be adherents to his traitorous quarrel, -so doth he intend by the colour of the same to subdue the laws -to his will, and to give scope to the rascal and forlorn persons, -to make general havoc and spoil of your goods.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And this I say further unto you in the word of a Prince, -I cannot tell how naturally a mother loveth her children, for -I was never the mother of any; but certainly, if a Prince and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_104'>104</span>Governour may as naturally love their subjects, as the mother -doth her child, then assure yourselves, that I, being your -Sovereign Lady and Queen, do as earnestly and tenderly -love and favour you; and I, thus loving you, cannot but think, -that you as heartily and faithfully love me again; and so, this -love bound together in the knot of concord, we shall be able, -I doubt not, to give these rebels a short and speedy overthrow.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Now, as concerning my intended marriage, you shall understand, -that I entered not into the Treaty thereof without the -advice of our Privy Council, yea, and by the assent of those to -whom my Father committed his trust, who have so considered -the great commodities that may thereof ensue, as they not only -have thought it very honourable, but also expedient both for -the wealth of our realm, and also to our loving subjects.</p> - -<p class='c011'>But as touching myself, I assure you, I am not so desirous -of wedding, neither am I so precisely wedded to my will, that -either for mine own pleasure I will choose where I list, or else -so amorous, as needs I must have one; for I thank God, to -whom be the praise, I have hitherto lived a Virgin, and doubt -not but, with God's grace to be able to live so still.</p> - -<p class='c011'>But if, as my progenitors have done before, it might please -God that I might leave some fruit of my body to be your -governour, I trust, you would not only rejoice thereat, but also -I know, it would be to your great comfort; and certainly, if -I either did know or think, that this marriage should either -turn to the danger or loss of any of you, my loving subjects, or -to the detriment of any part of the Royal estate of the English -realm, I would never consent thereunto, neither would I ever -marry, whilst I lived; and in the word of a Queen, I promise -and assure you, if it shall not probably appear before the -nobility and commons in the High Court of Parliament, that -this marriage shall be for the singular benefit and commodity -of the whole realm, that then I will abstain, not only from this -marriage, but also from any other.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Wherefore, good subjects, pluck up your hearts, and, like -true men, stand fast with your lawful Prince against these -rebels, both ours and yours, and fear them not, for I assure -<span class='pageno' id='Page_105'>105</span>you, I do not, and will leave with you my Lord Howard and -my Lord Treasurer, to be assistant with my Lord Mayor, for -the safeguard of the City from spoil and sackage, which is the -only scope of this rebellious company.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>SORANZO'S REPORT ON LONDON (1554).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The following is the impression of a Venetian Ambassador, -contained in his report to the Senate:</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—<cite>Calendar of State Papers, Venetian, 1534-1554</cite>, No. 934.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>The principal cities of the kingdom are London and York, -but London is the most noble, both on account of its being the -royal residence, and because the river Thames runs through -it, very much to the convenience and profit of the inhabitants, -as it ebbs and flows every six hours like the sea, scarcely ever -causing inundation or any extraordinary floods; and up to -London Bridge it is navigable for ships of 400 butts burden, -of which a great plenty arrive with every sort of merchandise. -This bridge connects the city with the borough, and is built of -stone with twenty arches, and shops on both sides. On the -banks of the river there are many large palaces, making a very -fine show, but the city is much disfigured by the ruins of a -multitude of churches and monasteries belonging heretofore to -friars and nuns. It has a dense population, said to number -180,000 souls; and is beyond measure commercial, the merchants -of the entire kingdom flocking thither, as, by a privilege -conceded to the citizens of London, from them alone can they -purchase merchandise, so they soon became very wealthy; -and the same privileges placed in their hands the government -of the city of London, which is divided into 24 trades or -crafts, each of which elects a certain individual, styled alderman, -the election being made solely in the persons of those -who are considered the most wealthy, and the office is for life; -the which aldermen, after assembling these trades, create -annually a person as their head for the current year entitled -Mayor.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_106'>106</span> - <h2 class='c004'>THE ROYAL EXCHANGE (1566).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Sir Thomas Gresham, a wealthy and munificent London -merchant, offered in 1563 to build, at his own expense, a -Bourse or Exchange, if the City would provide the ground. -The need for some such building was becoming rather -serious; the commerce of the country was growing very -rapidly, and Lombard Street had long been too small for -the business of London. Men were exposed there to all -weathers, and had to crowd into small shops. For twenty -or thirty years there had been talk of making a new place -of resort for the merchants, and the example of Antwerp, -London's great rival in trade, inspired Gresham to make -his magnificent gift to his fellow-citizens.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Gresham's building was destroyed in the Fire of 1666, -and its successor was burned down in 1838.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Stow's <cite>Survey</cite>, p. 193.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>Then next is the Royal Exchange, erected in the year 1566, -after this order, viz., certain houses upon Cornhill, and the -like upon the back thereof, in the ward of Broad street, with -three alleys, the first called Swan Alley, opening into Cornhill, -the second New Alley, passing throughout of Cornhill into -Broad-street ward, over against Saint Bartholomew lane, the -third Saint Christophers Alley, opening into Broad street ward, -and into Saint Christophers parish, containing in all fourscore -households: were first purchased by the Citizens of London, -for more than £3532, and were sold for £478, to such persons -as should take them down and carry them thence, also the -ground or plot was made plain at the charges of the City, and -then possession thereof was by certain Aldermen, in name of -the whole Citizens, given to Sir Thomas Gresham, Knight, -Agent to the Queen's Highness, thereupon to build a Bourse, -or place for merchants to assemble in, at his own proper -charges: and he on the seventh of June laying the first stone -of the foundation, being brick, accompanied with some Aldermen, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_107'>107</span>everyone of them laid a piece of gold, which the workmen -took up, and forthwith followed upon the same with such -diligence, that by the month of November, in the year 1567, -the same was covered with slate, and shortly after fully finished.</p> - -<p class='c011'>In the year 1570, on the 23. of January, the Queen's Majesty, -attended with her nobility, came from her house at the Strand -called Somerset house, and entered the City by Temple Bar, -through Fleet Street, Cheap, and so by the north side of the -Bourse through Threadneedle Street, to Sir Thomas Gresham's -in Bishopsgate Street, where she dined. After dinner her -Majesty returning through Cornhill, entered the Bourse on the -south side, and after that she had viewed every part thereof -above the ground, especially the pawn, which was richly -furnished with all sorts of the finest wares in the City: she -caused the same Bourse by an herald and a trumpet, to be -proclaimed the Royal Exchange, and so to be called from -thenceforth, and not otherwise.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>A LORD MAYOR'S SHOW (1575).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>It is supposed that the annual pageant connected with -the election of the Mayor had its origin in an old custom -that the newly-elected officer should be presented to the -King or his justiciar; we have, however, little information -concerning the earlier processions, and they are hardly -noticed by chroniclers until the fifteenth century. It -appears that the practice of proceeding to Westminster -on horseback was started in 1415, but an infirm Mayor -in 1453 introduced the custom of making the progress by -barge on the river; this lasted until the middle of the -seventeenth century, but there was, in addition, always -the ride on horseback from the Guildhall to the point of -embarkation. The fashion for pageantry and display, -which was so prominent a feature of Henry VIII.'s reign, -influenced this annual function, which tended to become -more and more elaborate.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_108'>108</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—William Smith's <cite>Brief Description of London</cite> (1575).</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>The day of St. Simon and Jude, he (the Mayor) entered into -his estate and office; and the next day following he goeth -by water to Westminster in most triumphlike manner. His -barge being garnished with the arms of the city; and near the -said barge goeth a ship boat of the Queen's Majesty, being -trimmed up, and rigged like a ship of war, with divers pieces -of ordinance, standards, pennons, and targets of the proper -arms of the said Mayor, the arms of the City, of his company; -and of the merchants adventurers, or of the staple, or of the -company of the new trades; next before him goeth the barge -of the livery of his own company, decked with their own -proper arms, then the bachelors' barge, and so all the companies -in London, in order, every one having their own proper -barge garnished with the arms of their company. And so -passing along the Thames, landeth at Westminster, where he -taketh his oath in the Exchequer, before the judge there -(which is one of the chief judges of England), which done, he -returneth by water as aforesaid, and landeth at Powles wharf, -where he and the rest of the Aldermen take their horses, and -in great pomp pass through the great street of the City, called -Cheapside. And first of all cometh two great standards, one -having the arms of the City, and the other the arms of the -Mayor's Company; next them two drums and a flute, then an -ensign of the City, and then about xx or xxx poor men -marching two and two together in blue gowns, with red sleeves -and caps, with every one bearing a pike and a target, whereon -is painted the arms of all them that have been Mayor of the -same company that this new mayor is of. Then two banners, -one of the King's arms, the other of the Mayor's own proper -arms. Then a set of hautboys playing, and after them certain -wyfflers, in velvet coats, and chains of gold, with white staves -in their hands, then the pageant of triumph richly decked, -whereupon by certain figures and writings, some matter -touching justice, and the office of a magistrate is represented. -Then sixteen trumpeters, eight and eight in a company, having -<span class='pageno' id='Page_109'>109</span>banners of the Mayor's company. Then certain wyfflers in -velvet coats and chains, with white staves aforesaid. Then -the bachelors two and two together, in long gowns with -crimson hoods on their shoulders of satin; which bachelors -are chosen every year of the same Company that the Mayor is -of (but not of the livery) and serve as gentlemen on that and -other festival days, to wait on the Mayor, being in number -according to the quantity of the company, sometimes sixty -or one hundred. After them twelve trumpeters more, with -banners of the Mayor's Company, then the drum and flute of -the city, and an ensign of the Mayor's company, and after, the -waits of the city in blue gowns, red sleeves and caps, every -one having his silver collar about his neck. Then they of the -livery in their long gowns, every one having his hood on his -left shoulder, half black and half red, the number of them is -according to the greatness of the company whereof they are. -After them follow Sheriffs' officers, and then the Mayor's officers, -with other officers of the city, as the common serjeant, and the -chamberlain, next before the Mayor goeth the sword-bearer, -having on his head the cap of honour, and the sword of the city -in his right hand, in a rich scabard, set with pearl, and on his left -hand goeth the common crier of the city, with his great mace -on his shoulder, all gilt. The Mayor elect in a long gown of -scarlet, and on his left shoulder a hood of black velvet, and a -rich collar of gold of SS. about his neck, and with him rideth -the old Mayor also, in his scarlet gown, hood of velvet, and a -chain of gold about his neck. Then all the Aldermen two and -two together (amongst whom is the Recorder) all in scarlet -gowns; and those that have been Mayors, have chains of gold, -the other have black velvet tippets. The two Sheriffs come -last of all, in their black and scarlet gowns and chains of gold.</p> - -<p class='c011'>In this order they pass along through the city, to the Guildhall, -where they dine that day, to the number of 1000 persons, -all at the charge of the Mayor and the two Sheriffs. This -feast costeth £400, whereof the Mayor payeth £200 and each -of the Sheriffs £100. Immediately after dinner, they go to -the church of St. Paul, every one of the aforesaid poor men -<span class='pageno' id='Page_110'>110</span>bearing staff torches and targets, which torches are lighted -when it is late, before they come from evening prayer.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>LONDON AND THE ARMADA (1587).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The threatened invasion by the "Grand Fleet" of -Philip of Spain was the occasion of a splendid manifestation -of loyalty throughout the kingdom. The royal fleet -contained only thirty-four ships, but every seaport made -its contribution, and every man between the ages of -eighteen and sixty was enrolled for defence, in the event -of the successful landing of the enemy. The instructions -conveyed in the Queen's letter to the citizens of London -are an indication of the friendly relations between the -City and the Sovereign, and serve also to show the wealth -and power which London possessed at the time.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Document quoted by Maitland, vol. i., p. 272.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>Trusty and well-beloved, we greet you well.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Whereas upon information given unto us of great preparations -made in foreign parts with an intent to attempt somewhat -against this our realm, we gave present order that our said -realm should be put in order of defence; which we have caused -to be performed in all parts accordingly, saving in the City of -London.</p> - -<p class='c011'>We therefore knowing your readiness, by former experience, -to perform any service that well-affected subjects ought to yield -to their Prince and Sovereign, do let you understand, that within -our said City our pleasure is, that there be forthwith put in a -readiness to serve for defence of our own person, upon such -occasions as may fall out, the number of ten thousand able -men, furnished with armour and weapons convenient; of which -number, our meaning is, that six thousand be enrolled under -Captains and Ensigns, and to be trained at times convenient, -according to such further direction as you shall receive from -our Privy Council, under six of their hands, which our pleasure -<span class='pageno' id='Page_111'>111</span>is you do follow from time to time in the ordering and training -of the said numbers of men.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And these our letters shall be your sufficient warrant for the -doing of the same.</p> - -<p class='c012'>Given under our Signet at our Manor of Greenwich, - the 8th of March, 1587, in the thirtieth year of - our Reign.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE CITY'S ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE STAGE<br />(1592).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The drama experienced an extraordinary development -during the latter half of the sixteenth century, and its -growth was altogether irresistible. In spite of the opposition -of moralists and preachers the theatre flourished -more and more; and the mayors and aldermen of London -were faced with a somewhat serious problem. They looked -upon the play with disfavour; the actors were men of no -trade or position, they were merely vagabonds. All the -idlers in the town would assemble to see a play, and where -there was a crowd there was danger to peace and order. -Brawls and disorders would frequently arise, and the -thieves and rogues of the city would take every advantage -of the throng. Urged partly by fear of disorder, partly -by the spirit of Puritanism which was rapidly gaining -ground, the city officials did their best to drive out plays -and players from their boundaries; and the theatres had -at first to be set up outside the city jurisdiction. The -ordinances of 1574 set forth in lurid terms the evils which -theatres were alleged to bring in their train, and strict -regulations were made, providing that only properly -licensed players should act, in such places as might be -approved. The following documents show how the trouble -still continued, and was the source of great anxiety.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_112'>112</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Malone Society, <cite>Collections</cite>, 1., i., xviii, xxvi:<br />(<em>a</em>) The Lord Mayor to Archbishop Whitgift (1592);<br />(<em>b</em>) An Order of the Privy Council (1600).</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>(<em>a</em>) Our most humble duties to your Grace. Whereas by -the daily and disorderly exercise of a number of players and -playing houses erected within this City, the youth thereof is -greatly corrupted and their manners infected with many evil -and ungodly qualities, by reason of the wanton and profane -devices represented on the stages by the said players, the -prentices and servants withdrawn from their works and all -sorts in general from the daily resort unto sermons and other -Christian exercises, to the great hindrance of the trades and -traders of this City, and profanation of the good and godly -religions established among us. To which places also do -resort great numbers of light and lewd disposed persons as -cutpurses, cozeners, pilferers and such like, and there under -the colour of resort to those places to hear the plays devise -divers evil and ungodly matches, confederacies, and conspiracies, -which by means of the opportunity of the place cannot be prevented -nor discovered, as otherwise they might be. In consideration -whereof we most humbly beseech your Grace for -your godly care for the reforming of so great abuses tending -to the offence of Almighty God, the profanation and slander -of his true religion, and the corrupting of our youth, which are -the seed of the Church of God and the common wealth among -us, to vouchsafe us your good favour and help for the reforming -and banishing of so great evil out of this city, which ourselves -of long time though to small purpose have so earnestly desired -and endeavoured by all means that possibly we could. And -because we understand that the Queen's Majesty is and must -be served at certain times by this sort of people, for which -purpose she hath granted her Letters Patent to Mr. Tilney, -Master of her Revels, by virtue whereof he being authorised -to reform, exercise, or suppress all manner of players, plays -and playing-houses whatsoever, did first license the said playing-houses -within the city for Her Majesty's said service, which -before that time lay open to all the statutes for the punishing -<span class='pageno' id='Page_113'>113</span>of these and such like disorders. We are most humbly and -earnestly to beseech your Grace to call unto you the said -Master of Her Majesty's Revels, with whom also we have -conferred of late to that purpose, and to treat with him, if by -any means it may be devised that Her Majesty may be served -with these recreations as hath been accustomed, which in our -opinions may easily be done by the private exercise of Her -Majesty's own players in convenient place, and the city freed -from these continual disorders, which thereby do grow and -increase daily among us. Whereby your Grace shall not only -benefit and bind unto you the politic state and government of -this city, which by no one thing is so greatly annoyed and disquieted -as by players and plays and the disorders which follow -thereon, but also to take away a great offence from the Church -of God and hindrance to His gospel, to the great contentment -of all good Christians, specially the preachers and ministers of -the Word of God about this city, who have long time and yet -do make their earnest continual complaint unto us for the -redress hereof. And thus recommending our most humble -duties and service to your Grace we commit the same to the -grace of the Almighty.</p> - -<p class='c011'>(<em>b</em>) An order set down by the Lords and others of Her -Majesty's Privy Council, the 22 of June 1600 to restrain the -excessive number of play-houses and the immoderate use of -stage plays in and about the city.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Whereas divers complaints have been heretofore made unto -the Lords and others of Her Majesty's Council of the manifold -abuses and disorders that have grown and do continue by occasion -of many houses erected and employed in and about the -city of London for common stage plays; and now very lately -by reason of some complaint exhibited by sundry persons -against the building of the like house in or near Golding Lane -by one Edward Allen, a servant of the right honourable the -Lord Admiral, the matter as well in generality touching all the -said houses for stage plays and the use of playing as in particular -concerning the said house now in hand to be built in or -near Golding Lane hath been brought into question and consultation -<span class='pageno' id='Page_114'>114</span>among their Lordships; forasmuch as it is manifestly -known and granted that the multitude of the said houses and -the misgovernment of them hath been made and is daily occasion -of the idle, riotous and dissolute living of great numbers -of people, who, leaving all such honest and painful course of -life as they should follow, do meet and assemble there; and -of many particular abuses and disorders that do thereupon -ensue. And yet nevertheless it is considered that the use and -exercise of such plays not being evil in itself may with a good -order and moderation be suffered in a well-governed estate, and -that Her Majesty being pleased at some times to take delight -and recreation in the sight and hearing of them, some order is -fit to be taken for the allowance and maintenance, of such -persons as are thought meetest in that kind, to yield Her -Majesty recreation and delight, and consequently of the houses -that must serve for public playing to keep them in exercise. -To the end therefore that both the greatest abuses of the plays -and playing houses may be redressed and the use and moderation -of them retained, the Lords and the rest of Her Majesty's -Privy Council have ordered in manner and form as followeth.</p> - -<p class='c011'>First, that there shall be about the city two houses and no -more allowed to serve for the use of the common stage plays; -of the which houses one shall be in Surrey, in that place which -is commonly called the Bankside, or thereabouts, and the other -in Middlesex.... It is likewise ordered that the house of -Allen shall be allowed to be one of the two houses, and namely -for the house to be allowed in Middlesex. And for the other, -allowed to be on Surrey side, their Lordships are pleased to -permit to the company of players that shall play there, to make -their own choice which they will have, choosing one of them -and no more. And especially is it forbidden that any stage -plays shall be played (as sometimes they have been) in any -common inn for public assembly in or near about the city.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Secondly, forasmuch as these stage plays by the multitude -of houses and company of players have been too frequent, not -serving for recreation, but inviting and calling the people daily -from their trade and work to misspend their time; it is likewise -<span class='pageno' id='Page_115'>115</span>ordered that the two several companies of players, assigned -unto the two houses allowed, may play each of them in their -several house twice a week and no oftener; and especially that -they shall refrain to play on the sabbath day, upon pain of -imprisonment and further penalty; and that they shall forbear -altogether in the time of Lent and likewise at such time and -times as any extraordinary sickness or infection of disease shall -appear to be in or about the city.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Thirdly, because these orders will be of little force and effect -unless they be duly put into execution, it is ordered that several -copies shall be sent to the Lord Mayor of London and to the -Justices of the Peace of the counties of Middlesex and Surrey, -and that letters should be written to them straightly charging -them to see the execution of the same by committing to prison -the owners of playhouses and players who shall disobey and -resist these orders.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>A PLAGUE ORDER (1593).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Since the Great Plague of 1665 there has been no -similar outbreak in this country, but before that year -plagues were of comparatively frequent occurrence. Despite -the enormous loss of life which these pestilences -caused, no effective measures were taken to prevent their -recurrence. Although the outbreaks were by no means -confined to the towns, they appear invariably to have -commenced there, and the blame was usually attached -to immigrants, or to the importation of infected foreign -goods. The conditions in the towns, particularly London, -were so utterly insanitary that infectious diseases were -positively encouraged, and the annals of London contain -periodical accounts of disastrous visitations such as the -one described by Stow as occurring in 1603. The early -literature concerning the Plague is not very illuminating, -and we get very few details as to treatment. The chief -points of the regulations which were issued on the occasion -<span class='pageno' id='Page_116'>116</span>of every serious outbreak appear to be isolation of infected -persons and special attention to sanitation. These measures, -of course, are exactly those which are adopted at the present -day; but it seems that, excellent though the regulations -themselves might be, they were very imperfectly enforced, -and we are almost entirely in the dark as to the treatment -accorded to the sufferers and the remedies, if any, which -were found to prove at all effective.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Sources.</strong>—(<em>a</em>) Lansdowne MSS.,<br />Malone Society, <cite>Collections</cite>, 1., ii., xix;<br />(<em>b</em>) Stow,<cite>Annals</cite>, p. 857.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>(<em>a</em>) 1593. Orders to be sett downe by the Lord Mayor -and Aldermen of London for taking awaie such enormities as -be meanes not only to continue but increase the plague and -disorders of the Citie; being taken out of the proclamations -set out by the Citie and the articles sett downe for providing -for the poor and setting them to work.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Aldermen or their Deputies.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>1. To give charge to Churchwardens, Constables, Parish -Clerks and Bedells to enquire what houses be infected.</p> - -<p class='c011'>2. To visit the ward often to see orders observed, especially -touching cleanness in the streets.</p> - -<p class='c011'>3. The Aldermen or their deputies in their own persons to -appoint Surveyors monthly in every parishe.</p> - -<p class='c011'>4. To appoint that certificate may be made to them what -houses be infected.</p> - -<p class='c011'>5. To give charge to all teachers of children that (as nere as -they can) they permit no children to come to their scoles from -infected houses, especiallie till such houses have bene clere by -the space of 28 daies, and that none kepe a greater number -than their Roomes shall be thought fit by the Aldermen or their -deputies to conteyne.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Surveyours.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>1. To see the orders for the sick executed daylie and diligentlie, -upon knowledge from the Aldermen what houses be -infected.</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_117'>117</span>2. To appoint purveyours of necessaries for infected houses -(being of the same houses), and deliver them reed rods to carry, -and see that none other resort to their houses.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Constables.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>1. To bring every daie notice in writing to the Aldermen or -their deputies what houses be infected.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Constable and Churchwarden.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>1. To provyde to have in readiness women to be providers -and deliverers of necessaries to infected houses, and to attend -the infected persons, and they to bear reed wandes, so that the -sicke maie be kept from the whole, as nere as maie be, nedefull -attendance weighed.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Constable and Bedell.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>1. To inquire what houses be infected.</p> - -<p class='c011'>2. To view dailie that papers remaine upon doors xxviii daies -or to place newe.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Clarkes and Sextons.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>1. To understand what houses be infected.</p> - -<p class='c011'>2. To see bills set upon the doors of houses infected.</p> - -<p class='c011'>3. To suffer no corpses infected to be buried or remain in -the churche during prayer or sermon, and to keep children -from coming nere them.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Scavengers and Rakers.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>1. To see the streets made cleane every daie saving Sunday -and the soile to be carried away.</p> - -<p class='c011'>2. To warn all inhabitants, against their houses to keep -channels clere from fylth (by only turning it aside) that the -water maie have passage.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Common Hunt.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>1. To kyll dogs, etc., or to lose his place.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_118'>118</span> -</div> -<h4 class='c014'><em>Householders and Houses.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>1. Houses having some sicke though none die, or from -whence some sicke have bene removed, are infected houses, -and such are to be shut up for a month.</p> - -<p class='c011'>2. The whole familie to tarry in xxviii days.</p> - -<p class='c011'>3. To keep shut the lower rooms for the like space.</p> - -<p class='c011'>4. One licensed to go for provision, etc.</p> - -<p class='c011'>5. No clothes hanged into the streets.</p> - -<p class='c011'>6. Such as have wells or pumpes, every morning by six and -every evening after eight a clocke, shall cause ten bucketts full -to run into the streets.</p> - -<p class='c011'>7. Every evening at that hour the streets and channels to -be made cleane, the water not swept out of the channell, nor -the streets overwett but sprinkled, etc.</p> - -<p class='c011'>8. The houses infected and things in them to be aired in the -xxviii days and no clothes or things about the infected persons -to be given awaie or sold, but either destroyed or sufficientlie -purified.</p> - -<p class='c011'>9. Owners of houses infected with their familie, may within -the month depart to any their houses in the countrye, or to any -other house in the Cyttye without being shut up, so that they -abstain from returning to the Cyttye, or from going abroad out -of house in the Cyttye, for a month.</p> - -<p class='c011'>10. None shall keep dogg or bitche abroad unled nor within -howling or disturbing of their neighbours.</p> - -<p class='c011'>11. To have no assembly at funeral dynners or usual meeting -in houses infected.</p> - -<p class='c011'>12. None shall for a month come into infected houses but -such as be of the house and licensed to do service abroad.</p> - -<p class='c011'>13. No donghills out of stables, Bearhouses or other places -to be made in the strete.</p> - -<p class='c011'>14. To have double time of Restraint for consenting to pull -down bills, and the taker awaie to suffer imprisonement for -viii days.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Two Viewers of Dead Bodies,<br />Two Viewers of sick suspected</em>,</h4> - -<p class='c013'>Shall be appointed and sworne.</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_119'>119</span>These viewers to report to the Constable, he to the Clarke, -and he to the chief of Clarkes, all upon pain of imprisonment.</p> - -<p class='c011'>A pain of standing on the pillory for false reports by the -viewers. A loss of pension to such as shall refuse.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Mendinge of Pavements.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>That diligent care be had, that pavements be amended where -nede is, and that principall paviers be appointed to survey the -wants of paving, especiallie in Channels, and that the dwellers -against such may be forced to amend them.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Interludes and Plaies.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>If the increase of the sicknes be feared, that Interludes and -plaies be restrained within the libertyes of the Cyttye.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Phisicions and Surgeons.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>That skilful and learned physicions and surgeons may be -provided to minister to the sicke.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>Vagrant, Masterless, and poore people.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>1. That all such as be diseased be sent to St. Thomas or -St. Bartylmewes hospitall, there to be first cured and made -cleane, and afterwards those which be not of the Cyttye to be -sent awaie according to the statute in that case provided, and -the other to be sett to worke, in such as are least used by the -Inhabitants of the Cyttye, for the avoyding of all such vagrant -persons as well as children male and female, soldiers lame and -maymed, as other idle and loytering persons that swarme in -the streets and wander up and downe begging to the great -daunger and infecting of the Cyttye for th' increase of the -plague and annoyance to the same.</p> - -<p class='c011'>2. That all maisterless men who live idlie in the Cyttye -without any lawfull calling, frequenting places of common -assemblies, as Interludes, gaming houses, cockpitts, bowling -allies, and such other places, may be banished the Cyttye -according to the laws in that case provyded.</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_120'>120</span>(<em>b</em>) In the former year, 1603, the plague of pestilence being -great in Ostend, and divers other parties of the Low countries, -and many soldiers returning thence into England, and many -ships of war lying long at Sea became also infected, who in -their return, brought that contagion into divers parts of this -land, chiefly into the City of London: by reason whereof many -citizens, and other inhabitants thereof, for their better safety -went into most shires of this kingdom, where in divers places -they were kindly entertained, and entreated, and in many places -most unchristianly, and despitefully reviled, and not suffered to -have relief, neither for love, nor money, saying God must needs -plague you, for your monstrous wickedness etc. many died in -high-ways, fields and barns, near unto good towns, and villages, -where too many of them were let remain too long unburied, -but God whose mercy is above all his works, stayed his visitation -in London, to the honour of his own name, and admiration -of all men.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The City of London, the year ensuing viz. 1604, was cleared -of all infection, and the other cities of this kingdom, most -villages, and towns corporate, more extremely visited, and -some by proclamation prohibited from coming to London: and -it was Christianly observed in the year 1604, in the which it -pleased Almighty God to visit the whole land with pestilence -(London only excepted) that all those places were least, or not -at all visited, which the year before had relieved the distressed. -There died in London, and the liberties thereof, from the -23rd of December 1602, unto the 22nd of December 1603, of all -diseases, 38,244, whereof of the plague, 30,578: the next March -following, against the time the King should ride in triumph -through London, to behold the state and beauty thereof besides -the Clergy, Nobility, and chief gentry, of every country, and -great numbers of strangers from beyond seas, there repaired -thither such great multitudes of people from all places, as the -like in London was never seen until that day, all which notwithstanding, -there died that year of all diseases within London, -and the liberties of London but 4,263.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_121'>121</span> - <h2 class='c004'>LONDON SCHOOLS (1598).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>During the Middle Ages there was little provision for -education; the monasteries and the Universities kept alive -such learning as existed, and it was not until the sixteenth -century that the revival of learning affected England and -brought about a widespread interest in education and the -pursuit of knowledge. It is well known that Wolsey and -Henry VIII. at first proposed to divert some of the wealth -of the monasteries to educational purposes, such as the -endowment of schools and colleges in the Universities; -and although this intention was not fully carried out, the -cause of education in London was advanced by some of -the City Companies and by private benefactions. The -following passage from Stow gives an entertaining description -of the educational methods of his day.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Stow's <cite>Survey</cite>, p. 74.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>But touching schools more lately advanced in this City, I -read that King Henry the fifth having suppressed the priories -aliens whereof some were about London, namely one Hospital, -called Our Lady of Rouncivall by Charing Cross: one other -Hospital in Oldborne [Holborn]: one other without Cripplegate: -and the fourth without Aldersgate, besides other that are -now worn out of memory, and whereof there is no monument -remaining more than Rouncivall converted to a brotherhood, -which continued till the reign of Henry the 8. or Edward the 6., -this I say, and their schools being broken up and ceased: King -Henry the sixth in the 24. of his reign, by patent appointed -that there should be in London, Grammar schools, besides -St. Paul's, at St. Martin's le Grand, S. Mary le Bow in Cheap, -S. Dunstans in the west and S. Anthony's. And in the next -year, to wit, 1394, the said King ordained by Parliament that -four other grammar schools should be erected, to wit, in the -parishes of Saint Andrew in Holborn, All Hallows the great in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_122'>122</span>Thames Street, S. Peters upon Cornhill, and in the Hospital of -S. Thomas of Acons in west Cheap, since the which time as -divers schools by suppressing of religious houses, whereof they -were members, in the reign of Henry the 8. have been decayed, -so again have some others been newly erected, and founded -for them: as namely Paul's school, in place of an old ruined -house, was built in most ample manner, and largely endowed -in the year 1512 by John Collet Doctor of Divinity, Dean of -Pauls, for 153 poor mens children: for which there was -ordained a master, surmaster, or usher, and a chaplain. Again -in the year 1553 after the erection of Christ's Hospital in the -late dissolved house of the Grey Friars, a great number of -poor children being taken in, a school was also ordained there, -at the Citizens charges. Also in the year 1561 the Merchant -Tailors of London founded one notable free Grammar-School -in the Parish of St. Laurence Poulteney by Candlewick street, -Richard Hills late master of that Company, having given £500 -toward the purchase of an house, called the Manor of the Rose, -sometime the Duke of Buckingham's, wherein the school is -kept. As for the meeting of the Schoolmasters, on festival -days, at festival Churches, and the disputing of their Scholars -logically, etc., whereof I have before spoken, the same was -long since discontinued: but the arguing of the school boys -about the principles of grammar, hath been continued even till -our time: for I my self in my youth have yearly seen on the -Eve of S. Bartholomew the Apostle, the scholars of divers -grammar schools repair unto the Churchyard of S. Bartholomew, -the Priory in Smithfield, where upon a bank boarded about -under a tree, some one scholar hath stepped up, and there hath -opposed and answered, till he were by some better scholar overcome -and put down: and then the overcomer taking the place, -did like as the first: and in the end the best opposers and -answerers had rewards, which I observed not but it made both -good schoolmasters, and also good scholars, diligently against -such times to prepare themselves for the obtaining of this -garland. I remember there repaired to these exercises amongst -others the masters and scholars of the free schools of Saint -<span class='pageno' id='Page_123'>123</span>Pauls in London: of Saint Peters at Westminster: of Saint -Thomas Acons Hospital: and of Saint Anthony's Hospital: -whereof the last named commonly presented the best scholars, -and had the prize in those days.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>A GERMAN VIEW OF LONDON (1600).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The author of the following passage was a German -lawyer who visited England while on a three years' tour -as tutor to a young Silesian nobleman, from 1597 to 1600. -On his return to Germany he published a description of -his travels, written in Latin, under the title of "Itinerarium -Germaniæ, Galliæ, Angliæ, Italiæ."</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Paul Hentzner's <cite>Travels in England</cite>.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>This most ancient city is in the county of Middlesex, the -fruitfullest and wholesomest soil in England.... The city -being very large of itself, has very extensive suburbs, and -a fort called the Tower, of beautiful structure. It is magnificently -ornamented with public buildings and churches, of -which there are above one hundred and twenty parochial. -On the south is a bridge of stone eight hundred feet in length -of wonderful work; it is supported upon twenty piers of stone, -sixty feet high and thirty broad, joined by arches of about -twenty feet diameter. The whole is covered on each side with -houses so disposed as to have the appearance of a continued -street, not at all of a bridge. Upon this is built a tower, -on whose top the heads of such as have been executed for high -treason are placed on iron spikes; we counted above thirty.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The wealth of the world is wafted to London by the Thames, -swelled by the tide; and navigable to merchant ships through -a safe and deep channel, for sixty miles, from its mouth to the -city; its banks are everywhere beautified with fine country -seats, woods and farms....</p> - -<p class='c011'>The government of the city is lodged by ancient grant of the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_124'>124</span>Kings of England in twenty-five aldermen, that is, seniors; -these annually elect out of their own body a mayor and two -sheriffs, who determine causes according to municipal laws.</p> - -<p class='c011'>It is worthy of observation, that every year, upon St. Bartholomew's -Day, when the fair is held, it is usual for the mayor, -attended by the twelve principal aldermen, to walk in a neighbouring -field, dressed in his scarlet gown, and about his neck -a golden chain, to which is hung a golden fleece, and besides, -that particular ornament which distinguishes the most noble -order of the garter. During the year of his magistracy he is -obliged to live so magnificently, that foreigner or native without -any expense, is free, if he can find a chair empty, to dine -at his table, where there is always the greatest plenty. When -the mayor goes out of the precincts of the city, a sceptre, a sword -and a cap are borne before him, and he is followed by the -principal aldermen in scarlet gowns, with gold chains; himself -and they on horseback. Upon their arrival at a place appointed -for that purpose, where a tent is pitched, the mob -begin to wrestle before them, two at a time; the conquerors -receive rewards from the magistrates. While we were at this -show, one of our company, Tobias Salander, doctor of physic, -had his pocket picked of his purse, with nine crowns du soleil, -which, without doubt, was so cleverly taken from him by an -Englishman who always kept very close to him, that the doctor -did not in the least perceive it....</p> - -<p class='c011'>The Mint for coining money is in the Tower. It is to be -noted that when any of the nobility are sent hither, on the -charge of high crimes such as treason, they seldom or never -recover their liberty.... On coming out of the Tower we -were led to a small house close by, where are kept variety -of creatures, viz.—three lionesses; one lion of great size, called -Edward VI. from his having been born in that reign; a tiger; -a lynx; a wolf excessively old—this is a very scarce animal in -England, so that their sheep and cattle stray about in great -numbers, free from any danger. Near to this Tower is a large -open space; on the highest part of it is erected a wooden scaffold, -for the execution of noble criminals; upon which, they -<span class='pageno' id='Page_125'>125</span>say, three princes of England, the last of their families, have -been beheaded for high treason.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The next thing worthy of note is the Royal Exchange, so -named by Queen Elizabeth, built by Sir Thomas Gresham, -citizen, for public ornament and the convenience of merchants. -It has a great effect, whether you consider the stateliness of -the building, the assemblage of different nations, or the quantities -of merchandise....</p> - -<p class='c011'>The streets in this city are very handsome and clean; but -that which is named from the goldsmiths who inhabit it surpasses -all the rest; there is in it a gilt tower, with a fountain -that plays. Near it, on the farther side, is a handsome house -built by a goldsmith and presented by him to the city. There -are besides to be seen in this street, as in all others where there -are goldsmiths' shops, all sorts of gold and silver vessels exposed -to sale, as well as ancient and modern metals, in such -quantities as must surprise a man the first time he sees and -considers them.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>LONDON AND ULSTER (1609).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The growth of colonisation which marked the beginning -of the seventeenth century is one of the most notable -features of our commercial history, and the plantation -of Ulster was in accordance with the new spirit. This -province had become depopulated and almost entirely -forfeited to the Crown, by reason of the frequent rebellions -which had occurred there during the previous century. -On the presentation of the following report a charter was -received by the Corporation of London, granting powers -to raise a sum of money and take measures for the -plantation of the province. The first arrangement was -that the bulk of the land should be assigned to the twelve -great livery companies, while the City of Derry and the -town of Coleraine should be handed over to a society -which was formed by City merchants for the purpose of -exploiting the new colony.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_126'>126</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—<cite>Calendar of State Papers (Ireland)</cite>, 1608-1610, p. 207.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>The late ruined city of Derry, situate upon the river of -Lough Foyle, navigable above Derry, and another place near -the Castle of Coleraine, situate on the river Ban, navigable -with small vessels only, by reason of the bar a little above -Coleraine, seem to be the fittest places for the City of London -to plant.</p> - -<p class='c011'>2. With small charges, these places (especially Derry) may -be made impregnable.</p> - -<p class='c011'>3. His Majesty offers to grant to these two places charters of -incorporation; the whole territory betwixt them, however, -which is above 20 miles in length, bounded by the sea on the -north, by the Ban on the east, and the river Derry or Lough -Foyle on the west (out of which 3,000 acres or more may -be allotted to each of the towns for their commons), to be -planted with such undertakers as the City of London shall -think fit, paying only for the same the easy rent of the -undertakers.</p> - -<p class='c011'>4. These towns to have the benefit of all the customs on -goods imported or exported, as also tonnage and poundage, -and the great and small customs, for 21 years, paying yearly -6s. 8d. Irish as an acknowledgment.</p> - -<p class='c011'>5. That His Majesty would be pleased to buy from the -possessors the salmon fishing of the Ban and Lough Foyle, -and bestow the same upon these towns.</p> - -<p class='c011'>6. Also license for free export of all goods growing on their -own lands.</p> - -<p class='c011'>7. That the Admiralty jurisdiction in the coasts of Tyrconnell -now supposed to be in the Lord Deputy by the Lord -High Admiral's grant, may be transferred to them for -21 years.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>The Land Commodities which the North of Ireland affords.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>1. The country is well watered, and supplied with fuel either -of trees or turf.</p> - -<p class='c011'>2. It supplies such abundance of provisions as may not only -sustain the plantation, but may furnish provisions yearly to the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_127'>127</span>City of London, especially for their fleets, as beeves, pork, -fish, rye, peas, and beans, and in some years will help -the dearth of the city and country about, and the storehouses -appointed for the relief of the poor.</p> - -<p class='c011'>3. It is fit for breeding of mares and for cattle, and -thence may be expected store of hides, tallow, &c.</p> - -<p class='c011'>4. The soil is suited for English sheep, and if need were, -wool might be had cheaply out of the West of Scotland.</p> - -<p class='c011'>5. It is fit in many parts for madder, hops, and woad.</p> - -<p class='c011'>6. It affords fells of red deer, foxes, sheep and lambs, cony, -martens, squirrels, etc.</p> - -<p class='c011'>7. It grows hemp and flax better than elsewhere, and thus -might furnish materials for canvas, cables, cordage and such -like requisites for shipping. Also for thread, linen cloths, and -stuffs made of linen yarn, which is finer there and more plentiful -than in all the rest of the kingdom.</p> - -<p class='c011'>8. Timber, stone, lime, and slate, and building materials are -to be had, and the soil is good for making bricks and tiles.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The goodliest timber in the woods of Glanconkein and -Melleitragh may be had, and may compare with any in his -Majesty's dominions, and may be brought to the sea by Lough -Eagh and the Ban. Fir masts of all sorts may be had out of -Loughnaber in Scotland (not far from the north of Ireland) -more easily than from Norway.</p> - -<p class='c011'>9. All materials for building of ships (except tar) is there to -be had in great plenty, and in countries adjoining.</p> - -<p class='c011'>10. There is wood for pipe staves, hogshead staves, barrel -staves, hop staves, clap boards, wainscot, and dyeing ashes, -glass and iron work; copper and iron ore are there found -abundantly.</p> - -<p class='c011'>11. The country is fit for honey and wax.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>The Sea and River Commodities.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>1. The harbour of Derry is very good, and the roads at -Portrush and Lough Swilly (not far distant from Derry) -tolerable.</p> - -<p class='c011'>2. The sea fishings are plentiful of all manner of fishes, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_128'>128</span>especially herrings and eels. Yearly, after Michaelmas, above -seven or eight score of sail of the King's subjects and strangers -are there for loading, beside an infinite number for fishing and -killing.</p> - -<p class='c011'>3. There are great fishings in the adjacent islands of Scotland, -where many Hollanders do fish all the summer, and -plentifully vent their fishes into Spain and within the Straits.</p> - -<p class='c011'>4. Much train and fish oil may be made upon the coast.</p> - -<p class='c011'>5. As the sea yieldeth fish, so the coast affords abundance of -sea fowl, and the rivers great store of fresh fishes, more than -any of the rivers of England.</p> - -<p class='c011'>6. There be store of good pearls upon the coast, especially -within the river of Loughfoyle.</p> - -<p class='c011'>7. These coasts are ready for traffic with England and Scotland, -and lie open and convenient for Spain and the Straits, -and fittest and nearest to Newfoundland.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>The Profits that London shall receive by this Plantation.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>If multitudes of men were employed proportionally to these -commodities, many thousands would be set at work, to the -great service of the King, the strength of his realm, and the -advancement of several trades. It might ease the city of an -insupportable burthen of persons, which it might conveniently -spare, all parts of the city being so surcharged that one tradesman -is scarce able to live by another; and it would also be -a means to free and preserve the city from infection, and consequently -the whole kingdom, which of necessity must have -recourse hither, and being pestered and closed up together can -never otherwise or very hardly avoid infection.</p> - -<p class='c011'>These colonies may be a means to utter infinite commodities -from London to furnish the whole North of Ireland and Isles -of Scotland, which may be transported by means of the river -Ban and Loughfoyle into the counties of Coleraine, Donegal, -Tyrone, Armagh, and Antrim.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The city of Dublin being desolate by the slaughter of the -Easterlings, who were the ancient inhabitants thereof, was -given by King Henry the Second to the city of Bristol to be -<span class='pageno' id='Page_129'>129</span>inhabited, which, without any charge to the King, Bristol performed, -whose posterity continues there to this day.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The plantation, thus performed to the eternal commendation -of Bristol, was not the least cause of civilizing and securing -that part of the country.</p> - -<p class='c011'>It were to be wished this noble precedent were followed by -the City of London in these times, with so much the more -alacrity as they excel Bristol in ability and means. And so -much the rather, since the commodities which the City of -London will reap hereby far surpass the profits which could -redound to Bristol by the other.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE DEMANDS OF CHARLES I. (1626).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>At the very outset of his reign Charles I. had to face -an angry and discontented City; the late King had shown -little respect for the ancient liberties of London, and the -citizens were prepared to find the same attitude on the -part of his successor. The Parliament of 1626 refused to -grant supplies until grievances had been redressed, and -Charles dissolved it, determining to raise money without -its help. He began by calling on the City for £100,000, -which was refused. There had been a severe outbreak of -the Plague, and London was in a somewhat impoverished -condition. Next came the demand for men and ships for -the projected expedition to Cadiz. The citizens complied -with obvious reluctance, and Charles's habitual disregard -of their feelings gradually estranged their affections and -caused them later to give their hearty support to the -Parliamentary cause.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Rushworth's <cite>Collections</cite>, i. 415.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>His Majesty demanded of the City of London the Loan of -an Hundred thousand pounds. But the peoples excuses were -represented to the Council Table by the Magistrates of the -City. Immediately the Council sent a very strict command -<span class='pageno' id='Page_130'>130</span>to the Lord Mayor and Aldermen, wherein they set forth the -enemies strong preparations as ready for an invasion, and the -Kings great necessities, together with his gracious and moderate -proposals in the sum required, and the frivolous pretences upon -which they excuse themselves: Wherefore they require them, -all excuses being set apart, to enter into the business again, -and to manage the same, as appertaineth to Magistrates so -highly entrusted, and in a time of such necessities, and to -return to his Majesty a direct and speedy answer, that he may -know how far he may rely upon their faith and duty; or in -default thereof, may frame his counsels as appertaineth to -a King in such extreme and important occasions.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Lord Mayor and Commonalty of London petitioned the -Council for an abatement of the twenty ships rated upon them, -unto ten ships and two pinnaces, alleging disability; whereunto -the Council gave this following answer, That the former commandment -was necessary, the preservation of the State requiring -it; and that the charge imposed on them was moderate, as not -exceeding the value of many of their private estates: That -petitions and pleadings to this command, tend to the danger -and prejudice of the Commonwealth, and are not to be received: -That as the commandment was given to all in general, and every -particular of the City; so the State will require an account both -of the City in general, and of every particular.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And whereas they mention precedents, they might know, -that the precedents of former times, were obedience, not direction; -and that precedents were not wanting for the punishment -of those that disobey his Majesty's commands, signified by that -Board, which they hope shall have no occasion to let them more -particularly understand.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Hereupon the Citizens were glad to submit, and declared -their consent to the King's demands, and by petition to the -Council had the favour to nominate all the officers of those -twenty ships, the captains only excepted, the nomination of -whom appertained to the Lord High Admiral of England.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_131'>131</span> - <h2 class='c004'>THE KEEPING OF THE SABBATH (1629).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The following Order of the Lord Mayor is an example -of that Puritan spirit which exercised such a powerful -influence on the lives of Englishmen during the first half -of the seventeenth century. During Elizabeth's reign -many serious and earnest attempts were made to effect -certain changes in the doctrines and practices of the -Established Church, with the idea of introducing a -"purer" form of worship and ceremonial; and the Puritan -spirit generally, although open to the charge of narrowness -and intolerance, was based upon a sincere desire to -bring the law of God into closer touch with life. It was -characterised by a hearty hatred of that moral laxity and -freedom which the Roman Church had frequently permitted, -and consequently much of its activity appeared -to depend upon various prohibitions and restrictions in -matters of conduct, which frequently proved very irksome -to those who did not sympathise with the Puritan ideals. -London contained a strong Puritan element, and the -Order for the better keeping of the Lord's Day well -illustrates the typical activities of the City and the -attitude of its rulers.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Rushworth's <cite>Collections</cite>, part ii., p. 22.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>Whereas I am credibly informed, that notwithstanding divers -good Laws provided for the keeping of the Sabbath-day holy, -according to the express commandment of Almighty God, divers -inhabitants and other persons of this City, and other places, -having no respect of duty towards God, and his Majesty, or -his Laws, but in contempt of them all, do commonly and of -custom greatly profane the Sabbath-day, in buying, selling, -uttering and vending their wares and commodities upon that -day for their private gain: also innholders suffering markets -to be kept by carriers, in most rude and profane manner, in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_132'>132</span>selling victuals to hucksters, chandlers, and all other comers: -also carriers, carmen, cloth-workers, water-bearers, and porters -carrying of burdens, and watermen plying their fares; and -divers others working in their ordinary callings: and likewise, -that I am further informed, that vintners, alehouse-keepers, -tobacco and strong-water sellers, greatly profane the Sabbath-day, -by suffering company to sit drinking and bibbing in their -houses on that day; and likewise by cursing and swearing and -such-like behaviour, contrary to the express commandment of -Almighty God, his Majesty's Laws in that behalf, and all good -government: For the reformation whereof, I do hereby require, -and in his Majesty's name straightly command all his Majesty's -loving subjects whatsoever, and also all constables, head-boroughs, -beadles, and all other officers whatsoever, to be -aiding and assisting to J. S. the bearer hereof, in finding out -and apprehending all and every such person and persons, as -shall be found to offend in any of these kinds; and them and -every of them to bring before me, or some other of his Majesty's -Justices of the Peace, in answer to all such matters as shall be -objected against them, and to put in good security for their -good behaviour. Whereof fail you not, as you or any of you -will answer at your peril.</p> - -<div class='lg-container-r c016'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'><em>April 20, 1629.</em></div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE CITY'S PETITION TO CHARLES I. (1640).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The arbitrary government of Charles I. during the -"eleven years' tyranny" sorely tried the loyalty of the -citizens of London. We find that they were, as a rule, -quite disposed to support the King's government, so long -as their interests were safeguarded and their privileges -maintained. But they could not tolerate the illegal -exactions and unreasonable demands of the King without -vigorous protest. The Petition of 1640 is particularly -interesting as embodying the grievances which affected -not only the trading and commercial interests of the -capital, but indirectly the welfare of the whole country. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_133'>133</span>It is pointed out that the ship-money had not been -applied to its proper purpose of protecting the coasts and -the merchant fleets, while royal interference continually -hampered trade. The prevalent ill-feeling against Roman -Catholics finds expression, and the Petition in general -shows that the City was experiencing considerable difficulty -in sustaining its position of loyal respect for the -monarch.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Rushworth's <cite>Collections</cite>, part ii., p. 1263.</h3> - -<div class='lg-container-l c017'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'><span class='sc'>Most gracious Sovereign.</span></div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c011'>Being moved with the duty and obedience, which by -the laws your petitioners owe unto your sacred Majesty, they -humbly present unto your princely and pious wisdom the -several pressing grievances following, viz.</p> - -<p class='c011'>1. The pressing and unusual impositions upon merchandize, -importing and exporting, and the urging and levying of Ship-money, -notwithstanding both which, merchant ships and -goods have been taken and destroyed both by Turkish and -other pirates.</p> - -<p class='c011'>2. The multitude of monopolies, patents, and warrants, -whereby trade in the City, and other parts of the kingdom is -much decayed.</p> - -<p class='c011'>3. The sundry innovations in matters of religion.</p> - -<p class='c011'>4. The Oath and Canons lately enjoyned by the late Convocation, -whereby your petitioners are in danger to be deprived -of their Ministers.</p> - -<p class='c011'>5. The great concourse of Papists, and their inhabitations -in London, and the Suburbs, whereby they have more means -and opportunities of plotting and executing their designs -against the Religion established.</p> - -<p class='c011'>6. The seldom calling, and sudden dissolutions of Parliaments, -without the redress of your Subjects grievances.</p> - -<p class='c011'>7. The imprisonment of divers Citizens for non-payment of -Ship-money, and impositions; and the prosecution of many -others in the Star-Chamber, for not conforming themselves -<span class='pageno' id='Page_134'>134</span>to Committees in Patents of Monopolies, whereby trade is -restrained.</p> - -<p class='c011'>8. The great danger of your sacred person is exposed unto -in the present War, and the various fears that seized upon -your petitioners and their families by reason thereof; which -grievances and fears have occasioned so great a stop and -distraction in trade, that your petitioners can neither buy, -sell, receive nor pay as formerly, and tends to the utter ruin of -the inhabitants of this City, the decay of navigation, and -clothing, and the manufactures of this kingdom.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Your humble petitioners conceiving, that the said grievances -are contrary to the Laws of the kingdom, and finding by -experience that they are not redressed by the ordinary course -of Justice, do therefore most humbly beseech your most sacred -Majesty, to cause a Parliament to be summoned with all convenient -speed, whereby they may be relieved in the premises.</p> - -<p class='c012'>And your Petitioners and loyal Subjects shall ever - pray, &c.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>LONDON UNDER THE EARLY STUARTS (1642).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The following passage from Clarendon's <cite>History</cite> states -very clearly the relations between Charles I. and the City -in 1642, when the King's general attitude was anything -but conciliatory, and London was definitely attaching -itself to the Parliamentary cause. The royal policy was -not in the least calculated to induce a friendly feeling on -the part of the metropolis; neither Charles nor his -father appeared to have realised the immense importance -of gaining the good-will of the citizens, and Clarendon -quite fairly and impartially sets forth the facts when he -refers to the wealth of the City, and the unjust treatment -which it experienced at the hands of the first Stuart -monarchs.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_135'>135</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Clarendon's <cite>History of the Great Rebellion</cite>, iv. 178.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>The city of London, as the metropolis of England, by the -situation the most capable of trade, and by the not [un]usual -residence of the Court, and the fixed station of the courts of -justice for the public administration of justice throughout the -kingdom, the chief seat of trade, was by the successive -countenance and favour of princes strengthened with great -charters and immunities, and was a corporation governed -within itself; the mayor, recorder, aldermen, sheriffs, chosen -by themselves; several companies incorporated within the -great incorporation; which, besides notable privileges, enjoyed -lands and perquisites to a very great revenue. By the incredible -increase of trade, (which the distractions of other -countries, and the peace of this, brought,) and by the great -license of resort thither, it was, since the access of the crown -to this King, in riches, in people, in buildings, marvellously -increased, insomuch as the suburbs were almost equal to the -city; a reformation of which had been often in contemplation, -never pursued, wise men foreseeing that such a fulness could -not be there without an emptiness in other places, and whilst -so many persons of honour and estates were so delighted with -the city, the government of the country must be neglected, -besides the excess and ill husbandry that would be introduced -thereby. But such foresight was interpreted a morosity, and -too great an oppression upon the common liberty; and so, -little was applied to prevent so growing a disease.</p> - -<p class='c011'>As it had these, and many other, advantages and helps to -be rich, so it was looked upon too much of late time as a -common stock not easy to be exhausted, and as a body not to -be grieved by ordinary acts of injustice; and therefore it was -not only a resort in all cases of necessity for the sudden -borrowing great sums of money, (in which they were commonly -too good merchants for the Crown,) but it was thought reasonable -upon any specious pretences to avoid the security that -was at any time given for money so borrowed.</p> - -<p class='c011'>So, after many questions of their charter, (which were ever -removed by considerable sums of money,) a grant made by the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_136'>136</span>King in the beginning of his reign, in consideration of great -sums of money, of good quantities of land in Ireland, and the -city of Londonderry there, was avoided by a suit in the Star-Chamber, -all the lands (after a vast expense in building and -planting,) resumed into the King's hands, and a fine of -£50,000 imposed upon the city. Which sentence being pronounced -after a long and public hearing, during which time -they were often invited to a composition, both in respect of -the substance and the circumstances of proceeding, made a -general impression in the minds of the citizens of all conditions -much to the disadvantage of the Court; and though -the King afterwards remitted to them the benefit of that -sentence, they imputed that to the power of the Parliament, -and rather remembered how it had been taken from them -than by whom it was restored: so that at the beginning of -the Parliament the city was as ill affected to the Court as the -country was, and therefore chose such burgesses to sit there -as had either eminently opposed it or accidentally been -oppressed by it.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>A PROCLAMATION AGAINST THE CITY (1643).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>On the outbreak of civil war it soon became clear that -many of the trading centres of the country, including -London, would take up arms against the King. The -commercial interests of the country had been so persistently -assailed, royal interference in matters of trade had -been so marked, that this situation was not at all surprising. -It is hardly necessary to point out that the -King, in the preamble to this proclamation, shows either -insincerity or ignorance. The citizens of London and -of the other towns had no particularly strong object in -their resistance beyond obtaining reasonable security for -their interests, and the attempt to isolate London from -intercourse with the rest of the country was as ill-advised -as it was futile.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_137'>137</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Rushworth's <cite>Collections</cite>, part iii., vol. ii., p. 365.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>His Majesty having, with unwearied patience, hitherto expected -that the City of London, and the Citizens and inhabitants -thereof, should at last return to their obedience; having -used all the endeavours he could to reduce them thereunto; -but finding that, by the malice of their misleaders, they are so -obdurate, that the very name of peace and reconciliation is with -them accounted a crime, and that that City is both the seat of -rebellion, and the pattern to all ill-affected subjects of the kingdom, -by whose example and assistance some other cities and -towns do also stand out against his Majesty in open rebellion, not -only to the disturbance, but even to the destruction of the whole -kingdom, if God in his mercy do not entirely timely it; his -Majesty therefore, by his Royal Proclamation, dated at Oxford -the seventh day of July now last past, for the many reasons in -that proclamation mentioned, did prohibit all persons, with any -of their goods, victuals, or merchandize whatsoever, to travel to -or from the City of London, or suburbs thereof, without his -Majesty's express licence for the same, under his Sign Manual, -under the pains and penalties in the said Proclamation mentioned.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And his Majesty now perceiving, that, notwithstanding that -Proclamation, that rebellious City, by continuing their trade, -as well at home, as also from foreign parts, do hereby drain -their monies from all other parts of the kingdom, and traitorously -dispose of the same to the maintenance of this unnatural -War against their Sovereign and fellow-subjects; and that -many of the Freemen and Citizens of that City, and some of -the Aldermen and Trained-bands of the City, in their own -persons, have lately gone from the said City to assail his -Majesty, and to fight with him, and were in the late Battle -near Newbury; and that many of the said City are involuntarily -compelled to take up Arms, and to expose their lives -to the slaughter, for the maintenance of the malice of a few; -and the fuel for all this unnatural fire is taken from the City, -who spare neither their own persons, estates or fortunes, nor -<span class='pageno' id='Page_138'>138</span>the persons or estates of the inhabitants of the neighbouring -counties, but either persuade or compel them to contribute -to this horrid and barbarous war:</p> - -<p class='c011'>Now his Majesty, being moved with a just indignation -against that City, and some few other Cities and Towns, who -in like manner do obstinately stand out in rebellion, doth -hereby prohibit all persons, and straitly charge and command -them, upon the severest penalties and punishments, which by -the law can be inflicted upon them as Traitors, aiders, and -assisters unto traitors, that from and after the time of publishing -this proclamation, they, or any of them, do not presume, -without the King's special Warrant under his Sign Manual, -either by land or water, to drive, carry, or convey any -manner of victuals, alive or dead, or any sort of provision for -man or horse, or any goods or merchandize of any kind whatsoever, -directly or indirectly, or wilfully suffer the same to be -carried or conveyed unto or from the City of London, or City -of Westminster, or suburbs thereof; or to or from the Cities of -Gloucester and Coventry; or to or from the Towns of Kingston -upon Hull, Warwick, Northampton, Portsmouth, Southampton, -Poole and Lyme-Regis, or any of them; or to or from any -Cities or Towns within this Kingdom, being in rebellion -against his Majesty; until they and every of them respectively -shall return to their obedience; nor do presume to trade, or -traffick, or buy or sell with the Citizens or Townsmen of or in -the said Cities or Towns, or any of them, or any other Persons -inhabiting or residing in any of the said Cities or Towns, until -the said Cities and Towns respectively shall conform themselves -to their loyalty and due obedience.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>CROMWELL IN LONDON (1653).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Throughout the Civil War the influence of the citizens -had been very great. They had contributed money and -troops for use against the royal forces, and both sides frequently -appealed to them for support; but the Corporation -continued true to the Parliamentary interest until -<span class='pageno' id='Page_139'>139</span>matters were complicated by the rise to power of the -independent party and Cromwell. As soon as it became -plain that the army was the supreme head of authority, -the City was by no means enthusiastic in its favour; the -citizens had not calculated on this result of the conflict, -and Cromwell never had their confidence. They appeared -to acquiesce in his government, but he never secured their -hearty support. Several of the aldermen refused to proclaim -a Commonwealth, and considerable difficulty was -experienced by the Protector in enforcing his legislative -measures in the City; nevertheless, the citizens never -openly opposed him, and even received him with outward -manifestations of honour.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Clarendon's <cite>History</cite>, xiv. 25.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>Proclamation was made by a herald, in the Palace-yard at -Westminster, That the late Parliament having dissolved themselves -and resigned their whole power and authority, the -government of the commonwealth of England, Scotland, and -Ireland, by a Lord Protector, and successive triennial Parliaments, -was now established: and whereas Oliver Cromwell, -captain general of all the forces of the commonwealth, is -declared Lord Protector of the said nations, and had accepted -thereof, publication was now made of the same; and all -persons, of what quality and condition soever in any of the -said three nations, were strictly charged and commanded to -take notice thereof, and to conform and submit themselves -to the government so established; and all sheriffs, mayors, &c. -were required to publish this proclamation to the end that -none might have cause to pretend ignorance therein. Which -proclamation was at the same time published in Cheapside -by the Lord Mayor of London, and with all possible expedition -by the sheriffs and other officers throughout England, Scotland, -and Ireland. And in few days after the city of London invited -their new Protector to a very splendid entertainment at Grocers' -Hall, the streets being railed, and the solemnity of his reception -<span class='pageno' id='Page_140'>140</span>such as had been at any time performed to the King; and -he, as like a King, graciously conferred the honour of knighthood -upon the Lord Mayor at his departure.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>LONDON AND THE RESTORATION (1660).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>It is not difficult to believe that the City was glad to be -freed from the unconstitutional and distasteful Protectorate, -but the universal joy with which it accepted General Monk's -application for assistance in restoring Charles II. was most -remarkable, and the pomp and pageantry of the King's -welcome to London, as detailed below, were clearly a -sincere indication of the general feeling of relief and satisfaction. -It was surely not surprising that Charles, on -witnessing this outburst of loyalty, wondered where his -enemies were concealed, and why he had delayed so long -in repairing to his friends.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Sources.</strong>—(<em>a</em>) Clarendon's <cite>History</cite>, xvi. 240, 246;<br />(<em>b</em>) <cite>The Public Mercury</cite>, May, 1660.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>(<em>a</em>) The city of London had too great a hand in driving the -King from thence not to appear equally zealous for his return -thither. And therefore they did at the same time send fourteen -of their most substantial citizens to assure his Majesty of their -fidelity and most cheerful submission, and that they placed all -their felicity and hope of future prosperity in the assurance of -his Majesty's grace and protection, for the meriting whereof -their lives and fortunes should be always at his Majesty's -disposal; and they presented to him from the city the sum -of ten thousand pounds. The King told them he had always -had a particular affection for the city of London, the place -of his birth, and was very glad that they had now so good a -part in his restoration, of which he was informed, and how -much he was beholding to every one of them; for which he -thanked them very graciously, and knighted them all; an -honour no man in the city had received in near twenty years, -and with which they were much delighted....</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_141'>141</span>On Monday he went to Rochester, and the next day, being -the 29th of May and his birthday, he entered London, all the -ways from Dover thither being so full of people and exclamations -as if the whole kingdom had been gathered. About or -above Greenwich the Lord Mayor and aldermen met him, with -all those protestations of joy which can hardly be imagined; -and the concourse so great that the King rode in a crowd from -the bridge to Temple Bar. All the companies of the city stood -in order on both sides, giving loud thanks for his Majesty's -presence. And he no sooner came to Whitehall but the two -Houses of Parliament solemnly cast themselves at his feet, -with all the vows of affection and fidelity to the world's end. -In a word, the joy was so unexpressible and so universal, that -his Majesty said smilingly to some about him, that he doubted -it had been his own fault that he had been absent so long, for -he saw nobody that did not protest he had ever wished for his -return.</p> - -<p class='c011'>(<em>b</em>) At Blackheath the army was drawn up, where his Majesty -viewed them, giving out many expressions of his gracious -favour to the army, which were received by loud shoutings -and rejoicings; several bonfires were made as his Majesty -came along, and one more remarkable than the rest for its -bigness, where the States arms were burned.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Thence the army being placed according to his Excellencies -order, his Majesty marched towards London: and now because -God himself, when he would set a mark of observance upon his -own magnalia, hath taken notice of the circumstance of time, -it is very considerable here that it was his Majesties birth-day. -He was heir-apparent when first born, but had <i><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">jus in re</span></i> now -when entering the metropolis of his kingdom, he took possession. -All lets and hinderances, which have interven'd since -his Majesties just right, are now so many arguments of his -future fix'd and peaceable enjoyment. This the ancients -intimate, when they tell us, Jupiter himself was not quiet in -heaven till after a long war with the giants; may that God, by -whom kings reign, long preserve him and the nation, a mutual -blessing to each other!</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_142'>142</span>When his Majesty came to St. George's field, the Lord -Mayor and the Aldermen were in a tent ready to receive him: -there the Lord Mayor delivered unto his Majesty his sword -upon his knees, which his Majesty gave back to him. After -a repast taken there, his Majesty came to Whitehall in this -manner: all the streets being richly hang'd with tapestry, and -a lane made by the militia forces to London-bridge, from -London-bridge to Temple-bar by the trained bands on one -side, and the several companies in their liveries, and the -streamers of each company, of the other side, by the rails; -from Temple-bar to Westminster by the militia forces, regiments -of the army, and several gentlemen formerly officers -of the king's army, led by sir John Stawell; first marched a -troop of gentlemen, led by major-general Brown, brandishing -their swords, in clothes of silver doublet, in all about 300, -besides their servants; then another troop, of about 200, in -velvet coats, the footmen and liveries in purple; then another -troop, led by alderman Robinson, with buff coats, silver sleeves, -and green scarfs; after this, a troop with blue liveries, and -silver lace, colours red, fringed with silver, about 130; after -that, a troop, 6 trumpets, 7 footmen in sea-green and silver, -their colours pink, fringed with silver; then a troop, with their -liveries gray and blue, with silk and silver laces, 30 footmen, -4 trumpets, consisting of about 220, their colours sky, fringed -with silver; another of gray liveries, 6 trumpets, colours sky -and silver, of about 105 gentlemen; another troop of 70 gentlemen, -5 trumpets, colours sky and silver; another troop, led by -the lord Clevland, of about 200 noblemen and gentlemen, -colours blue, fringed with gold; another troop of about 100, -black colours, fringed with gold; another troop of about 300.</p> - -<p class='c011'>After these came two trumpets, with his Majesties arms, the -sheriffs men in red cloaks and silver lace, with half pikes, 79 in -number; then followed the several companies of London, with -their several streamers, all in black velvet coats with gold -chains, every company having their footmen of their several -liveries, some red and white, some pink and white, some blue -and yellow, etc.; three trumpets in liveries richly laced and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_143'>143</span>cloth of silver sleeves, went before the company of the Mercers. -After all these, came a kettle-drum, five trumpets, and three -streamers, and very rich red liveries, with silver lace. The -number of the citizens were about 600. After these, 12 -ministers, another kettle-drum, four trumpets, then his -Majesties life-guard, led by the lord Gerrard; another party, -led by sir Gilbert Gerrard, and major Rosecarron, and the -third division by colonel Pragues; then three trumpeters in -rich coats and satin doublets; the city marshal, with 8 footmen, -in French green, trimmed with crimson and white; the -city waits, the city officers in order, Dr. Warmstry, the 2 -Sheriffs, and all the Aldermen of London, in their scarlet -gowns, and rich trappings, with footmen in liveries, red coats, -laced with silver, and cloth of gold; the heralds and maces in -their rich coats; the Lord Mayor, bare, carrying the sword; -his Excellency and the duke of Buckingham bare; and then, -the glory of all, his sacred Majesty rode between the dukes of -York and Gloucester; afterwards followed a troop bare, with -white colours, then the generals lifeguard; after which, another -company of gentry, sky, fringed with gold; after which, five -regiments of the army horse, led by colonel Knight, viz. his -Excellencies regiment, colonel Knight's, colonel Cloberrie's, -lord Fauconberg's, lord Howard's; after whom, came two -troops of nobility and gentlemen, red colours, fringed with -gold. There was never such a sight of noblemen and gentlemen -that marched then, brandishing their swords all along. -Soon after his Majesty was passed, all the musketeers that -lined the streets gave many volleys of shot.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Thus was his Majesty conducted to his royal palace at -Whitehall; where after the lord mayor had took his leave, his -Majesty went to the Lords, where was a speech made to his -Majesty, and another in the Banqueting-house by the Speaker -of the House of Commons, which is printed at large by the -printers of the said house: which done, his Majesty retired -himself, and supped with the two dukes in the Chast chamber. -This day his Majesty dined in the Presence chamber.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The solemnity of this day was concluded by an infinite -<span class='pageno' id='Page_144'>144</span>number of bonfires; it being observable, that, as if all the -houses had turned out their chimneys into the streets (the -weather being very warm) there were almost as many fires in -the streets, as houses, throughout London and Westminster; -and among the rest in Westminster, a very costly one was -made, where the effigy of the old Oliver Cromwell was set -up upon a high post, with the arms of the Commonwealth; -which having been exposed there a while to the public view, -with torches lighted, that everyone might take better notice of -them, were burnt together.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The foreign ambassadors and public ministers here did likewise -highly express their joy for his Majesties happy arrival -here on Tuesday last, by their bonfires and other public demonstrations; -specially the ambassadors of France and Portugal, -and the plenipotentiaries of the king of Sweden; in particular, -his plenipotentiary lying at Charing-cross, besides his bonfires, -giving of wine and throwing of money among the people, made -very gallant emblems upon the business of the day.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>STATE OF LONDON BEFORE THE PLAGUE<br />(1661).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Besides the insanitary conditions which rendered the -City so liable to outbreaks of infectious disease, there -were other nuisances which afflicted the inhabitants of -the City. It is rather difficult to imagine what John -Evelyn would have said about a Black Country town of -the present day, where the effects of smoke must be much -more noticeable than in the London of 1661. But his -indictment, although severe, is in the main true; the -smoke nuisance has not decreased since the seventeenth -century, and probably we tolerate it only because we are -accustomed to it. It must be remembered that in Evelyn's -day the use of coal for fuel, although not great, was rapidly -increasing; and a tax on coal was often a source of considerable -revenue.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_145'>145</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—John Evelyn, <cite>Fumifugium</cite>.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>That this glorious and ancient city, which from wood might -be rendered brick, and (like another Rome) from brick made -stone and marble; which commands the proud ocean to the -Indies, and reaches the farthest Antipodes, should wrap her -stately head in clouds of smoke and sulphur, so full of stink -and darkness, I deplore with just indignation. That the buildings -should be composed of such a congestion of misshapen -and extravagant houses; that the streets should be so narrow -and incommodious in the very centre, and busiest places of -intercourse; that there should be so ill and uneasy a form of -paving under foot, so troublesome and malicious a disposure -of the spouts and gutters overhead, are particulars worthy -of reproof and reformation; because it is hereby rendered a -labyrinth in its principal passages, and a continual wet day -after the storm is over.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The immoderate use of, and indulgence to seacoal alone in -the city of London, exposes it to one of the foulest inconveniences -and reproaches, that can possibly befall so noble, -and otherwise incomparable a city: and that, not from the -culinary fires, which for being weak, and less often fed below, -is with such ease dispelled and scattered above, as it is hardly -at all discernible, but from some few particular tunnells and -issues, belonging only to brewers, dyers, lime-burners, salt, -and soap-boilers, and some other private trades, one of whose -spiracles alone, does manifestly infect the air, more than all -the chimneys of London put together besides. And that this -is not the least hyperbole, let the best of judges decide it, -which I take to be our senses: whilst these are belching forth -from their sooty jaws, the city of London resembles the face -rather of mount Ætna, the court of Vulcan, Stromboli, or the -suburbs of hell, than an assembly of rational creatures, and -the imperial seat of our incomparable monarch. For when in -all other places the air is most serene and pure, it is here -eclipsed with such a cloud of sulphur, as the sun itself, which -gives daily to all the world besides, is hardly able to penetrate -<span class='pageno' id='Page_146'>146</span>and impart it here; and the weary traveller, at many miles -distance, sooner smells, than sees the city to which he repairs.</p> - -<p class='c011'>This is that pernicious smoke which sullies all her glory, -superinducing a sooty crust or furr upon all that it lights, -spoiling the moveables, tarnishing the plate, gildings, and -furniture, and corroding the very iron bars and hardest stones -with those piercing and acrimonious spirits which accompany -its sulphur; and executing more in one year, than exposed to -the pure air of the country it could effect in some hundreds. -It is this horrid smoke, which obscures our churches, and -makes our palaces look old, which fouls our clothes, and corrupts -the waters, so as the very rain and refreshing dews -which fall in the several seasons, precipitate this impure -vapour, which with its black and tenacious quality, spots and -contaminates whatever is exposed to it.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE PLAGUE (1665).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Pepys and Evelyn give descriptions of the scenes in -London during the terrible visitation of 1665; and Defoe's -narrative is extremely vivid and circumstantial, although -he was only four years old at the time and must have -derived much of his information from other sources. The -following account by Vincent is contemporary:</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Rev. T. Vincent, <cite>God's Terrible Voice in the City</cite>.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>Now the citizens of London are put to a stop in the career -of their trade; they begin to fear whom they converse withal, -and deal withal, lest they should have come out of infected -places. Now roses and other sweet flowers wither in the -gardens, are disregarded in the markets, and people dare not -offer them to their noses lest with their sweet savour, that -which is infectious should be attracted: rue and wormwood -are taken into the hand; myrrh and zedoary into the mouth; -and without some antidote few stir abroad in the morning. -Now many houses are shut up where the plague comes, and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_147'>147</span>the inhabitants shut in, lest coming abroad they should spread -infection. It was very dismal to behold the red crosses, and -read in great letters, <span class='fss'>LORD HAVE MERCY UPON US</span>, on the doors, -and watchmen standing before them with halberts; and such -a solitude about those places, and people passing by them so -gingerly, and with such fearful looks as if they had been lined -with enemies in ambush, that waited to destroy them.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Now rich tradesmen provide themselves to depart; if they -have not country-houses they seek lodgings abroad for themselves -and families, and the poorer tradesmen, that they may -imitate the rich in their fear, stretch themselves to take a -country journey, though they have scarce wherewithal to bring -them back again. The ministers also (many of them) take -occasion to go to their country-places for the summer time; -or (it may be) to find out some few of their parishioners that -were gone before them, leaving the greatest part of their flock -without food or physic, in the time of their greatest need. (I -don't speak of all ministers, those which did stay out of choice -and duty, deserve true honour.) Possibly they might think -God was now preaching to the city, and what need their -preaching? or rather did not the thunder of God's voice -affrighten their guilty consciences and make them fly away, -lest a bolt from heaven should fall upon them, and spoil their -preaching for the future; and therefore they would reserve -themselves till the people had less need of them. I do not -blame any citizens retiring, when there was so little trading, -and the presence of all might have helped forward the increase -and spreading of the infection; but how did guilt drive many -away, where duty would have engaged them to stay in the -place? Now the highways are thronged with passengers and -goods, and London doth empty itself into the country; great -are the stirs and hurries in London by the removal of so many -families; fear puts many thousands on the wing, and those -think themselves most safe, that can fly furthest off from the -city.</p> - -<p class='c011'>In August how dreadful is the increase: from 2010, the -number amounts up to 2817 in one week; and thence to 3880 -<span class='pageno' id='Page_148'>148</span>the next; thence to 4237 the next; thence to 6102 the next; -and all these of the plague, besides other diseases.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Now the cloud is very black, and the storm comes down -upon us very sharp. Now Death rides triumphantly on his -pale horse through our streets; and breaks into every house -almost, where any inhabitants are to be found. Now people -fall as thick as leaves from the trees in autumn, when they are -shaken by a mighty wind. Now there is a dismal solitude in -London's streets, every day looks with the face of a Sabbath -day, observed with greater solemnity than it used to be in the -city. Now shops are shut in, people rare and very few that -walk about, insomuch that the grass begins to spring up in -some places, and a deep silence almost in every place, especially -within the walls; no rattling coaches, no prancing horses, no -calling in customers, nor offering wares; no London Cries -sounding in the ears: if any voice be heard, it is the groans -of dying persons, breathing forth their last: and the funeral -knells of them that are ready to be carried to their graves. -Now shutting up of visited houses (there being so many) is -at an end, and most of the well are mingled among the sick, -which otherwise would have got no help. Now in some places -where the people did generally stay, not one house in a hundred -but is infected; and in many houses half the family is swept -away; in some the whole, from the eldest to the youngest; few -escape with the death of but one or two; never did so many -husbands and wives die together; never did so many parents -carry their children with them to the grave, and go together -into the same house under earth, who had lived together in the -same house upon it. Now the nights are too short to bury the -dead; the long summer days are spent from morning unto -the twilight in conveying the vast number of dead bodies unto -the bed of their graves.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE FIRE (1666).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>By the terrible conflagration of 1666, the whole of the -City was destroyed, except a narrow circle round its -<span class='pageno' id='Page_149'>149</span>boundaries. It is not at all difficult to account for the -outbreak: the closeness of the streets, the wooden structure -of the houses, the number of families occupying the -same house, the common use of wood for fuel—all these -circumstances were favourable to the origin and spread of -the flames. But obvious as these causes were, there was -evidenced an enormous anxiety to fix the blame upon -some unpopular party, and wildly improbable and grossly -exaggerated accounts were given. The republican party -were first charged with the crime of setting fire to the -City; then the Dutch were believed to be the authors. -In neither case was there any shadow of reasonable proof. -In the end it was fixed upon the Papists, on the strength -of a single confession of a mad Frenchman, who told a -ridiculous and contradictory story of a Roman Catholic -conspiracy; only the extraordinary temper of the times -can explain the credulity with which this story in common -with many others concerning Roman Catholics was received. -Although the slander could not stand examination, -it was inscribed on the Monument, and remained -there during the whole of the eighteenth century. (<em>See</em> -1681, Popish Panic.)</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Sources.</strong>—(<em>a</em>) Pepys' <cite>Diary</cite>;<br />(<em>b</em>) <cite>London Gazette</cite>, September 8, 1666.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>(<em>a</em>) <em>September 2, 1666.</em>—Some of our mayds sitting up late -last night to get things ready against our feast to-day, Jane -called us up about three in the morning, to tell us of the great -fire they saw in the city. So I rose and slipped on my nightgowne, -and went to her window, and thought it to be on the -back-side of Marke-lane at the farthest; but, being unused to -such fires as followed, I thought it to be far enough off; and -so went to bed again and to sleep. About seven rose again to -dress myself, and there looked out of the window, and saw the -fire not so much as it was and further off. So to my closett -to set things right after yesterday's cleaning. By and by -<span class='pageno' id='Page_150'>150</span>Jane comes and tells me that she hears that above 300 houses -have been burned down to night by the fire we saw, and that -it is now burning down all Fish-Street by London Bridge. So -I made myself ready presently, and walked to the Tower; ... -and there I did see the houses at the end of the bridge all on -fire, and an infinite great fire on this and the other side the -end of the bridge; which, among other people, did trouble me -for poor little Michell and our Sarah on the bridge. So down, -with my heart full of trouble, to the Lieutenant of the Tower, -who tells me it begun this morning in the King's baker's house -in Pudding Lane, and that it hath burned St. Magnus's Church -and most part of Fish-Street already. So I down to the waterside, -and there got a boat and through bridge, and there saw a -lamentable fire. Poor Michell's house, as far as the Old -Swan, already burned that way, and the fire running further, -that in a very little time it got as far as the Steele-yard, while -I was there. Everybody endeavouring to remove their goods, -and flinging into the river or bringing them into lighters that -lay off; poor people staying in the houses as long as till the -very fire touched them, and then running into boats, or -clambering from one pair of stairs by the water side to -another. And among other things, the poor pigeons, I perceive, -were loth to leave their houses, but hovered about the -windows and balconys till they burned their wings, and fell -down.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Having staid, and in an hour's time seen the fire rage every -way, and nobody, to my sight, endeavouring to quench it, but -to remove their goods, and leave all to the fire, and having -seen it get as far as Steele-yard; and the wind mighty high -and driving it into the City; and everything, after so long a -drought, proving combustible, even the very stones of the -churches, and among other things, the poor steeple by which -pretty Mrs. ⸺ lives, and whereof my old school-fellow -Elborough is parson, taken fire in the very top, and there -burned till it fell down: to White Hall ... and there up to -the King's closett in the Chappell, where people come about -me, and I did give them an account that dismayed them all, and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_151'>151</span>word was carried in to the King. So I was called for, and -did tell the King and the Duke of York what I saw, and that -unless his Majesty did command houses to be pulled down -nothing could stop the fire. They seemed much troubled, -and the King commanded me to go to my Lord Mayor from -him, and commanded him to spare no houses, but to pull down -before the fire every way. The Duke of York bid me tell him -that if he would have any more soldiers he shall; and so did -my Lord Arlington afterwards, as a great secret. Here -meeting with Captain Cocke, I in his coach, which he lent -me, and Creed with me to Paul's, and there walked along -Watling-street as well as I could, every creature coming away -loaden with goods to save, and here and there sicke people -carried away in beds. Extraordinary good goods carried in -carts or on backs. At last met my Lord Major in Canning-street, -like a man spent, with a handkercher about his neck. -To the King's message he cried, like a fainting woman, -"Lord, what can I do? I am spent; people will not obey -me. I have been pulling down houses; but the fire overtakes -us faster than we can do it." That he needed no more -soldiers; and that, for himself, he must go and refresh himself, -having been up all night. So he left me, and I him, and -walked home, seeing people all almost distracted, and no -manner of means used to quench the fire. The houses, too, -so very thick thereabouts, and full of matter for burning, as -pitch and tar, in Thames-street; and ware houses of oyle, and -wines, and brandy, and other things. Here I saw Mr. Isaake -Houblon, the handsome man, prettily dressed and dirty, at his -door at Dow-gate, receiving some of his brother's things, -whose houses were on fire; and, as he says, have been removed -twice already; and he doubts (as it soon proved) that -they must be in a little time removed from his house also, -which was a sad consideration. And to see the churches all -filling with goods by people who themselves should have been -quietly there at this time. By this time it was about twelve -o'clock; and so home....</p> - -<p class='c011'>While at dinner Mrs. Batelier came to enquire after Mr -<span class='pageno' id='Page_152'>152</span>Woolfe and Stanes ... whose houses in Fish-Street are all -burned, and they in a sad condition. She would not stay in -the fright. Soon as dined, I and Moone away, and walked -through the City, the streets full of but people and horses and -carts loaden with goods, ready to run over one another, and -removing goods from one burned house to another. They -now removing out of Canning-Street (which received goods in -the morning) into Lumbard-Street, and further; and among -others I now saw my little gold-smith, Stokes, receiving some -friends goods, whose house itself was burned the day after.</p> - -<p class='c011'>We parted at Paul's; he home, and I to Paul's Wharf, -where I had appointed a boat to attend me, and took in -Mr. Carcasse and his brother, whom I met in the streete, and -carried them below and above bridge to ... see the fire, -which was now got further, both below and above, and no -likelihood of stopping it. Met with the King and Duke of -York in their barge, and with them to Queenhithe, and -there called Sir Richard Browne to them. Their order was -only to pull down houses apace, and so below bridge at the -water side; but little was or could be done, the fire coming -upon them so fast. Good hopes there were of stopping it -at the Three Cranes above, and at Buttolph's Wharf below -bridge, if care be used; but the wind carries it into the City, -so as we know not by the water-side what it do there. River -full of lighters and boats taking in goods, and good goods swimming -in the water, and only I observed that hardly one lighter or -boat in three that had the goods of a house in, but there was a -pair of Virginalls in it.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Having seen as much as I could now, I away to Whitehall -by appointment and there walked to St. James's Parke, and -there met my wife and Creed and Wood and his wife and -walked to my boat; and there upon the water again, and to the -fire up and down, it still increasing, and the wind great. So -near the fire as we could for smoke; and all over the Thames, -with one's face in the wind, you were almost burned with a -shower of fire-drops. This is very true; so as houses were -burned by these drops and flakes of fire, three or four, nay, five -<span class='pageno' id='Page_153'>153</span>or six houses, one from another. When we could endure no -more upon the water, we to a little ale-house on the Bankside, -over against the three Cranes, and there staid till it was dark -almost, and saw the fire grow; and, as it grew darker, appeared -more and more, and in corners and upon steeples, and between -churches and houses, as far as we could see up the hill of the -City, in a most horrid malicious bloody flame, not like the fine -flame of an ordinary fire.... We staid till, it being darkish, -we saw the fire as only one entire arch of fire from this to the -other side of the bridge, and in a bow up the hill for an arch of -above a mile long; it made me weep to see it. The church, -houses, and all on fire and flaming at once; and a horrid noise -the flames made, and the cracking of houses at their ruine. -So home with a sad heart, and there find everybody discursing -and lamenting the fire: and poor Tom Hater come with some -few of his goods saved out of his house, which is burned upon -Fish-Street Hill. I invited him to lie at my house, and -receive his goods, but was deceived in his lying there; so as -we were forced to begin to pack up our owne goods, and prepare -for their removal; and did by moonshine (it being brave -dry, and moonshine, and warm weather) carry much of my -goods into the garden, and Mr. Hater and I did remove my -money and iron chests into my cellar, as thinking that the -safest place. And got ready my bags of gold into my office, -ready to carry away, and my chief papers of accounts also -there, and my tallys into a box by themselves. So great was -our fear, as Sir W. Batten hath carts come out of the country -to fetch away his goods this night. We did put Mr. Hater, -poor man, to bed a little; but he got but very little rest, so -much noise being in my house, taking down of goods.</p> - -<p class='c011'><em>September 3rd.</em>—About four o'clock in the morning, my Lady -Batten sent me a cart to carry away all my money, and plate, -and best things, to Sir W. Rider's at Bednall Green, which -I did riding myself in my night-gowne in the cart; and, Lord! -to see how the streets and highways are crowded with people -running and riding, and getting of carts at any rate to fetch -away things. I find Sir W. Rider tired with being called up -<span class='pageno' id='Page_154'>154</span>all night, and receiving things from several friends. His -house full of goods, and much of Sir W. Batten's and Sir W. -Penn's. I am eased at my heart to have my treasure so well -secured. Then home, with much ado to find a way, nor any -sleep at all this night to me nor my poor wife.</p> - -<p class='c011'>(<em>b</em>) On the second instant, at one of the clock of the morning, -there happened to break out, a sad and deplorable fire, in Pudding-lane -near Fish Street, which falling out at that hour of -the night, and in a quarter of the town so close built with -wooden pitched houses, spread itself so far before day, and -with such distraction to the inhabitants and neighbours, that -care was not taken for the timely preventing the further diffusion -of it, by pulling down houses, as ought to have been; so -that this lamentable fire in a short time became too big to be -mastered by any engines or working near it. It fell out most -unhappily too, that a violent easterly wind fomented, and kept -it burning all that day, and the night following, spreading itself -up to Gracechurch Street, and downwards from Cannon Street -to the water-side, as far as the Three Cranes in the Vintrey.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The people in all parts about it distracted by the vastness of -it, and their particular care to carry away their goods, many -attempts were made to prevent the spreading of it by pulling -down houses, and making great intervals, but all in vain, the -fire seizing upon the timber and rubbish and so continuing -itself, even through those spaces, and raging in a bright flame -all Monday and Tuesday, notwithstanding his majesties own, -and his royal highness's indefatigable and personal pains to -apply all possible remedies to prevent it, calling upon and helping -the people with their guards, and a great number of nobility -and gentry unwearied assisting therein, for which they were -requited with a thousand blessings from the poor distressed -people. By the favour of God, the wind slackened a little -on Tuesday night and the flames meeting with brick buildings -at the Temple, by little and little it was observed to lose its -force on that side, so that on Wednesday morning we began to -hope well, and his royal highness never despairing or slackening -his personal care, wrought so well that day, assisted in some -<span class='pageno' id='Page_155'>155</span>parts by the lords of the council before and behind it, that -a stop was put to it at the Temple-Church, near Holborn-Bridge, -Pie-corner, Aldersgate, Cripplegate, near the lower -end of Coleman-Street, at the end of Basinghall Street, by the -Postern, at the upper end of Bishopsgate street, and Leadenhall-street, -at the standard in Cornhill, at the church in Fenchurch -street, near Clothworkers-Hall in Mincing Lane, at the -middle of Mark-lane, and at the Tower-dock.</p> - -<p class='c011'>On Thursday by the blessing of God it was wholly beat -down and extinguished. But so as that evening it unhappily -burst out again afresh at the Temple, by the falling of some -sparks (as is supposed) upon a pile of wooden buildings; but -his royal highness, who watched there that whole night in -person, by the great labours and diligence used, and especially -by applying powder to blow up the houses about it, before day -most happily mastered it.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Divers strangers, Dutch and French were, during the fire, -apprehended, upon suspicion that they contributed mischievously -to it, who are all imprisoned, and informations prepared -to make a severe inquisition thereupon by my lord chief justice -Keeling, assisted by some of the lords of the privy-council, -and some principal members of the city, notwithstanding which -suspicions, the manner of the burning all along in a train, and -so blown forwards in all its way by strong winds, makes us -conclude the whole was an effect of an unhappy chance, or to -speak better, the heavy hand of God upon us for our sins, -shewing us the terror of his judgment in thus raising the fire, -and immediately after his miraculous and never enough to be -acknowledged mercy in putting a stop to it when we were in -the last despair, and that all attempts for the quenching it -however industriously pursued, seemed insufficient. His -Majesty then sat hourly in council, and ever since hath continued -making rounds about the city in all parts of it where the danger -and mischief was greatest, till this morning that he hath sent -his grace the duke of Albemarle, whom he hath called for to -assist him in this great occasion, to put his happy and successful -hand to the finishing this memorable deliverance.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_156'>156</span> - <h2 class='c004'>A PROCLAMATION OF CHARLES II. (1666).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>It seems clear from this proclamation that the King -and his advisers not only realised the faults and dangers -of the recently destroyed City, but entertained worthy and -lofty ideals for its re-erection. Ingenious schemes were -not lacking, and only a strong and firm and enthusiastic -government was required to insure the building of a -beautiful, safe, and convenient city to replace the old -picturesque, but dangerous, unhealthy, and crowded -buildings. However, royal favour and public convenience -could not prevail against "vested interests"; and most of -the pious hopes of Charles, and the plans of enlightened -architects and others, were not fulfilled.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Charles, R.—As no particular man hath sustained any loss -or damage by the late terrible and deplorable fire in his fortune -or estate, in any degree to be compared with the loss and -damage we ourself have sustained, so it is not possible for any -man to take the same more to heart, and to be more concerned -and solicitous for the rebuilding this famous city with as much -expedition as is possible; and since it hath pleased God to lay -this heavy judgment upon us all in this time, as an evidence -of his displeasure for our sins, we do comfort ourself with some -hope, that he will, upon our due humiliation before him, as -a new instance of his signal blessing upon us, give us life, not -only to see the foundations laid, but the buildings finished, of -a much more beautiful city than is at this time consumed.</p> - -<p class='c011'>In the first place, the woeful experience in this late heavy -visitation hath sufficiently convinced all men of the pernicious -consequences which have attended the building with timber, -and even with stone itself, and the notable benefit of brick, -which in so many places hath resisted and even extinguished -the fire: and we do therefore hereby declare our express will -and pleasure that no man whatsoever shall presume to erect -any house or building, great or small, but of brick or stone; -and if any man shall do the contrary, the next magistrate shall -<span class='pageno' id='Page_157'>157</span>forthwith cause it to be pulled down, and such further course -shall be taken for his punishment as he deserves. And we -suppose that the notable benefit many men have received from -those cellars which have been well and strongly arched, will -persuade most men, who build good houses, to practise that -good husbandry, by arching all convenient places.</p> - -<p class='c011'>We do declare, that Fleet Street, Cheapside, Cornhill, and -all other eminent and notorious streets, shall be of such a -breadth, as may, with God's blessing, prevent the mischief -that one side may suffer if the other be on fire, which was the -case lately in Cheapside; the precise breadth of which several -streets shall be, upon advice with the lord mayor and aldermen, -shortly published, with many other particular orders and rules, -which cannot yet be adjusted: in the mean time we resolve, -though all streets cannot be of all equal breadth, yet none shall -be so narrow as to make the passage uneasy or inconvenient, -especially towards the water-side; nor will we suffer any lanes -or alleys to be erected, but where, upon mature deliberation, -the same shall be found absolutely necessary; except such -places shall be set aside, which shall be designed only for -buildings of that kind, and from whence no public mischief -may probably arise.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The irreparable damage and loss by the late fire being, next -to the hand of God in the terrible wind, to be imputed to the -place in which it first broke out, amongst small timber houses -standing so close together, that as no remedy could be applied -from the river for the quenching thereof, to the contiguousness -of the buildings hindering and keeping all possible relief from -the land-side, we do resolve and declare, that there shall be -a fair key or wharf on all the river-side; that no house shall -be erected within so many feet of the river, as shall be within -few days declared in the rules formerly mentioned; nor shall -there be in those buildings which shall be erected next the -river, which we desire may be fair structures, for the ornament -of the city, any houses to be inhabited by brewers, or dyers, -or sugar-bakers; which trades, by their continual smokes, contribute -very much to the unhealthiness of the adjacent places; -<span class='pageno' id='Page_158'>158</span>but we require the lord mayor and aldermen of London, upon -a full consideration, and weighing all conveniences and inconveniences -that can be foreseen, to propose such a place as may -be fit for all those trades which are carried on by smoke to -inhabit together, or at least several places for the several -quarters of the town for those occupations, and in which they -shall find their account in convenience and profit, as well as -other places shall receive the benefit in the distance of the -neighbourhood; it being our purpose, that they who exercise -those necessary professions, shall be in all respects as well -provided for and encouraged as ever they have been, and -undergo as little prejudice as may be by being less inconvenient -to their neighbours.</p> - -<p class='c011'>In the mean time, we do heartily recommend it to the charity -and magnanimity of all well-disposed persons, and we do heartily -pray unto Almighty God, that he will infuse it into the hearts -of men, speedily to endeavour by degrees to re-edify some of -those many churches, which, in this lamentable fire, have been -burned down and defaced; that so men may have those public -places of God's worship to resort to, to humble themselves -together before him upon this his heavy displeasure, and join -in their devotion for his future mercy and blessing upon us; -and, as soon as we shall be informed of any readiness to begin -such a good work, we shall not only give our assistance and -direction for the model of it, and freeing it from buildings at -too near a distance, but shall encourage it by our own bounty, -and all other ways we shall be desired.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Lastly, that we may encourage men by our own example, -we will use all the expedition we can to re-build our custom-house -in the place where it formerly stood, and enlarge it with -the most conveniences for the merchants that can be devised; -and, upon all the other lands which belong unto us, we shall -depart with any thing of our own right and benefit, for the -advancement of the public service and beauty of the city; and -shall further remit, to all those who shall erect any buildings -according to this declaration, all duties arising to us upon the -hearth-money for the space of seven years.</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_159'>159</span>Given at our court at Whitehall the thirteenth day of -September, one thousand six hundred and sixty-six, in the -eighteenth year of our reign.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>EVELYN'S PLANS FOR REBUILDING THE CITY<br />(1667).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>After the Fire had demolished a considerable portion of -the City, many plans and suggestions were submitted for -its reconstruction, and those of Sir Christopher Wren and -of John Evelyn were distinguished by their excellence and -thoroughness. The occasion offered a magnificent opportunity -for a wise and far-seeing scheme of town-planning, -and the ingenious ideas of Evelyn are particularly interesting -in view of the attention which is now being given to -the subject.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—<cite>London Restored</cite>, quoted by Maitland, vol. i., p. 447.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>It might haply be thought fit to fill up, or at least give -a partial level to some of the deepest valleys, holes and more -sudden declivities within the City, for the more ease of commerce, -carriages, coaches and people in the streets; and not -a little for the more handsome ranging of the buildings: for -instance, that from about the Fleet to Ludgate; which yet -should be no more than might only afford a graceful and just -ascent from thence up towards St. Paul's; the only spot in the -whole city, where I would plant that ancient and venerable -Cathedral again: but here is to be considered the Channel -running thence through Holborn, which would be so enlarged, as -not only to be preserved sweet (by scouring it through flood-gates -into the Thames on all occasions) but commodious for the -intercourse of considerable vessels thwart this portion of the -town; and which therefore should be accordingly wharfed on -both sides to the very key of the river, and made contiguous -to the streets by bridges arched to a due level, as it might -easily be contrived, (and with passage sufficient for lusty -<span class='pageno' id='Page_160'>160</span>barges and lighters under them) were the valley so elevated -as it is projected. There is only this care incumbent; that all -foundations upon this new ground be searched to the old and -more solid basis; from whence they may also store themselves -with vaults and cellarage in abundance: The same might be -considered in some sort from the descent of the hill towards -Thames-Street, so as to come down upon the future key by -a far less declivity, which would give those houses that should -be built fronting to the river a more becoming aspect, and an -easier footing to the ranges above them, which would peep -over one another successively; with a far better grace, than -those do at Genoa, where the ascent is too precipitious.</p> - -<p class='c011'>These considerations and employments would greatly forward -the prompt and natural disposal of the more useless and cumbersome -rubbish; unless it might be thought more expedient (if -there should not be sufficient for both) to design it rather -towards the enlargement of a new and ample key; which I -wish might run parallel from the very Tower to the Temple -at least, and, if it were possible (without augmenting the -rapidity of the stream) extend itself even as far as the very -low-water mark; the basin by this means kept perpetually -full, without Slub or annoyance, and to the infinite benefit and -ease of access, like that of Constantinople, than which nothing -could be imagined more noble: what fractions and confusions -our ugly stairs, bridges and causeways make, and how dirty -and nasty it is at every ebb, we are sufficiently sensible of; -so as, next to the hellish smoke of the town, there is nothing -doubtless which does more impair the health of its inhabitants....</p> - -<p class='c011'>For the rest of those necessary evils, the brew-houses, bake-houses, -dyers, salt, soap and sugar-boilers, chandlers, hat-makers, -slaughter-houses, some sort of fish-mongers, etc. whose -neighbourhood cannot be safe, (as I have elsewhere shewed, -and a sad experience has confirmed) I hope his Majesty will -now dispose of to some other parts about the river; towards -Bow and Wandsworth on the water; Islington and about -Spital-Fields, etc. The charge of bringing all their commodities -<span class='pageno' id='Page_161'>161</span>into the City would be very inconsiderable, opposed to the -peril of their being continued amongst the inhabitants, and the -benefit of the carriage, which would employ a world of people, -both by land and water, without the least prejudice.</p> - -<p class='c011'>I suppose the Custom-house cannot be better situated than -where it was, and as it may hold communication with the -Tower: here might the Admiralty and Navy-Office be fitly -placed.</p> - -<p class='c011'>I have not forgotten the hospitals, public workhouses to -employ the poor in, and prisons; which being built and re-endowed -at the common charge, should be disposed of in -convenient quarters of the City: the hospitals would become -one of the principal streets: but the prisons, and tribunal for -trial of criminal offenders, might be built (as of old) near some -entrance of the City; about Newgate were a fitting place, as -my plate represents it.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The College of Physicians would be in one of the best parts -of the town, encircled with an handsome Piazza for the dwelling -of those learned persons, with the Chirurgeons, Apothecaries -and Druggists in the streets about them; for I am greatly -inclined to wish, that all of a mystery should be destined to -their several quarters: those of the better sort of shop-keepers, -who sell by retail, might be allotted to the sweetest and most -eminent streets and piazzas: the artificers to the more ordinary -houses, intermediate and narrower passages (for such will hardly -be avoided) that the noise and tintamar of their instruments -may be the less importunate: the taverns and victualling -houses sprinkled amongst them, and built accordingly: but -all these too, even the very meanest, should exactly respect -uniformity, and be more substantially built than those in -Covent-Garden, and other places; where once in twenty or -thirty years they had need be built again, and therefore to be -indulged a longer term.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Spaces for ample courts, yards and gardens, even in the -heart of the City there may be some to the principal houses, -for state and refreshment; but with great reservation, because -of the fractions they will make; and therefore rarely towards -<span class='pageno' id='Page_162'>162</span>any principal street: and I hope it will please his Majesty to -prescribe by a public and irreversible edict, that no houses -whatsoever, may for the future presume to be erected, not only -about this City, but all the Nation besides, within such a -distance from magazines, places of public records and Churches, -which should be preserved as sanctuaries.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The gates and entries of the City, which are to be rebuilt, -might be the subjects of handsome architecture, in form of -triumphal arches, adorned with statues, relievo's and apposite -inscriptions, as prefaces to the rest within, and should therefore -by no means be obstructed by sheds, and ugly shops, or houses -adhering to them: and I wish this reformation, and the infinite -danger of their being continued, might extend to the demolishing -those deformed buildings on London-Bridge; which not -only endanger all the rest, but take away from the beauty of -it, and indeed of the whole City near the Thames: instead of -them, if there went a substantial baluster of iron, decorated -with statues upon their pedestals at convenient distances, and -the footway on each side, it would be exceedingly convenient; -whilst, to secure the passengers by night, it might be guarded -by responsible house-keepers in their turns: or, if they will -need have shops, let them be built of solid stone, made narrow -and very low, like to those upon the Rialto at Venice; but it -were far better without them.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>AN ACT CONCERNING THE STREETS (1671).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Such statutes as the following are particularly useful in -enabling us to understand in detail the conditions which -governed matters of everyday life in the City. The fact -that certain proceedings are forbidden implies that it was -found necessary to issue the prohibition by reason of the -common occurrence of such proceedings. From this -statute and from similar sources we obtain the inevitable -impression that the streets of London during the seventeenth -century must have been dangerous and disagreeable -<span class='pageno' id='Page_163'>163</span>places. These instructions, of course, were issued at a -time when special attention was being directed to the -care of the city from reasons of health and safety.</p> - -<p class='c011'>I. Item, That hereafter all streets within this city, called, -known, or set down to be High Streets, shall be paved round, -or causeway fashion: and upon notice given to the commissioners -of any defective pavements in any of the streets, lanes, -and passages within this city and liberties, the same shall be -forthwith made good and amended, unless by general consent -some better expedient be found and published.</p> - -<p class='c011'>II. That inasmuch as it hath been found by common experience -that the paviours, to hide and cover their bad workmanship, -have oftentimes spread and laid great quantities of -gravel over their pavements, to greater charge of the persons -setting them on work than was needful, and which, upon a -sudden rain, did either choke the common sewers, or turn to -dirt and mire in the streets; therefore the said paviours are -required, that hereafter they do forbear to lay or spread any -more gravel on the pavements than will only fill up the joints -of their work, and cause the same to be swept and well rammed, -and leave the pavements bare of gravel, and keep a regular -method of paving, not paving one door higher than another, -upon pain of paying five shillings for every complaint.</p> - -<p class='c011'>III. That the breadth of six foot at the least from the -foundation of the houses, in such of the said High Streets -which shall be allowed to be posted, shall be paved by the -inhabitants or owners with flat or broad stone for a foot -passage; unless such parts thereof as shall lie before any -gateway, which may be done with square rag by the said -breadth of six feet, upon pain of paying five shillings for every -week the same shall be omitted to be done after notice given.</p> - -<p class='c011'>VIII. That the several inhabitants within this city and -liberties, or their servants, do take care that the dirt, ashes, -and soil of their houses be in readiness for the carmen, their -agents, or servants, either by setting out the same over night -in tubs, boxes, baskets, or other vessel, near and contiguous -<span class='pageno' id='Page_164'>164</span>to their houses, or by bringing out the same within convenient -time, before the hours for their departure as aforesaid.</p> - -<p class='c011'>XIII. That the said carmen undertakers, their agents or -servants, shall give notice of their being in the street with -their tumbrels or cars by loudly knocking a wooden clapper, -especially in courts, alleys, and other back passages, upon pain -to forfeit three shillings and fourpence upon every complaint -duly proved.</p> - -<p class='c011'>XX. That no man shall cast or lay in the streets, lanes, -or common passages, or channels within this city or liberties, -any dogs, cats, inwards of beasts, cleaves of beasts feet, bones, -horns, dregs or dross of ale or beer, or any noisome thing, upon -pain of ten shillings for every offence.</p> - -<p class='c011'>XXVI. That no artificer, labourer, or other person, shall -make any stop or dam in any channel, nor shall slake any lime -in the streets, lanes, or passages, upon pain to pay two shillings -for every offence.</p> - -<p class='c011'>XXVII. That no man shall feed any kine, goats, hogs, or -any kind of poultry, in the open streets, upon pain to forfeit -three shillings and fourpence for every offence.</p> - -<p class='c011'>XXVIII. That no man shall cast into the ditches or sewers, -grates or gullets of the city, any manner of carrion, stinking -flesh, rotten oranges or onions, rubbish, dung, sand, gravel, or -any other thing that may stop the course of the same, upon -pain of forfeiting forty shillings for every offence.</p> - -<p class='c011'>XXXI. That no tyler, bricklayer, or other person, do throw -out of gutters, or off roofs or other parts of houses, any tyles, -loam, or rubbish, into any street, lane, or common passage; -but do bring down the same in baskets or trays; upon pain to -forfeit three shillings and four pence for every offence.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>A LORD MAYOR'S PROCLAMATION (1679).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>Among documents relating to the City there are many -of a similar nature to the following proclamation. Many -of the Mayors and Corporations appear to have been of -opinion that although they might be unable to organise an -<span class='pageno' id='Page_165'>165</span>efficient government of the City, which should definitely -prevent crime and disorder, at any rate they might draw -up elaborate codes of rules and instructions, as a manifestation -of their earnestness of purpose. Many of these -rules and orders are proclaimed and enacted over and over -again; the precautions and the measures taken against -the flagrant evils which existed were very often utterly -futile, and improvement was extremely slow.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><span class='sc'>By the Mayor.</span></h3> - -<p class='c013'>The Right Honourable the Lord Mayor having taken into -his serious consideration the many dreadful afflictions which -this City hath of late years suffered, by a raging plague, a most -unheard-of devouring fire, and otherwise; and justly fearing -that the same have been occasioned by the many heinous crying -sins and provocations to the Divine Majesty: and his Lordship -also considering the present dangers of greater mischiefs and -misery which seem still to threaten this City, if the execution -of the righteous judgments of God Almighty be not prevented -by an universal timely repentance and reformation: he hath, -therefore, thought it one duty of his office, being intrusted to -take all possible care for the good government, peace and welfare -of this City, first, to pray and persuade all and every the -inhabitants thereof to reform, themselves and families, all sins -and enormities whereof they know themselves to be guilty; -and if neither the fear of the Great God, nor of his impending -judgments, shall prevail upon them, he shall be obliged to let -them know, that, as he is their Chief Magistrate, he ought not -to bear the sword in vain; and therefore doth resolve, by God's -grace, to take the assistance of his brethren the Aldermen, and -to require the aid of all the Officers of this City in their several -places, to punish and suppress, according to the laws of the -land, and the good customs of this City, those scandalous -and provoking sins which have of late increased and abounded -amongst us, even without shame, to the dishonour of Christianity, -and the scandal of the government of this City, heretofore -<span class='pageno' id='Page_166'>166</span>so famous over the world for its piety, sobriety, and good -order.</p> - -<p class='c011'>To the end therefore that the laws may become a terror unto -evil-doers, and that such, in whose hearts the fear of God, and -the love of virtue, shall not prevail, being forewarned, may -amend their lives for fear of punishment, his Lordship hath -thought fit to remember them of several penalties provided by -law against notorious offenders; as also of all Constables and -Public Officers (who are to put the said laws in execution) of -their duty therein.</p> - -<p class='c011'>First, Every profane curser and swearer ought to be punished -by the payment of twelve pence for every oath; and if the -same cannot be levied upon the offenders goods, then he is to -sit three hours in the stocks.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Secondly, Every drunkard is to pay for the first offence five -shillings; and in default thereof to sit six hours in the stocks, -and for the second offence, to find sureties for his good behaviour, -or to be committed to the common gaol; and the like -punishment is to be inflicted upon all common haunters of ale-houses -and taverns, and common gamesters, and persons justly -suspected to live by any unlawful means, having no visible way -to support themselves in their manner of living. And no person -is to sit or continue tippling or drinking more than one hour, -unless upon some extraordinary occasion, in any tavern, victualling-house, -ale-house, or other tippling-house, upon the penalty -of ten shillings for every offence upon the master of such -house; and upon the person that shall so continue drinking, -three shillings four pence....</p> - -<p class='c011'>Fourthly, All persons using any unlawful exercises on the -Lord's day, or tippling in taverns, inns or ale-houses, and -coffee-houses, during divine service on that day, are to forfeit -three shillings four pence for every offence, to be levied by distress, -and where none can be had, to sit three hours in the -stocks; and every vintner, innkeeper, or ale-house keeper that -shall suffer any such drinking or tippling in his house, is to -forfeit ten shillings for every offence; and no person may sit in -the streets, with herbs, fruits, or other things, to expose them -<span class='pageno' id='Page_167'>167</span>to sale, nor no hackney coachman may stand or ply in the -streets on that day.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And therefore all Constables and other Officers, whom it -doth or may concern, are required, according to their oaths -solemnly taken in that behalf, to take care for discovering and -bringing to punishment whosoever shall offend in any of the -premises; and for that end they are to enter into any suspected -houses before mentioned to search for any such disorderly persons -as shall be found misbehaving themselves, or doing contrary -to the said laws, and to levy the penalties, and bring the -offenders before some of his Majesties Justices of the Peace of -this City, to be dealt withall according to law.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And whereas there are other disorders of another nature, -very dishonourable, and a great scandal to the government of -this City, and very prejudicial to the trade and commerce of -the same; his Lordship, therefore, is resolved by God's blessing, -with the assistance of his brethren the Aldermen, to use -his utmost endeavour to prevent the same, by putting in -execution the good and wholesome laws in force for that purpose, -with all strictness and severity; some of which he hath -thought fit to enumerate, with the duties and penalties upon -every Constable and other officer concerned therein.</p> - -<p class='c011'>As first, the great resort of rogues, vagrants, idle persons, -and common beggars, pestering and annoying the streets and -common passages, and all places of public meetings and resort, -against whom very good provision is made by the law, viz.</p> - -<p class='c011'>That all such persons shall be openly whipped, and forthwith -sent from parish to parish to the place where he or she was -born, if known; if not, to the place where he or she last dwelt -for the space of one year, to be set to work; or not being -known, where he or she was born or dwelt, then to be sent -to the parish where he or she last passed through without -punishment.</p> - -<p class='c011'>That every Constable that shall not do his best endeavour -for the apprehension of such vagabond, rogue or sturdy beggar, -and cause him or her to be punished or conveyed according to -law, shall forfeit ten shillings for every default.</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_168'>168</span>Secondly, The not paving and cleansing of the streets: the -redressing whereof being by a late act of Parliament put into -Commissioners appointed by Common Council, his Lordship -doth hereby recommend the same to the Deputies and Common -Council of the several wards within this City, to use their -utmost diligence in that affair, and especially to mind their -respective Commissioners of the duty incumbent upon them, -and of the daily damage which the City suffers by the neglect -thereof. And his Lordship doth declare he will appear at the -said Commission of Sewers as often as his more urgent -occasions will give him leave, and doth expect such attendance -of the other Commissioners as may render the act more -effectual than hitherto it hath been.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Thirdly, The neglect of the inhabitants of this City in hanging -and keeping out their lights at the accustomed hours, -according to the good and ancient usage of this City, and acts -of Common Council in that behalf.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Fourthly, the not setting and continuing the watches at such -hours, and in such numbers, and in such sober and orderly -manner in all other respects, as by the acts of Common Council -in that behalf is directed and appointed.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And his Lordship doth strictly require the Fellowship of -Carmen to be very careful in the due observance of the good -and wholesome rules and orders which have been made for -their regulation: his Lordship intending severely to inflict the -penalties imposed in default thereof.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And to the end that no Constable or other Officers or -Ministers of Justice may be any ways discouraged in their -lawful, diligent, and vigorous prosecution of the premises, it is -provided, that if they or any of them shall be resisted, in the -just and lawful execution of their charge and duty, or in any -wise affronted or abused, they shall be encouraged, maintained, -and vindicated by the justice, order, and authority of his -Lordship and the Court of Aldermen, and the offenders -prosecuted and punished according to law.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Dated at the Guildhall, London, the 29th day of November -1679, in the 31 year of the reign of our Sovereign Lord Charles -<span class='pageno' id='Page_169'>169</span>the Second, by the grace of God, of England, Scotland, France, -and Ireland, King, defender of the faith, etc.</p> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c016'> - <div><span class='sc'>God Save the King.</span></div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE POPISH PANIC (1681).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The Monument, in commemoration of the Great Fire -of 1666, was erected in 1671 near Pudding Lane, where -the fire began, and the following inscription was added in -1681. The suspicion, which was attached to the Roman -Catholics, of deliberately setting fire to the City was -altogether unreasonable and baseless, but the people who -had listened to Titus Oates were ready to believe anything, -and the inscription is sufficient indication of the -prevalent feeling against Papists. It is referred to by -Pope—himself a Roman Catholic—in the lines:</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>"Where London's column, pointing to the skies,</div> - <div class='line'>Like a tall bully, lifts its head and lies."</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'>The inscription was effaced during the reign of James II., -was again placed on the base of the column in the reign -of William III., and was finally removed in 1831.</p> - -<p class='c011'>This Pillar was set vp in Perpetvall Remembrance of that -most dreadful burning of this Protestant city, begun and -carryed on by ye treachery and malice of ye Popish faction, -in ye beginning of Septem in ye year of our Lord 1666, in -order to ye carrying on their horrid Plott for extirpating the -Protestant Religion and old English liberty, and the introducing -Popery and Slavery.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>POSTAL ARRANGEMENTS (1681).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The Government monopoly of Post Office business -dates back to the reign of James I., who appointed a -Postmaster to have the "sole taking up, sending, and -conveying of all packets and letters concerning our service -<span class='pageno' id='Page_170'>170</span>or business to be despatched to foreign parts," others -being forbidden to convey letters; and our postal system -was first really founded by an Act of Parliament in 1656 -"to settle the postage of England, Scotland, and Ireland." -It ordered the erection of one general post office, and one -officer styled the Postmaster-General of England and -Comptroller of the Post Office. Private individuals occasionally -attempted to establish postal services, and in -1680 William Dockwra set up a profitable penny post for -London. This, like Povey's halfpenny post in 1708, was -suppressed by a lawsuit, and the management and -profits of the Post Office were definitely attached to the -Government.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Delaunay's <cite>Present State of London</cite>, p. 345.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>This Office is now kept in Lombard Street, formerly in -Bishopsgate Street; the profits of it are by Act of Parliament -settled on his Royal Highness the Duke of York. -But the King, by Letters Patents, under the Great Seal of -England, constitutes the Postmaster General.</p> - -<p class='c011'>From this General Office, letters and packets are despatched—</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>On Mondays.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>To France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Flanders, Switzerland, -Denmark, Kent, and the Downs.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>On Tuesdays.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>To Holland, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, Ireland, -Scotland, and all parts of England and Wales.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>On Wednesdays.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>To all parts of Kent and the Downs.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>On Thursdays.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>To France, Spain, Italy, and all parts of England and -Scotland.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_171'>171</span> -</div> -<h4 class='c014'><em>On Fridays.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>To Flanders, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Denmark -Holland, Kent, and the Downs.</p> - -<h4 class='c014'><em>On Saturdays.</em></h4> - -<p class='c013'>All parts of England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Letters are returned from all parts of England and -Scotland, certainly every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday; -from Wales every Monday and Friday; and from Kent and -the Downs every day; but from other parts more uncertainly, -in regard of the sea.</p> - -<p class='c011'>A letter containing a whole sheet of paper is convey'd -80 miles for 2d., two sheets for 4d., and an ounce of letters for -8d., and so proportionably; a letter containing a sheet is conveyed -above 80 miles for 3d., two sheets for 6d., and every -ounce of letters for 12d. A sheet is conveyed to Dublin for -6d., two for 1<sup>s</sup>/-, and an ounce of letters for 12d.</p> - -<p class='c011'>This conveyance by post is done in so short a time, by -night as well as by day, that every twenty-four hours the post -goes 120 miles, and in five days an answer of a letter may be -had from a place 300 miles distant from the writer.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Moreover, if any gentleman desire to ride post, to any -principal town of England, post-horses are always in readiness -(taking no horse without the consent of his owner), which -in other Kings' reigns was not duly observed; and only 3d. is -demanded for every English mile, and for every stage to the -post-boy, 4d. for conducting.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Beside this excellent convenience of conveying letters, and -men on horseback, there is of late such an admirable commodiousness -both for men and women of better rank, to travel -from London, and to almost all the villages near this great -City, that the like hath not been known in the world, and that -is by stage-coaches, wherein one may be transported to any -place, sheltered from foul weather, and foul ways, free from -endamaging one's health or body by hard jogging, or over-violent -motion; and this not only at a low price, as about a -<span class='pageno' id='Page_172'>172</span>1<sup>s</sup>/- for every 5 miles, but with such velocity and speed as that -the posts in some foreign countries make not more miles in -a day; for the stage-coaches, called the flying-coaches, make -40 or 50 miles in a day, as from London to Oxford or -Cambridge, and that in the space of twelve hours, not counting -the time for dining, setting forth not too early, nor coming in -too late.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>LONDON AFTER JAMES II.'s ABDICATION (1688).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The citizens of London took a prominent part in the -exciting events of the years 1688-89. In no part of the -country was there a stronger anti-Popish feeling, and -none of the believers and propagators of the notorious -Popish Plot of Titus Oates had been so conspicuous as -the Londoners. They took the lead in the demonstrations -which attended the issue of the famous trial of the seven -Bishops, and were foremost in suggesting the practicability -of expelling James from the throne. As soon as the King -realised his danger, he sent for the Lord Mayor and the -Aldermen, and informed them of his determination to -restore the City Charter and privileges, which had been -confiscated by Charles II. He hoped by this to gain the -powerful support of the citizens, who, however, were not -to be bought by this tardy act of justice. The Court of -Common Council sent an address to the Prince of Orange, -promising him a welcome reception; and the Corporation -waited on him, on his arrival in London, with an ardent -address of congratulation.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The feelings of the mob, always fierce when roused by -any unusual event, appear to have led them to somewhat -violent measures in their expressions of hatred towards -Roman Catholics. A similar panic, attended by similar -outbreaks, was witnessed in 1780, when proposals to grant -some relief to Papists caused the "Gordon Riots."</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_173'>173</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—<cite>The London Mercury</cite>, December 12, 1688.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>No sooner was the King's withdrawing known, but the mob -consulted to wreak their vengeance on papists and popery; -and last night began with pulling down and burning the new-built -Mass-house near the arch, in Lincoln's Inn Fields: thence -they went to Wild-house, the residence of the Spanish Ambassador, -where they ransacked, destroyed and burnt all the -ornamental and inside part of the chapel, some cartloads of -choice books, manuscript, etc. And not content here, some -villanous thieves and common rogues, no doubt, took this -opportunity to mix with the youth, and they plunder'd the -Ambassador's house of plate, jewels, money, rich goods, etc.: -and also many other who had sent in there for shelter their -money, plate, etc.: among which, one gentleman lost a trunk, -in which was £800 in money, and a great quantity of plate. -Thence they went to the Mass-house, at St. James's, near -Smithfield, demolished it quite; from thence to Blackfriars -near the Ditchside, where they destroyed Mr. Henry Hill's -printing-house, spoiled his forms, letters, etc., and burnt 2 or -300 reams of paper, printed and unprinted: thence to the Mass-house -in Bucklersbury and Lime-street, and there demolished -and burnt as before: and this night they went to the Nuncio's, -and other places at that end of the town; but finding the birds -flown, and the bills on the door, they drew off: thence they -went into the City, threatening to pull down all papists' houses, -particularly one in Ivy Lane, and the market house upon -Newgate Market, for no other reason but that one Burdet, -a papist, was one of the farmers of the market; but by the -prudence of the citizens and some of their trained bands, they -were got off without mischief doing anywhere.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Tuesday night last, and all Wednesday, the apprentices were -busy in pulling down the chapels, and spoiling the houses of -papists; they crying out the fire should not go out till the -Prince of Orange came to town. There were thousands of -them on Wednesday at the Spanish Ambassador's, they not -leaving any wainscot withinside the house or chapel, taking -<span class='pageno' id='Page_174'>174</span>away great quantities of plate, with much money, household -goods and writings, verifying the old proverb "All's fish that -came to the net." The spoil of the house was very great, -divers papists having sent their goods in thither, as judging -that the securest place.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Then they went to the Lord Powis's great house in Lincoln's -Inn Fields, wherein was a guard, and a bill upon the door, -"This house is appointed for the Lord Delameer's quarters:" -and some of the company crying, "Let it alone, the Lord -Powis was against the Bishops going to the Tower," they -offered no violence to it.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Afterwards they marched down the Strand with oranges -upon their sticks, crying for the Prince of Orange, and went -to the Pope's Nuncio's, but finding a bill upon the door, "This -house is to be let," they desisted. Lastly, they did some -damage to the house of the resident of the Duke of Tuscany, -in the Haymarket, carrying away some of his goods, when one -Captain Douglas, coming thither with a company of trained -bands to suppress them, a soldier, unadvisedly firing at the -boys with ball, shot the Captain through the back, of which -he lies languishing. They also went to the houses of the -French and other Ambassadors, but finding them deserted and -the landlords giving them money, they marched off.</p> - -<p class='c011'>On Thursday, an order of the Lords coming forth, warning -all persons to desist from pulling down any house, especially -those of the Ambassadors, upon penalty of the utmost severity -of the law to be inflicted on them: since which they have been -very quiet.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>LORD MAYOR'S DAY (1689).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The following passage indicates the good-will which -existed between the citizens and their new Sovereigns. -The Lord Mayor invited their Majesties to witness the -festivities, and the King expressed his satisfaction by -knighting the sheriffs. Just before this the King had -allowed the Grocers' Company to choose him as their -<span class='pageno' id='Page_175'>175</span>Master, and when, some days after the pageant described -below, some disaffected person expressed his disapproval -of these manifestations of cordiality between the King and -the City by cutting away the crown and sceptre from the -King's picture in the Guildhall, the Lord Mayor offered -a reward of £500 for the discovery of the perpetrator. -These civilities were preliminary to the complete restoration -of all the corporate rights of the citizens, which had -been seized by Charles II. The Act of 1690, declaring -the franchises, rights, and liberties of the City of London -to be fully restored, was the last of the long series of -confirmations of these treasured privileges.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—<cite>London Gazette</cite>, October 28, 1689.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>This day Sir Thomas Pilkington being continued Lord -Mayor for the year ensuing was, according to custom, sworn -before the Barons of the Exchequer, at Westminster, whither -he went by water, accompanied by the Aldermen and the -several companies, in their respective barges, adorned with -flags and streamers; passing by Whitehall they paid their -obeisance to their Majesties, who were in their apartment by -the water-side. The river was covered with boats, and the -noise of drums and trumpets, and several sorts of music, with -the firing of great guns, and the repeated huzzas of such a -multitude of people, afforded a very agreeable entertainment.</p> - -<p class='c011'>And their Majesties, the Prince and Princess of Denmark, -and the Lords spiritual and temporal and Commons assembled -in Parliament, having been pleased to accept of an humble -invitation from the Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and Common -Council, to dine in the city on this day, about noon their -Majesties came, attended by his Royal Highness, all the great -officers of the Court, and a numerous train of nobility and -gentry in their coaches, the militia of London and Westminster -making a lane for them, the balconies all along their passage -being richly hung with tapestry, and filled with spectators, and -the people in great crowds expressing their joy with loud and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_176'>176</span>continued acclamations. Their Majesties were pleased from -a balcony prepared for them in Cheapside to see the show; -which, for the great numbers of the citizens of the several -guilds attending in their formalities, the full appearance of the -artillery company, the rich adornment of the pageants, and -hieroglyphical representations, and the splendour and good -order of the whole proceeding, outdid all that has been heretofore -seen in this city upon the like occasions; but that which -deserves to be particularly mentioned was the royal city regiment -of volunteer horse, which being richly and gallantly -accoutred, and led by the Right Honourable the Earl of -Monmouth, attended their Majesty's from Whitehall into the -city.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The cavalcade being passed by, the King and Queen were -conducted by the two Sheriffs to the Guildhall, where their -Majesties, both Houses of Parliament, the Privy Councillors, -the Judges, the Ladies of the Bedchamber, and other ladies -of the chiefest quality, dined at several tables; and the grandeur -and magnificence of the entertainment was suitable to so august -and extraordinary a presence. Their Majesties were extremely -pleased, and as a mark thereof, the King conferred the honour -of Knighthood upon Christopher Lithiullier and John Houblon, -Esquires, the present Sheriffs, as also upon Edward Clark and -Francis Child, two of the Aldermen.</p> - -<p class='c011'>In the evening their Majesties returned to Whitehall with -the same state they came. The militia again lined the streets, -the city regiments as far as Temple-bar, and the red and blue -regiments of Middlesex and Westminster from thence to Whitehall, -the soldiers having, at convenient distances, lighted flambeaux -in their hands; the houses were all illuminated, the bells -ringing, and nothing was omitted through the whole course of -this day's solemnity, either by the magistrates or people, that -might show their respect or veneration, as well as their dutiful -affection and loyalty to their Majesties, and the sense they have -of the happiness they enjoy under their most benign and gracious -government.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_177'>177</span> - <h2 class='c004'>GAY'S "TRIVIA" (1716).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'><cite>Trivia</cite> was one of the earliest productions of John Gay, -and although its poetical merit is by no means conspicuous, -it is one of the poet's most notable productions, as a vivid -description of the streets of London two hundred years -ago. The piece is too long to print in full, but the -extracts which are given are typical and representative -of the general style and matter of the poem.</p> - -<div class='lg-container-b'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>But when the swinging signs your ears offend</div> - <div class='line'>With creaking noise, then rainy floods impend;</div> - <div class='line'>Soon shall the kennels swell with rapid streams,</div> - <div class='line'>And rush in muddy torrents to the Thames.</div> - <div class='line'>The bookseller, whose shop's an open square,</div> - <div class='line'>Forsees the tempest, and with early care</div> - <div class='line'>Of learning strips the rails; the rowing crew,</div> - <div class='line'>To tempt a fare, clothe all their tilts in blue;</div> - <div class='line'>On hosier's poles depending stockings ty'd,</div> - <div class='line'>Flag with the slacken'd gale from side to side;</div> - <div class='line'>Church-monuments foretell the changing air,</div> - <div class='line'>Then Niobe dissolves into a tear,</div> - <div class='line'>And sweats with sacred grief; you'll hear the sounds</div> - <div class='line'>Of whistling winds, ere kennels break their bounds;</div> - <div class='line'>Ungrateful odours common-shores diffuse,</div> - <div class='line'>And dropping vaults distil unwholesome dews,</div> - <div class='line'>Ere the tiles rattle with the smoking shower,</div> - <div class='line'>And spouts on heedless men their torrents pour.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line in2'>If cloth'd in black you tread the busy town,</div> - <div class='line'>Or if distinguish'd by the reverend gown,</div> - <div class='line'>Three trades avoid: oft in the mingling press</div> - <div class='line'>The barber's apron soils the sable dress;</div> - <div class='line'>Shun the perfumer's touch with cautious eye,</div> - <div class='line'>Nor let the baker's step advance too nigh.</div> - <div class='line'>Ye walkers too, that youthful colours wear,</div> - <div class='line'>Three sullying trades avoid with equal care:</div> - <div class='line'><span class='pageno' id='Page_178'>178</span>The little chimney-sweeper skulks along,</div> - <div class='line'>And marks with sooty stains the heedless throng;</div> - <div class='line'>When small-coal murmurs in the hoarser throat,</div> - <div class='line'>From smutty dangers guard thy threaten'd coat;</div> - <div class='line'>The dustman's cart offends thy clothes and eyes,</div> - <div class='line'>When through the street a cloud of ashes flies;</div> - <div class='line'>But, whether black or lighter dyes are worn,</div> - <div class='line'>The chandler's basket, on his shoulder borne,</div> - <div class='line'>With tallow spots thy coat; resign the way,</div> - <div class='line'>To shun the surly butcher's greasy tray.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line in2'>If drawn by business to a street unknown,</div> - <div class='line'>Let the sworn porter point thee through the town;</div> - <div class='line'>Be sure observe the signs, for signs remain,</div> - <div class='line'>Like faithful landmarks, to the walking train.</div> - <div class='line'>Seek not from 'prentices to learn the way,</div> - <div class='line'>Those fabling boys will turn thy steps astray;</div> - <div class='line'>Ask the grave tradesmen to direct thee right,</div> - <div class='line'>He ne'er deceives—but when he profits by't.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line in2'>O bear me to the paths of fair Pall-mall!</div> - <div class='line'>Safe are thy pavements, grateful is thy smell!</div> - <div class='line'>At distance rolls along the gilded coach,</div> - <div class='line'>Nor sturdy carmen on thy walks encroach;</div> - <div class='line'>No lets would bar thy ways were chairs deny'd,</div> - <div class='line'>The soft supports of laziness and pride:</div> - <div class='line'>Shops breathe perfumes, through sashes ribbons glow,</div> - <div class='line'>The mutual arms of ladies and the beau.</div> - <div class='line'>Yet still e'en here, when rains the passage hide,</div> - <div class='line'>Oft the loose stone spirts up a muddy tide</div> - <div class='line'>Beneath thy careless foot; and from on high,</div> - <div class='line'>Where masons mount the ladder, fragments fly,</div> - <div class='line'>Mortar and crumbled lime in showers descend,</div> - <div class='line'>And o'er thy head destructive tiles impend.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line in2'>Where Covent-garden's famous temple stands,</div> - <div class='line'>That boasts the work of Jones' immortal hands;</div> - <div class='line'>Columns with plain magnificence appear,</div> - <div class='line'>And graceful porches lead along the square:</div> - <div class='line'><span class='pageno' id='Page_179'>179</span>Here oft my course I bend; when, lo! from far</div> - <div class='line'>I spy the furies of the foot-ball war:</div> - <div class='line'>The 'prentice quits his shop, to join the crew,</div> - <div class='line'>Increasing crowds the flying game pursue.</div> - <div class='line'>Thus, as you roll the ball o'er snowy ground,</div> - <div class='line'>The gathering globe augments with every round.</div> - <div class='line'>But whither shall I run? the throng draws nigh,</div> - <div class='line'>The ball now skims the street, now soars on high:</div> - <div class='line'>The dext'rous glazier strong returns the bound,</div> - <div class='line'>And jingling sashes on the pent-house sound.</div> - </div> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line in2'>Where Lincoln's-inn, wide space, is rail'd around,</div> - <div class='line'>Cross not with venturous step; there oft is found</div> - <div class='line'>The lurking thief, who, while the daylight shone,</div> - <div class='line'>Made the walls echo with his begging tone:</div> - <div class='line'>That crutch, which late compassion mov'd, shall wound</div> - <div class='line'>Thy bleeding head, and fell thee to the ground.</div> - <div class='line'>Though thou art tempted by the link-man's call,</div> - <div class='line'>Yet trust him not along the lonely wall;</div> - <div class='line'>In the mid-way he'll quench the flaming brand,</div> - <div class='line'>And share the booty with the pilfering band.</div> - <div class='line'>Still keep the public streets, where oily rays,</div> - <div class='line'>Shot from the crystal lamp, o'erspread the ways.</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE SOUTH SEA BUBBLE (1720).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The scenes in 'Change Alley during the period of the -rise and fall of South Sea Company shares have often -been described. The mad spirit of speculation which -seized all classes alike, the foolish and unreasoning belief -in the possibility of realising fabulous wealth, the floating -of innumerable companies, many of which were of a -most absurd character, the panic which followed inevitably -on the inflation of prices—all these things were -witnessed in London, the centre of the financial affairs -of the nation. There was great indignation against the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_180'>180</span>Ministers and directors who had made large profits, and -a parliamentary inquiry disclosed the fact that there had -been bribery and corruption on an extensive scale. The -distracting effect of events of this kind was extremely -injurious to the City, and the attitude of the citizens is -set forth in their petition to the House of Commons.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—<cite>The Journal of Common Council</cite>, quoted by Maitland,<br />vol. i., p. 530.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>Your petitioners beg leave to return their most humble -thanks to this honourable House for the great pains they have -taken to relieve the unhappy sufferers, by compelling the -offenders to make restitution; as likewise for their continued -application to lay open this whole scene of guilt, notwithstanding -the industrious artifices of such sharers in the common -plunder, as have endeavoured to obstruct the detection of -fraud and corruption. And your petitioners doubt not, but the -same fortitude, impartiality and public spirit wherewith this -Honourable House have hitherto acted, will still animate them -in the pursuit of those truly great and noble ends.</p> - -<p class='c011'>We are too sensible of the load of public debts, not to wish -that all proper methods may be taken to lessen them: and it is -an infinite concern to us, that the payment of a great sum -towards them (which was expected from the late scheme) is -now rendered extremely difficult, if not impracticable; and -yet, as a cloud, hanging over the heads of the present unfortunate -proprietors of the South-Sea Company, and a great -damp to public credit. We will not presume to mention in -what manner relief may be given in this arduous affair; but -most humbly submit it to the consideration of this Honourable -House. Your petitioners therefore most humbly pray this -Honourable House will be pleased to take such farther measures -as they, in their great wisdom, shall judge proper, that trade -may flourish, public credit be restored, and justice done to an -injured people.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_181'>181</span> - <h2 class='c004'>DEFOE'S DESCRIPTION OF LONDON (1725).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>This account of the capital is useful, as indicating its -extent and dimensions two centuries ago. Defoe was an -accurate observer, and had noticed the rapid expansion -which had taken place even during his own day. As trade -and commerce increased, the boundaries of London were -extended farther and farther, and it would appear that -the questions with which this extract concludes are as far -from being answered as they were when Defoe asked -them.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—<cite>A Tour through the Whole Island of Great Britain</cite>,<br />1724-1727, vol. ii., pp. 94-97.</h3> - -<p class='c013'><em>London</em>, as a City only, and as its Walls and Liberties live it -out, might, indeed, be viewed in a small Compass; but, when -I speak of <em>London</em>, now in the Modern Acceptation, you expect -I shall take in all that vast Mass of Buildings, reaching from -<em>Black Wall</em> in the <em>East</em> to <em>Tothill Fields</em> in the <em>West</em>; and extended -in an unequal Breadth, from the Bridge, or River, on -the <em>South</em>, to <em>Islington North</em>; and from <em>Peterburgh House</em> on the -Bank Side in <em>Westminster</em>, to <em>Cavendish Square</em>, and all the new -Buildings by, and beyond <em>Hanover Square</em>, by which the City of -<em>London</em>, for so it is still to be called, is extended to <em>Hyde Park -Corner</em> in the <em>Brentford Road</em>, and almost to <em>Maribone</em> in the -<em>Acton Road</em>, and how much farther may it spread, who knows? -New Squares, and new Streets rising up every Day to such a -Prodigy of Buildings, that nothing in the world does, or ever -did, equal it, except old <em>Rome</em> in <em>Trajan's</em> time, when the walls -were Fifty Miles in Compass, and the Number of Inhabitants -Six Millions Eight Hundred Thousand Souls.</p> - -<p class='c011'>It is the Disaster of <em>London</em>, as to the Beauty of its Figure, -that it is thus stretched out in Buildings, just at the pleasure -of every Builder, or Undertaker of Buildings, and as the Convenience -of the People directs, whether for Trade, or otherwise; -and this has spread the Face of it in a most straggling, confus'd -<span class='pageno' id='Page_182'>182</span>Manner, out of all Shape, uncompact, and unequal; neither -long nor broad, round or square; whereas the City of <em>Rome</em>, -though a monster for its Greatness, yet was, in a manner, -round, with very few Irregularities in its Shape.</p> - -<p class='c011'>At <em>London</em>, including the Buildings on both Sides the Water, -one sees it, in some Places, Three Miles broad, as from <em>St. -George's</em> in <em>Southwark</em>, to <em>Shoreditch</em> in <em>Middlesex</em>; or Two Miles, -as from <em>Peterburgh House</em> to <em>Montague House</em>; and in some -Places, not half a Mile, as in <em>Wapping</em>; and much less, as in -<em>Redriff</em> [Rotherhithe].</p> - -<p class='c011'>We see several Villages, formerly standing, as it were, in -the County and at a great Distance, now joyn'd to the Streets -by continued Buildings, and more making haste to meet in the -like Manner; for Example, 1. <em>Deptford</em>, This Town was formerly -reckoned at least Two Miles off from <em>Redriff</em>, and that over the -Marshes too, a Place unlikely ever to be inhabited; and yet -now, by the Encrease of Buildings in that Town itself, and by -the Docks and Buildings-Yard on the River Side, which stand -between both the Town of <em>Deptford</em>, and the Streets of <em>Redriff</em> -(or Rotherhith as they write it) are effectually joyn'd, and the -Buildings daily increasing; so that <em>Deptford</em> is no more a -separated Town, but is become a Part of the great Mass, and -infinitely full of People also; Here they have, within the last -Two or Three Years, built a fine new Church, and were the Town -of Deptford now separated, and rated by itself, I believe it -contains more People, and stands upon more Ground, than the -City of <em>Wells</em>.</p> - -<p class='c011'>The Town of <em>Islington</em> on the <em>North</em> side of the City, is in -like Manner joyn'd to the Streets of <em>London</em>, excepting one -small Field, and which is in itself so small, that there is no -Doubt, but in a very few years, they will be intirely joyn'd, -and the same may be said of <em>Mile-End</em>, on the <em>East</em> End of the -Town.</p> - -<p class='c011'><em>Newington</em>, called <em>Newington Butts</em>, in <em>Surrey</em>, reaches out her -Hand <em>North</em>, and is so near joining to <em>Southwark</em>, that it cannot -now be properly called a Town by itself, but a Suburb to the -Burrough, and if, <em>as they now tell us is undertaken</em>, <em>St. George's -<span class='pageno' id='Page_183'>183</span>Fields</em> should be built with Squares and Streets, a very little -Time will shew us <em>Newington</em>, <em>Lambeth</em>, and the <em>Burrough</em>, all -making but one <em>Southwark</em>.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Westminster is in a fair Way to shake Hands with -Chelsea, as <em>St. Gyles's</em> is with <em>Marybone</em>; and Great <em>Russel</em> -Street by <em>Montague House</em>, with <em>Tottenham Court</em>: all this is very -evident, and yet all these put together are still to be called -<em>London</em>: Whither will this monstrous City then extend? and -where must a Circumvallation or Communication Line of it be -placed?</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>A PETITION AGAINST THE EXCISE BILL (1733).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The equitable distribution of taxation is a problem -which no financial minister has ever solved to the satisfaction -of all the interests in the country, and Walpole, -one of the ablest of financiers, was unable to effect an -adjustment of the burden which would please everybody. -In the reign of William III. a land-tax had been imposed -to meet the expenses of the French war, and this was -alleged to press heavily and unfairly on the country gentry, -who demanded that the wealthy trading interests should -pay more. Walpole tried a salt-tax, which, of course, was -very hard on the poorer classes; and in 1733 he proposed -to turn the Customs levied at the ports on wine and tobacco -into an excise levied on these articles in the possession of -the traders. His reason was that owing to the prevalence -of smuggling the Customs did not produce as much as -they ought, and he thought that the excise duties would -be more efficiently collected. The proposal was violently -opposed; it was stated that the necessary inspection of -warehouses was a violation of liberty, and Walpole was -forced to give way. The citizens of London shared the -general hatred of the measure, and set forth their reasons -in a petition to the House of Commons.</p> - -<div> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_184'>184</span> -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Document quoted by Maitland, vol. i., p. 560.</h3> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>Your petitioners observe in the votes of this Honourable -House, that a Bill has been brought in, pursuant to the resolutions -of the sixteenth day of March, for repealing several -subsidies, and an impost now payable on tobacco of the British -plantations, and for granting an Inland-duty in lieu thereof.</p> - -<p class='c011'>That they presume therefore, in all humility, by a respectful -application to this Honourable House, to express, as they have -already done in some measure by their representation to their -members, the universal sense of the City of London, concerning -any further extension of the laws of excise.</p> - -<p class='c011'>That the burden of taxes already imposed on every branch -of trade, however cheerfully borne, is severely felt; but that -your petitioners apprehend this burden will grow too heavy to -be borne, if it be increased by such vexatious and oppressive -methods of levying and collecting the duties, as they are assured, -by melancholy experience, that the nature of all Excises must -necessarily produce.</p> - -<p class='c011'>That the merchants, tradesmen, and manufacturers of this -Kingdom have supported themselves under the pressure of the -excise-laws now in force, by the comfortable and reasonable -expectation, that laws, which nothing but public necessity could -be a motive to enact, would be repealed in favour of the trade -of the nation, and of the liberty of the subject, whenever that -motive should be removed, as your petitioners presume it -effectually is, by an undisturbed tranquillity at home, and -a general peace so firmly established abroad.</p> - -<p class='c011'>That, if this expectation be entirely taken away; if the Excise -laws, instead of being repealed, are extended to other species -of merchandizes not yet excised, and a door opened for extending -them to all; your petitioners cannot, in justice to themselves, -to the merchants, tradesmen, and manufacturers of the whole -kingdom, and to the general interest of their country, conceal -their apprehensions, that the most fatal blow which ever was -given, will be given on this occasion to the trade and navigation -of Great Britain; that great spring, from which the wealth and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_185'>185</span>prosperity of the public flow, will be obstructed; the mercantile -part of the nation will become not only less able to trade to -advantage, but unwilling to trade at all; for no person, who -can enjoy all the privileges of a British subject out of trade, -even with a small fortune, will voluntarily renounce some of -the most valuable of those privileges, by subjecting himself to -the laws of excise.</p> - -<p class='c011'>That your petitioners are able to shew, that these their -apprehensions are founded both on experience and reason; -and therefore your petitioners most humbly pray, That this -Honourable House will be pleased to hear them by their -Counsel against the said bill.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>LONDON STREETS (1741).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>We have abundant evidence from many sources as to -the deplorable condition of the streets of London down -to comparatively recent times. It is somewhat surprising -that this neglect should continue, while the danger was -thoroughly understood. In the days of the Plague, John -Evelyn was fully aware of the horrible conditions, and -strongly inveighed against the nuisances of smoke and -dirt. It was recognised that the existence of these filthy -conditions had contributed to the spread of the Plague, -and that there was an ever-present danger so long as -these conditions remained; and yet, in spite of this knowledge, -we find it possible for an indictment such as this to -be made as late as 1741:</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Speech by Lord Tyrconnel, January 27, 1741, quoted<br />by Maitland, vol. i., p. 593.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>The filth, Sir, of some parts of the town, and the inequality -and ruggedness of others, cannot but in the eyes of foreigners -disgrace our nation, and incline them to imagine us a people, -not only without delicacy, but without Government—a herd of -barbarians, or a colony of Hottentots. The most disgusting -<span class='pageno' id='Page_186'>186</span>part of the character given by travellers, of the most savage -nations, is their neglect of cleanliness, of which, perhaps, no -part of the world affords more proofs than the streets of London, -a city famous for wealth, commerce, and plenty, and for every -other kind of civility and politeness; but which abounds with -such heaps of filth, as a savage would look on with amazement. -If that be allowed, which is generally believed, that putrefaction -and stench are causes of pestilential distempers, the removal -of this grievance may be pressed from motives of far greater -weight than those of delicacy and pleasure; and I might solicit -the timely care of this assembly, for the preservation of innumerable -multitudes; and intreat those who are watching against -slight misfortunes, to unite their endeavours with mine, to -avert the greatest and most dreadful calamities.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Not to dwell, Sir, upon dangers which may perhaps be -thought only imaginary, I hope that it will be at least considered -how much the present neglect of the pavement is -detrimental to every carriage, whether of trade or pleasure, -or convenience; and that those who have allowed so much of -their attentions to petitions relating to the roads of the kingdom, -the repair of some of which is almost every session thought of -importance sufficient enough to produce debates in this House, -will not think the streets of the capital alone unworthy of their -regard. That the present neglect of cleansing and paving the -streets is such as ought not to be borne; that the passenger is -everywhere either surprised and endangered by unexpected -chasms, or offended and obstructed by mountains of filth, is -well known to everyone that has passed a single day in this -great City; and, that this great grievance is without a remedy, -is a sufficient proof that no magistrate has, at present, power -to remove it; for every man's private regard to his own ease -and safety would incite him to exert his authority on this -occasion.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_187'>187</span> - <h2 class='c004'>THE LOYALTY OF THE LONDON MERCHANTS<br />(1743).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The position of the mercantile interests on occasions of -political or dynastic complications is made quite clear by -the following letter. The merchants of London were in -no way influenced by the sentimental or other considerations -which induced a number of Englishmen to support a -Stuart Pretender at a time when the country had experienced -half a century of steady and prosperous government, -free from the difficulties which had always been associated -with the Stuart monarchs; and the protestations of personal -loyalty to George II. may be understood to signify -a determination to adhere to the established system of -aristocratic government, and to run no risk of a return to -the disturbances and distractions which marked the seventeenth -century.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Document quoted by Maitland, vol. i., p. 634.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>We, your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the -merchants of your City of London, having observed, by your -Majesty's most gracious message to your parliament, that -designs are carrying on by your Majesty's enemies, in favour -of a popish pretender, to disturb the peace and quiet of these -your Majesty's kingdoms, think it our indispensable duty, not -to omit this opportunity of expressing our just resentment and -indignation at so rash an attempt.</p> - -<p class='c011'>We have too lively a sense of the happiness we enjoy in -our religion and liberties under your Majesty's mild and -auspicious reign, and of the flourishing condition of our trade -and commerce, even in the midst of war, under your paternal -care and vigilance, not to give your Majesty the strongest -assurance of our highest gratitude for such invaluable blessings; -nor can we doubt, but by the blessing of God upon your -Majesty's arms, and the unanimous support of your faithful -<span class='pageno' id='Page_188'>188</span>subjects, the attempts of your enemies will recoil upon themselves, -and end in their own confusion.</p> - -<p class='c011'>We therefore humbly beg leave to declare to your Majesty -our unshaken resolution, that we will, on this critical conjuncture, -exert our utmost endeavours for the support of public -credit, and at all times hazard our lives and fortunes, in defence -of your Majesty's sacred person and government, and for the -security of the protestant succession in your Royal Family.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE GORDON RIOTS (1780).</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The Gordon Riots were the most formidable popular -rising of the eighteenth century. In 1778 a Bill, brought -forward by Sir George Savile, for the relaxation of some -of the harsher penal laws against Catholics, passed almost -unanimously through both Houses. Protestant associations -were formed in Scotland; a leader was found in -Lord George Gordon, a silly young man of twenty-eight -years of age, and the agitation spread to England. Mobs -collected in London, and interfered with the House of -Commons; as they realised their strength, they proceeded -to various excesses, destroying Catholic churches and the -houses of prominent Romanists. The original objects of -the agitation were entirely lost sight of in the disturbances, -which were merely the unreasoning ravages of -a wild mob. For five days the City was terrorised by -the rioters, who were at length dispersed by the military -authorities.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—Boswell's <cite>Life of Johnson</cite>.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>While Johnson was thus engaged in preparing a delightful -literary entertainment for the world, the tranquillity of the -metropolis of Great Britain was unexpectedly disturbed by the -most horrid series of outrages that ever disgraced a civilised -country. A relaxation of some of the severe penal provisions -against our fellow subjects of the Catholic communion had -been granted by the legislature, with an opposition so inconsiderable, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_189'>189</span>that the genuine mildness of Christianity, united -with liberal policy, seemed to have become general in this -island. But a dark and malignant spirit of persecution soon -showed itself, in an unworthy petition for the repeal of the -wise and humane statute. That petition was brought forward -by a mob, with the evident purpose of intimidation, and was -justly rejected. But the attempt was accompanied and followed -by such daring violence as is unexampled in history. -Of this extraordinary tumult, Dr. Johnson has given the following -concise, lively, and just account in his "Letter to Mrs. -Thrale."</p> - -<p class='c011'>"On Friday, the good Protestants met in Saint George's-Fields, -at the summons of Lord George Gordon, and marching -to Westminster, insulted the Lords and Commons, who all bore -it with great tameness. At night the outrages began by the -demolition of the Mass-house by Lincoln's Inn. An exact -journal of a week's defiance of government I cannot give you. -On Monday, Mr. Strahan, who had been insulted, spoke to -Lord Mansfield (who had, I think, been insulted too) of the -licentiousness of the populace; and his lordship treated it as -a very slight irregularity. On Tuesday night they pulled down -Fielding's house, and burnt his goods in the street. They had -gutted, on Monday, Sir George Savile's house, but the building -was saved. On Tuesday evening, leaving Fielding's ruins, -they went to Newgate to demand their companions, who had -been seized demolishing the chapel. The keeper could not -release them but by the Mayor's permission, which he went to -ask; at his return he found all the prisoners released, and -Newgate in a blaze. They then went to Bloomsbury, and -fastened upon Lord Mansfield's house, which they pulled -down; and as for his goods, they totally burnt them. They -have since gone to Caenwood, but a guard was there before -them. They plundered some Papists, I think, and burnt a -mass-house in Moorfields the same night.</p> - -<p class='c011'>"On Wednesday I walked with Dr. Scot to look at Newgate, -and found it in ruins, with the fire yet glowing. As -I went by, the Protestants were plundering the Sessions House -<span class='pageno' id='Page_190'>190</span>at the Old Bailey. There were not, I believe, a hundred; but -they did their work at leisure, in full security, without sentinels, -without trepidation, as men lawfully employed in full -day. Such is the cowardice of a commercial place. On Wednesday -they broke open the Fleet, and the King's Bench, and -the Marshalsea, and Wood St. Compter, and Clerkenwell -Bridewell, and released all the prisoners.</p> - -<p class='c011'>"At night they set fire to the Fleet, and to the King's -Bench, and I know not how many other places; and one -might see the glare of conflagration fill the sky from many -parts. The sight was dreadful. Some people were threatened. -Mr. Strahan advised me to take care of myself. Such a time -of terror you have been happy in not seeing.</p> - -<p class='c011'>"The King said in Council 'that the magistrates had not -done their duty, but that he would do his own'; and a proclamation -was published directing us to keep our servants -within doors, as the peace was now to be preserved by force. -The soldiers were sent out to different parts, and the town -is now (June 9) at quiet.</p> - -<p class='c011'>"The soldiers are stationed so as to be everywhere within -call: there is no longer any body of rioters, and the individuals -are hunted to their holes, and led to prison; Lord George was -last night sent to the Tower. Mr. John Wilkes was this day -in my neighbourhood, to seize the publisher of a seditious -paper.</p> - -<p class='c011'>"Several chapels have been destroyed, and several inoffensive -Papists have been plundered, but the high sport was to -burn the gaols. This was a good rabble trick. The debtors -and the criminals were all set at liberty; but of the criminals, -as has always happened, many are already retaken; and two -pirates have surrendered themselves, and it is expected that -they will be pardoned.</p> - -<p class='c011'>"Government now acts again with its proper force; and we -are all under the protection of the King, and the law. I thought -that it would be agreeable to you and my master to have my -testimony to the public security; and that you would sleep -more quietly when I told you that you were safe.</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_191'>191</span>"There has, indeed, been a universal panic, from which the -King was the first that recovered. Without the concurrence -of his ministers, or the assistance of the civil magistrates, he -put the soldiers in motion, and saved the town from calamities, -such as a rabble's government must naturally produce.</p> - -<p class='c011'>"The public has escaped a very heavy calamity. The -rioters attempted the Bank on Wednesday night, but in no -great number; and, like other thieves, with no great resolution. -Jack Wilkes headed the party that drove them away. It is -agreed that if they had seized the Bank on Tuesday, at the -height of the panic, when no resistance had been prepared, -they might have carried irrecoverably away whatever they had -found. Jack who was always zealous for order and decency, -declares that if he be trusted with power, he will not leave -a rioter alive. There is, however, now no longer any need of -heroism or bloodshed; no blue riband is any longer worn.</p> - -<p class='c011'>"Such was the end of this miserable sedition, from which -London was delivered by the magnanimity of the Sovereign -himself. Whatever some may maintain, I am satisfied that -there was no combination or plan, either domestic or foreign; -but that the mischief spread by a gradual contagion of frenzy, -augmented by the quantities of fermented liquors, of which -the deluded populace possessed themselves in the course of -their depredations."</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>THE TRADE OF LONDON IN 1791.</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c005'>The following account of London's trade at the end -of the eighteenth century is, of course, concerned with -the manufacturing and commercial activity of the whole -country as well as with the particular work of London; -but the City was the chief port and centre of a trade -which had grown with marvellously rapid strides. The -mechanical inventions in the textile industries, the phenomenal -growth of manufactures at this time, the stimulus -given to English trade by the disturbances on the Continent, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_192'>192</span>all assisted in an amazing development of commerce, of -which London was the centre.</p> - -<h3 class='c009'><strong>Source.</strong>—<cite>The British Directory</cite>, 1791.</h3> - -<p class='c013'>The commerce of the world being in perpetual fluctuation, -we can never be too watchful, not only for preserving what -we are now in possession of, but for availing ourselves of the -mistakes or negligences of other nations, in order to acquire -new branches of it. Who could have imagined, three hundred -years ago, that those ports of the Levant, from whence, by -means of the Venetians, England, and almost all the rest of -Christendom, were supplied with the spices, drugs, etc., of India -and China, should one day come themselves to be supplied with -those very articles by the remote countries of England and -Holland, at an easier rate than they were used to have them -directly from the East; or that Venice should afterwards lose -to Lisbon the lucrative trade of supplying the rest of Europe -with them; or lastly, that Lisbon should afterwards lose the -same to Amsterdam; or that Amsterdam and Haerlem should -gradually lose, as in great part they have done, their famous -and fine linen manufactures to Ireland and Scotland? At -present, our woollen manufacture is the noblest in the universe; -and second to it is our metallic manufacture of iron, steel, tin, -copper, lead, and brass, which is supposed to employ upwards -of half a million of people. Our unmanufactured wool alone, -of one year's produce or growth, has been estimated to be -worth two millions sterling; and, when manufactured, it is -valued at six millions more, and is thought to employ upwards -of a million of our people in its manufacture; whereas in -former times all our wool was exported unmanufactured, and -our own people remained unemployed. Even within the three -last centuries, the whole rental or value of all the lands and -houses in England did not exceed five millions; but by the -spirited exertions of the City of London, seconded by the -merchants of the principal trading towns in the country, -the rental of England is now estimated at twenty millions -per annum, or more; of which vast benefit our nobility, gentry, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_193'>193</span>and landholders begin to be fully sensible, by the immense -increase in the value or fee-simple of their lands, which has -gradually kept pace with the increase and value of our commercial -intercourse with foreign nations, of which the following -are at present the most considerable:</p> - -<p class='c011'>To Turkey we export woollen cloths, tin, lead, and iron, -solely in our own shipping; and bring from thence raw silk, -carpets, galls, and other dyeing ingredients, cotton, fruits, -medicinal drugs, etc.</p> - -<p class='c011'>To Italy we export woollen goods of various kinds, peltry, -leather, lead, tin, fish, and East India merchandise; and bring -back raw and thrown silk, wines, oil, soap, olives, oranges, -lemons, pomegranates, dried fruits, colours, anchovies, etc.</p> - -<p class='c011'>To Spain we send all kinds of woollen goods, leather, lead, -tin, fish, corn, iron and brass manufactures, haberdashery -wares, assortments of linen from Germany and elsewhere for -her American colonies; and receive in return wines, oils, dried -fruits, oranges, lemons, olives, wools, indigo, cochineal, and -other dyeing drugs, colours, gold and silver coins, etc.</p> - -<p class='c011'>To Portugal we mostly send the same kind of merchandise -as to Spain; and make returns in vast quantities of wines, oils, -salt, dried and moist fruits, dyer's ingredients, and gold coins.</p> - -<p class='c011'>To France we export tobacco, lead, tin, flannels, horns, hardware, -Manchester goods, etc., and sometimes great quantities -of corn; and make our returns in wines, brandies, linens, -cambrics, lace, velvets, brocades, etc. But as a commercial -treaty has so lately taken place with France, added to the -attention of its people being drawn off from trade, and almost -wholly engrossed with the establishment of its late wonderful -revolution, it is impossible to state the relative operations of -this trade at present.</p> - -<p class='c011'>To Flanders we send serges, flannels, tin, lead, sugars, and -tobacco; and make returns in fine lace, linen, cambrics, etc.</p> - -<p class='c011'>To Germany we send cloth and stuffs, tin, pewter, sugars, -tobacco, and East India merchandise; and bring from thence -linen, thread, goatskins, tinned plates, timbers for all uses, -wines, and many other articles.</p> - -<p class='c011'><span class='pageno' id='Page_194'>194</span>To Norway we send tobacco and wollen stuffs; and bring -from thence vast quantities of deals and other timber.</p> - -<p class='c011'>To Sweden we send most of our home manufactures; and -return with iron, timber, tar, copper, etc.</p> - -<p class='c011'>To Russia we send great quantities of woollen cloths and -stuffs, tin, lead, tobacco, diamonds, household furniture, etc.; -and make returns in hemp, flax, linen, thread, furs, potash, -iron, wax, tallow, etc.</p> - -<p class='c011'>To Holland we send an immense quantity of different sorts -of merchandise, such as all kinds of woollen goods, hides, -corn, coals, East India and Turkey articles imported by those -respective companies, tobacco, tar, sugar, rice, ginger, and -other American productions; and return with fine linen, lace, -cambrics, thread, tapes, madder, boards, drugs, whalebone, -train-oil, toys, and various other articles of that country.</p> - -<p class='c011'>To America we still send our home manufactures of almost -every kind; and make our returns in tobacco, sugars, rice, -ginger, indigo, drugs, logwood, timber, etc.</p> - -<p class='c011'>To the coast of Guinea we send various sorts of coarse -woollen and linen goods, iron, pewter, brass, and hardware -manufactures, lead-shot, swords, knives, firearms, gunpowder, -glass manufactures, etc.; and bring home vast numbers of -negro slaves, and gold dust, dyeing and medicinal drugs, redwood, -Guinea grains, ivory, etc.</p> - -<p class='c011'>To Arabia, Persia, East Indies, and China we send much -foreign silver coin and bullion, manufactures of lead, iron, and -brass, woollen goods, etc.; and bring home muslins, and cottons -of various kinds, calicoes, raw and wrought silk, chintz, teas, -porcelain, coffee, gold-dust, saltpetre, and many drugs for dyer's -and medicinal uses. These are exclusive of our trade to Ireland, -Newfoundland, West Indies, and many other of our settlements -and factories in different parts of the world, which likewise -contribute an immense annual return.</p> - -<p class='c011'>Our trade to the East Indies certainly contributes one of the -most stupendous political as well as commercial machines that -is to be met with in history. The trade itself is exclusive, and -lodged in a company which has a temporary monopoly of it, in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_195'>195</span>consideration of money advanced to the Government. Without -entering into the history of the East India trade, within -these twenty years past, and the Company's concerns in that -country, it is sufficient to say, that, besides their settlements -on the coast of India, which they enjoy under certain restrictions -by Act of Parliament, they have, through the various -internal revolutions which have happened in Indostan, and the -ambition or avarice of their servants and officers, acquired such -territorial possessions as render them the most formidable -commercial republic (for so it may be called in its present -situation) that has been known in the world since the demolition -of Carthage. Their revenues are only known, and that -but imperfectly, to the Directors of the Company, who are -chosen by the proprietors of the stock; but it has been publicly -affirmed that they amount annually to above three millions and -a half sterling. The expenses of the Company in forts, fleets, -and armies, for maintaining those acquisitions, are certainly -very great; but after these are defrayed the Company not only -cleared a vast sum but was able to pay to the Government -£400,000 yearly for a certain time, partly by way of indemnification -for the expenses of the public in protecting the Company, -and partly as a tacit tribute for those possessions that are territorial -and not commercial. This republic, therefore, cannot be -said to be independent, and it is hard to say what form it may -take when the term of its charter is expired, which will be in -the year 1794. At present it appears to be the intention of -Government that its exclusive commercial privileges shall then -finally cease, and no new charter be granted.</p> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> - <div class='nf-center'> - <div>BILLING AND SONS, LTD., PRINTERS, GUILDFORD.</div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='tnotes'> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c004'>TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES</h2> -</div> - <ol class='ol_1 c018'> - <li>Silently corrected simple spelling, grammar, and typographical errors. - - </li> - <li>Retained anachronistic and non-standard spellings as printed. - - </li> - </ol> - -</div> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's Source Book of London History, by P. 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