Our Legal Heritage: The First Thousand Years: 600 - 1600: King Aethelbert - Queen ElizabethReilly, S. A.
History
Our Legal Heritage: The First Thousand Years: 600 - 1600: King Aethelbert - Queen Elizabeth
Reilly, S. A.
Law -- England -- History
Fresh water was brought into towns by pipe or open conduit as a
public facility, in addition to having public wells. In London,
a conduit piped water underground to a lead tank, from which it
was delivered to the public by means of pipes and brass taps in
the stone framework. This was London's chief water supply. Water
carriers carried water in wooden devices on their backs to
houses. The paving and proper drainage of the streets became a
town concern. Building contracts began specifying the provision
of adequate cesspits for the privies at town houses, whether the
toilets were built into the house or as an outhouse. Also, in
the better houses, there grew a practice of carting human and
animal fecal matter at night to dung heaps outside the city
walls. There was one public latrine in each ward and about
twelve dung-carts for the whole city. Country manor houses had
toilets on the ground floor and/or the basement level.
Stairwells between floors had narrow and winding steps.
In London, the Goldsmiths, the Mercers, and the Saddlers became
the first guilds to receive, in 1394-5, charters of
incorporation, which gave them perpetual existence. As such they
could hold land in "mortmain", thus depriving the King of rights
that came to him on the death of a tenant-in-chief. They were
called Livery Companies.
In all towns, the organization of craft associations spread
rapidly downwards through the trades and sought self-government.
Craft guilds were gaining much power relative to the old
merchant guilds in governing the towns. The greater crafts such
as the fishmongers, skinners, and the corders organized and
ultimately were recognized by town authorities as self-governing
craft guilds. The building trade guilds such as the tilers,
carpenters, masons, and joiners, became important. Masons were
still itinerant, going to sites of churches, public buildings,
or commanded by the King to work on castles. The guild was not
necessarily associated with a specific product. For instance, a
saddle and bridle were the result of work of four crafts: joiner
(woodworker), painter, saddler (leather), and lorimer (metal
trappings).
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account