For most people in the 15th century the world in
which they lived was small. The England
that they personally knew might stretch little further then 20 miles from their
home. Occasionally they might meet
travellers who could regal them with tales of life in London, somewhere that
they themselves could never hope to visit.
They heard news from other countries of course, not least France with
whom England had been at war for as long as anyone could remember, but it had
little impact on their everyday lives.
Like other port towns though, Hull was different. Stand by the River Hull on a busy day and you
would see ships unloading French garlic, cabbages from Holland and wood from
Norway. More exotic produce came via the major trading towns of Bruges and London, where European dealers sold delights
like almonds, pomegranates and oranges that could then be transported back to
Hull. You might even spot a ship
returning from far off Iceland, where merchants had just begun to organise
voyages to exchange corn and beer for fish.
Most inhabitants of Hull were merchants or mariners who
would be in contact with traders across western Europe, the Baltic states and
even beyond. Merchants often spent their
youth travelling, acquainting themselves with overseas markets before settling
into a more managerial role back home.
Unlike in Hull's early days when Flemish and Italian merchants
ruled the roost, now those from Yorkshire had the upper hand. Yorkshire merchants imported nearly all of
the wine that came through Hull, at least 80% of the cloth and controlled what
remained of the declining wool trade.
Personal connections were everything. Those from outside
Hull wishing to trade in the port had to have an existing inhabitant sponsor
them and stand guarantor for their behaviour.
Mercantile communities across Yorkshire were closely linked as families
used new members to grow their influence. Merchants living in York or Beverley who
wanted their sons to follow into the family business sent them away to Hull to
serve their apprenticeship. Thereby they
not only learned the trade but also established new business links benefiting
all involved.
Not all of Hull’s merchants were part of this wealthy
elite. There were also part-time traders
like Laurence Swattock. For much of the
time Laurence worked as an apothecary but whilst mixing his herbs and potions
he kept an ear to the ground for promising deals that offered the chance to
make a bit of profit. His fellow
citizens would still have viewed Laurence as a merchant and as such socially a
cut above those engaged in troublesome, dirty trades like butchery.
Photo: Bishop
Lane Staith, Hull, looking west towards High Street.
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