Medieval British Towns

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-vi

   PDF

2. Introduction

   • Heather Swanson

   Pages 1-5

3. Urbanisation

   • Heather Swanson

   Pages 6-21

4. The Urban Economy

   • Heather Swanson

   Pages 22-66

5. Urban Government

   • Heather Swanson

   Pages 67-106

6. Urban Society

   • Heather Swanson

   Pages 107-139

7. Conclusion

   • Heather Swanson

   Pages 140-142

8. Back Matter

   Pages 143-161

   PDF

Medieval British Towns sets out to explain the reasons for the explosion of town foundation throughout the British Isles from the twelfth century onwards and charts the subsequent development of towns through to the early sixteenth century. The raison d'etre of towns throughout the British Isles was as market places and centres of trade in an increasingly commercialised society. The comparative approach adopted here illuminates the diverging experiences of towns in the four different countries of the British Isles, but sets them within the overall context of a shared value system, where social cohesion was provided by the church. It offers a guide to students and general readers first venturing into the study of medieval urban history and provides comparative material for more experienced students of both history and the related disciplines of archaeology and historical geography.

• history
• sixteenth century
• society
• trade
• trade

• the Open University, UK

  Heather Swanson

HEATHER SWANSON is an Associate Lecturer with the Open University and a Fellow of the Institute for Advanced Research in the Humanities at the University of Birmingham. She is the author of Medieval Artisans: an Urban Class in Late Medieval England and has also published articles on craft guilds and on medieval urban builders.

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