John Hatcher

The History of the British Coal Industry. Volume 1, Before 1700: Towards the Age of Coal.

This is the eagerly awaited first volume of the definitive History of the British Coal Industry. Well before 1700 Britain had become heavily dependent upon coal for its fuel, and coalmining had taken its place among the nations staple industries. John Hatcher traces the production and trade of coal from the intermittent small-scale activity which prevailed in the Middle Ages to the rapid expansion and rising importance which characterized the early modern era. Thoroughly grounded in a formidable range of sources, the book explores the economics and management of mining, the productivity and profitability of colliery enterprise, and the progress of technology. Dr Hatcher examines the owners and operators of collieries and the sources of mining capital, as well as the colliers themselves, their working conditions and earnings. He argues that the spectacular growth of coal output in this period was achieved more through evolutionary than revolutionary processes. This is a scholarly, detailed, and comprehensive study, which will be an essential source for all historians of the medieval and early modern economy, and fascinating reading for anyone with an interest in the British coal industry.

A History of British Pewter.

Part 1 of the survey treats pewter before AD 1700: its chronological development, the gilds, the techniques of manufacture, supply of raw materials, industrial structure and trade at home and overseas. Part 2 is on modern pewter. -- AATA

The bankruptcy of the Scali of Florence in England, 1326–1328

A fourteenth-century Italian merchant in financial difficulties considered a deliberate, sudden bankruptcy as one of the possible solutions to his problems. The purpose of such a move would be to conceal as large a proportion of his assets as was practicable and to ensure for himself a not unprosperous future. There was always a risk of surprising reactions from the victims and political complications could add to the perils of the unscrupulous bankrupt. The public authorities had naturally to intervene and to impose some sort of orderly liquidation of business breakdowns, which might otherwise escalate and spread widespread ruin. All these features can be illustrated from the story of the English branches of the Scali. Their bankruptcy, and that of the Pulci and Rembertini some twenty years earlier, involved the interventions of the royal council and the chancery. The records produced by the resultant official proceedings throw interesting light on an early stage of international banking in western Europe, before the evolution of more uniform types of business documents and of standardised methods of attesting financial liabilities. The ruthless unscrupulousness of these bankruptcies is well illustrated by what the Frescobaldi of Florence tried to do in Gascony in 1311. The outlines of this story are well known. However, none of the existing accounts spell out all the details. The Frescobaldi were under dire pressure. Their position as the principal bankers of King Edward II had exposed them to relentless hostility of Edwards political opponents, the Lords Ordainers, who were trying to cripple him financially by ruining his chief financiers.

Medieval England: Towns, Commerce and Crafts, 1086-1348.

List of maps. Abbreviations. A note on medieval English measures & money. Preface & acknowledgements. 1. Domesday Book and beyond. 2. Medieval industries. 3. The inland trade. 4. Overseas trade. 5. Medieval English towns. 6. Medieval townsfolk. 7. England under the three Edwards 1272-1348. Select Bibliography. Index

Abstracts of feet of fines relating to Wiltshire for the reign of Edward III

S OF FEET OF FINES RELATING TO WILTSHIRE FOR THE REIGN OF EDWARD III

Rural Economy and Society in the Duchy of Cornwall, 1300-1500.

1. The Cornish Economy and the Duchy Manors 2. Estate Management 3. The Obligations and Legal Status of Tenants 4. The Assessionable Manors form the late Thirteenth Century to the Eve of the Black Death: 1287-1347 5. The Black Death and Aftermath: 1348-1356 6. The Later Fourteenth Century: 1356-1399 7. The Fifteenth Century 8. Seigneurial Revenues and the Exploitation of Manorial Assets 9. Some Aspects of Rural Society.