A HISTORY OF HERTFORDSHIRE 



1247-8, when the men of Hertford complained that 

 before 1215-16 there were no weavers or dyers of 

 cloth in Ware, but that 'now' there were. If this 

 is true it may explain the prosperity of Hertford 

 earlier in the century. The cloth industry cannot 

 have been very vigorous. A document of 1290 

 gives few trade names beyond the ordinary carpenter, 

 smith, miller, carter, fisher and butcher ; the mustarder 

 and the merchant are the only suggestive names. M 

 In 1307 there are curlers, a dyer, two 'chapmen, 7 

 and a mustarder. 91 Of course these casual mentions 

 ;an be regarded only as clues. It is more significant 

 that there is no trace of a craft or merchant gild. 



Hertford was falling behind its neighbours. In 

 1290 St. Albans had more and richer taspayers, 9 - 

 and even Cheshunt was larger than Hertford. 53 

 In 1308 the borough paid £7 \6s. Sd., against 

 £12 1 ir. ±d. from Cheshunt and £14 \j. 5W. from 

 Ware. 91 The burgesses brought forward their old 

 complaints against Ware without success. 95 In 1338 

 the taxable value was only half that of Ware. 96 



The history of the markets and fairs (q.v.) enforces 

 the evidence of court rolls and accounts that Hertford 

 decayed rapidly during the 14th century and more 

 rapidly during the 15th. It seemed rather 2 village 

 than a borough, and economic documents tend to 

 treat it rather as a rural manor than as a town. 

 The depopulation caused by the Black Death evidently 

 gave an impetus to the decline. In 1428 there 

 were not ten householders in the parish of St. 

 Nicholas or that of St. Mary Minor. 97 The 

 auditors began to allow the bailiff increasing sums 

 for decay of rent. 98 Probably the last cjuarter of 

 the 15th century was the apogee. 



During this time there is naturally little develop- 

 ment of trades. Brewing and baking are the most 

 prominent, with the other provision businesses, the 

 fishmongers, butchers and chandlers ; tanning and 

 glovem.iking also occur. 99 



About the beginning of the 16th century new 

 conditions caused a new prosperity in the borough. 

 The working classes were now no longer themselves 

 corn growers, and the question of their corn supplies 

 was a new problem, especially acute in London. 

 The provisioning of London taxed the energies of 

 the Privy Council. 100 Hence, while many towns 

 were emptying their workers into the country, 

 Hertford found more and more buyers in the corn 

 market. It was important that the market should 

 not be monopolized by speculaiors, and in I 588 the 

 privy councillors interfered to prevent it. 1 Their 

 object was to keep back some of the grain for the 

 small local buyer, but this was difficult in the face of 

 dealers from London. In i 595 the supply (between 

 140 and 200 qrs. of grain) was sold within an hoar 



of the ringing of the market bell, and bought nut 



by the poor, but by bakers from London and local 

 millers who bought for the London market. 9 At 

 this time there were above forty water-mill) alone 

 within lo miles of Hertford.' Many of these 

 probably served the London trade. 



Hertford hardly kept its position in metropolitan 

 markets as supplies came in from more distant areas, 

 but it remained the iradc centre both for corn and 

 other goods for the district lying north of the town. 

 Corn and malt, the chief articles in the market in 

 1728, 4 are the staple commodities to-day. The 

 trade of Hertford has changed rather in volume than 

 in kind. 



Hertford has probably had a market since the 

 Saxon King Edward first built his ' burh * there, 

 but there ts no historical evidence of it until the 

 reign of John,* when it is spoken of as though it 

 were already established by ancient custom. The 

 market days were Wednesday and Friday throughout 

 the 13th and for the greater part of the 14th cen- 

 tury, 6 but in this latter period the value of the 

 market was sinking. In 1359-60 the whole toils 

 of the market for nine months were only 161. %d? 

 In 1383 the Wednesday market was transferred to 

 Thursday by royal grant, 8 probably an attempt to 

 catch custom, and the tolls went up. 9 The improve- 

 ment was brief. In 1397-8 the tolls and pleas sank 

 to 2or., and 'no more because merchants forsake the 

 market for others on every side.' 10 Henry IV con- 

 firmed the grant of Edward III, 11 and pardoned the 

 burgesses the 26s. at which the tolls were estimated 

 for ten years, 19 and in 1438-9 Henry VI was only 

 receiving lot. 6d. from the market. 13 It seems to 

 have become almost valueless by the end of the 

 century. The Thursday market was still held early 

 in Elizabeth's reign, but it suffered from the com- 

 petition of the market at Hoddesdon- 14 



The Elizabethan charter gave to the corporation 

 the market to be held on Saturday, 11 which has 

 remained the market day for Hertford ever since. 10 

 The charter of Charles II revived the Wednesday 

 market, 17 which survived in 1888 as a small cattle 

 market, held in alternate weeks. 18 The corporation 

 have taken the tolls of the market since 1589. 16 



The Hertford fairs originated in the time of the 

 minority of Henry III. In 1226 the men of Hert- 

 ford received a provisional grant until the king came 

 of age of a week's fair from the Sunday before tha 

 Feast of SS. Simon and Jude (28 October) until the 

 following Sunday. 20 Whether by prescription or 

 by a grant in confirmation, the fair continued 

 throughout the 13th and 14th centuries. In 1295 

 the tolls were worth ioj. 21 Before 1331 a fair on 

 15 August had been acquired by the burgesses, and 



>y Subs. R. Hei 



3. fi. 





Lane. Misi 



K Cal. Par. 1336-40, p. 



" Ftud. Aid,, ii, 461. 



M Duchy of Lane Mins. Accts. bdlei. 



3, no. 11043 ; 5; , no. ioio. 



w Ct. R. (Gen. Scr.), portf. 177, no. 37. 



100 Cunningham, Gro-wlh if Engl lid. 



/CW™,h(,), si, 318.13* 



lAocfP.C. i S 8o-i,p. joi. 

 » Cal, S. P. Dam. 1595-7, P- ■ 

 3 Ibid. 336 ; cf. Duchy of Lam 

 icvii, no. C 2. 

 * Salmon, Hi,!, of Her,,. 1. 

 s Assize R. 218, m. 6 i. 

 •Ibid. 

 7 Duchy of Lane. Mini. Ace 



1! Duchy of Lane. 



" Duchy of L 

 L 3050. 



inc. Dec. Lib 



pt. ii, B 



15 Pat. 31 Eliz. ,_. . 



" J. Norden, Oacripriai of Hern. 

 O59B), ii Pat jfa, I, pt. ifi, m.*, 

 Bef. an Mark,!, an J Fair,, xiii (1), 114. 



17 Pat. 32 Chai. II, pt. iii, no. W. 



ls Pari. Paper,, i888,liv,46. 



"Pit. 31 Eli*, pt. xi, m. 3. 



"Ret. Lit. Claw. {Rtc. Com.), ii, 



" Anct. En. Eich. Q.R. no, 4;. 



