API tools faq
paste
Advertisement
jonstond2

Economic History (Medieval Studies)

jonstond2
Aug 13th, 2017
683
0
Never
Add comment
Not a member of Pastebin yet? Sign Up, it unlocks many cool features!
text 147.30 KB | None | 0 0
raw download clone embed print report
  1. Introduction
  2.  
  3. The study of medieval economic history has a rich pedigree and has led to major, wide-ranging debates about the nature and causes of economic change. Many of the books and articles listed in this article consider the transformation of the medieval economy, often on a broad chronological canvas, from the end of the ancient world to the creation of notable feudal institutions and thence to the emergence of the Early Modern world and protocapitalist organizations. A number of renowned scholars from the early to mid-20th century left their mark on this subject, including Henri Pirenne (b. 1862–d. 1935), Marc Bloch (b. 1886–d. 1944), Michael Moissey Postan (b. 1898–d. 1981), and Georges Duby (b. 1919–d. 1996), and they greatly influenced succeeding generations of historians. In addition, the debates of medieval economic history have often been shaped by numerous theories and approaches founded in the disciplines of economics, sociology, anthropology, archaeology, and geography. However, the strength of the subject still resides in rigorous analysis of the archival evidence. Many scholars have trawled through this material to produce important detailed, empirical case studies, based on specific localities or regions; a number of these are highlighted in this bibliography and are frequently based on English manors, villages, and towns due to the wealth of documentation that survives for that country. Much work concentrates on agricultural structures, demographic trends, and commercial growth. Some events stand out as significant for structural economic change, not least the dramatic intervention of the Black Death in the mid-14th century, but also wars, famines, and the discovery of new international trade routes. However, most economic historians also recognize that their subject is about understanding the everyday lives and material circumstances of ordinary people and their households. Medieval economic history concerns not only the elite, seigneurial estates, long-distance trade, wealthy merchants, and financial institutions but also peasant agriculture, living standards, technology, local trade, urban economies, and social conflict. This bibliography mostly concentrates on medieval Europe, 400–1500, but in the last section there are also some suggestions for readings on a more global scale.
  4.  
  5. General Overviews
  6.  
  7. The broad trends of medieval European economic history have attracted a number of renowned scholars. The early medieval period is covered eloquently by Wickham 2005, Verhulst 2002, and Devroey 2003. Alongside the classic appraisal of the later medieval economy in Pirenne 2006 (originally published in 1936), which has influenced so many succeeding scholars, there have been many more surveys written since the 1970s, such as those offered by the authors of Cipolla 1976 and Pounds 1994. A more recent overview, drawing upon the latest research, can be found in Epstein 2009. Postan and Habakkuk 1966–1989 is another good starting point for students looking for a framework of the main themes.
  8.  
  9. Cipolla, Carlo M. Before the Industrial Revolution: European Society and Economy, 1000–1700. London: Methuen, 1976.
  10.  
  11. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  12.  
  13. A broad and readable sketch of European economic history over seven centuries, but (perhaps unsurprisingly) there is a great deal of generalization and speculation.
  14.  
  15. Find this resource:
  16.  
  17. Devroey, Jean-Pierre. Économie rurale et société dans l’Europe franque (Vie-IXe siècles). Paris: Belin, 2003.
  18.  
  19. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  20.  
  21. An introduction to peasant economy and society in the Merovingian and Carolingian periods.
  22.  
  23. Find this resource:
  24.  
  25. Epstein, Steven A. An Economic and Social History of Later Medieval Europe, 1000–1500. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2009.
  26.  
  27. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  28.  
  29. This is a textbook survey of the current state of scholarship on European economic history. There is a broad geographical range to the study, and a select, recent bibliography for each chapter.
  30.  
  31. Find this resource:
  32.  
  33. Pirenne, Henri. Economic and Social History of Medieval Europe. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 2006.
  34.  
  35. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  36.  
  37. This book provided the foundation and spur for many of the surveys that followed, even though much of it has been superseded by subsequent research. Pirenne’s focus was on the cities, merchants, and commercial institutions, regarding this as of fundamental importance for the development of the medieval European economy and the rise of commerce. Originally published in 1936.
  38.  
  39. Find this resource:
  40.  
  41. Postan, Michael Moissey, and Hrothgar John Habakkuk, eds. The Cambridge Economic History of Europe. 8 vols. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1966–1989.
  42.  
  43. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  44.  
  45. The first three volumes of this ambitious series examine the Middle Ages and discuss, respectively, agrarian life, trade and industry, and economic organization. Although aspects have been superseded by more recent research, the chapters still provide a useful introductory survey. There are also several seminal discussions, such as Postan’s analysis of the relationship between population and economic development.
  46.  
  47. Find this resource:
  48.  
  49. Pounds, Norman J. G. An Economic History of Medieval Europe. 2d ed. London: Longman, 1994.
  50.  
  51. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  52.  
  53. This is one of the first general surveys of European economic history. There is a particular focus on demography (drawing upon the work of Postan) and the use of resources, which Pounds contentiously (and perhaps erroneously) argued led to a growth in aggregate and per capita income in the 12th and 13th centuries. First published in 1974.
  54.  
  55. Find this resource:
  56.  
  57. Verhulst, Adriaan. The Carolingian Economy. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2002.
  58.  
  59. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511817083Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  60.  
  61. Verhulst argues that the Western European economy grew significantly in the 8th and 9th centuries. He recognizes the problems of the documents and thus also uses archaeological evidence to support his emphasis on smaller “peasant” producers, growing craft specialization, and small rural markets where, he argues, commodities were exchanged for profit. This provides a different perspective to Chris Wickham’s focus on monastic and royal estates.
  62.  
  63. Find this resource:
  64.  
  65. Wickham, Chris. Framing the Early Middle Ages: Europe and the Mediterranean, 400–800. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005.
  66.  
  67. DOI: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199264490.001.0001Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  68.  
  69. An extensive synthesis of the current state of knowledge about the history of the early Middle Ages. The economy is an important part of the discussion throughout the four main issues of the state, aristocracy, peasantry, and means of exchange.
  70.  
  71. Find this resource:
  72.  
  73. Textbooks
  74.  
  75. A number of textbooks look at certain countries. The later economic history of England is surveyed by Miller and Hatcher 1978, Rigby 1995, Dyer 2002, and Britnell 2004, which also looks at a broader view of Britain. The most recent survey of economic and social change in the Low Countries is provided by Van Bavel 2010. Luzzatto 1961 and Epstein 2003 examine medieval Italy, while the best survey of the Byzantine world is given by Laiou 2002 (with a more concise version in Laiou and Morrisson 2007).
  76.  
  77. Britnell, Richard H. Britain and Ireland, 1050–1530: Economy and Society. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004.
  78.  
  79. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  80.  
  81. A lucid synthesis of medieval British and Irish economic history that provides a solid introduction for students. Britnell makes a good effort to give a broader geographical perspective than most with a strong emphasis on the regional differences between north and west England, as well as Scotland, Wales, and Ireland.
  82.  
  83. Find this resource:
  84.  
  85. Dyer, Christopher. Making a Living in the Middle Ages: The People of Britain, 850–1520. New Haven, CT, and London: Yale University Press, 2002.
  86.  
  87. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  88.  
  89. A readable and wide-ranging introduction to the themes of medieval economy and society. Dyer draws on both documentary and material/archaeological evidence to provide depth to his observations.
  90.  
  91. Find this resource:
  92.  
  93. Epstein, Stephan R. An Island for Itself: Economic Development and Social Change in Late Medieval Sicily. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2003.
  94.  
  95. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  96.  
  97. In this analysis of medieval Sicily, Epstein touches on a range of economic debates, from the origins of Italy’s regional and economic divisions to the development of commerce and capitalism.
  98.  
  99. Find this resource:
  100.  
  101. Laiou, Angeliki E., ed. The Economic History of Byzantium: From the Seventh through the Fifteenth Century. 3 vols. Washington, DC: Dumbarton Oaks Research Library, 2002.
  102.  
  103. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  104.  
  105. This three-volume publication, with contributions from various experts, provides a thorough overview of our current understanding of the Byzantine economy across nine hundred years. The authors deal with a range of issues from the material resources of the Balkans and Asia Minor to trade, coinage, taxation and economic thought. The roles of the state and Byzantine elite, alongside international exchange, are prominent themes throughout.
  106.  
  107. Find this resource:
  108.  
  109. Laiou, Angeliki E., and Cécile Morrisson. The Byzantine Economy. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2007.
  110.  
  111. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511816727Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  112.  
  113. This book provides a concise overview of the Byzantine economy from the 4th to 15th centuries.
  114.  
  115. Find this resource:
  116.  
  117. Luzzatto, Gino. An Economic History of Italy from the Fall of the Roman Empire to the Beginning of the Sixteenth Century. Translated by Philip Jones. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1961.
  118.  
  119. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  120.  
  121. This translation provides a broad summary of the early economic development of Italy.
  122.  
  123. Find this resource:
  124.  
  125. Miller, Edward, and John Hatcher, Medieval England: Rural Society and Economic Change, 1086–1348. London: Longman, 1978.
  126.  
  127. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  128.  
  129. Continued in Medieval England: Towns, Commerce and Crafts, 1086–1348 (London: Longman, 1995). Two textbook studies that employ a significant amount of primary material and have stood the test of time as a solid introduction to the medieval English economy, both rural and urban, from the Domesday Book to the Black Death. Demographic growth is a dominant theme, but other political and social contexts are also addressed.
  130.  
  131. Find this resource:
  132.  
  133. Rigby, Steve H. English Society in the Later Middle Ages: Class, Status and Gender. Basingstoke, UK, and London: Macmillan, 1995.
  134.  
  135. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  136.  
  137. Rigby provides a strongly theoretical approach to the economic and social history of England, drawing particularly on the theory of social closure and Marxism in order to discuss ideas of social stratification. It is perhaps aimed at those with some background knowledge, but is still written in a clear and thoughtful manner. Economic matters are important throughout the discussion, such as in the sections on property rights and serfdom.
  138.  
  139. Find this resource:
  140.  
  141. Van Bavel, Bas. Manors and Markets: Economy and Society in the Low Countries, 500–1600. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2010.
  142.  
  143. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  144.  
  145. Van Bavel looks anew at the causes and dynamics of social and economic change across the differing regions that comprise the Low Countries. Across more than a thousand years, he examines manorial organization, markets, and towns, and also the vibrant forces that drove social transition.
  146.  
  147. Find this resource:
  148.  
  149. Bibliographies
  150.  
  151. There are no comprehensive, published bibliographies that deal specifically with medieval economic history, but there are some resources that tackle the Middle Ages more generally. These include the International Medieval Bibliography and Iter: Gateway to the Middle Ages and Renaissance. It is also worth looking at the annual reviews of periodical literature on English socioeconomic history in the journal Economic History Review, as well as the annual list of publications on urban history in Urban History (both cited under Journals).
  152.  
  153. International Medieval Bibliography (IMB).
  154.  
  155. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  156.  
  157. The IMB is published online by Brepols for the Institute of Medieval History at the University of Leeds. The resource is interdisciplinary and lists published work from across the world.
  158.  
  159. Find this resource:
  160.  
  161. Iter: Gateway to the Middle Ages and Renaissance.
  162.  
  163. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  164.  
  165. This website, produced by Arizona State University and the University of Toronto, includes a bibliography of over a million citations for scholarship covering the period 400–1700.
  166.  
  167. Find this resource:
  168.  
  169. Journals
  170.  
  171. There are several journals that cover economic history, though none are specifically devoted to the study of the medieval period. Relevant English-language journals include the Agricultural History Review, Economic History Review, Journal of Economic History, Journal of Historical Geography, Journal of Medieval History, Journal of Social History, Past and Present, Rural History, and Urban History.
  172.  
  173. Agricultural History Review. 1953–.
  174.  
  175. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  176.  
  177. This is the journal of the British Agricultural History Society; focuses primarily on rural economy and society.
  178.  
  179. Find this resource:
  180.  
  181. Economic History Review. 1927–.
  182.  
  183. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  184.  
  185. This is the journal of the Economic History Society; since 1927, it has contained many of the most prominent contributions to medieval economic history.
  186.  
  187. Find this resource:
  188.  
  189. Journal of Economic History. 1940–.
  190.  
  191. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  192.  
  193. This is the journal of the Economic History Association; promotes the multidisciplinary study of history and economics.
  194.  
  195. Find this resource:
  196.  
  197. Journal of Historical Geography. 1975–.
  198.  
  199. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  200.  
  201. This journal concentrates on aspects of historical geography and contains many articles of relevance to the medieval economic historian.
  202.  
  203. Find this resource:
  204.  
  205. Journal of Medieval History. 1975–.
  206.  
  207. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  208.  
  209. A journal devoted to discussion of all aspects of medieval European history, including economic history.
  210.  
  211. Find this resource:
  212.  
  213. Journal of Social History. 1967–.
  214.  
  215. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  216.  
  217. This journal publishes articles on social history across a broad chronological and geographical range, many with a strong economic history dimension.
  218.  
  219. Find this resource:
  220.  
  221. Past and Present. 1952–.
  222.  
  223. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  224.  
  225. Founded by prominent historians such as E. P. Thompson, Christopher Hill, Eric Hobsbawm, and Rodney Hilton, Past and Present was intended to promote challenging and original research on historical, social, and cultural change across the world.
  226.  
  227. Find this resource:
  228.  
  229. Rural History. 1990–.
  230.  
  231. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  232.  
  233. This relatively new journal explores rural society and economy through a range of academic approaches, from agricultural and landscape history to archaeology, material culture, anthropology, and rural literature.
  234.  
  235. Find this resource:
  236.  
  237. Urban History. 1974–.
  238.  
  239. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  240.  
  241. Originally known as the Urban History Yearbook, this journal provides a range of articles on urban history, including a strong concentration on medieval issues.
  242.  
  243. Find this resource:
  244.  
  245. Primary Source Collections in Translation
  246.  
  247. Most primary sources for medieval economic history are not accessible in printed format and relevant manuscripts are found in various archives. Nevertheless, economic historians have produced numerous editions of specific primary sources, from taxation and civic records to manorial court rolls and merchant accounts. The voluminous nature of these publications means that they cannot be listed here. Instead, this section contains a selection of general collections of primary sources (in translation) that might prove to be a good starting point for students seeking examples of the types of sources available to the medieval economic historian. Cave and Coulson 1965 is an older collection of primary sources, while the Medieval Sourcebook is continually updated. In particular, there is a range of excellent sourcebooks published by Manchester University Press. Sources on the medieval peasantry are provided by Bailey 2002 and Evergates 1993. Urban economy is touched upon by Dean 2000 and Mediterranean trade is covered by Lopez and Raymond 1955. Cohn 2004 examines sources concerning European social unrest, particularly following the Black Death, which is the subject of Horrox 1994.
  248.  
  249. Bailey, Mark, ed. The English Manor, c. 1200–c. 1500. New York: Manchester University Press, 2002.
  250.  
  251. DOI: 10.7765/MMSO.52293Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  252.  
  253. Bailey’s collection of sources, and thematic introductory discussions, provides an invaluable introduction to manorial documents and their use by the historian.
  254.  
  255. Find this resource:
  256.  
  257. Cave, Roy C., and Herbert H. Coulson, eds. A Source Book for Medieval Economic History. New York: Biblo and Tannen, 1965.
  258.  
  259. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  260.  
  261. This includes a wide range of translated sources that cover many aspects of the medieval European economy.
  262.  
  263. Find this resource:
  264.  
  265. Cohn, Samuel K., Jr., ed. Popular Protest in Late-Medieval Europe: Italy, France and Flanders. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 2004.
  266.  
  267. DOI: 10.7765/MMSO.67303Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  268.  
  269. Collection of annotated documents focusing on the post–Black Death revolts that occurred across Western Europe.
  270.  
  271. Find this resource:
  272.  
  273. Dean, Trevor, ed. The Towns of Italy in the Later Middle Ages. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 2000.
  274.  
  275. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  276.  
  277. Over one hundred documents on the economy and society of late medieval Italian towns.
  278.  
  279. Find this resource:
  280.  
  281. Evergates, Theodore, ed. Feudal Society in Medieval France: Documents from the County of Champagne. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1993.
  282.  
  283. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  284.  
  285. Evergates brings together some two hundred documents that cover the political, economic, and legal history of the medieval county of Champagne.
  286.  
  287. Find this resource:
  288.  
  289. Horrox, Rosemary, ed. The Black Death. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 1994.
  290.  
  291. DOI: 10.7765/MMSO.34985Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  292.  
  293. An impressive sourcebook for the student that traces the spread and impact of the Black Death in Europe, with a number of economic documents, drawn particularly from medieval England.
  294.  
  295. Find this resource:
  296.  
  297. Lopez, Robert S., and Irving W. Raymond, eds. Medieval Trade in the Mediterranean World: Illustrative Documents Translated with Introductions and Notes. London: Cumberlege, 1955.
  298.  
  299. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  300.  
  301. This volume provides a wide range of documents for those interested in Mediterranean commerce and its merchants, including sources of Arabic and Byzantine provenance.
  302.  
  303. Find this resource:
  304.  
  305. The Medieval Sourcebook: Center for Medieval Studies.
  306.  
  307. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  308.  
  309. A broad-ranging collection of online primary sources for the medieval world, including a section titled “Economic Life.”
  310.  
  311. Find this resource:
  312.  
  313. Economic Development and Trends
  314.  
  315. Understanding the prime causes behind economic and social change has been a prominent concern for economic historians, particularly why and how the European economy moved away from feudal structures toward a form of capitalism (Hilton 1976, Whittle 2000). There are a number of contrasting theories propounded, as outlined by Hatcher and Bailey 2001.
  316.  
  317. Hatcher, John, and Mark Bailey. Modelling the Middle Ages: The History and Theory of England’s Economic Development. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001.
  318.  
  319. DOI: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199244119.001.0001Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  320.  
  321. An admirable attempt to outline the major debates and theories that have dominated English economic history. Hatcher and Bailey concentrate on three schools of thought: the Malthusian-Ricardian approach initiated by Postan; the Marxist perspective made notable by historians like Brenner, Bois, and Hilton; and the commercialization model highlighted by Britnell and Campbell. Whether such theories are useful or not for the historian’s method is largely left to the reader’s discretion.
  322.  
  323. Find this resource:
  324.  
  325. Hilton, Rodney H., ed. The Transition from Feudalism to Capitalism. London: New Left, 1976.
  326.  
  327. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  328.  
  329. This volume brings together a range of articles, many of them from a Marxist viewpoint, that consider the forces, nature, and concept of the transition from feudalism to capitalism.
  330.  
  331. Find this resource:
  332.  
  333. Whittle, Jane. The Development of Agrarian Capitalism: Land and Labour in Norfolk, 1440–1580. Oxford: Clarendon, 2000.
  334.  
  335. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  336.  
  337. A study of how the peasant economy developed at the end of the medieval period, with the emergence of large tenant farms employing a significant waged and landless labor force. Whittle tackles the thorny problem of the development of agrarian capitalism in an empirical and lucid manner.
  338.  
  339. Find this resource:
  340.  
  341. Expansion of the Medieval Economy
  342.  
  343. The expansion of the medieval economy is a common theme in many historical studies, emphasizing growth in population, agricultural production, trading relations, towns and urbanization, and the use of coin, at least before the mid-14th century. Harvey 1990 argues that many of these trends can even be also seen in the Byzantine Empire. Some historians, such as Pirenne 1927, would view the 10th and 11th centuries as transformative, driven by a revival in European commerce. Despite new research and arguments, historians still avidly reference Pirenne’s thesis. The concept of a commercial revolution, facilitated by mercantile expansion and energy, was also lucidly proposed by Lopez 1971. The commercialization of the economy has attracted particular attention from English scholars, including Britnell 1996, Britnell and Campbell 1995, and Bailey 1998.
  344.  
  345. Bailey, Mark. “Historiographical Essay: The Commercialisation of the English Economy, 1086–1500.” Journal of Medieval History 24 (1998): 297–311.
  346.  
  347. DOI: 10.1016/S0304-4181(98)00014-1Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  348.  
  349. An overview of the current arguments relating to the commercialization of medieval England and the differing trends from Domesday Book to the end of the 15th century. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  350.  
  351. Find this resource:
  352.  
  353. Britnell, Richard H. The Commercialisation of English Society, 1000–1500. 2d ed. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1996.
  354.  
  355. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  356.  
  357. Britnell seeks to reassert the importance of markets and commercial activity in the medieval economy as a counter to the frequent emphasis on demography or conflict. This thesis runs throughout the book, highlighting the impact of commerce on lords and peasants, as well as the expansion of markets, coin, towns, and trade in the long 13th century. First published in 1993.
  358.  
  359. Find this resource:
  360.  
  361. Britnell, Richard H., and Bruce M. S. Campbell, eds. A Commercialising Economy: England 1086 to c. 1300. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 1995.
  362.  
  363. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  364.  
  365. These essays discuss the nature and degree of commercialization in medieval England. For instance, Britnell argues that the 12th- and 13th-century economy adapted in innovative ways related to monetization, urbanization, and specialization, while Bruce Campbell looks at the commercial decisions of landlords in London’s hinterland. Debate was particularly stimulated by Graeme Snooks and Nicholas Mayhew, who disagreed about estimates of GDP in 1086.
  366.  
  367. Find this resource:
  368.  
  369. Harvey, Alan. The Economic Expansion of the Byzantine Empire, 900–1200. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1990.
  370.  
  371. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511562433Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  372.  
  373. Harvey argues that economic developments in the Byzantine Empire mirrored those in Western Europe, including population growth and both agrarian and urban expansion.
  374.  
  375. Find this resource:
  376.  
  377. Lopez, Robert S. The Commercial Revolution of the Middle Ages, 950–1350. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1971.
  378.  
  379. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  380.  
  381. A well-known contribution to medieval commercial history, which outlined a thesis that is still highly influential in the early 21st century. It is concise in length and referencing (just a brief bibliography), but broad-ranging in scope. Lopez stresses the importance of commercial developments, depicting the entrepreneurial merchant as a prime agent of change through improved credit instruments and transport, but also recognizes both agricultural and environmental influences.
  382.  
  383. Find this resource:
  384.  
  385. Pirenne, Henri. Medieval Cities: Their Origins and the Revival of Trade. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1927.
  386.  
  387. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  388.  
  389. A classic examination of economic development where Pirenne argued that there was a revival of commerce in the late 10th and 11th centuries. He attributed European economic growth to the formation of an entrepreneurial, nonfeudal merchant class, mostly based in the towns.
  390.  
  391. Find this resource:
  392.  
  393. An Economy in Crisis
  394.  
  395. Whether the English economy was in crisis by the close of the 13th century, as the period of expansion came to an end, is the subject of Hybel 1989 and Campbell 1991 (see also Demography and Population Studies). The causes of these economic pressures across Europe are given a new environmental perspective by Campbell 2010. Measuring the economic effects of the mid-14th-century Black Death has generated much debate among English economic historians, with Postan 1938–1939 suggesting that the 15th century was a period of stagnation and recession. This seminal article has proved to be the starting point for many historians working on the long century after the plague, and Hatcher 1996 identified a slump in the middle of that century. However, Bridbury 1962 argued for a potentially more prosperous society, particularly for certain urban communities. More recently, Dyer 2005 has provided a balanced appraisal of the changes taking place in the post–Black Death English economy.
  396.  
  397. Bridbury, Anthony R. Economic Growth: England in the Later Middle Ages. London: George Allen and Unwin, 1962.
  398.  
  399. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  400.  
  401. Bridbury contested Postan’s analysis of the 15th century and argued that there was evidence of prosperity and opportunity for many.
  402.  
  403. Find this resource:
  404.  
  405. Campbell, Bruce M. S., ed. Before the Black Death: Studies in the “Crisis” of the Early Fourteenth Century. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 1991.
  406.  
  407. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  408.  
  409. A collection of papers that looks at whether the early-14th-century economy (particularly in England) was in a state of crisis, as Postan argued, before the Black Death struck. Notable contributions include Barbara Harvey’s interpretative introduction, Richard Smith’s survey of English demographic developments, Mavis Mate’s analysis of the difficulties faced by lords and peasants, and Mark Bailey’s discussion of climatic factors.
  410.  
  411. Find this resource:
  412.  
  413. Campbell, Bruce M. S. “Nature as Historical Protagonist: Environment and Society in Pre-industrial England.” Economic History Review 63 (2010): 281–314.
  414.  
  415. DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-0289.2009.00492.xSave Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  416.  
  417. Campbell looks again at the effects of climate upon economic indicators such as yields, prices, wages, and population. He uses evidence from dendrochronology and Greenland ice-cores to give a global perspective on the relationship between environment and economic history.
  418.  
  419. Find this resource:
  420.  
  421. Dyer, Christopher. An Age of Transition? Economy and Society in England in the Later Middle Ages. Oxford: Clarendon, 2005.
  422.  
  423. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  424.  
  425. Dyer reevaluates the extent of economic depression and social transition in the century or more after the Black Death. He argues that there were many developments in the midst of apparent recession, including a nascent consumerism, market opportunities, better peasant housing, and shifting economic mentalities.
  426.  
  427. Find this resource:
  428.  
  429. Hatcher, John. “The Great Slump of the Mid-Fifteenth Century.” In Progress and Problems in Medieval England: Essays in Honour of Edward Miller. Edited by Richard H. Britnell and John Hatcher, 237–272. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1996.
  430.  
  431. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9781139170956Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  432.  
  433. This article provides an important discussion of the evidence for a mid-15th-century economic depression and the reasons behind it.
  434.  
  435. Find this resource:
  436.  
  437. Hybel, Nils. Crisis or Change: The Concept of Crisis in the Light of Agrarian Structural Reorganization in Late Medieval England. Translated by J. Manley. Aarhus, Denmark: Aarhus University Press, 1989.
  438.  
  439. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  440.  
  441. Hybel provides a good historiography of the early-14th-century English agrarian crisis.
  442.  
  443. Find this resource:
  444.  
  445. Postan, Michael Moissey. “Revisions in Economic History. IX. The Fifteenth Century.” Economic History Review 9 (1938–1939): 160–167.
  446.  
  447. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  448.  
  449. A seminal article that argued for post-1350 economic and commercial decay in English towns and villages. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  450.  
  451. Find this resource:
  452.  
  453. Demography and Population Studies
  454.  
  455. Russell 1958, Grigg 1980, and Hindle 2003 explore the scholarly literature and evidence for population trends in the past. Medieval demography provides innumerable problems for scholars due to a lack of pertinent evidence for birth and death rates. Historians are often reliant on proxy figures, as found in tax data and manorial court roll entries, though Herlihy and Klapisch-Zuber 1985 was able to examine a valuable Florentine census. Smith 1984 looks at broader demographic issues of peasant kinship and life cycle. The growth in the population, particularly from the 11th to 13th centuries, is considered to be a fundamental factor for economic history, often cited as both a cause and effect of agrarian and commercial change; the latter is argued by Langdon and Masschaele 2006. The population expansion of the 12th and 13th centuries has led to arguments, seen in Pounds 1969–1970 and Postan 1973, that Europe was overpopulated by the early 14th century. This thesis has led to much subsequent debate about the state of the European economy in the early 14th century (see An Economy in Crisis).
  456.  
  457. Grigg, David. Population Growth and Agrarian Change: An Historical Perspective. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1980.
  458.  
  459. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  460.  
  461. Grigg surveys the literature on population and agriculture through the lens of an historical geographer and a broad chronological perspective (including a case study on Europe in the 13th and 14th centuries). Grigg argues that limitations on the birth rate are more important than mortality when societies face Malthusian-style “overpopulation.”
  462.  
  463. Find this resource:
  464.  
  465. Herlihy, David, and Christiane Klapisch-Zuber. Tuscans and Their Families: A Study of the Florentine Catasto of 1427. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1985.
  466.  
  467. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  468.  
  469. Using the evidence of the 1427 Catasto, these authors explore various aspects of Florentine society, including birth, marriage, employment, income, and mortality. Abridged edition.
  470.  
  471. Find this resource:
  472.  
  473. Hindle, Andrew. England’s Population: A History since the Domesday Survey. London: Hodder Arnold, 2003.
  474.  
  475. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  476.  
  477. Hindle places medieval demography within a longer perspective, providing a useful summary of the main debates and our current state of knowledge.
  478.  
  479. Find this resource:
  480.  
  481. Langdon, John, and James Masschaele. “Commercial Activity and Population Growth in Medieval England.” Past and Present 190 (2006): 35–81.
  482.  
  483. DOI: 10.1093/pastj/gtj005Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  484.  
  485. Langdon and Masschaele reassess the conceptual framework for medieval commercialization and argue that population growth was influenced by the interaction between society and commercial opportunity. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  486.  
  487. Find this resource:
  488.  
  489. Postan, Michael Moissey. Essays on Medieval Agriculture and General Problems of the Medieval Economy. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1973.
  490.  
  491. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511896729Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  492.  
  493. A collection of twenty-two of Postan’s essays. Postan provided new thinking on a range of economic issues—economic development, agriculture, labor services, and population—and his arguments regarding overpopulation, production, and resources are still very influential in the early 21st century.
  494.  
  495. Find this resource:
  496.  
  497. Pounds, Norman J. G. “Overpopulation in France and the Low Countries in the Late Middle Ages.” Journal of Social History 3 (1969–1970): 225–247.
  498.  
  499. DOI: 10.1353/jsh/3.3.225Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  500.  
  501. Pounds provides a Postan-style analysis of the effects of overpopulation on rural society in northern Europe. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  502.  
  503. Find this resource:
  504.  
  505. Russell, Josiah C. Late Ancient and Medieval Population. Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society, 1958.
  506.  
  507. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  508.  
  509. A classic, if sometimes speculative, appraisal of Europe’s early demography.
  510.  
  511. Find this resource:
  512.  
  513. Smith, Richard M., ed. Land, Kinship, and Life-Cycle. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1984.
  514.  
  515. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  516.  
  517. A collection of detailed papers dealing with issues of demography, land, inheritance, and community in medieval rural society.
  518.  
  519. Find this resource:
  520.  
  521. The Great Famine and the Black Death
  522.  
  523. Some historians point to the Great Famine of 1315–1322 as exemplifying this population-resources crisis of the early 14th century. This particular event killed perhaps 10–15 percent of the European population and is discussed in detail by Lucas 1930 (to date, still the standard reference work on the European famine), Kershaw 1973, and Jordan 1996. However, it is the Black Death (1347–1350) that stands out as the dominant exogenous demographic episode. The spread and mortality of this pestilence are explored in Hatcher 1977 and Benedictow 2004 (see also Horrox 1994, cited under Primary Source Collections in Translation). For medieval demographers, the subsequent stagnation, or even decline, in the population after 1350 has stirred much debate as to whether this was caused primary by increased mortality or decreased fertility. The main arguments are outlined by Smith 1988 and Bailey 1996.
  524.  
  525. Bailey, Mark. “Demographic Decline in Late Medieval England: Some Thoughts on Recent Research.” Economic History Review 49 (1996): 1–19.
  526.  
  527. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  528.  
  529. A broad survey of the debates relating to the demographic stagnation of the 15th century and the subsequent recovery in the 16th century. Bailey argues that this was most likely the consequence of high death rates and high birth rates rather than due to increased female employment opportunities and late marriage. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  530.  
  531. Find this resource:
  532.  
  533. Benedictow, Ole J. The Black Death, 1346–1353: The Complete History. Woodbridge, UK: Boydell, 2004.
  534.  
  535. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  536.  
  537. A comprehensive, detailed discussion of the Black Death in western Europe, based on national case studies, with a particular emphasis on ascertaining levels of mortality in those areas. It engages less with the major debates and recent research than might be expected.
  538.  
  539. Find this resource:
  540.  
  541. Hatcher, John. Plague, Population, and the English Economy, 1348–1530. London: Macmillan, 1977.
  542.  
  543. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  544.  
  545. A concise overview of the demography of late medieval England that summarized the state of research at the time and placed the mortality of the Black Death at a level of 30–45 percent. In addition, Hatcher speculatively argued that the population stagnation of the late 14th and 15th centuries was due to endemic plague/disease and a multiplicity of regional outbreaks.
  546.  
  547. Find this resource:
  548.  
  549. Jordan, William Chester. The Great Famine: Northern Europe in the Early Fourteenth Century. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1996.
  550.  
  551. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  552.  
  553. A synthesis that discusses our current understanding about the social and economic impact of the Great Famine, 1315–1322.
  554.  
  555. Find this resource:
  556.  
  557. Kershaw, Ian. “The Great Famine and Agrarian Crisis in England 1315–1322.” Past and Present 59 (1973): 3–50.
  558.  
  559. DOI: 10.1093/past/59.1.3Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  560.  
  561. A detailed examination of the causes, nature, and effects of the Great Famine in early-14th-century England. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  562.  
  563. Find this resource:
  564.  
  565. Lucas, Henry S. “The Great European Famine of 1315, 1316, and 1317.” Speculum 5 (1930): 343–377.
  566.  
  567. DOI: 10.2307/2848143Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  568.  
  569. Although this article was written in 1930, it still remains one of the best introductions to the socioeconomic impact of this Europe-wide crisis. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  570.  
  571. Find this resource:
  572.  
  573. Smith, Richard M. “Human Resources.” In The Countryside of Medieval England. Edited by Grenville Astill and Annie Grant, 188–212. Oxford: Blackwell, 1988.
  574.  
  575. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  576.  
  577. Smith gives an excellent summary of the debates concerning the relationship between population and resources in medieval England.
  578.  
  579. Find this resource:
  580.  
  581. Prices, Wages, and Standards of Living
  582.  
  583. Evidence for long-term trends in prices and wages for medieval Europe is not easy to collate. One of the standard works remains Phelps Brown and Hopkins 1981, while Hamilton 1936 provides a similar and still-useful reference for the Iberian Peninsula, but the data from both are debateable. The standard of living for medieval people is thus not easy to quantify, as outlined by Bailey 1998. Nevertheless, there are some interesting attempts to assess the earnings, consumption, diet, and demand of medieval English people in Dyer 1998; Penn and Dyer 1990; Harvey 1993; Dyer 1994; Kitsikopoulos 2000; and Woolgar, et al. 2006. There is an argument that a nascent consumer society emerged in the 15th century (see Dyer 2005, cited under An Economy in Crisis).
  584.  
  585. Bailey, Mark. “Peasant Welfare in England, 1290–1348.” Economic History Review 51 (1998): 223–251.
  586.  
  587. DOI: 10.1111/1468-0289.00089Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  588.  
  589. Bailey provides a succinct and clear analysis of the main debates and evidence concerning peasant living standards in the decades before the Black Death. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  590.  
  591. Find this resource:
  592.  
  593. Dyer, Christopher. Everyday Life in Medieval England. London: Hambledon, 1994.
  594.  
  595. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  596.  
  597. A collection of Dyer’s most prominent articles, covering topics from consumption and living standards to marketing and villages.
  598.  
  599. Find this resource:
  600.  
  601. Dyer, Christopher. Standards of Living in the Later Middle Ages: Social Change in England, c.1200–1520. 2d ed. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1998.
  602.  
  603. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  604.  
  605. A valuable study of living standards, consumption, and demand, spanning the social classes from lords to peasants.
  606.  
  607. Find this resource:
  608.  
  609. Hamilton, Earl J. Money, Prices and Wages in Valencia, Aragon, and Navarre, 1351–1500. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1936.
  610.  
  611. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  612.  
  613. An old, but still-important, analysis of money, prices, and wages for this region.
  614.  
  615. Find this resource:
  616.  
  617. Harvey, Barbara. Living and Dying in England 1100–1540: The Monastic Experience. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1993.
  618.  
  619. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  620.  
  621. Harvey uses the archives of Westminster Abbey in order to explore the daily lives, diet, and demography of the Benedictine monks.
  622.  
  623. Find this resource:
  624.  
  625. Kitsikopoulos, Harry. “Standards of Living and Capital Formation in Pre-Plague England: A Peasant Budget Model.” Economic History Review 53 (2000): 237–261.
  626.  
  627. DOI: 10.1111/1468-0289.00159Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  628.  
  629. An innovative, if highly debated, attempt to model the economic inputs and outputs of a supposedly “typical” medieval peasant who held eighteen acres of arable land. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  630.  
  631. Find this resource:
  632.  
  633. Penn, Simon A. C., and Christopher Dyer. “Wages and Earnings in Late Medieval England: Evidence from the Enforcement of the Labour Laws.” Economic History Review 43 (1990): 356–376.
  634.  
  635. DOI: 10.2307/2596938Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  636.  
  637. Penn and Dyer reexamine the evidence for rising wages and earnings in the decades after the Black Death. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  638.  
  639. Find this resource:
  640.  
  641. Phelps Brown, E. Henry, and Sheila V. Hopkins. A Perspective of Prices and Wages. London and New York: Methuen, 1981.
  642.  
  643. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  644.  
  645. Based on a selection of articles published between 1955 and 1966, this volume is still much used by historians in the early 21st century. It provides a range of economic data for the last seven centuries, from builders’ wages to the price of a basket of consumables.
  646.  
  647. Find this resource:
  648.  
  649. Woolgar, Chris M., Dale Serjeantson, and Tony Waldron, eds. Food in Medieval England: Diet and Nutrition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006.
  650.  
  651. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  652.  
  653. This recent, multidisciplinary book provides a very good breadth of articles on medieval food and diet, from birds and fish to plants and cattle.
  654.  
  655. Find this resource:
  656.  
  657. Rural Society and the Agrarian Economy
  658.  
  659. Medieval society was predominantly agrarian and thus agricultural productivity was vital to its economy. Understanding the organization of, and changes in, rural society and agriculture is consequently an important theme in medieval economic history. Abel 1980, Campbell and Overton 1991, and Dodds and Britnell 2009 provide overviews of agrarian productivity for later medieval Europe. Surprisingly little has been written on this subject for the early medieval economy, but Wickham 1992 and Wickham 1995 provide a good starting point. An introduction to England’s medieval agrarian economy is given by The Agrarian History of England and Wales (Finberg 1972, Hallam 1988, Miller 1991).
  660.  
  661. Abel, Wilhelm. Agrarian Fluctuations in Europe: From the Thirteenth to Twentieth Centuries. London: Methuen, 1980.
  662.  
  663. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  664.  
  665. Abel deploys an extensive range of data on population, wages, and rents in order to track long-term agricultural and economic fluctuations across Europe.
  666.  
  667. Find this resource:
  668.  
  669. Campbell, Bruce M. S., and Mark Overton, eds. Land, Labour, and Livestock: Historical Studies in European Agricultural Productivity. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 1991.
  670.  
  671. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  672.  
  673. A variety of contributors discuss European productivity and yields across the last eight hundred years, with a particular focus on the medieval period.
  674.  
  675. Find this resource:
  676.  
  677. Dodds, Ben, and Richard H. Britnell, eds. Agriculture and Rural Society after the Black Death: Common Themes and Regional Variations. Hatfield, UK: University of Hertfordshire Press, 2009.
  678.  
  679. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  680.  
  681. A number of contributions that examine the rural economy throughout both England and Europe more widely, thus providing a useful comparative approach. Three main themes are identified by the editors: markets, incentives, and prices; output and productivity (with a particular focus on tithe data); and the impact of plague and depopulation.
  682.  
  683. Find this resource:
  684.  
  685. Finberg, Herbert P. R., ed. The Agrarian History of England and Wales. Vol. 1, Part 2, A.D. 43–1042. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1972.
  686.  
  687. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  688.  
  689. This volume gives a general introduction to early medieval agricultural and rural history, including a discussion of the evidential difficulties. Finberg himself provides an overview of the changes in rural landscape and social structure.
  690.  
  691. Find this resource:
  692.  
  693. Hallam, Henry E., ed. The Agrarian History of England and Wales. Vol. 2, 1042–1350. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1988.
  694.  
  695. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  696.  
  697. This second collaborative volume in the AHEW series covers the period from Edward the Confessor to the Black Death. There are regional discussions of settlement, farming, and social structure, though little on economic development and change. Two of the most important chapters are those by Sally Harvey on “Domesday England” (pp. 45–138) and David Farmer on “Prices and Wages” (pp. 716–817; continued in Volume 3).
  698.  
  699. Find this resource:
  700.  
  701. Miller, Edward, ed. The Agrarian History of England and Wales. Vol. 3, 1348–1500. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1991.
  702.  
  703. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  704.  
  705. This third volume, with contributions from various notable historians, gives a good survey of agricultural and rural history in the century and a half after the Black Death. Alongside regional analyses of farming practices and tenure, David Farmer looks at “Marketing the Produce of the Countryside, 1200–1500” (pp. 324–430) and Edmund B. Fryde explores “Peasant Rebellion and Peasant Discontents” (pp. 744–819).
  706.  
  707. Find this resource:
  708.  
  709. Wickham, Chris J. “Problems of Comparing Rural Societies in Early Medieval Western Europe.” Transactions of the Royal Historical Society 6 (1992): 221–246.
  710.  
  711. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  712.  
  713. Wickham discusses the dearth of historical surveys that specifically tackle European rural society as a whole before 900. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  714.  
  715. Find this resource:
  716.  
  717. Wickham, Chris. “Rural Society in Carolingian Europe.” In The New Cambridge Medieval History. Vol. 2, c.700–c.900. Edited by Rosamond McKitterick, 510–537. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1995.
  718.  
  719. DOI: 10.1017/CHOL9780521362924Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  720.  
  721. Wickham provides an overview of agrarian society in the 8th and 9th centuries.
  722.  
  723. Find this resource:
  724.  
  725. Seigneurial Agriculture
  726.  
  727. Campbell (Campbell 2000, Campbell 2007) explores in detail the seigneurial farming practices and strategies of medieval England, arguing that market demand was an important influence. The entrepreneurship and decision-making of medieval lords and officials is the subject of Witt 1971, Duby 1974, and Stone 2005, while Langdon 1986 explores agrarian technology with a particular focus on horses. Land was the most valuable resource in medieval society and shaped tenant-lord relations. Although many studies concentrate on arable production, Biddick 1989 stresses pastoral developments, while Bailey 1989 highlights other ways in which marginal lands were exploited, often with the market in mind.
  728.  
  729. Bailey, Mark. A Marginal Economy? East Anglian Breckland in the Later Middle Ages. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1989.
  730.  
  731. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511896477Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  732.  
  733. Bailey provides a reexamination of the notion of marginal lands and their economic role and productivity.
  734.  
  735. Find this resource:
  736.  
  737. Biddick, Kathleen. The Other Economy: Pastoral Husbandry on a Medieval Estate. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1989.
  738.  
  739. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  740.  
  741. Through a close study of the records of Peterborough Abbey (Lincolnshire), Biddick looks at the management of agrarian resources with a particular emphasis on the pastoral and livestock use by this estate.
  742.  
  743. Find this resource:
  744.  
  745. Campbell, Bruce M. S. English Seigniorial Agriculture, 1250–1450. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2000.
  746.  
  747. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511522215Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  748.  
  749. This important volume marks the culmination of numerous publications by Campbell on medieval agriculture. He outlines the main systems of arable and pastoral husbandry, providing models for calculating land productivity and estimating grain outputs. Ultimately, Campbell stresses the importance of demand and markets for agricultural investment and technological progress. Behind the discussion lies a vast array of primary source evidence from manorial accounts.
  750.  
  751. Find this resource:
  752.  
  753. Campbell, Bruce M. The Medieval Antecedents of English Agricultural Progress. Aldershot, UK: Ashgate, 2007.
  754.  
  755. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  756.  
  757. Continued in Field Systems and Farming Systems in Late Medieval England (Farnham, England: Ashgate Variorum, 2008) and Land and People in Late Medieval England (Farnham, England: Ashgate Variorum, 2009). These three volumes bring together Campbell’s important corpus of articles on medieval agriculture, land, and tenants.
  758.  
  759. Find this resource:
  760.  
  761. Duby, Georges. The Early Growth of the European Economy: Warriors and Peasants from the Seventh to the Twelfth Century. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 1974.
  762.  
  763. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  764.  
  765. Duby’s historical synthesis was originally published in French in 1973. He argues that lords and clergy were the most entrepreneurial groups before the 12th century and shaped economic growth. Both war on the periphery of Europe and the growth of lordship more generally drove economic developments. This was one of the first surveys to consider the relationship between social attitudes and economic practice.
  766.  
  767. Find this resource:
  768.  
  769. Langdon, John. Horses, Oxen and Technological Innovation: The Use of Draught Animals in English Farming from 1066–1500. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1986.
  770.  
  771. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  772.  
  773. Langdon examines the increasing use of horses in English farming and the extent to which this improved hauling and ploughing.
  774.  
  775. Find this resource:
  776.  
  777. Stone, David. Decision-Making in Medieval Agriculture. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005.
  778.  
  779. DOI: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199247769.001.0001Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  780.  
  781. This book readdresses the importance of market demand in the management and policies of demesne farming. Through his investigation of Wisbech manors, Stone emphasizes the role of reeves and other officials in grasping commercial opportunities.
  782.  
  783. Find this resource:
  784.  
  785. Witt, Ronald G. “The Landlord and the Economic Revival of the Middle Ages in Northern Europe, 1000–1250.” American Historical Review 76 (1971): 965–988.
  786.  
  787. DOI: 10.2307/1849238Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  788.  
  789. Witt reassesses the relationship between town and country, merchant and landlord. He argues that the landlords were very successful in adapting to the commercializing economy. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  790.  
  791. Find this resource:
  792.  
  793. Peasant Society and Agriculture
  794.  
  795. Classic studies of the medieval peasantry include Duby 1968 and Fossier 1988. Other studies look at peasant life, agriculture, and economy in a regional context. Le Roy Ladurie 1966 and Duby 1975–1976 examine the French peasantry in detail, and the important influence of their work is seen in much of the more recent literature on the subject; Rösener 1992 and Hoffmann 1989 explore the peasantry of central Europe and Poland, respectively; Ruiz 1994 studies rural and urban society in Castile; and Laiou-Thomadakis 1977 looks at these issues for medieval Byzantium.
  796.  
  797. Duby, Georges. Rural Economy and Country Life in the Medieval West. Translated by Cynthia M. Postan. London: Edward Arnold, 1968.
  798.  
  799. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  800.  
  801. This is a classic study of the late medieval peasantry where Duby uses the estate evidence to assess such issues as yields and assarts. There is also a selection of translated primary sources.
  802.  
  803. Find this resource:
  804.  
  805. Duby, Georges, and Armand Wallon, eds. Histoire de la France rurale, 4 vols. Paris: Seuil, 1975–1976.
  806.  
  807. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  808.  
  809. A broad-ranging, historical survey of the French peasantry.
  810.  
  811. Find this resource:
  812.  
  813. Fossier, Robert. Peasant Life in the Medieval West. Translated by Juliet Vale. Oxford: Blackwell, 1988.
  814.  
  815. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  816.  
  817. A readable discussion of the European peasantry (10th–13th centuries) with an emphasis on France. Fossier addresses issues raised by Georges Duby in Rural Economy (Duby 1968) by broadening the evidential base and adopting an Annales approach that considers peasant mentalities, rituals, and interrelationships. He stresses the role of the state and towns in the breakdown of the feudal system. First published in French in 1984.
  818.  
  819. Find this resource:
  820.  
  821. Hoffmann, Richard C. Land, Liberties and Lordship in a Late Medieval Countryside: Agrarian Structure and Change in the Duchy of Wrocław. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1989.
  822.  
  823. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  824.  
  825. Hoffman examines the agrarian history of Poland through a case study of the Duchy of Wrocław (Silesia).
  826.  
  827. Find this resource:
  828.  
  829. Laiou-Thomadakis, Angeliki E. Peasant Society in the Late Byzantine Empire: A Social and Demographic Study. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1977.
  830.  
  831. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  832.  
  833. A detailed analysis of rural society and demography in Byzantium.
  834.  
  835. Find this resource:
  836.  
  837. Le Roy Ladurie, Emmanuel. Les Paysans de Languedoc. Paris: SEVPEN, 1966.
  838.  
  839. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  840.  
  841. A classic study of Languedoc peasants and rural society.
  842.  
  843. Find this resource:
  844.  
  845. Rösener, Werner. Peasants in the Middle Ages. Translated by Alexander Stützer. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1992.
  846.  
  847. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  848.  
  849. Rösener looks at the history of the medieval peasantry in Germanic and central Europe.
  850.  
  851. Find this resource:
  852.  
  853. Ruiz, Teofilo F. Crisis and Continuity: Land and Town in Late Medieval Castile. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1994.
  854.  
  855. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  856.  
  857. A detailed study of medieval rural and urban life in medieval Castile.
  858.  
  859. Find this resource:
  860.  
  861. England
  862.  
  863. The enviable survival of manorial documentation has led to a rich array of scholarship about the English peasantry. A number of regional case studies attempt to analyze peasant life, economy, and agriculture in this country, such as Howell 1983, Razi 1980, and Poos 1991, while Schofield 2003 gives a more concise overview of peasant society and economy. However, a lack of documentation makes it difficult to examine peasant agriculture, though an admirable attempt is made by Dodds 2007. In addition, studies such as Harvey 1984 and Raftis 1996, have highlighted peasant involvement in land, credit, and commodity markets; such activities led Macfarlane 1978 to argue for widespread individualist and capitalist attitudes in agrarian activity.
  864.  
  865. Dodds, Ben. Peasants and Production in the Medieval North-East: The Evidence from Tithes, 1270–1536. Woodbridge, UK: Boydell and Brewer, 2007.
  866.  
  867. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  868.  
  869. An admirable attempt to reconstruct the practices of medieval peasant agriculture through the limited evidence of the Durham Cathedral Priory tithe receipts. Dodds’s findings reinforce the historiographical trend that suggests that the market was prominent in the strategies of peasant cultivators.
  870.  
  871. Find this resource:
  872.  
  873. Harvey, Paul D. A., ed. The Peasant Land Market in Medieval England. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1984.
  874.  
  875. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  876.  
  877. A collection of articles that explore the extent and form of land markets in medieval England, highlighting the extent to which even unfree peasants were involved in selling and transferring land.
  878.  
  879. Find this resource:
  880.  
  881. Howell, Cicely. Land, Family, and Inheritance in Transition: Kibworth Harcourt, 1280–1700. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1983.
  882.  
  883. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  884.  
  885. A detailed study based on the Leicestershire manor of Kibworth Harcourt, Howell explores issues such as landholding, inheritance, agriculture, manorial administration, living standards, and village topography.
  886.  
  887. Find this resource:
  888.  
  889. Macfarlane, Alan. The Origins of English Individualism: The Family, Property, and Social Transition. Oxford: Blackwell, 1978.
  890.  
  891. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  892.  
  893. Macfarlane provocatively argued that there were capitalist characteristics within landholding and the land market of the 13th century. His thesis, which has stimulated much debate, looks mostly at property relations and the family and the notion of “economically rational” individuals.
  894.  
  895. Find this resource:
  896.  
  897. Poos, Lawrence R. A Rural Society after the Black Death: Essex, 1350–1525. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1991.
  898.  
  899. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511522437Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  900.  
  901. A regional study that is particularly strong in its analysis of demographic trends in parts of Essex.
  902.  
  903. Find this resource:
  904.  
  905. Raftis, James Ambrose. Peasant Economic Development within the English Manorial System. Montreal: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 1996.
  906.  
  907. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  908.  
  909. Drawing largely on the evidence of the manors of Ramsey Abbey, challenges both Marxist and Malthusian approaches to medieval English economic history and stresses instead the market involvement and mobility of the peasantry. For Raftis, the customary tenants were highly influential in determining the manorial economy.
  910.  
  911. Find this resource:
  912.  
  913. Razi, Zvi. Life, Marriage, and Death in a Medieval Parish: Economy, Society and Demography in Halesowen, 1270–1400. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1980.
  914.  
  915. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  916.  
  917. Razi looks at one Worcestershire village through its manorial court rolls in order to examine its demographic history.
  918.  
  919. Find this resource:
  920.  
  921. Schofield, Phillipp R. Peasant and Community in Medieval England, 1200–1500. Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan, 2003.
  922.  
  923. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  924.  
  925. A scholarly work that surveys many of the essential facets of a medieval peasant’s economic life, including landholding, tenure, inheritance, lordship, family and household, and community. A strong element of the book concerns the market activities of the peasantry and their active decision making.
  926.  
  927. Find this resource:
  928.  
  929. Settlement
  930.  
  931. Studies of rural settlement patterns draw not just on historical records, as in Campbell and Bartley 2006, but also the evidence of archaeology and geography. Notable examples include Hoskins 1985 (originally published in 1955); Aston, et al. 1989; Lewis, et al. 1997; and Williamson 2003. The village, in particular, is examined by Genicot 1990, while Toch 2003 looks at settlements in medieval Germany.
  932.  
  933. Aston, Michael, David Austin, and Christopher Dyer, eds. The Rural Settlements of Medieval England: Studies Dedicated to Maurice Beresford and John Hurst. Oxford: Blackwell, 1989.
  934.  
  935. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  936.  
  937. This volume of essays, by a range of notable historians, highlights developments in the history of medieval English landscape and settlement since the seminal 1971 work on deserted medieval villages by Maurice Beresford and John Hurst. Themes include lordship, custom, marginal land, and colonization, alongside a variety of detailed fieldwork studies.
  938.  
  939. Find this resource:
  940.  
  941. Campbell, Bruce M. S., and Ken Bartley. England on the Eve of the Black Death: An Atlas of Lay Lordship, Land and Wealth, 1300–49. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 2006.
  942.  
  943. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  944.  
  945. This volume has an array of maps, derived from the evidence of Inquisitions post mortem and lay subsidy returns, which show the medieval agrarian landscape before the Black Death.
  946.  
  947. Find this resource:
  948.  
  949. Genicot, Léopold. Rural Communities in the Medieval West. Baltimore: John Hopkins University Press, 1990.
  950.  
  951. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  952.  
  953. A series of lectures (and an extensive bibliography) dealing with the medieval village’s form and structure.
  954.  
  955. Find this resource:
  956.  
  957. Hoskins, William G. The Making of the English Landscape. Leicester, UK: Hodder, 1985.
  958.  
  959. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  960.  
  961. A groundbreaking discussion of the relationship between human activity and changes in the landscape. This study laid the basis for much of the research that has followed. First published in 1955.
  962.  
  963. Find this resource:
  964.  
  965. Lewis, Carenza, Patrick Mitchell-Fox, and Christopher Dyer, eds. Village, Hamlet and Field: Changing Medieval Settlements in Central England. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 1997.
  966.  
  967. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  968.  
  969. Collections of papers on medieval English rural landscape, drawing on the methods of history, archaeology, and geography.
  970.  
  971. Find this resource:
  972.  
  973. Toch, Michael. “Peasants of the Mountains, Peasants of the Valleys and Medieval State Building: The Case of the Alps.” In Peasants and Jews in Medieval Germany: Studies in Cultural, Social, and Economic History. Edited by Michael Toch. Aldershot, UK: Ashgate, 2003.
  974.  
  975. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  976.  
  977. Toch examines peasant settlement patterns across the late medieval Alps.
  978.  
  979. Find this resource:
  980.  
  981. Williamson, Tom. Shaping Medieval Landscapes: Settlement, Society, Environment. Macclesfield, UK: Windgather, 2003.
  982.  
  983. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  984.  
  985. An introduction to the history of settlement and the accompanying historiography. Williamson covers a broad chronology and also provides some fresh viewpoints on landscape, cultivation, and villages.
  986.  
  987. Find this resource:
  988.  
  989. Lords and Peasants
  990.  
  991. The extent to which lord-peasant relations were exploitative or mutually beneficial has been the subject of much debate. Hilton 1975 provides a classic, neo-Marxist summary of the medieval English peasantry (see Hatcher and Bailey 2001, cited under Economic Development and Trends, for a discussion of Marxist views within medieval economic history). Robert Brenner stresses the antagonistic nature of lord-peasant relations, and the subsequent debate in Past and Present is collated in Aston and Philpin 1985. Hatcher 1981 provides a new perspective on the quasiconsensual nature of English serfdom, while Evergates 1976, Dyer 1980, Górecki 1992, and Larson 2006 provide regional case studies. The changing relationship between lords and peasants since the fall of Rome is explored by Faith 1997. More specific works on the origins and nature of feudalism are brought together in the next section.
  992.  
  993. Aston, Trevor H., and Charles H. E. Philpin, eds. The Brenner Debate: Agrarian Class Structure and Economic Development in Pre-industrial Europe. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1985.
  994.  
  995. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511562358Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  996.  
  997. In his influential 1976 article (republished in this volume), Robert Brenner argued for a reconsideration of the importance of agrarian class struggle. This article sparked debate on the nature of class structure and feudal society, and how these influenced economic development, leading to several articles in the same journal. These were brought together in this one volume, including Brenner’s riposte in 1985.
  998.  
  999. Find this resource:
  1000.  
  1001. Dyer, Christopher. Lords and Peasants in a Changing Society: The Estates of the Bishopric of Worcester, 680–1540. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1980.
  1002.  
  1003. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1004.  
  1005. A rich study of the estates of the bishopric of Worcester, exploring both the tenantry and the development of the demesne.
  1006.  
  1007. Find this resource:
  1008.  
  1009. Evergates, Theodore. Feudal Society in the Bailliage of Troyes under the Counts of Champagne, 1152–1284. Baltimore and London: John Hopkins University Press, 1976.
  1010.  
  1011. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1012.  
  1013. This detailed study includes two chapters on the peasantry, though much of the book is concerned with the structure of aristocratic society.
  1014.  
  1015. Find this resource:
  1016.  
  1017. Faith, Rosamond. The English Peasantry and the Growth of Lordship. London: Leicester University Press, 1997.
  1018.  
  1019. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1020.  
  1021. Faith tracks the changing relationship between English lords and peasants from the end of the Roman Empire to the 12th century.
  1022.  
  1023. Find this resource:
  1024.  
  1025. Górecki, Piotr. Economy, Society, and Lordship in Medieval Poland, 1100–1250. New York and London: Holmes and Meier, 1992.
  1026.  
  1027. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1028.  
  1029. Górecki looks at the complex relationship in medieval Poland between land, agriculture, seigneurial jurisdictions, markets, and peasants.
  1030.  
  1031. Find this resource:
  1032.  
  1033. Hatcher, John. “English Serfdom and Villeinage: Towards a Reassessment.” Past and Present 90 (1981): 4–39.
  1034.  
  1035. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1036.  
  1037. Hatcher questions the approach of historians like Brenner, who have not only ignored the large number of free peasants, but also misunderstood the socioeconomic impact and character of villeinage and the extent to which serfs were exploited. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1038.  
  1039. Find this resource:
  1040.  
  1041. Hilton, Rodney H. The English Peasantry in the Later Middle Ages: The Ford Lectures for 1973 and Related Studies. Oxford: Clarendon, 1975.
  1042.  
  1043. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1044.  
  1045. A collection of lectures and papers that discuss the English peasants and villages of the West Midlands. Hilton emphasizes the often unequal relations between peasants, as well as how their world consisted of borrowing, marketing, and neighborly disputes.
  1046.  
  1047. Find this resource:
  1048.  
  1049. Larson, Peter L. Conflict and Compromise in the Late Medieval Countryside: Lords and Peasants in Durham, 1349–1400. New York: Routledge, 2006.
  1050.  
  1051. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1052.  
  1053. A regional study of the sometimes-tense relations between lord and peasants.
  1054.  
  1055. Find this resource:
  1056.  
  1057. Feudalism
  1058.  
  1059. There has been much debate over the origins and development of feudalism or serfdom in medieval Europe. The classic formulations of feudalism are in Ganshof 1964, Bloch 1961, and Bloch 1975, and these laid the foundation for later debate.
  1060.  
  1061. Bloch, Marc. Feudal Society. 2 vols. Translated by L. A. Manyon. Chicago: Chicago University Press, 1961.
  1062.  
  1063. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1064.  
  1065. Bloch provided another classic definition of feudalism that included not only lords and vassals, but also the bonds involving the peasantry and serfdom. Originally published in 1939.
  1066.  
  1067. Find this resource:
  1068.  
  1069. Bloch, Marc. Slavery and Serfdom in the Middle Ages: Selected Essays. Translated by William R. Beer. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1975.
  1070.  
  1071. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1072.  
  1073. This collection of Bloch’s essays includes his classic discussion (“Comment et pourquoi finit l’esclavage antique”) of the transition from slavery to serfdom.
  1074.  
  1075. Find this resource:
  1076.  
  1077. Ganshof, François Louis. Feudalism. Translated by Philip Grierson. New York: Harper Torch, 1964.
  1078.  
  1079. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1080.  
  1081. A classic, but later much-debated, discussion of European feudal institutions, which defined feudalism narrowly in terms of reciprocal legal and military obligations between lords and vassals and based around fiefs.
  1082.  
  1083. Find this resource:
  1084.  
  1085. Development
  1086.  
  1087. The origins of early feudalism are discussed in Wickham 1984 and Goetz 1993. There is an argument that a “feudal revolution” took place around the millennium in which local, small-scale forms of feudal society took precedence. These arguments can be seen in Bois 1992 and Bisson 1994. Barthélemy 1992 stresses the extent of continuity, while Poly and Bournazel 1980 advocates the notion of mutation rather than revolution. The very notion of feudalism is deconstructed by Brown 1974 and Reynolds 1994.
  1088.  
  1089. Barthélemy, Dominique. “La mutation féodale a-t-elle eu lieu?” Annales 47 (1992): 767–777.
  1090.  
  1091. DOI: 10.3406/ahess.1992.279072Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1092.  
  1093. Barthélemy rejected the concept of “feudal mutation,” including the assumption of a preexisting “public order” and historians’ use of terminology as evidence of substantive change, and instead emphasized the level of continuity. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1094.  
  1095. Find this resource:
  1096.  
  1097. Bisson, Thomas N. “The ‘Feudal Revolution.’” Past and Present 142 (1994): 6–42.
  1098.  
  1099. DOI: 10.1093/past/142.1.6Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1100.  
  1101. Bisson reevaluates changing attitudes toward lordship, arguing that feudal “revolution” is applicable to the transformations taking place around the millennium. There is further debate on “the feudal revolution” in response to this article among Dominique Barthélemy, Stephen D. White, Timothy Reuter, Chris Wickham, and Thomas N. Bisson in Past and Present 152 (1996): 197–223 and 155 (1997): 177–225. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1102.  
  1103. Find this resource:
  1104.  
  1105. Bois, Guy. The Transformation of the Year One Thousand: The Village of Lournand from Antiquity to Feudalism. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 1992.
  1106.  
  1107. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1108.  
  1109. Bois argued that private property and slave labor were subject to a postmillennial feudal revolution. Originally published as La mutation de l’an mil: Lournand, village mâconnais, de l’antiquité au féodalisme (Paris: Fayard, 1989).
  1110.  
  1111. Find this resource:
  1112.  
  1113. Brown, Elizabeth A. R. “The Tyranny of a Construct: Feudalism and Historians of Medieval Europe.” American Historical Review 79 (1974): 1063–1088.
  1114.  
  1115. DOI: 10.2307/1869563Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1116.  
  1117. Brown questions whether the term “feudalism” is too much of a problematic construct for historians and counterproductive for our subsequent understanding of medieval European society and economy. Available online.
  1118.  
  1119. Find this resource:
  1120.  
  1121. Goetz, Hans-Werner. “Serfdom and the Beginnings of a ‘Seigneurial System’ in the Carolingian Period: A Survey of the Evidence.” Early Medieval Europe 2.1 (1993): 29–51.
  1122.  
  1123. DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-0254.1993.tb00009.xSave Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1124.  
  1125. Goetz examines the origins of serfdom in medieval Europe. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1126.  
  1127. Find this resource:
  1128.  
  1129. Poly, Jean-Pierre, and Eric Bournazel. La mutation féodale: Xe–XIIe siècles. Paris: PUF, 1980.
  1130.  
  1131. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1132.  
  1133. Poly and Bournazel argued for a break (mutation rather than revolution) in the form of feudal societies in the 11th and 12th centuries. Even if fiefs and vassals were present in the preceding centuries, feudalism was very different. Translated by Caroline Higgitt as The Feudal Transformation, 900–1200 (2d ed. London: Holmes and Meier, 1991).
  1134.  
  1135. Find this resource:
  1136.  
  1137. Reynolds, Susan. Fiefs and Vassals: The Medieval Evidence Reinterpreted. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1994.
  1138.  
  1139. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1140.  
  1141. A broad-sweeping deconstruction of the notion of “feudalism” and historians’ understanding of the term.
  1142.  
  1143. Find this resource:
  1144.  
  1145. Wickham, Chris J. “The Other Transition: From the Ancient World to Feudalism.” Past and Present 103 (1984): 3–36.
  1146.  
  1147. DOI: 10.1093/past/103.1.3Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1148.  
  1149. Wickham explores the economic transitions that took place with the “end of the ancient world” and the extent to which slavery is replaced by serfdom. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1150.  
  1151. Find this resource:
  1152.  
  1153. Decline
  1154.  
  1155. A number of scholars, such as Blum 1957, have also considered the divergence of experience in Western and Eastern Europe after the Black Death, as serfdom disappeared in the former and was strengthened in the latter. The decline of serfdom in Western Europe is explored by Hilton 1969, Bois 1984, and Freedman 1991.
  1156.  
  1157. Blum, Jerome. “The Rise of Serfdom in Eastern Europe.” American Historical Review 62.4 (1957): 807–836.
  1158.  
  1159. DOI: 10.2307/1845515Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1160.  
  1161. Blum analyzes why a “second serfdom” emerged in Eastern Europe even while serfdom was on the wane elsewhere. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1162.  
  1163. Find this resource:
  1164.  
  1165. Bois, Guy. The Crisis of Feudalism: Economy and Society in Eastern Normandy, c.1300–1550. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1984.
  1166.  
  1167. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1168.  
  1169. Bois examines, in Marxist terms, the feudal decline in late medieval Normandy.
  1170.  
  1171. Find this resource:
  1172.  
  1173. Freedman, Paul H. The Origins of Peasant Servitude in Medieval Catalonia. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1991.
  1174.  
  1175. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511583636Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1176.  
  1177. Freedman focuses on the subjugation of the Catalan peasantry between the 11th and 13th centuries, and then the decline of serfdom in the 15th century.
  1178.  
  1179. Find this resource:
  1180.  
  1181. Hilton, Rodney H. The Decline of Serfdom in Medieval England. London: Macmillan, 1969.
  1182.  
  1183. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1184.  
  1185. A short discussion, from a Marxist perspective, of the withering of serfdom after the Black Death.
  1186.  
  1187. Find this resource:
  1188.  
  1189. Popular Discontent
  1190.  
  1191. There are instances of popular discontent across the medieval period, but social unrest was particularly notable and widespread in the decades after the Black Death. The socioeconomic causes of revolts are an important part of this topic, alongside political and fiscal issues, as noted in Fourquin 1978 and Mollat and Wolff 1973. A recent overview of late medieval European revolts is given by Cohn 2006. There are more specific studies of uprisings in Italy (Brucker 1968), England (Dobson 1983, Hilton 1973, Hilton and Aston 1984), and Flanders (Nicholas 1971, TeBrake 1993).
  1192.  
  1193. Brucker, Gene A. “The Ciompi Revolution.” In Florentine Studies. Politics and Society in Renaissance Florence. Edited by Nicolai Rubinstein, 314–356. London: Faber and Faber, 1968.
  1194.  
  1195. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1196.  
  1197. Two chapters that explore the socioeconomic conditions in late medieval Florence and the subsequent revolt of the Ciompi.
  1198.  
  1199. Find this resource:
  1200.  
  1201. Cohn, Samuel K., Jr. Lust for Liberty: The Politics of Social Revolt in Medieval Europe, 1200–1425. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2006.
  1202.  
  1203. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1204.  
  1205. An analysis of the causes and nature of European rebellions before and after the Black Death.
  1206.  
  1207. Find this resource:
  1208.  
  1209. Dobson, Richard Barrie. The Peasants’ Revolt of 1381. 2d ed. London: Macmillan, 1983.
  1210.  
  1211. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1212.  
  1213. An excellent set of documents for the rising of 1381 and summaries of the main issues.
  1214.  
  1215. Find this resource:
  1216.  
  1217. Fourquin, Guy. The Anatomy of Popular Rebellion in the Middle Ages. Translated by Anne Chesters. Amsterdam: North Holland, 1978.
  1218.  
  1219. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1220.  
  1221. Fourquin analyzes the form and nature of revolts in late medieval Europe.
  1222.  
  1223. Find this resource:
  1224.  
  1225. Hilton, Rodney H. Bond Men Made Free: Medieval Peasant Movements and the English Rising of 1381. London: Temple Smith, 1973.
  1226.  
  1227. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1228.  
  1229. Hilton’s concise account of the 1381 English Rising explored the causes and course of the revolt from a Marxist perspective.
  1230.  
  1231. Find this resource:
  1232.  
  1233. Hilton, Rodney H., and Trevor H. Aston, eds. The English Rising of 1381. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1984.
  1234.  
  1235. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1236.  
  1237. A variety of important essays that discuss both the English Revolt of 1381 and its broader European context.
  1238.  
  1239. Find this resource:
  1240.  
  1241. Mollat, Michel, and Philippe Wolff. The Popular Revolutions of the Late Middle Ages. London: George Allen and Unwin, 1973.
  1242.  
  1243. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1244.  
  1245. An introductory overview of the widespread European revolts that occurred after the Black Death.
  1246.  
  1247. Find this resource:
  1248.  
  1249. Nicholas, David M. Town and Countryside. Social, Economic and Political Tensions in Fourteenth Century Flanders. Bruges, Belgium: De Tempel, 1971.
  1250.  
  1251. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1252.  
  1253. Nicholas explores the three cities of Ghent, Bruges, and Ypres and their political and economic relationships with the inhabitants of the surrounding countryside.
  1254.  
  1255. Find this resource:
  1256.  
  1257. TeBrake, William Henry. A Plague of Insurrection: Popular Politics and Peasant Revolt in Flanders, 1323–1328. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1993.
  1258.  
  1259. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1260.  
  1261. TeBrake provides a comprehensive account of the rural riots that grew to threaten the authority of the Count of Flanders.
  1262.  
  1263. Find this resource:
  1264.  
  1265. Urban Economy
  1266.  
  1267. There are a number of good introductions to the European urban economy, alongside general considerations of urban life. These include Ennen 1979, Nicholas 1997, Nicholas 2003, and Lilley 2002. Hodges 1982 looks at European towns and trade in the early medieval period, and Verhulst 1999 stresses long-term urban continuities. An excellent series of chapters discussing English urban history can be found in Palliser 2000, while Reynolds 1977 and Swanson 1999 give good overviews.
  1268.  
  1269. Ennen, Edith. The Medieval Town. Translated by Natalie Fryde. Amsterdam: North-Holland, 1979.
  1270.  
  1271. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1272.  
  1273. In this broad political and economic study of medieval towns, Ennen covers a long period, back to late Roman times, and a good geographical range.
  1274.  
  1275. Find this resource:
  1276.  
  1277. Hodges, Richard. Dark Age Economics: The Origins of Towns and Trade, AD 600–1000. London: Duckworth, 1982.
  1278.  
  1279. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1280.  
  1281. Hodges uses archaeological evidence to examine the development of international trade and towns in early medieval Europe.
  1282.  
  1283. Find this resource:
  1284.  
  1285. Lilley, Keith. Urban Life in the Middle Ages, 1000–1450. Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan, 2002.
  1286.  
  1287. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1288.  
  1289. An introduction to urban life to which Lilley adds an extra dimension through his use of ideas from historical geography.
  1290.  
  1291. Find this resource:
  1292.  
  1293. Nicholas, David. The Growth of the Medieval City: From Late Antiquity to the Early Fourteenth Century. London: Longman, 1997.
  1294.  
  1295. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1296.  
  1297. Continued in The Later Medieval City, 1300–1500 (London: Longman, 1997). These two volumes are part of Nicholas’s ambitious survey of European urban history. A useful foundation and reference work for students, with a broad-ranging bibliography; but the discussion is occasionally rather generalized and lacking in historiographical engagement.
  1298.  
  1299. Find this resource:
  1300.  
  1301. Nicholas, David. Urban Europe, 1100–1700. Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan, 2003.
  1302.  
  1303. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1304.  
  1305. Nicholas provides a deliberate, thematic approach to urban history in order to blur the traditional medieval–Early Modern boundary. This is a useful introduction for students to geographical notions such as central place theory.
  1306.  
  1307. Find this resource:
  1308.  
  1309. Palliser, David M., ed. The Cambridge Urban History of Britain. Vol. 1, 600–1540. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2000.
  1310.  
  1311. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1312.  
  1313. An excellent introduction to British urban history. There are both general essays that provide an outline of the main historiography and also a number of specific thematic and regional studies written by subject experts.
  1314.  
  1315. Find this resource:
  1316.  
  1317. Reynolds, Susan. An Introduction to the History of English Medieval Towns. Oxford: Clarendon, 1977.
  1318.  
  1319. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1320.  
  1321. An introduction to the administration of urban society, but also strong on Anglo-Saxon urbanization.
  1322.  
  1323. Find this resource:
  1324.  
  1325. Swanson, Heather. Medieval British Towns: Social History in Perspective. New York: St. Martin’s, 1999.
  1326.  
  1327. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1328.  
  1329. A succinct discussion of medieval urban society, with a good British dimension and a fair amount of economic discussion.
  1330.  
  1331. Find this resource:
  1332.  
  1333. Verhulst, Adriaan. The Rise of Cities in North-West Europe. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1999.
  1334.  
  1335. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511612275Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1336.  
  1337. Verhulst explores the origins of the medieval urban recovery and tends to stress the level of continuity in urban settlement since Roman times.
  1338.  
  1339. Find this resource:
  1340.  
  1341. Individual Town Studies
  1342.  
  1343. There are several notable in-depth case studies that examine urban economic structures and labor. For instance, traditionally, a lot of work has been done on Italian towns and their economies, such as Herlihy 1967 and Lane 1973, while Van der Wee 1963 looks at economic developments in Antwerp and Stabel 1997 examines the urban hierarchy of Flanders. Krekić 1987 explores towns in eastern Europe. Similarly, for England, Barron 2004 looks at London and Britnell 1986 at Colchester, while Hilton 1992 compares English and French towns. Smaller English towns have recently received more attention, and a number of relevant articles can be found in Holt and Rosser 1990.
  1344.  
  1345. Barron, Caroline M. London in the Later Middle Ages: Government and People, 1200–1500. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004.
  1346.  
  1347. DOI: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199257775.001.0001Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1348.  
  1349. Despite a strong focus on the governance of London, there are useful sections on the city’s economy, guilds, and environment.
  1350.  
  1351. Find this resource:
  1352.  
  1353. Britnell, Richard H. Growth and Decline in Colchester, 1300–1525. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1986.
  1354.  
  1355. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511896484Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1356.  
  1357. Britnell provides a detailed analysis of the changing economic fortunes of Colchester (Essex).
  1358.  
  1359. Find this resource:
  1360.  
  1361. Herlihy, David. Medieval and Renaissance Pistoia: The Social History of an Italian Town, 1200–1430. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1967.
  1362.  
  1363. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1364.  
  1365. A study of urban life and demography in medieval Pistoia.
  1366.  
  1367. Find this resource:
  1368.  
  1369. Hilton, Rodney H. English and French Towns in Feudal Society: A Comparative Study. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1992.
  1370.  
  1371. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511562464Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1372.  
  1373. This is a concise volume that makes an admirable attempt to compare the economies and societies of two different countries. Hilton looks beyond towns themselves and considers the broader manifestations of feudal society, arguing that the urban and rural ruling classes were intimately connected and similarly exploitative. As with much of Hilton’s work, there is again a strong Marxist framework to his arguments.
  1374.  
  1375. Find this resource:
  1376.  
  1377. Holt, Richard, and Gervase Rosser, eds. The English Medieval Town: A Reader in English Urban History, 1200–1540. London: Longman, 1990.
  1378.  
  1379. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1380.  
  1381. This volume brings together some of the most important articles on English urban history, including Richard Barrie Dobson’s study of urban decline, Rodney Hilton on small towns, Derek Keene’s discussion of suburbs, and Eleanora Carus-Wilson’s analysis of Stratford-upon-Avon.
  1382.  
  1383. Find this resource:
  1384.  
  1385. Krekić, Bariša, ed. Urban Society of Eastern Europe in Premodern Times. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1987.
  1386.  
  1387. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1388.  
  1389. This volume provides a broader European perspective on urban development, economy, and society.
  1390.  
  1391. Find this resource:
  1392.  
  1393. Lane, Frederic C. Venice: A Maritime Republic. Baltimore and London: John Hopkins University Press, 1973.
  1394.  
  1395. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1396.  
  1397. A sweeping account of Venice’s maritime economy from the 12th to the 17th centuries.
  1398.  
  1399. Find this resource:
  1400.  
  1401. Stabel, Peter. Dwarfs among Giants: The Flemish Urban Network in the Late Middle Ages. Louvain, Belgium, and Apeldoorn, The Netherlands: Garant, 1997.
  1402.  
  1403. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1404.  
  1405. Stabel provides an in-depth study of the economic and political relationship between the large and small towns of medieval Flanders.
  1406.  
  1407. Find this resource:
  1408.  
  1409. Van der Wee, Herman. The Growth of the Antwerp Market and the European Economy (Fourteenth to Sixteenth Centuries). 3 vols. The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, 1963.
  1410.  
  1411. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1412.  
  1413. An extensive and dense study of the importance of the development and fluctuations of the Antwerp economy. There is detailed discussion of the statistical data and methods, with particular attention to prices and wages.
  1414.  
  1415. Find this resource:
  1416.  
  1417. Urban Decline
  1418.  
  1419. A prominent debate among urban historians of medieval England has been whether towns were in decline over the long 15th century. Dobson 1977, Phythian-Adams 1978, and Rigby 1986 all look at the evidence for decline, while Bridbury 1981 proposes a more positive view for 15th-century urban economies. The different sides of the debate, and the more recent positions, are summarized by Dyer 1991 and Slater 2000.
  1420.  
  1421. Bridbury, Anthony R. “English Provincial Towns in the Later Middle Ages.” Economic History Review 34 (1981): 1–24.
  1422.  
  1423. DOI: 10.2307/2594836Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1424.  
  1425. Bridbury challenges the evidence for urban decline. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1426.  
  1427. Find this resource:
  1428.  
  1429. Dobson, Richard Barrie. “Urban Decline in Late Medieval England.” Transactions of the Royal Historical Society 27 (1977): 1–22.
  1430.  
  1431. DOI: 10.2307/3679185Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1432.  
  1433. Dobson looked carefully at the range of available evidence for urban decline, from government petitions and tax assessments to urban building and avoidance of civic office. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1434.  
  1435. Find this resource:
  1436.  
  1437. Dyer, Alan D. Decline and Growth in English Towns, 1400–1640. Houndmills, UK: Palgrave Macmillan, 1991.
  1438.  
  1439. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1440.  
  1441. A concise overview of the main debates and evidence for English urban fortunes.
  1442.  
  1443. Find this resource:
  1444.  
  1445. Phythian-Adams, Charles. “Urban Decay in Late Medieval England.” In Towns in Societies: Essays in Economic History and Historical Sociology. Edited by Philip Abrams and Edward A. Wrigley, 159–185. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1978.
  1446.  
  1447. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1448.  
  1449. Phythian-Adams was one of the leading proponents of the argument that most provincial towns suffered long-term decline, with the crisis reaching a peak in the early 16th century (as seen in his work on Coventry).
  1450.  
  1451. Find this resource:
  1452.  
  1453. Rigby, Steve H. “Late Medieval Urban Prosperity: The Evidence of the Lay Subsidies.” Economic History Review 39 (1986): 411–416.
  1454.  
  1455. DOI: 10.2307/2596348Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1456.  
  1457. Rigby examines the 1334 and 1524 lay subsidies and the difficulties involved in using them to measure changes in urban prosperity. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1458.  
  1459. Find this resource:
  1460.  
  1461. Slater, Terry R., ed. Towns in Decline, AD 100–1600. Aldershot, UK: Ashgate, 2000.
  1462.  
  1463. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1464.  
  1465. A series of papers that discuss the “urban decline” debate for both Britain and Continental Europe. Contributions include Alan Dyer’s assessment of the English tax returns to argue for notable urban decline in certain regions.
  1466.  
  1467. Find this resource:
  1468.  
  1469. Industry
  1470.  
  1471. A broad overview of medieval industries and their technology is provided by Blair and Ramsay 1991, while White 1966, Persson 1988, and Gies and Gies 1994 concentrate on technological innovation. The textile industry is unsurprisingly a prominent theme in medieval economic history, with Mazzaoui 1981, Harte and Ponting 1983, and Munro 1994 tracing the manufacture, trade, and fortunes of this important medieval industry (see also Carus-Wilson 1967, cited under International Trade). Milling, another key medieval industry, is discussed by Langdon 2004, while Hatcher 1993 looks at the coal industry. (See also Kowaleski 2000, cited under Local Markets, concerning the fishing industry, and Blanchard 2001–2005, cited under Money, for a discussion of the mining industry.)
  1472.  
  1473. Blair, John, and Nigel Ramsay, eds. English Medieval Industries: Craftsmen, Techniques, Products. London: Hambledon, 1991.
  1474.  
  1475. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1476.  
  1477. A heavily illustrated survey of medieval crafts and industry, with a particular focus on the acquisition, processing, and sale of materials.
  1478.  
  1479. Find this resource:
  1480.  
  1481. Gies, Frances, and Joseph Gies. Cathedral, Forge, and Waterwheel: Technology and Invention in the Middle Ages. New York: Harper Perennial, 1994.
  1482.  
  1483. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1484.  
  1485. These historians provide a very useful overview of medieval technology and the extent to which there was innovation and development, including whether much technological advancement was drawn from beyond Europe’s borders.
  1486.  
  1487. Find this resource:
  1488.  
  1489. Harte, Negley B., and Kenneth G. Ponting, eds. Cloth and Clothing in Medieval Europe: Essays in Memory of Professor E.M. Carus-Wilson. London: Heinemann, 1983.
  1490.  
  1491. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1492.  
  1493. A range of scholarly articles that tackle the theme of cloth and clothing from a variety of angles, including an analysis of early medieval archaeological finds, technical studies of textiles and their manufacture, discussions of Flemish and Catalan cloth guilds, and the marketing of cloth in Europe.
  1494.  
  1495. Find this resource:
  1496.  
  1497. Hatcher, John. The History of the British Coal Industry. Vol. 1, Before 1700. Oxford: Clarendon, 1993.
  1498.  
  1499. DOI: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198282822.001.0001Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1500.  
  1501. This is a thorough study about the production and trade of coal and the expansion of this commerce over the medieval and Early Modern periods.
  1502.  
  1503. Find this resource:
  1504.  
  1505. Langdon, John. Mills in the Medieval Economy: England, 1300–1540. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004.
  1506.  
  1507. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1508.  
  1509. Mills and milling technology were widespread in medieval England, and these important facilities were often controlled by lords. Langdon focuses on the changing influence of mills in the later medieval period, as well as their place within the wider scheme of industrial and technological change.
  1510.  
  1511. Find this resource:
  1512.  
  1513. Mazzaoui, Maureen F. The Italian Cotton Industry in the Later Middle Ages, 1100–1600. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1981.
  1514.  
  1515. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511897009Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1516.  
  1517. Mazzaoui looks at the factors behind the dynamic growth of the Italian cotton industry, including the impact of technological developments and the complex structures of supply and demand.
  1518.  
  1519. Find this resource:
  1520.  
  1521. Munro, John H. Textiles, Towns and Trade: Essays in the Economic History of Late-Medieval England and the Low Countries. Aldershot, UK: Variorum, 1994.
  1522.  
  1523. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1524.  
  1525. A collection of Munro’s most notable articles on the textile industry and trade in northern Europe (particularly the Low Countries).
  1526.  
  1527. Find this resource:
  1528.  
  1529. Persson, Karl Gunnar. Pre-industrial Economic Growth: Social Organization and Technical Progress in Europe. Oxford: Blackwell, 1988.
  1530.  
  1531. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1532.  
  1533. Persson provides an extended theoretical essay that considers the role of endogenous technological change and its relationship to population and labor supply.
  1534.  
  1535. Find this resource:
  1536.  
  1537. White, Lynn, Jr. Medieval Technology and Social Change. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1966.
  1538.  
  1539. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1540.  
  1541. White considers the impact of technological innovation upon the economy and society of medieval Europe.
  1542.  
  1543. Find this resource:
  1544.  
  1545. Guilds
  1546.  
  1547. The nature and importance of guild organizations (both artisan and merchant guilds) remains a much-discussed topic, as seen in Epstein 1991, Epstein 1998, Rosser 1997, and Swanson 1989. In particular, the extent to which guilds were economically efficient in their control of labor and technology is open to debate, as highlighted by Ogilvie 2007.
  1548.  
  1549. Epstein, Stephan R. “Craft Guilds, Apprenticeship, and Technological Change in Preindustrial Europe.” Journal of Economic History 58 (1998): 684–713.
  1550.  
  1551. DOI: 10.1017/S0022050700021124Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1552.  
  1553. Epstein argues that medieval craft guilds were successful because they diffused technical knowledge through temporary protection for inventors and through the system of apprenticeship. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1554.  
  1555. Find this resource:
  1556.  
  1557. Epstein, Steven A. Wage Labor and Guilds in Medieval Europe. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1991.
  1558.  
  1559. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1560.  
  1561. This book examines the organization of urban labor, concentrating on guild organization and guild laws, as well as the development of the wage system.
  1562.  
  1563. Find this resource:
  1564.  
  1565. Ogilvie, Sheilagh. “‘Whatever Is, Is Right’? Economic Institutions in Pre-industrial Europe.” Economic History Review 60 (2007): 649–684.
  1566.  
  1567. DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-0289.2007.00408.xSave Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1568.  
  1569. Ogilvie questions the economic assumptions made by some historians, including Stephan Epstein, and argues that economic institutions, such as craft guilds and merchant guilds, did not necessarily survive because they were economically efficient. Social and political conflict often played a more important role in the dominance of these institutions.
  1570.  
  1571. Find this resource:
  1572.  
  1573. Rosser, Gervase. “Crafts, Guilds and the Negotiation of Work in the Medieval Town.” Past and Present 154 (1997): 3–31.
  1574.  
  1575. DOI: 10.1093/past/154.1.3Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1576.  
  1577. Rosser seeks to provide a more sophisticated understanding of urban labor and its relationship to the guild organizations. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1578.  
  1579. Find this resource:
  1580.  
  1581. Swanson, Heather. Medieval Artisans: An Urban Class in Late Medieval England. Oxford: Blackwell, 1989.
  1582.  
  1583. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1584.  
  1585. Swanson provides one of the first in-depth studies of artisans, as a group, and their place within the urban economy. She focuses on York in the 14th and 15th centuries, examining the production of victuallers, leather, metal, and textile workers, and builders, as well as their industrial organization and relationship to the mercantile and civic elite.
  1586.  
  1587. Find this resource:
  1588.  
  1589. Merchants
  1590.  
  1591. Merchants and long-distance trade have long provided a prominent focus in medieval economic history, as highlighted by the work of Henri Pirenne and Robert Lopez (see also Economic Development and Trends). The organization, practices, and techniques of medieval merchants are discussed by Marshall 1999, Hunt and Murray 1999, Greif 2006, and Spufford 2002. Merchants as a social group, with specific aspirations, fortunes, and networks, are the subject of Origo 1957, Kedar 1976, and Kermode 1998, along with a specific subset of work focusing on London merchants in Thrupp 1948 and Nightingale 1995.
  1592.  
  1593. Greif, Avner. Institutions and the Path to the Modern Economy: Lessons from Medieval Trade. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2006.
  1594.  
  1595. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511791307Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1596.  
  1597. This volume draws together Greif’s research and articles on medieval economic institutions and game theory. He looks at how it was often in the agents’ own best interests to follow the rules, and how institutions developed to solve problems encountered by merchants in long-distance trade.
  1598.  
  1599. Find this resource:
  1600.  
  1601. Hunt, Edwin S., and James M. Murray. A History of Business in Medieval Europe, 1200–1550. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1999.
  1602.  
  1603. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511626005Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1604.  
  1605. This textbook outlines late medieval business developments, with a particular emphasis on the achievements of the Italians. A range of issues are covered, including the involvement of landlords, government, and the church in commerce and industry, the role of guilds, capital, and transport, and the development of business instruments. All of these are placed in the context of long-term change and fluctuations.
  1606.  
  1607. Find this resource:
  1608.  
  1609. Kedar, Benjamin Z. Merchants in Crisis: Genoese and Venetian Men of Affairs and the Fourteenth-Century Depression. New Haven, CT, and London: Yale University Press, 1976.
  1610.  
  1611. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1612.  
  1613. An innovative attempt to study the changing fortunes and attitudes of 14th-century Italian merchants.
  1614.  
  1615. Find this resource:
  1616.  
  1617. Kermode, Jenny. Medieval Merchants: York, Beverley, and Hull in the Later Middle Ages. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1998.
  1618.  
  1619. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1620.  
  1621. Kermode examines merchants from northern England, both as a political group within their towns and through their commercial activity. The broader context of fluctuating urban fortunes is also discussed.
  1622.  
  1623. Find this resource:
  1624.  
  1625. Marshall, Richard K. The Local Merchants of Prato: Small Entrepreneurs in the Late Medieval Economy. Baltimore: John Hopkins University Press, 1999.
  1626.  
  1627. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1628.  
  1629. Marshall uses the evidence of account books to shed light on the activities and business practices of merchants and traders in medieval Prato.
  1630.  
  1631. Find this resource:
  1632.  
  1633. Nightingale, Pamela. A Medieval Mercantile Community: The Grocers’ Company and the Politics and Trade of London, 1000–1485. New Haven, CT, and London: Yale University Press, 1995.
  1634.  
  1635. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1636.  
  1637. A comprehensive analysis of the London Grocers’ Company within a broader context of English commercial development.
  1638.  
  1639. Find this resource:
  1640.  
  1641. Origo, Iris. The Merchant of Prato: Francesco di Marco Datini. London: Jonathan Cape, 1957.
  1642.  
  1643. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1644.  
  1645. Using a fascinating archive of accounts and letters, Origo reconstructs the social and economic life of a Tuscan merchant.
  1646.  
  1647. Find this resource:
  1648.  
  1649. Spufford, Peter. Power and Profit: The Merchant in Medieval Europe. London: Thames and Hudson, 2002.
  1650.  
  1651. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1652.  
  1653. A richly illustrated survey of European merchants and their business activities in late medieval Europe.
  1654.  
  1655. Find this resource:
  1656.  
  1657. Thrupp, Sylvia L. The Merchant Class of Medieval London, 1300–1500. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1948.
  1658.  
  1659. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1660.  
  1661. A classic and still-valuable study of medieval merchants, though perhaps more focused on their social outlook than their business activities.
  1662.  
  1663. Find this resource:
  1664.  
  1665. International Trade
  1666.  
  1667. Mercantile commerce and its effect upon regional development within the Mediterranean basin are tackled by Abulafia 1977, Ashtor 1983, and Constable 1994 (see also McCormick 2001, cited under The Middle East and Mediterranean, which provides a comprehensive study of such commercial links, particularly between Europe and the Islamic world). The trade of northern Europe is explored by Childs 1978 and Chorley 1987, while specific studies of certain long-distance trades in grain (Hybel 2002), wool (Lloyd 1977), cloth (Carus-Wilson 1967), and fur (Martin 1986) shed light on the practitioners and wealth generated by such commerce.
  1668.  
  1669. Abulafia, David S. H. The Two Italies: Economic Relations between the Norman Kingdom of Sicily and the Northern Communes. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1977.
  1670.  
  1671. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511560996Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1672.  
  1673. This work provides an exploration of 12th-century Italy, north and south, and a comparison of its commercial linkages. In particular, Abulafia highlights how the north Italian merchants sought to control and exploit the wheat and cotton exports of Sicily.
  1674.  
  1675. Find this resource:
  1676.  
  1677. Ashtor, Eliyahu. Levant Trade in the Later Middle Ages. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 1983.
  1678.  
  1679. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1680.  
  1681. Through notarial registers and mercantile letters, Ashtor was one of the first to shed light on the trade between southern Europe and, mostly, Egypt and Syria. Some of the economic assertions can be questioned or have been superseded, but this is still an important piece of work.
  1682.  
  1683. Find this resource:
  1684.  
  1685. Carus-Wilson, Eleanora Mary. Medieval Merchant Venturers. London: Methuen, 1967.
  1686.  
  1687. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1688.  
  1689. This volume contains a variety of Carus-Wilson’s articles on the cloth industry and its trade in the 12th and 13th centuries.
  1690.  
  1691. Find this resource:
  1692.  
  1693. Childs, Wendy R. Anglo-Castilian Trade in the Later Middle Ages. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press, 1978.
  1694.  
  1695. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1696.  
  1697. A study of the fluctuating fortunes of a trade relationship between two late medieval countries. Childs looks at the exchange of commodities, particularly the export of expensive cloths to Castile in return for various raw materials, as well as the ongoing political struggles that frequently interfered with this commerce.
  1698.  
  1699. Find this resource:
  1700.  
  1701. Chorley, Patrick. “The Cloth Exports of Flanders and Northern France during the Thirteenth Century: A Luxury Trade?” Economic History Review 40 (1987): 349–379.
  1702.  
  1703. DOI: 10.2307/2596250Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1704.  
  1705. Chorley explores the extent and value of the medieval cloth trade emanating from Flanders and northern France. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1706.  
  1707. Find this resource:
  1708.  
  1709. Constable, Olivia Remie. Trade and Traders in Muslim Spain: The Commercial Realignment of the Iberian Peninsula 900–1500. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1994.
  1710.  
  1711. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1712.  
  1713. This book provides an important exploration of the trade relations that existed between Muslim Spain and the rest of the Mediterranean (Christian Europe and Muslim Africa, Egypt, and Syria) between the 10th and 15th centuries. The commercial policies of Andalusi governments are examined, as well as the demand and movement of commodities.
  1714.  
  1715. Find this resource:
  1716.  
  1717. Hybel, Nils. “The Grain Trade in Northern Europe before 1350.” Economic History Review 55 (2002): 219–247.
  1718.  
  1719. DOI: 10.1111/1468-0289.00219Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1720.  
  1721. A broad-ranging examination of the northern European grain trade in the 13th and early 14th centuries. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1722.  
  1723. Find this resource:
  1724.  
  1725. Lloyd, Terrence H. The English Wool Trade in the Middle Ages. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1977.
  1726.  
  1727. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511561214Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1728.  
  1729. A broad-ranging discussion of the production and marketing of wool in medieval England.
  1730.  
  1731. Find this resource:
  1732.  
  1733. Martin, Janet T. Treasure of the Land of Darkness: The Fur Trade and Its Significance for Medieval Russia. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1986.
  1734.  
  1735. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511523199Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1736.  
  1737. Martin explores the structure and extent of the Russian fur trade in the Middle Ages.
  1738.  
  1739. Find this resource:
  1740.  
  1741. Local Markets
  1742.  
  1743. Recently, local trade has received increasing attention. Britnell 2009 stresses the importance of commercial developments for the medieval English economy as a whole, including the proliferation of markets, urbanization, and an increasingly monetized economy. Campbell, et al. 1993; Kowaleski 1995; and Masschaele 1997 look at the development, extent, and activities of late medieval English local and regional trade. Dijkman 2011 does the same for medieval Holland, providing an important comparative analysis (see also Britnell 1996, cited under Expansion of the Medieval Economy, and Davis 2012, cited under Economic Thought, for an examination of the regulation of English local markets and prices). Particular local trades, such as in fish, salt, and bread, are discussed in Kowaleski 2000, Bridbury 1955, and Davis 2004.
  1744.  
  1745. Bridbury, Anthony R. England and the Salt Trade in the Later Middle Ages. Oxford: Clarendon, 1955.
  1746.  
  1747. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1748.  
  1749. Although this study is relatively old, it is still the main work on the salt trade.
  1750.  
  1751. Find this resource:
  1752.  
  1753. Britnell, Richard H. Markets, Trade and Economic Development in England and Europe, 1050–1550. Aldershot, UK: Ashgate Variorum, 2009.
  1754.  
  1755. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1756.  
  1757. This volume brings together a collection of Britnell’s most important articles on commercialization and markets.
  1758.  
  1759. Find this resource:
  1760.  
  1761. Campbell, Bruce M. S., James A. Galloway, Derek Keene, and Margaret Murphy. A Medieval Capital and Its Grain Supply: Agrarian Production and Distribution in the London Region, c.1300. London: Institute of British Geographers, Historical Geography Research Group, 1993.
  1762.  
  1763. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1764.  
  1765. This project looked at the food supply of London in terms of the production of the hinterland and distribution by merchants.
  1766.  
  1767. Find this resource:
  1768.  
  1769. Davis, James. “Baking for the Common Good: A Reassessment of the Assize of Bread in Medieval England.” Economic History Review 57 (2004): 465–502.
  1770.  
  1771. DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-0289.2004.00285.xSave Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1772.  
  1773. The English bread trade was governed by the Assize of Bread, and Davis provides a summary of its method and workings, as well as the problematic flaws in its construction and enforcement. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1774.  
  1775. Find this resource:
  1776.  
  1777. Dijkman, Jessica. Shaping Medieval Markets: The Organisation of Commodity Markets in Holland, c.1200–c.1450. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill, 2011.
  1778.  
  1779. DOI: 10.1163/ej.9789004201484.i-447Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1780.  
  1781. Dijkman examines the organization and regulation of commodity markets in late medieval Holland, charting this region’s rise from a predominantly agrarian economy to a highly commercialized one.
  1782.  
  1783. Find this resource:
  1784.  
  1785. Kowaleski, Maryanne. Local Markets and Regional Trade in Medieval Exeter. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1995.
  1786.  
  1787. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1788.  
  1789. This is a scholarly and detailed analysis of Exeter and its economy. There is a particular focus on regional exchange and Exeter’s relationship to its hinterland, but Kowaleski also provides a rich prosopographical study of the town’s inhabitants.
  1790.  
  1791. Find this resource:
  1792.  
  1793. Kowaleski, Maryanne. “The Expansion of the South-Western Fisheries in Late Medieval England.” Economic History Review 53 (2000): 429–454.
  1794.  
  1795. DOI: 10.1111/1468-0289.00166Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1796.  
  1797. Kowaleski gives a fascinating insight into the importance of the local fish industry and trade for investment and employment. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1798.  
  1799. Find this resource:
  1800.  
  1801. Masschaele, James. Peasants, Merchants, and Markets: Inland Trade in Medieval England, 1150–1350. New York: St. Martin’s, 1997.
  1802.  
  1803. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1804.  
  1805. This book focuses on what the available evidence can tell us about peasants and the market, exploiting both urban and royal sources in a new and thoughtful manner. Masschaele highlights the importance of the fifty principal merchant towns in England as the main purchasers of surplus food and raw materials, though his model has been questioned by historians such as Richard Britnell.
  1806.  
  1807. Find this resource:
  1808.  
  1809. Transport and Communication
  1810.  
  1811. Effective commerce was reliant upon means of transport and communication, and such linkages could be of variable quality and quantity in the Middle Ages. Leighton 1972 provides a seminal discussion of early medieval transport, while Squatriti 2002 looks at canal building during the reign of Charlemagne. It is likely that the most efficient and cost-effective means of transport was often by water rather than by land (see Masschaele 1993 for a calculation of the relative cost ratio), and such connections are discussed by Edwards and Hindle 1991 and Blair 2007. Crossing waterways was also vital. The building and control of medieval bridges is a dominant theme in the historiography, including Brooks 2000, Harrison 2004, and Cooper 2006. (See also McCormick 2001, cited under The Middle East and Mediterranean, which supplies a substantial amount of new information about the transport connections between the Christian and Islamic worlds.)
  1812.  
  1813. Blair, John, ed. Waterways and Canal-Building in Medieval England. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007.
  1814.  
  1815. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1816.  
  1817. This is a comprehensive examination of inland river and canal navigation in Anglo-Saxon and Anglo-Norman England.
  1818.  
  1819. Find this resource:
  1820.  
  1821. Brooks, Nicholas. “Medieval European Bridges: A Window onto Changing Concepts of State Power.” In Communities and Warfare 700–1400. Edited by Nicholas Brooks, 1–31. London: Hambledon, 2000.
  1822.  
  1823. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1824.  
  1825. This is a key European-wide survey of the connection between bridges and state power during the Middle Ages.
  1826.  
  1827. Find this resource:
  1828.  
  1829. Cooper, Alan. Bridges, Law and Power in Medieval England, 700–1400. Woodbridge, UK: Boydell, 2006.
  1830.  
  1831. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1832.  
  1833. A similar study to Harrison 2004, but with a greater emphasis on the legal aspects of bridge creation and maintenance.
  1834.  
  1835. Find this resource:
  1836.  
  1837. Edwards, James Frederick, and Brian Paul Hindle. “The Transportation System of Medieval England and Wales.” Journal of Historical Geography 17 (1991): 123–134.
  1838.  
  1839. DOI: 10.1016/S0305-7488(05)80070-2Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1840.  
  1841. This was a controversial article that made a case for a very wide-ranging inland water transport in medieval England. It triggered a debate in the same journal over the next decade, with contributions by John Langdon, James F. Edwards and Brian P. Hindle, and Evan T. Jones. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1842.  
  1843. Find this resource:
  1844.  
  1845. Harrison, David. The Bridges of Medieval England: Transport and Society 400–1800. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004.
  1846.  
  1847. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1848.  
  1849. A seminal examination of the role of bridges in the development of the English transport system for over a millennium.
  1850.  
  1851. Find this resource:
  1852.  
  1853. Leighton, Albert C. Transport and Communications in Early Medieval Europe AD 500–1100. Newton Abbot, UK: David & Charles, 1972.
  1854.  
  1855. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1856.  
  1857. This is a dated but still-useful survey of land and water transport in early medieval Europe.
  1858.  
  1859. Find this resource:
  1860.  
  1861. Masschaele, James. “Transport Costs in Medieval England.” Economic History Review 46 (1993): 266–279.
  1862.  
  1863. DOI: 10.2307/2598017Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1864.  
  1865. Masschaele reassesses the costs of transport and argues that the relative costs in 14th-century England were surprisingly low, even for land carriage. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1866.  
  1867. Find this resource:
  1868.  
  1869. Squatriti, Paolo. “Digging Ditches in Early Medieval Europe.” Past and Present 176 (2002): 11–65.
  1870.  
  1871. DOI: 10.1093/past/176.1.11Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1872.  
  1873. This is an article similar in theme to Brooks 2000, including an examination of Charlemagne’s attempt to build a canal connecting the Rhine and Danube Rivers. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1874.  
  1875. Find this resource:
  1876.  
  1877. Banking and Accounting
  1878.  
  1879. The importance of Italian mercantile families in the development of banking techniques and accounting practices is explored by de Roover 1963 and de Roover 1974, and more recently in Lane and Mueller 1985–1997, Goldthwaite 1987, Hunt 1994, and Blomquist 2005. Broader issues relating to money, finance, and banking across the medieval world are tackled in the Dawn of Modern Banking, as well as in Lopez 1986, a collection of seminal articles.
  1880.  
  1881. Blomquist, Thomas W. Merchant Families, Banking and Money in Medieval Lucca. Aldershot, UK, and Burlington, VT: Ashgate Variorum, 2005.
  1882.  
  1883. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1884.  
  1885. A collection of sixteen essays by Blomquist that tackle mercantile banking companies (such as the Ricciardi, the Guidiccioni, the Castraccani, and the Bettori) and their transactions, partnerships, and monetary affairs.
  1886.  
  1887. Find this resource:
  1888.  
  1889. Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies, University of California, Los Angeles. The Dawn of Modern Banking. New Haven, CT, and London: University of Yale Press, 1979.
  1890.  
  1891. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1892.  
  1893. There are ten conference papers in this volume, including Michael Prestwich’s study of Italian bankers in Edwardian England and John H. Munro’s examination of the export of money from England after 1272. Robert S. Lopez and Thomas W. Blomquist provide insights into 13th-century banking for Genoa and Lucca, respectively, while Manuel Riu looks at Aragon and Bariša Krekić examines Ragusa in Sicily.
  1894.  
  1895. Find this resource:
  1896.  
  1897. De Roover, Raymond. The Rise and Decline of the Medici Bank, 1397–1494. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1963.
  1898.  
  1899. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1900.  
  1901. This is a comprehensive study of the Medici bank and its operations, within a broader context of international business and banking.
  1902.  
  1903. Find this resource:
  1904.  
  1905. De Roover, Raymond. Business, Banking, and Economic Thought in Late Medieval and Early Modern Europe. Edited by Julius Kirshner. Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 1974.
  1906.  
  1907. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1908.  
  1909. Ten essays by de Roover on business history and techniques of credit and exchange, with a particular focus on the banker-merchants of Florence and Flanders.
  1910.  
  1911. Find this resource:
  1912.  
  1913. Goldthwaite, Richard A. “The Medici Bank and the World of Florentine Capitalism.” Past and Present 114 (1987): 3–31.
  1914.  
  1915. DOI: 10.1093/past/114.1.3Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1916.  
  1917. Goldthwaite reexamines the Medici bank in order to shed light upon the nature of early capitalism, and he downplays the extent to which this Italian family sought market domination. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1918.  
  1919. Find this resource:
  1920.  
  1921. Hunt, Edwin S. The Medieval Super-Companies: A Study of the Peruzzi Company of Florence. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1994.
  1922.  
  1923. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511528798Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1924.  
  1925. An exploration of the Peruzzi and the rise and fall of their banking, manufacturing, and trading activities. Hunt provides both a good technical understanding of trading instruments and a broad perspective on the fortunes of this Italian company.
  1926.  
  1927. Find this resource:
  1928.  
  1929. Lane, Frederic C., and Reinhold C. Mueller. Money and Banking in Medieval and Renaissance Venice. 2 vols. Baltimore: John Hopkins University Press, 1985–1997.
  1930.  
  1931. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1932.  
  1933. A detailed examination of Venetian money, minting, banking, and exchange.
  1934.  
  1935. Find this resource:
  1936.  
  1937. Lopez, Robert S. The Shape of Medieval Monetary History. Aldershot, UK: Ashgate Variorum, 1986.
  1938.  
  1939. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1940.  
  1941. A selection of Lopez’s important articles on money and commerce.
  1942.  
  1943. Find this resource:
  1944.  
  1945. Money
  1946.  
  1947. The minting, volume, and circulation of money itself is an important part of economic history, and the best general survey is probably provided by Spufford 1988. Mayhew 1995 and Allen 2001 discuss the money supply for medieval England, while similar analyses are made by Gemmill and Mayhew 1995 for Scotland, Hendy 1985 for Byzantium, and MacKay 1981 for Castile. How bullionist policies affect the supply and flow of money is the theme of Munro 1973 and Day 1987. Blanchard 2001–2005 looks at mining and minting across a broad geographical and chronological scope.
  1948.  
  1949. Allen, Martin. “The Volume of the English Currency, 1158–1470.” Economic History Review 54 (2001): 595–611.
  1950.  
  1951. DOI: 10.1111/1468-0289.00204Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1952.  
  1953. Allen provides new estimates of the fluctuations in money supply in late medieval England. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  1954.  
  1955. Find this resource:
  1956.  
  1957. Blanchard, Ian. Mining, Metallurgy and Minting in the Middle Ages. 3 vols. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag, 2001–2005.
  1958.  
  1959. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1960.  
  1961. This is a comprehensive examination of nonferrous precious and base metal production (including gold and silver) across the medieval world, from the 5th to the 15th century.
  1962.  
  1963. Find this resource:
  1964.  
  1965. Day, John. The Medieval Market Economy. Oxford: Blackwell, 1987.
  1966.  
  1967. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1968.  
  1969. A collection of Day’s essays, which mostly deal with monetary history. Day consistently argues for the importance of the money supply and bullion famines in European economic change.
  1970.  
  1971. Find this resource:
  1972.  
  1973. Gemmill, Elizabeth, and Nicholas Mayhew. Changing Values in Medieval Scotland: A Study of Prices, Money, and Weights and Measures. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1995.
  1974.  
  1975. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511522413Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1976.  
  1977. Gemmill and Mayhew provide analysis of late medieval Scottish prices, with evidence drawn primarily from central government and the town of Aberdeen. This is an important contribution to our understanding of monetary and regulatory developments in Scotland.
  1978.  
  1979. Find this resource:
  1980.  
  1981. Hendy, Michael F. Studies in the Byzantine Monetary Economy, c.300–1450. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1985.
  1982.  
  1983. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511896750Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1984.  
  1985. Hendy explores the monetary and numismatic history of Byzantium in order to shed light on broader economic issues, including regional differences of urbanization and agriculture within the empire.
  1986.  
  1987. Find this resource:
  1988.  
  1989. MacKay, Angus. Money, Prices, and Politics in Fifteenth-Century Castile. London: Royal Historical Society, 1981.
  1990.  
  1991. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  1992.  
  1993. A useful study of the monetary difficulties encountered by Castile during the 15th century, particularly inflation and devaluation. Debasement of the coinage was to have widespread economic and social effects, including the anti-converso riots of 1473–1474.
  1994.  
  1995. Find this resource:
  1996.  
  1997. Mayhew, Nicholas. “Population, Money Supply, and the Velocity of Circulation in England, 1300–1700.” Economic History Review 48 (1995): 238–257.
  1998.  
  1999. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2000.  
  2001. Mayhew’s article examines the evidence for changes in the English money supply across four hundred years. For a subsequent debate on this article between Mayhew and Harry A. Miskimin, see Economic History Review 49 (1996): 358–361. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  2002.  
  2003. Find this resource:
  2004.  
  2005. Munro, John H. Wool, Cloth, and Gold: The Struggle for Bullion in Anglo-Burgundian Trade, 1340–1478. Brussels and Toronto: Editions de l’Université de Bruxelles, 1973.
  2006.  
  2007. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2008.  
  2009. This comprehensive study focuses on medieval monetary policy and the political ramifications of the bullionist policies of the Low Countries and England.
  2010.  
  2011. Find this resource:
  2012.  
  2013. Spufford, Peter. Money and Its Use in Medieval Europe. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1988.
  2014.  
  2015. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511583544Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2016.  
  2017. This is a survey of money and its changing use and availability. It can be also used as a reference work due to the detailed information provided on topics such as mining, minting, banking, exchange, and credit. Spufford highlights the recurrent problem of bullion shortages, a lack of small change, and the effects of the commercial revolution in the long 13th century.
  2018.  
  2019. Find this resource:
  2020.  
  2021. Rural Credit
  2022.  
  2023. Credit was a growing part of medieval rural society and its economy, both at times of need and for investment (Schofield 1997). The mechanisms and extent of rural credit in the English economy are outlined by Clark 1981 and Briggs 2009. The growth of currency was often accompanied by a rising use of credit at local level, and vice versa, as shown by Nightingale 1990.
  2024.  
  2025. Briggs, Chris. Credit and Village Society in Fourteenth-Century England. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009.
  2026.  
  2027. DOI: 10.5871/bacad/9780197264416.001.0001Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2028.  
  2029. This is an important study of the extent, types, and efficiency of credit dealings, as seen in the manorial courts of medieval rural society. Briggs argues that most credit relations were between those of a similar social status, with the poor largely excluded rather than exploited. The book also offers a useful comparison with the evidence from European notarial registers.
  2030.  
  2031. Find this resource:
  2032.  
  2033. Clark, Elaine. “Debt Litigation in a Late Medieval Vill.” In Pathway to Medieval Peasants. Edited by James Ambrose Raftis, 247–279. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1981.
  2034.  
  2035. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2036.  
  2037. A pioneering examination of the extent and means of credit in medieval rural society.
  2038.  
  2039. Find this resource:
  2040.  
  2041. Nightingale, Pamela. “Monetary Contraction and Mercantile Credit in Later Medieval England.” Economic History Review 43 (1990): 560–575.
  2042.  
  2043. DOI: 10.2307/2596735Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2044.  
  2045. Nightingale argues that the availability of medieval credit was constrained by shortages in the money supply. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  2046.  
  2047. Find this resource:
  2048.  
  2049. Schofield, Phillipp R. “Dearth, Debt and the Local Land Market in a Late Thirteenth-Century Village Community.” Agricultural History Review 45 (1997): 1–17.
  2050.  
  2051. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2052.  
  2053. Schofield explores the impact of agrarian crises upon rural credit and the land market. Available online.
  2054.  
  2055. Find this resource:
  2056.  
  2057. Economic Thought
  2058.  
  2059. Medieval economic thought was concerned as much with theology and morality as with economic theory. Wood 2002 provides a thoughtful survey of the main themes behind medieval economic thinking, while the specific scholastic theories on issues such as just prices and wages are explored in Langholm 1998, de Roover 1958, and Epstein 1991. Kaye 1998 argues that commercial growth affected contemporary intellectual concerns, while Le Goff 1988 similarly notes that the Church gradually changed its attitude toward usury. The relationship between medieval ideas, law, and practice is explored in Little 1978 and Davis 2012.
  2060.  
  2061. Davis, James. Medieval Market Morality: Life, Law and Ethics in the English Marketplace, 1200–1500. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2012.
  2062.  
  2063. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2064.  
  2065. Davis delves into a range of evidence for the medieval marketplace in an attempt to unravel the morals, laws, and practices of everyday retail trade.
  2066.  
  2067. Find this resource:
  2068.  
  2069. De Roover, Raymond. “The Concept of the Just Price: Theory and Economic Policy.” Journal of Economic History 18 (1958): 418–434.
  2070.  
  2071. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2072.  
  2073. De Roover reassessed the concept of the just price and noted that both theologians and legislators saw it as based upon market forces rather than upon an arbitrary set value. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  2074.  
  2075. Find this resource:
  2076.  
  2077. Epstein, Steven A. “The Theory and Practice of the Just Wage.” Journal of Medieval History 17 (1991): 53–69.
  2078.  
  2079. DOI: 10.1016/0304-4181(91)90027-ISave Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2080.  
  2081. Epstein provides an analysis of the notion of the just wage in medieval Europe. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  2082.  
  2083. Find this resource:
  2084.  
  2085. Kaye, Joel. Economy and Nature in the Fourteenth Century: Money, Market Exchange, and the Emergence of Scientific Thought. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1998.
  2086.  
  2087. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511496523Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2088.  
  2089. Kaye explores the impact of commercial growth and monetization upon contemporary concerns of natural philosophy.
  2090.  
  2091. Find this resource:
  2092.  
  2093. Langholm, Odd. The Legacy of Scholasticism in Economic Thought: Antecedents of Choice and Power. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1998.
  2094.  
  2095. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511528491Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2096.  
  2097. A detailed study of scholastic economic thought from Aristotle through to the 16th century, with a particular focus on the themes of need, compulsion, and choice. This includes a study of medieval ideas on exchange, just price, markets, credit, usury, labor, and the just wage.
  2098.  
  2099. Find this resource:
  2100.  
  2101. Le Goff, Jacques. Your Money or Your Life: Economy and Religion in the Middle Ages. Translated by Patricia Ranum. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1988.
  2102.  
  2103. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2104.  
  2105. Le Goff examines the concept of usury and how the medieval Church altered its attitude as the economy expanded.
  2106.  
  2107. Find this resource:
  2108.  
  2109. Little, Lester K. Religious Poverty and the Profit Economy in Medieval Europe. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 1978.
  2110.  
  2111. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2112.  
  2113. Little argues that there was a relationship between the economic changes and spiritual crises of the late medieval period, as society moved from a gift economy to a profit economy.
  2114.  
  2115. Find this resource:
  2116.  
  2117. Wood, Diana. Medieval Economic Thought. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2002.
  2118.  
  2119. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511811043Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2120.  
  2121. An introduction to the main conceptions of late medieval economic thought, mostly drawn from the evidence of theologians and the law.
  2122.  
  2123. Find this resource:
  2124.  
  2125. Family and Household
  2126.  
  2127. The family and household were the bedrock of production and consumption in the medieval economy. Consequently, there is a substantial literature on the social, cultural, and gendered foundations of the medieval family, much of which also touches upon the economic dimension, such as Herlihy 1985. Hanawalt 1986 and Fleming 2000 provide broad overviews for late medieval England. Issues of inheritance, family structure/size, and urbanization are central to the household’s economic importance, and these are examined by Razi 1993; Goody, et al. 1976; Mitterauer and Seider 1982; and Hughes 1975. More recently, attention has turned toward those individuals, such as single women, who might be conventionally considered not part of a nuclear family, and questions have been asked about their economic role and social status (Beattie 2007, Bennett and Froide 1999).
  2128.  
  2129. Beattie, Cordelia. Medieval Single Women: The Politics of Social Classification in Late Medieval England. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007.
  2130.  
  2131. DOI: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199283415.001.0001Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2132.  
  2133. Beattie examines how medieval women were classified according to marital status, as exemplified in a range of sources such as tax subsidies, guild records, wills, and religious texts.
  2134.  
  2135. Find this resource:
  2136.  
  2137. Bennett, Judith M., and Amy M. Froide, eds. Singlewomen in the European Past, 1250–1800. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1999.
  2138.  
  2139. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2140.  
  2141. This collection of essays covers the late medieval and Early Modern periods and provides many new perspectives on the economic issues that faced single women, such as their employment opportunities and social status.
  2142.  
  2143. Find this resource:
  2144.  
  2145. Fleming, Peter. Family and Household in Medieval England. Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan, 2000.
  2146.  
  2147. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2148.  
  2149. A textbook aimed at students, including some discussion of the economic aspects of medieval family life.
  2150.  
  2151. Find this resource:
  2152.  
  2153. Goody, Jack, Joan Thirsk, and E. P. Thompson, eds. Family and Inheritance: Rural Society in Western Europe 1200–1800. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1976.
  2154.  
  2155. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2156.  
  2157. An exploration of the range of different inheritance customs evident in rural Western Europe.
  2158.  
  2159. Find this resource:
  2160.  
  2161. Hanawalt, Barbara A. The Ties That Bound: Peasant Families in Medieval England. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1986.
  2162.  
  2163. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2164.  
  2165. One of the best introductions and discussions of the medieval peasant family, including the economic role of all the household members.
  2166.  
  2167. Find this resource:
  2168.  
  2169. Herlihy, David. Medieval Households. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1985.
  2170.  
  2171. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2172.  
  2173. A concise, introductory discussion of medieval family life.
  2174.  
  2175. Find this resource:
  2176.  
  2177. Hughes, Diane Owen. “Urban Growth and Family Structure in Medieval Genoa.” Past and Present 66 (1975): 3–28.
  2178.  
  2179. DOI: 10.1093/past/66.1.3Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2180.  
  2181. Hughes examines the relationship between medieval urban development and the forms of family structure and considers whether family bonds were weakened or strengthened by urbanization. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  2182.  
  2183. Find this resource:
  2184.  
  2185. Mitterauer, Michael, and Reinhard Seider. The European Family: Patriarchy to Partnership from the Middle Ages to the Present. Translated by Karla Oosterveen and Manfred Hörzinger. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1982.
  2186.  
  2187. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2188.  
  2189. These authors explore how socioeconomic change altered family structures and institutions.
  2190.  
  2191. Find this resource:
  2192.  
  2193. Razi, Zvi. “The Myth of the Immutable English Family.” Past and Present 140 (1993): 3–44.
  2194.  
  2195. DOI: 10.1093/past/140.1.3Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2196.  
  2197. Razi looks at the process by which the medieval English family because a more nuclear unit after the Black Death. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  2198.  
  2199. Find this resource:
  2200.  
  2201. Women’s Work
  2202.  
  2203. The economic role of women, often circumscribed by the dominant patriarchal culture, is discussed by Herlihy 1990, Klapisch-Zuber 1985, and Howell 1986, and specifically for England by Bennett 1987. Hanawalt 2007 shows how women were important contributors to the late medieval urban economy, while Karras 1996 looks at the marginal and poor trade of prostitution. Shahar 1983 surveys women more broadly for medieval Europe and Leyser 1995 does the same for England. Bitel 2002 also provides a more general discussion that touches upon women within the early medieval economy. (See also under Family and Household for discussions of both married and single women.)
  2204.  
  2205. Bennett, Judith M. Women in the English Medieval Countryside: Gender and Household in Brigstock before the Plague. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987.
  2206.  
  2207. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2208.  
  2209. Bennett uses the manorial records of Brigstock to examine the role and subordination of peasant women in the medieval society and economy.
  2210.  
  2211. Find this resource:
  2212.  
  2213. Bitel, Lisa M. Women in Early Medieval Europe, 400–1000. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2002.
  2214.  
  2215. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2216.  
  2217. This introductory text provides an overview of the current scholarship for women’s history, including some references to the economic history.
  2218.  
  2219. Find this resource:
  2220.  
  2221. Hanawalt, Barbara A. The Wealth of Wives: Women, Law, and Economy in Late Medieval London. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007.
  2222.  
  2223. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2224.  
  2225. Hanawalt argues that many London women were important circulators of capital within the city’s economy because of their role both as small traders and widowed heirs.
  2226.  
  2227. Find this resource:
  2228.  
  2229. Herlihy, David. Opera Muliebria: Women and Work in Medieval Europe. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1990.
  2230.  
  2231. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2232.  
  2233. Herlihy provides an analysis of women’s work, domestic and public, with a particular focus on the cloth industry throughout the medieval period. He also discusses how women were excluded from many occupations and draws upon literary evidence to outline attitudes toward women’s work.
  2234.  
  2235. Find this resource:
  2236.  
  2237. Howell, Martha C. Women, Production, and Patriarchy in Late Medieval Cities. Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 1986.
  2238.  
  2239. DOI: 10.7208/chicago/9780226355061.001.0001Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2240.  
  2241. A study of gender, patriarchy, and the cultural constraints upon women’s economic life. Howell notes that women were increasingly excluded from urban guilds and skilled crafts, such as in her case study of Leiden.
  2242.  
  2243. Find this resource:
  2244.  
  2245. Karras, Ruth Mazo. Common Women: Prostitution and Sexuality in Medieval England. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1996.
  2246.  
  2247. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2248.  
  2249. Karras examines the experiences and reputation of those women involved in the common medieval trade of prostitution.
  2250.  
  2251. Find this resource:
  2252.  
  2253. Klapisch-Zuber, Christiane. Women, Family, and Ritual in Renaissance Italy. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1985.
  2254.  
  2255. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2256.  
  2257. A detailed discussion of the lives of 14th- and 15th-century Tuscan women, including their role within the family and household.
  2258.  
  2259. Find this resource:
  2260.  
  2261. Leyser, Henrietta. Medieval Women: A Social History of Women in England, 450–1500. New York: St. Martin’s, 1995.
  2262.  
  2263. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2264.  
  2265. Leyser provides a thoughtful survey of the social and economic status of women in medieval England.
  2266.  
  2267. Find this resource:
  2268.  
  2269. Shahar, Shulamith. The Fourth Estate: A History of Women in the Middle Ages. London: Methuen, 1983.
  2270.  
  2271. DOI: 10.4324/9780203407882Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2272.  
  2273. This book was one of the first, and still one of the best, European-wide surveys of medieval women (from nobles to peasants).
  2274.  
  2275. Find this resource:
  2276.  
  2277. Women after the Black Death
  2278.  
  2279. Some historians (Goldberg 1992, Hanawalt 1986, McIntosh 2005) have suggested that the Black Death offered new opportunities for women’s work, though these were often short-lived. The continuing restrictions upon women’s work and wages in post–Black Death England are highlighted by Bennett 1996 and Mate 1999, and a specific debate on women’s wages can be seen in Penn 1987 and Bardsley 1999. More recently, de Moor and van Zanden 2010 controversially argued that the opportunities for women after the Black Death had significant repercussions for the economic success of the North Sea region.
  2280.  
  2281. Bardsley, Sandy. “Women’s Work Reconsidered: Gender and Wage Differentiation in Late Medieval England.” Past and Present 165 (1999): 3–29.
  2282.  
  2283. DOI: 10.1093/past/165.1.3Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2284.  
  2285. Bardsley disagrees with the arguments of Penn 1987 and argues against wage equality for medieval men and women. Instead, workers were paid according to their gender and women were considered a second-rate part of the labor force. A subsequent debate on these issues, initiated by John Hatcher, can be found in Past and Present 173 (2001): 191–199. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  2286.  
  2287. Find this resource:
  2288.  
  2289. Bennett, Judith M. Ale, Beer, and Brewsters in England: Women’s Work in a Changing World, 1300–1600. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1996.
  2290.  
  2291. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2292.  
  2293. This is an influential study in women’s history. It looks at the production and marketing of ale and beer, but also the opportunities for women in this industry and the extent to which they became excluded from brewing by the end of the Middle Ages.
  2294.  
  2295. Find this resource:
  2296.  
  2297. De Moor, Tine, and Jan Luiten van Zanden. “Girl Power: The European Marriage Pattern and Labour Markets in the North Sea Region in the Late Medieval and Early Modern Period.” Economic History Review 63 (2010): 1–33.
  2298.  
  2299. DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-0289.2009.00483.xSave Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2300.  
  2301. De Moor and van Zanden argue that the “European Marriage Pattern,” with a later age of marriage and a limited number of children, benefited women in the 15th century with increased relative pay and greater female participation in the labor force. Although this was to all change in the 16th century, it had created a long-term dynamism in the North Sea economy. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  2302.  
  2303. Find this resource:
  2304.  
  2305. Goldberg, Peter Jeremy P. Women, Work, and Life Cycle in a Medieval Economy: Women in York and Yorkshire c.1300–1520. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992.
  2306.  
  2307. DOI: 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198201540.001.0001Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2308.  
  2309. A detailed, empirical study of the economic and social choices that faced women in the medieval city of York. Goldberg draws upon a range of primary evidence (wills, taxation returns, and court records) to argue that labor and marital opportunities for women improved after the Black Death, especially in the early 15th century, though this favourable situation proved to be short-lived.
  2310.  
  2311. Find this resource:
  2312.  
  2313. Hanawalt, Barbara A., ed. Women and Work in Preindustrial Europe. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1986.
  2314.  
  2315. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2316.  
  2317. These essays span the 13th–16th centuries, as well as much of Western Europe. The economic circumstances, conventions, and contribution of medieval women are discussed, sometimes within a “feminist” framework. Many of the contributors argue that the Black Death opened up opportunities for women, but that most of these changes were short-lived.
  2318.  
  2319. Find this resource:
  2320.  
  2321. Mate, Mavis E. Women in Medieval English Society. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1999.
  2322.  
  2323. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2324.  
  2325. A concise introduction to the subject of medieval women, intended for undergraduate students. In particular, Mate provides a clear discussion of the debates relating to female opportunity and work in the late 14th and 15th centuries, asserting her own view that patriarchal structures remained largely unchanged throughout the medieval period.
  2326.  
  2327. Find this resource:
  2328.  
  2329. McIntosh, Marjorie Keniston. Working Women in English Society 1300–1620. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2005.
  2330.  
  2331. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2332.  
  2333. An excellent, broad-ranging examination of women’s role in the market economy. McIntosh argues that the extent of women’s activity fluctuated according to demographic, economic, and cultural change. She reevaluates the notion of a “golden age” for women’s work: despite some opportunities after the Black Death, by the 16th century women had reverted to low-paid, low-prestige work.
  2334.  
  2335. Find this resource:
  2336.  
  2337. Penn, Simon A. C. “Female Wage-Earners in Late Fourteenth-Century England.” Agricultural History Review 35 (1987): 1–14.
  2338.  
  2339. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2340.  
  2341. Penn’s analysis of the enforcement of labor legislation led him to argue that women were often paid the same as men for the same task. Available online for purchase or by subscription.
  2342.  
  2343. Find this resource:
  2344.  
  2345. Beyond Europe
  2346.  
  2347. There is an extensive range of work on the extra-European medieval economy, particularly for North Africa and the Middle East. Abu-Lughod 1989 provides a very good overview of the economic world and its trade links in the 13th and 14th centuries. The following sections can only provide an introductory foray into the scholarly material.
  2348.  
  2349. Abu-Lughod, Janet Lippman. Before European Hegemony: The World System A.D. 1250–1350. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1989.
  2350.  
  2351. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2352.  
  2353. An Immanuel Wallerstein–like look at the “Old World” economic system, employing the methods of historical sociology. Abu-Lughod argues for the existence of a Eurasian world system well before the Early Modern period, and that it was facilitated by the Mongol Empire (and its successors), which enabled safe commercial connections between East and West.
  2354.  
  2355. Find this resource:
  2356.  
  2357. The Middle East and Mediterranean
  2358.  
  2359. Cook 1978, Inalcik and Quataert 1994, Lapidus 1984, and Udovitch 2011 give a fascinating insight into commerce, towns, and agriculture in the medieval Islamic world. McCormick 2001 shows the extent of early medieval commercial and cross-cultural connections across the Mediterranean, while Goitein 1967–2000 looks at Jewish communities in this region.
  2360.  
  2361. Cook, Michael A., ed. Studies in the Economic History of the Middle East from the Rise of Islam to the Present Day. London: Oxford University Press, 1978.
  2362.  
  2363. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2364.  
  2365. The first part of this volume brings together a variety of experts to analyze medieval issues such as trade, guilds, and money. First published in 1970.
  2366.  
  2367. Find this resource:
  2368.  
  2369. Goitein, Shelomo Dov. A Mediterranean Society: The Jewish Communities of the Arab World as Portrayed in the Documents of the Cairo Geniza. 6 vols. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1967–2000.
  2370.  
  2371. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2372.  
  2373. This extensive piece of work looks at Jewish communities, families, and individuals across the medieval Arab Mediterranean through their private correspondence (the Cairo Geniza documents).
  2374.  
  2375. Find this resource:
  2376.  
  2377. Inalcik, Halil, and Donald Quataert, eds. An Economic and Social History of the Ottoman Empire. Vol. 1, 1300–1600. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1994.
  2378.  
  2379. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2380.  
  2381. An ambitious survey, with numerous specialist contributors, of the socioeconomic history of the Ottoman Empire.
  2382.  
  2383. Find this resource:
  2384.  
  2385. Lapidus, Ira Marvin. Muslim Cities in the Later Middle Ages. 2d ed. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1984.
  2386.  
  2387. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511583803Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2388.  
  2389. This is an important and influential study of the political, social, and economic institutions of the cities of the Mamluk state.
  2390.  
  2391. Find this resource:
  2392.  
  2393. McCormick, Michael. Origins of the European Economy: Communications and Commerce, AD 300–900. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2001.
  2394.  
  2395. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2396.  
  2397. This magisterial study provides a comprehensive examination of commerce within the early medieval European economy. McCormick also explores many of the economic interactions between the Christian and Islamic worlds.
  2398.  
  2399. Find this resource:
  2400.  
  2401. Udovitch, Abraham L. Partnership and Profit in Medieval Islam. Princeton, NJ: University of Princeton Press, 2011.
  2402.  
  2403. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2404.  
  2405. A discussion of Islamic commercial law and medieval mercantile practice. First published in 1970.
  2406.  
  2407. Find this resource:
  2408.  
  2409. Asia
  2410.  
  2411. Aspects of Indian economic history are covered by Gopal 1965, Chitnis 1990, Raychaudhuri and Habib 1982, and Subrahmanyam 1994. Clark 1991 and Yoshinobu 1992 provide some insights into commerce and trade for China, while Shively and McCullough 1999 explores the economy of medieval Japan.
  2412.  
  2413. Chitnis, Krishnaji Nageshrao. Socio-Economic History of Medieval India. New Delhi: Atlantic Press, 1990.
  2414.  
  2415. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2416.  
  2417. A comprehensive study of the economic and social history of medieval India, from the agrarian structures to trade and money.
  2418.  
  2419. Find this resource:
  2420.  
  2421. Clark, Hugh R. Community, Trade, and Networks: Southern Fujian Province from the Third to the Thirteenth Century. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1991.
  2422.  
  2423. DOI: 10.1017/CBO9780511572654Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2424.  
  2425. Clark provides a broad regional context to his discussion of the commercial and rural economy of the southern part of coastal Fuijan (China).
  2426.  
  2427. Find this resource:
  2428.  
  2429. Gopal, Lallanji. The Economic Life of Northern India c.AD 700–1200. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1965.
  2430.  
  2431. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2432.  
  2433. Using a broad range of documents, Gopal provides a useful examination of the development in northern Indian economic life, including land, slavery, and trade.
  2434.  
  2435. Find this resource:
  2436.  
  2437. Raychaudhuri, Tapan, and Irfan Habib, eds. The Cambridge Economic History of India. Vol. 1, c.1200–c.1750. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1982.
  2438.  
  2439. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2440.  
  2441. The first part of this volume provides good surveys of medieval India’s agrarian, urban, and commercial economy, with contributions from historians such as Simon Digby, Irfan Habib, and Burton Stein.
  2442.  
  2443. Find this resource:
  2444.  
  2445. Shively, Donald H., and William H. McCullough, eds. The Cambridge History of Japan. Vol. 2, Heian Japan. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1999.
  2446.  
  2447. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2448.  
  2449. Continued in Kozo Yamamura, ed. The Cambridge History of Japan. Vol. 3, Medieval Japan (Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1990). These two volumes cover the period from the 8th century to the mid-16th century and provide a general survey of Japanese history. However, there are also sections on economic development, land, the peasantry, and commerce.
  2450.  
  2451. Find this resource:
  2452.  
  2453. Subrahmanyam, Sanjay, ed. Money and the Market in India, 1100–1700. Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1994.
  2454.  
  2455. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2456.  
  2457. These articles explore monetarization and commercialization in medieval and Early Modern India, highlighting the regional variations.
  2458.  
  2459. Find this resource:
  2460.  
  2461. Yoshinobu, Shiba. Commerce and Society in Sung China. Translated by Mark Elvin. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1992.
  2462.  
  2463. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2464.  
  2465. A fascinating study of the rise of commerce in Sung China and the subsequent impact on medieval Chinese society. First published in 1970.
  2466.  
  2467. Find this resource:
  2468.  
  2469. Africa
  2470.  
  2471. Beyond the Muslim world, there is relatively little work on the economy of medieval Africa, but Fage 1978 provides a useful introduction.
  2472.  
  2473. Fage, John D., ed. The Cambridge History of Africa. Vol. 2, From c.500 BC to AD 1050. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1978.
  2474.  
  2475. Save Citation »Export Citation »E-mail Citation »
  2476.  
  2477. Continued in Roland Oliver, ed. The Cambridge History of Africa. Vol. 3, From c.1050 to c.1600 (Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, 1977). A broad-ranging history of medieval Africa, including useful introductory sections on the continent’s economic history.
  2478.  
  2479. Find this resource:
Advertisement
Add Comment
Please, Sign In to add comment
Advertisement
Public Pastes
Advertisement
We use cookies for various purposes including analytics. By continuing to use Pastebin, you agree to our use of cookies as described in the Cookies Policy.  OK, I Understand
Not a member of Pastebin yet?
Sign Up, it unlocks many cool features!