f )0 LON 
as it now (lands. In the year 1099, the river Thames, 
by an extraordinary fwelling of the lea, was driven weft- 
ward with fuch violence, that it overflowed its banks in 
many places, by which feveral towns and villages were 
laid under water, many of the inhabitants were drowned, 
and the large eftate of Godwin earl of Kent was en¬ 
croached on by the fea, fo that it could never afterwards 
be drained, but forms what is called, to this day, the God¬ 
win Sands. 
Since nothing can be more interefting to the citizens of 
any part of this kingdom, than to fee the origin of their 
privileges, and the grounds upon which the monuments 
of their liberties were ereCfed, the following charter grant¬ 
ed by Henry I. to the Londoners ought to obtain a place 
here ; it was given for the purpofe of obtaining the affift- 
ance of the citizens of London to fecure Henry upon the 
throne, of which he had unjuftly deprived his eideft bro¬ 
ther Robert; and confequently it was made peculiarly be¬ 
neficial to them. The following is a faithful tranflation 
of it. 
“ Henry, by the grace of God, king of England, to the 
bifhop of Canterbury, and to the bilhops and abbots, 
earls and barons, j uftices and (heriffs, and to all his faith¬ 
ful fubjeCts of England, French and Englifti, greeting. 
Know ye, that I have granted to my citizens of London, 
to hold Middlefex to farm for three hundred pounds, 
upon accompt to them and their heirs; fo that the faid 
citizens (hall place as IherifF whom they will of themfelves ; 
and (hall place whomfoever, or fuch a one, as they will of 
themfelves, for keeping of the pleas of the crown, and of 
the pleading of the fame, and none others (hall be juftice 
over the fame men of London ; and the citizens of Lon¬ 
don (hall not plead without the walls of London for any 
plea. And be they free from fcot and lot, and daneguilt, 
and of all murder; and none of them (hall wage battle. 
And if any of the citizens (hall be impleaded concerning 
the pleas of the crown, the man of London (hall difcharge 
himfelf by his oath, which fnall be adjudged within the 
city; and none (hall lodge within the walls, neither of 
sny houfehold nor any other, nor lodging delivered by 
.force. 
« And all the men of London (hall be quit and free, and 
all their goods throughout England and the ports of the 
fea, of and from all toll, and paflage, and leftage, and all 
other cuftoms; and the churches, and barons, [i. e. free¬ 
men,] and citizens, (hall and may peaceably and quietly 
have and hold their fokes with all their cuftoms ; io that 
the ftrangers that (hall be lodged in the fokes,’(hall give 
cuftom to none but to him to whom the foke appertains, 
or to his officer, whom he (hall there put. And a man 
of London (hall not be adjudged in amerciaments of mo¬ 
ney, but of one hundred (hillings; (I fpeak of the pleas 
which appertain to money.) And further, there (hall be 
*30 more milkenning in the huftings, nor in the folkmote, 
nor in any other pleas within the city; and the huftings 
may -fit once in a week, that is to (ay, on Monday. And 
I will caufe my citizens to have their lands, promifes, 
bonds, and debts, within the city and without; and I 
will do them right by the law of the city, of the lands of 
which they (hall complain to me. And if any (hall take 
toll or cuftom of any citizen of London, the citizens of 
London in the city (hall take of the borough or town, 
where toll or cuftom was fo taken, fo much as the man cf 
London gave for toll, and as he received damage thereby. 
And all debtors which do owe debts to the citizens of 
London, (hall pay them in London, or elfe difcharge 
themfelves in London that they owe none ; but, if they 
will not pay the fame, neither come to clear themfelves 
that they owe none, the citizens of London, to whom the 
debts (hall be due, may take their goods in the city of 
Lomlon, of the borough or town, or of the county, 
wherein he remains who (hall owe the debt. And the ci¬ 
tizens of London may have their chaces to hunt, as well 
gnd fully as their auceftors have had j that is to lay, in the 
DON. 
Chiltre, [a diftrift near St. Alban’s,] and in Middlefex and 
Surrey. 
“ Witnefs the bi(hop of Winchefter, and Robert fon 
of Richard, and Hugh Piggot, and Aimer of Totnefs, 
and William of Albs-prima, and Hubert Roger, cham¬ 
berlain, and William de Mountfitchett, and Hangul Ta¬ 
ney, and John Ballet, and Robert fon of Steward of Weft.” 
Before the grant of this charter, London feems to have 
been entirely fubject to the arbitrary will of the king. 
But, their liberties being now guarded by fo ftrong a fence, 
the citizens endeavoured to fecure their cuftoms, by con¬ 
verting them into written laws ; and their arts and myf- 
teries, which had hitherto been kept up by prefeription 
only, were now ftrengthened by eftabliflied fraternities 
and companies. However, the king referved to himfelf 
the power of appointing the porirtvc, or chief officer of 
this city. 
It was probably about the clofe of the laft or the begin¬ 
ning of this century, that merchant-guilds, or fraterni¬ 
ties, which were afterwards (tiled corporations, came firft 
into general ufe in many parts of Europe. Mr. Madox 
thinks, that “ they were hardly known to our Saxon pro¬ 
genitors, and that they might probably be brought into 
England by the Normans ; although they do not leem to 
have been very numerous in France in thofe days.” And 
in cap. x. feCt. 20, he relates, “that the weavers and ba¬ 
kers were the two moft ancient fellowfhips, or guilds, in 
London which is natural enough, fince food and cloth¬ 
ing are moft immediately neceffary to mankind. “ In 
king Henry I’s reign, between 1100 and 1135, the wea¬ 
vers of London rendered to the crown a rent, or ferine as 
it is called in the ftile of the Exchequer, for their guild ; 
and had, in after times, great difputes with the city of 
London concerning their high immunities and privileges.” 
In a council, which was held at Weftminfter, in the 
year 1126, by the pope’s legate, cardinal de Crema, ufury 
was prohibited to the clergy, who, if they praCiifed it, 
were to be degraded ; but it is to be underftood that the 
term ufury, as it was at that time applied, meant only in- 
tereft, or ufe, for money in general, and not exorbitant or 
extravagant intereft, which it now implies. 
During this reign, the monftrous licentioufnefs of the 
Normans, which, from the protection afforded them by 
the two Williams, had attained a dangerous height, was 
put a ftop to by a proclamation, publi(hed at London, 
commanding that thenceforward, all who fhould be con¬ 
victed of fuch exceffes fhould have their eyes pulled out, 
or their hands or feet cut off, as the minifters of juftice 
ftiould think fit. This effectually checked the inlolence 
of the Normans. 
About this time a fpirit of devotion began to manifeft: 
itfelf in religious foundations in and about London. In 
the year 1081, Alwin Child, citizen of London, founded 
at Bermondfey a monaftery for the monks of the congre¬ 
gation called Cluny, from the chief lieu in France. In 1090, 
Alfune built the church of St. Giles, near Cripplegate. 
In 1102, Rahere, the king’s minftrel, founded the priory 
of St. Bartholomew, and. the hofpital annexed to it; 
among the privileges he obtained for it, is mentioned 
Bartholomew fair for three days; and indeed moft of the 
religious houfes which exifted at the reformation under 
Henry VIII. had their origin about this period of our 
hiftory. But, if on one hand the rage for building and 
endowing pious edifices multiplied fo confiderably their 
number in the metropolis, on another hand the diffolu- 
tion of manners and habits had come to its greateft height; 
for about this and the following reigns the Londoners 
were arrived at fuch a pitch of licentioufnefs, that their 
profperity feemed a curfe rather than a blefling. The ion* 
of the moft eminent and wealthy citizens entered into 
confederacies to commit burglaries, and to rob and mur¬ 
der all that came in their way in the night-time. The 
king took an opportunity from thefe irregularities to en¬ 
rich himfelf. He demanded feveral loans and free gifts; 
