Mark Bailey

The Bailiffs' minute book of Dunwich, 1404-1430

Topography administration and government legal and Parliamentary representation disputes with Blythburgh and Walberswick fishing trade and town life the bailiffs minute book of Dunwich, 1404-1430.

A tale of two towns: Buntingford and Standon in the later middle ages

The controversy over the fortunes of English towns in the later middle ages has tended to generate more heat than light. Much of the evidence employed in this debate has been drawn from the larger English towns, but this essay suggests a widening of the research agenda to include a more systematic assessment of small towns and village markets. Although weakened by the reduced demand for grain after the Black Death, these places competed for the growing local trade in basic consumer goods. Evidence from northeast Hertfordshire reveals that this competition resulted in a significant restructuring of the hierarchy of local marketing centres, and a decline in the ability of seigneurial and urban authorities to regulate trading activity.

Blowing up bubbles: Some new demographic evidence for the fifteenth century?

Medieval documents are imperfect demographic sources, and historians can only evaluate a documents demographic value after its precise administrative purpose has been established. The Myntling Register is a remarkable and fascinating document, but there are grounds for doubting whether it can yield the high quality demographic data claimed for it by E.D. Jones (1989). This article compares the Myntling Register with material from other East Anglian estates of the late Middle Ages, and attempts to indicate its demographic worth; the article also reveals an interesting and under-researched aspect of lord-peasant relations in the fifteenth century.

Town and countryside in the age of the Black Death. Essays in honour of John Hatcher

The arrival of the Black Death in England, which killed around a half of the national population, marks the beginning of one of the most fascinating, controversial and important periods of English social and economic history. This collection of essays on English society and economy in the later Middle Ages provides a worthy tribute to the pioneering work of John Hatcher in this field. With contributions from many of the most eminent historians of the English economy in the later Middle Ages, the volume includes discussions of population, agriculture, the manor, village society, trade, and industry. The book’s chapters offer original reassessments of key topics such as the impact of the Black Death on population and its effects on agricultural productivity and estate management. A number of its studies open up new areas of research, including the demography of coastal communities and the role of fairs in the late medieval economy, whilst others explore the problems of evidence for mortality rates or for change within the village community. Bringing together broad surveys of change and local case studies based on detailed archival research, the chapters offer an assessment of previous work in the field and suggest a number of new directions for scholarship in this area.

Growth and Decline in Colchester, 1300-1525.

Part I. Rusticity, 1300-49: 1 Urban economy 2. Urban liberty 3. Food supplies Survey, 1300-49 Part II. Growth, 1350-1414: 4. Colchester cloth and its markets 5. Industry 6. Population 7. Credit and wealth 8. Government 9. Economic regulation 10. Town and country Survey, 1350-1414 Part III. Change and Decay, 1415-1525: 11. Colchester cloth and its markets 12. Industry 13. Population 14. Credit and wealth 15. Government 16. Economic regulation 17. Town and country Survey, 1415-1525.

Peasant Life in the Medieval West.

Introduction 1. Individuals First and Foremost How many peasants? Hearts and minds The family group Knowledge and belief 2. Houses and villages The roots of the villagers The many faces of the village The peasant home Rich and poor 3. Work The face of the landscape The daily round The struggle against nature The conquered land 4. The Lord Imprisoned in the village The division of the land Wealth and freedom 5. The Fully Developed Village Awakening Realization Conclusion.