London Revisited: Plague, Rebellion and Guilds
About this episode
The episode explores the impact of Edward I on medieval London, the effects of the Black Death, and subsequent social upheavals.
If historians of medieval London had a patron saint, it might well be Edward I. While many English monarchs chose to leave London to its own devices, Edward decided from the start of his reign in 1272 to put pressure on the city to justify its liberties. The result was a profusion of bureaucracy, most notably in the Letter Books, that describe the life of London and its people in vivid detail, from disputes, petitions and regulations to the names of all the city’s apprentices. This record-keeping was good for the city too, reinforcing a powerful system of guilds supporting hundreds of trades and a flourishing merchant and consumer culture. But when the Black Death arrived in England in 1348, London’s population was devastated, and its social and economic life transformed. In this episode, Rosemary is joined again by Matthew Davies, professor of urban history at Birkbeck, to continue the story of England’s capital through its rapid rise in the first half of the 14th century and a long period turmoil thereafter, including the Hundred Years’ War, the revolts of Wat Tyler and Jack Cade, and the Wars of the Roses. Reading by Duncan Wilkins Non-subscribers will only hear an extract…
People in this episode
Host: Rosemary
Guest: Matthew Davies
Topics covered
- medieval London
- Edward I
- bureaucracy
- guilds
- Black Death
- urban history
- social and economic transformation
Keywords
- Edward I
- London
- Black Death
- guilds
- urban history
- medieval
- social change
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Birkbeck
Places: London
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