Medieval Westminster 1200-1540

This unique look at the town of Westminster is a study of the nature of the urban community in the late Middle Ages. As a small town, characterized by a complex economy and society but lacking legal incorporation, Westminster typified the large yet neglected class of medieval urban centers. Rosser here examines the forces that existed to contain tensions and ensure continuity in the community. The regular expressions of shared interests and common identity--in local government, parochial life, and the activities of guilds--are shown to be essential to the survival of the town. A valuable contribution to the study of the social and economic history of the late Middle Ages, this work will be of interest to students of late medieval economic and social history as well as to urban historians.

List of Illustrations	p. xii
List of Figures	p. xiv
List of Tables	p. xv
Abbreviations	p. xvi
Introduction	p. 1
The Making of a Royal Capital, to 1300	p. 9
Before 1200	p. 9
The Thirteenth Century	p. 16
The King's Capital, 1300-1540	p. 35
Landlords, Tenants, and Houses	p. 43
Introduction	p. 43
The Abbey Estate	p. 45
The Reduced Density of Settlement in the Mid-Fifteenth Century	p. 80
Monastic and Private Enterprise in the Late Medieval Expansion	p. 81
Motives for Urban Property Holding	p. 92
Fairs and Markets	p. 97
The Great Fair of St Edward	p. 97
The Little Fair of St Peter	p. 115
The Monday Market	p. 116
Occupations	p. 119
Introduction	p. 119
Alehouses, Taverns, and Inns	p. 122
Victualling	p. 133
Prostitution	p. 143
Clothing and Leather Trades	p. 145
Metalworking	p. 148
Building Trades	p. 150
Commerce in the Sanctuary	p. 155
Service in Court and Cloister	p. 158
Conclusion: Retailing in the Urban Economy	p. 161
Population and Society	p. 167
The Size of the Population	p. 167
The Origin of the Population	p. 182
Women	p. 196
Professional Services: Law, Medicine, and Government	p. 201
Education and Books	p. 207
Amusements	p. 215
The Margins of Society	p. 217
The Distribution of Wealth	p. 221
Conclusion: A Diverse and Unequal Society	p. 225
Urban Government	p. 226
Introduction: What is a Town?	p. 226
The Lordship of the Abbot	p. 229
The Manor Court as Urban Government	p. 232
Conclusion	p. 244
The Religion of the Lay Community	p. 251
The Parish of St Margaret	p. 251
Relations Between Monastery and Parish	p. 255
The Rebuilding of the Parish Church, 1485-1525	p. 263
Images and Ritual	p. 271
The Reformation	p. 275
Guilds	p. 281
The Social Bonds of Fraternity	p. 281
The Guild as Surrogate Town Council	p. 285
Charitable Institutions	p. 294
Introduction	p. 294
The Royal Household	p. 295
Westminster Abbey	p. 298
The Hospital of St James	p. 300
Guild Charities: The Hospital of St Mary Rounceval and Others	p. 310
Conclusion: The Transformation of Medieval Charity	p. 321
Conclusion	p. 325
Appendices	p. 328
Reeves, Bailiffs, and Sub-bailiffs of Westminster, c1150-c.1540	p. 328
Curates of St Margaret's Parish Church, Westminster, c.1200-1556	p. 335
The Financial Value of St Margaret's Vicarage, 1291-1549	p. 341
Revenues of the Obedientiaries of Westminster Abbey Holding Rents in the Town of Westminster, 1350-1530	p. 342
Tenants and Subtenants of Six Properties in King Street, c.1530	p. 345
Places in the British Isles Occurring in the Names of Property Holders in Westminster Before 1350	p. 349
An Account by the Abbot of the Government of Westminster, c.1511	p. 362
Office-holders in Westminster, c.1350-1540	p. 366
Select Bibliography	p. 407
Index	p. 417
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Medieval Westminster 1200-1540

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