12 
Husbandry in England was at a low ebb 
during the thirteenth century, but towards 
the end of Edward II.’s reign it began to 
make progress in the midland and south- 
western counties. The high esteem in which 
English wool was held caused large tracts of 
country to be retained as pasture for sheep 
for a long period, and while farmers possessed 
this certain source of revenue the science of 
cultivation was naturally neglected. 
EDWARD III. (1327-1377). 
Edward IIJ., to meet the drain upon the 
horse supply caused by his wars with Scot- 
land and France, bought large numbers of 
horses on the Continent; more, it would 
appear, than his Treasury could pay for, as 
he was at one time in the Count of Hainault’s 
debt for upwards of 25,000 florins for horses. 
These were obviously the Great Horses for 
which the Low Countries were famous; all 
the animals so imported were marked or 
branded. Edward III. organised his re- 
mount department on a scale previously 
unknown in England. It was established in 
two great divisions under responsible officers, 
one of whom had charge of all the studs on 
the royal manors north of the Trent, the 
