Medieval British Towns

Abstract

Social History in PnsfJ«tive is a series of in-depth studies of the many topics in social, cultural and religious history for smdents. They also give the student clear swveys of the subject and present the most recent research in an accessible way. PUBLISHED john Belchem lbfndar Rat.lit:ali.ma in Nwllnllh-Cemury Britain Sue Bruley Ktnnen in Britain Sinu 1900 Simon Dentith Soday and Cultuml Rmns in NW~Mnth-Cemury England Harry Goulbourne Race &lalions in Britain since 194 5 Tun Hitchcock English Smmlitits, 17~1800 Sybil M.jack 1ln.uns in 1Utlorand Stumt Britain Helen M. jewell Education in Eo.rly Modem England Alan Kidd SttW, Sociay and 1M IWr in Ninelmllh-Cemury England john Rule La/Jorsr aftd the Stale, 1 '700-18'75 Pamela Sharpe .1bprdalion aftd Sociei'J in Britain, 1'750-1900 Benjamin Thompson lhtlalism or 1.JmlshifJ aftdltJlilics in Medilual Englaftd R.E. Tyson .Pof1ulation in Ptr-1flllwtrial Britain, 1500-1'750 Garthine Walker Crime, LIJw aftd Sociei'J in Early Modnn Englaftd Andy Wood TM Crowd aftd Popular ltJlW:s in Eari' Modnn EnglaftdPlease note that a sister series, British History in Pmpecliue, is available which covers all the key topics in British political history.

Fast or feast: reconstructing diet in later medieval England by stable isotope analysis

“…By the later Middle Ages, the most successful merchants had come to form a new elite in medieval society and their wealth and life-style rivalled that of the lower aristocracy. Social and occupational diversity was one of the key urban characteristics, however, and the well-off merchants and craftsmen of the middling sort were always outnumbered by petty traders, servants and wage-earners as well as the plain poor [58].…”

Occupational patterns in Anglo‐Saxon and Medieval East Midlands, England: Insights from activity‐related skeletal changes

“…New technologies were promoted to allow more intensive land use (Monckton, 2006, 281), while the need for fuel resulted in forest clearance. The construction of roads led to longer and more efficient trade networks (Zupko & Laures, 1996, p. 3) and by the early 14th century “almost everyone in England was within a daily reach of a market” (Swanson, 1999, p. 10). People not involved in agricultural activities were attracted to urban areas, where they could make a living in occupations related to market and trade, manufacturing and servicing industries, resulting in a more diversified society (Swanson, 1999, p. 30).…”

“…During the 5th–15th centuries, the period considered in this study, the geographical area of England was characterized by major societal, technological, economic, and environmental transformations. The Early Saxon society was almost entirely rural with many activities practiced within the same small settlement, whereas by the late medieval period a socially complex and increasingly urbanized society had emerged, characterized by very diverse economic activities (Holmes, 2014; Swanson, 1999). This period was also affected by great changes in the natural environment, such as deforestation and climatic deterioration that brought Europe into the Little Ice Age (Büntgen et al, 2011; Fagan, 2000).…”

Revenue, Voice, and Public Goods in Three Pre-Modern States

“…The medieval English court system rarely offered the possibility of appeal. As we stated above, the highest royal court, the king's bench, only heard cases involving the king or state and criminal cases involving felonies or murder (Swanson 1999: 81–82; Waugh 1991: 173). It did not function as a supreme court hearing appeals from lower level courts, and cases were only transferred by special writs (Waugh 1991: 156).…”

“…A number of cases from our period make it clear that the jurisdictional lines between the king's bench and the court of common pleas were unclear and inconsistent (Neilson 1950: 271). For many lesser civil cases and petty crimes, the manorial court, shire court, or hundred court had final say (Hilton 1992: 21; Holmes 1962: 17–18; Johnstone 1940: 251; Neilson 1950: 271; Swanson 1999: 82; Waugh 1991: 154, 156).…”