The History of England

from Celts through 20th century

Archives for the ‘13th century’ Category

13th century in England

Category: 13th century

The main provisions of feudalism may be regarded as a contract between the king, on the one hand, and his vassals, on the other. It was recognized that the king had certain rights and duties. In the same way the vassal had his corresponding rights and duties. If the feudal contract was openly violated by […]



The Town Under a Medieval Lord

Category: 13th century

PRIVILEGES  OF  THE  MEDIEVAL  TOWNS The  people  of  the  first  towns  were  not  free. All  the  land  in  feudal  England  was  divided  into  manors  and  the  lord  of  the  manor  governed  the  townspeople  who  lived  on  his  land  and  made  them  perform  feudal  services. Now  we  shall  read  about  the  privileges  the  medieval  towns  gained  […]



The Town’s Charter

Category: 13th century

Most  of  the  English  towns  grew  up  on  the  land  belonging  to  the  king.  The  king  was  too  powerful  for  the  townspeople  to  begin  an  open  struggle  against  him.  Unlike  the  many  towns  on  the  continent  of  Europe  which  gained  their  independence  by  means  of  bloody  wars  and  uprisings,  in England,  as  a  rule,  the  townspeople  […]



CRAFTS IN THE MEDIEVAL TOWN

Category: 13th century

The  townspeople  who  lived  on  the  lord’s  land  were  quite  often  harassed  by  the  landlord  who  at  the  head  of  a  body  of  retainers  attacked  and  plundered  the  town. What  could  be  done  to  defend  the  town  against  the  predatory  raids  of  the  feudal  lord? The  town  craftsmen  produced  goods  only  to  order  and  for  […]



Medieval Guilds

Category: 13th century

The  master-craftsmen  of  the  same  trade  who  lived  in  the  same  town  united  into  societies  which  were  called  craft  guilds.  Each  craft  had  its  own  guild;  there  were  guilds  of  weavers,  dyers,  shoemakers,  hatters,  bakers,  glassmakers  and  many  others.  There  were  many  guilds  of  smiths.  Their  craft  was  very  important  especially  at  a  time  when  […]



The Progressive Role of the Guilds in the 11th-13th Centuries

Category: 13th century

In  the  11th-13th  centuries  when  the  town  crafts  began  to  grow  the  guild  system  was  of  great  importance.  The  life  of  the  craftsmen  was  bound  up  with  the  guilds.  The  guild  was  a  military  organization  as  each  guild  formed  its  mu­nicipal  guard  detachment  and  a  levy  of  guildsmen  fought  together  against  the  enemies  of  the  […]