BOLDON BOOK 



facienda capitur." Similar privileges were accorded by the same bishop to Simon 

 the Chamberlain tor building and repairing his houses and those ot his tenants^ 

 and to Alan de Chilton 'ad ediHcandum et comburendum.'^ There must 

 even have been some exchange of this commodity within the bishopric, as 

 appears from an instructive passage in Bishop Pudsey's charter to the Gates- 

 head burgesses, ' Et licebit cuilibet burgensi dare de lignis suis cuicumque 

 voluerit manentium citra Tynam sine pravo ingenio, sed nemini vendere sine 

 licentia forestarii.'* 



Boldon Book affords us some light on the state of industry in the bishopric 

 at this time. It is scarcely necessary to remind the reader that the mediasval 

 manorial community was as far as possible self-sufficing, producing and 

 consuming what it needed, so that the artisan had no reason for producing 

 more than was needed by the community of which he formed part. He was 

 also in most cases an unfree person, the labour of whose hands would in all 

 strictness belong to his lord. He could not therefore support himself solely 

 by industry, but was obliged to fall back, on agriculture. As in the case of the 

 administrative officers of the manor the artisan's services were rewarded with a 

 small allotment of land which he was permitted to hold free of labour for the lord. 



The most important industry in an agricultural community was no 

 doubt that of the smith who made and repaired the iron-work of the ploughs, 

 harrows, and other instruments of husbandry. In most parts of England 

 except Sussex and Gloucester the iron for this purpose had to be purchased at 

 some fair or market and supplied to the smith by the manorial bailiff,^ but in 

 Durham iron was produced and seems to have answered local needs ; * later 

 indeed we have evidence that the bishop was importing a finer quality of iron 

 from Spain. ^ At Wearmouth and Tunstall the smith held 12 acres ' for the 

 iron-work of the ploughs and for the coal which he finds,' and at Sedgefield 

 the smith had i bovate ' for the iron-work of the ploughs which he makes, 

 and he finds the coals.' But at Escomb ' a certain collier holds i toft and 

 I croft and 4 acres and finds coals for the iron-work of the ploughs of 

 Coundon.' In the charter by which Bishop Pudsey conveyed certain lands to 

 the Hospital of St. Giles it is provided that the establishment is to have 

 'mineram ferri infra Rokehope ad carucas et alias necessitates faciendas." 



Next to the smith in importance would come the carpenter, who con- 

 tributed the framework of the ploughs and harrows, and fitted the iron parts 

 to them. At Sedgefield the carpenter has 12 acres for making and re- 

 pairing the ploughs and harrows, and at Wearmouth the carpenter, ' qui senex 

 est,' has 12 acres for his lifetime for making the ploughs and harrows. 

 Sometimes the holding was smaller than this, as at Houghton, where the 

 carpenter had i toft and 4 acres, or at Wolsingham, where the son of 

 Humphrey had 6 acres and made ploughs. 



The practice of other small but necessary industries is attested by the 

 notice at North Auckland of a cobbler who held i toft and croft and 4 acres 

 and owed certain renders and services, and at Wolsingham of three turners, 

 who for their holding of 17 acres were required to render 3,100 trenchers 

 beside doing boon-work and helping to get in the hay. There must of 



' Boldon Book (Surtees Soc), App. No. v. * Ibid., No. vii. ^ Ibid., No. viii. 



♦ Ibid., No. iii. ^ Ashley, op. cil.,\. 35-36. ' Lapslcy, in Engl. Hist. R(v., xiv. 509-529. 

 1 Lapsley, in ibid.; Co. Pal. of Dur., 284 n. 5, and the literature there cited. 



* Boldon Book (Surtees Soc), App. No. x. 



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