Medieval Sourcebook:
Rules for the Governance of the Gild at Ipswich, 1201
The Little Domesday of Ipswich describes the government and chief
Officials of the merchant gild. There was in this instance close connection between the
gild and the town; indeed, it often happened that the town hall was called the gild hall.
Men at scot and lot, or those who paid taxes to the city government, were free from paying
toll on their merchandise. The payment of a hanse or fee for membership of the gild was
also arranged.
And they ordain that in the said borough there shall be elected by the
common council of the town one honest, lawful, and suitable man to be alderman of the gild
merchant in the same borough. And that four honest and lawful men of that same town shall
be associated with him. And that the alderman and these same four shall swear that they
will faithfully maintain the said gild and all that pertains to it. It is also ordained
that no burgess of the said town be quit of custom in that town on his merchandise, that
is, if he be a merchant, except he be at scot and lot in the common taxes and transactions
of the town.
On the same day there was elected by the common council of the town one
alderman, namely, William Gottschalk. And four were elected to associate with him, namely,
Peter Everard, John Le Maistre, Roger Lew, and John of St. George, who were sworn,
together with the alderman, that they would govern the gild merchant in the town of
Ipswich well and faithfully, and all things pertaining to the gild. And that they would
treat all the brethren of the gild well and faithfully. And it was afterwards said by the
alderman and his four associates in the presence of the people of the town that all who
are of the freedom of the town may come before the alderman and his associates on a
certain day, when and where shall be made known to them, to place themselves in the gild
and to give their hanse to the gild.
Source.
From: C. Gross, The Gild Merchant, (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1890), Vol. II, pp.
119-122, reprinted in Roy C. Cave & Herbert H. Coulson, A Source Book for Medieval
Economic History, (Milwaukee: The Bruce Publishing Co., 1936; reprint ed., New York:
Biblo & Tannen, 1965), pp. 209-210.
Scanned by Jerome S. Arkenberg, Cal. State Fullerton. The text has been modernized by
Prof. Arkenberg.
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© Paul Halsall, September 1998
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