la VI of 2 LETTERS PATENT 38 EDWARD III [JULY 15, 1364] Letter Book G, fo. 122 b,' also at Drapers' Hall, Charter No. IX. Carta p Pannarijs. Dieu Roi Denglet?e } Seign Dirlande Daquitaigne As tous ceux as queux cestes tres vendront salutz Sachiez q come entre autres choses ordenez А ñre darrein plement si estoit proteines causes p'poses en mesme le plement ordene qnul Marchant Engleys ne vse mces ne marchandie p lui ne p autre p nulle mane de couine forsq3 vne soulement quel il vorroit elire deuant la feste de la Chandeleure darrein passet ceux qauoient entremeins autres marchandises q celles qils issint esliroient les porroient mettre a vente deuant la feste del Natiuite de Seint Johan le Baptistre pchein ensuant come en les dites ordenances est contenuz plus au plein Et ia soit monstre a nous a ñre conseil q p cause q gentz de diuses mestiers qonqes nestoient appntices ne sufficiantment apris en le mestier de marchandie de draperie solonc les bones aunciens vsages de la Citee de Londres se mellent du dit mestier si q3 a peine home trowa shope en la dite Citee EDWARD, by Grace of God, King England, Lord of Ireland and of Aquitaine, to all to whom these present Letters shall come, greeting. Know that whereas amongst other matters ordained at our last Parliament it was for certain reasons in the said Parliament ordained that no English merchant should use no ware nor merchandise by himself, or another by any manner of covine [fraud], except that one only, which he had chosen before the Feast of Candlemas last past, and that those who had en gaged in merchandise other than that they then chose could put them to sale before the Feast of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist next ensuing, as in the said ordinances is more fully contained. And now it has been shown to us and our Council that because people of divers mysteries, who have neither been apprenticed to, nor sufficiently instructed in, the mystery of the dealing in Drapery according to the good ancient usages of the City of London, engage in the said mystery, one can scarcely find any shop in the The copy in the Company's Book of Evidences, + 389, fo. 154, is here and there illegible. It is preceded by the following note: Ista Carta am Regis lecta & irrotulata q sunt in Cama gyhalde London in libro cum tra G, fo. cxxii. tempe Ade de Bary maioris & Ioħis de Cauntebrugg came? videlt anno Regis Edwardi tercii pos conqm tricesimo octavo.'-Lucas. The copy in Herbert, i. 480, taken from the recital in the mandate commanding its publication differs in the wording. 2 37 Ed. III, c. §. 2 daucune mestier en quele ne soit aucun draperie ou meins ou plus mist monstre a cõe vente queux gentz nount souffisante conissance en le pris de darrees de marchandie du mestier de draperie t p lour nounsachantie & auxint p les grosses embracementz qils fount meins sagement de totes maneres de draps si est la chierte de draperie deuenuz si gnt qele ne purra legerement estre amenuse auxint pluseurs deceites sont faites en la fesance & vente de draps come p fauses moillieurs toundours drap de demy grein vendu pur escarlet et les Teinturers Tistrers Fullers q soleient assiduelement faire lour labour ppre sont deuenuz fesours de drapst ne voillent laborer sur le drap dautri sil ne soit pr trop excessiue salarie nientmeins fount plusures fraudes en lour o@aignes queux ne poent bien estre appceus sinoun p drapers soulement qont de tiels o@aignes plende conissance q pys est souent les teinturers chaungeont les leines les Tisters la file les Fullers tout le drap queux Teinturers Tistours Fullers auxint p colour qils sont fesours des draps achatent autri draps p voie de forstallarie puis les vendent as drapers issint est le drap deux foitz achate auant qil viegne a comune vente le drap qest si souent achate vendue p said City of any mystery in which there is not some drapery more or less offered for common sale, which people have not sufficient knowledge of the price of goods belonging to the merchandise of the Mystery of Drapery (the selling price of Drapery). And on account of their ignorance, and because of the great (embracementz) engrossment which they make unwisely of all manner of cloth, the dearness of cloth has become so great that it cannot be easily reduced, and also various frauds have been practised in the making and sale of cloth, such as by false dampers and shearmen, and cloth of demy grein sold for scarlet; and the Dyers, Weavers, and Fullers, who should confine themselves to their own proper work, have become makers of cloths, and will not work on the cloths of others except at an excessive wage, and also perpetrate many frauds in their work which cannot be well detected except by Drapers who have full knowledge of such work, and what is worse, the Dyers often change the wool and the Weavers the yarn, and the Fullers the whole cloth, the which Dyers, Weavers and Fullers also, on the ground that they are makers of cloth, buy other cloths by way of forestalling and then sell them to Drapers, and thus the cloth is twice bought before it comes to open sale, and being thus so often bought and sold by divers hands Moillieur. The damping or soaking of the cloth probably in the process of fulling or dyeing. Mr. Pirenne tells me that he has never met with the word in French or Low Country documents. diuses mains couient a forte estre de molt le plus chier q drap q nest vendu q vne foitz p Marchant draper queles choses entre autres sont les greindres causes de lexcessiue chierte de marchandise de draperie & issint de tieux deceites defautes tsğnt damage pert sont aduenuz deuant ces heures sibien a nous come a tout le poeple de ñre roialme plusğntz auendront q dieu defende si remedie le plustost ny soit mys Nous entendantz les dites choses issint a nous monstretz estre tout contriantz au dite ordinance du plement voillantz mesme lordinance garder meintenir en touz pointz de tout ouster les fraudes deceites susditz si auons passent des gntz @ autres de ñre consail ordene gnte q nully ne vse le mestier de draperie en la Citee de Londres non les suburbes dycelle sil neist este appntice en icelle mestier ou p autre dune mande receu p cōe assent de mesme le mestier et q chescun des ditz mestiers des Teinturers Tisters Fullers se tiegne a son office ppret de rien ne se melle de fesure achate ne de vente de nul mañe drap ne de draperie sur peine demprisonement de pdre tout le drap issint p eux fait achate ou vendue ou la value deus nous et q nul q eit drap a vendre en la dite Citee ou en les suburbes ne les vende forsq3 as drapers enfranchiez en la dite la dite mestier de drapie sil ne soit en becomes much more dear than cloth which is only sold once by a Merchant Draper. The which things amongst others are the chief cause of the excessive dearness of the merchandise of cloth, and also because of the like frauds and defaults great damage and loss have of late accrued to us and all the people of our realm, and greater will befall us, which God forbid, if a remedy be not speedily applied. We, understanding that the said things as above shown to us are entirely contrary to the said ordinance of Parliament, and wishing to maintain and enforce in all points the said ordinance and to remove the above-mentioned frauds and deceits, have, with the assent of the lords and others of our Council, ordained and granted that none shall use the said Mystery of Drapery in the City of London, nor in the suburbs of the same, unless he has been apprenticed in the said Mystery or in other due manner been received by the common assent of the same Mystery, and that each of the Mysteries of Dyers, Weavers, and Fullers shall keep themselves to their own Mystery, and in no way meddle with the making', buying, or selling of any manner of cloth or drapery on pain of imprisonment, and of forfeiture to us of all the cloth so by them made, bought or sold, or of the value thereof. And that no one who has cloths to sell in the said City or in the suburbs shall sell them except to Drapers enfranchised in the said Mystery of Drapery, unless it be in gross to gros as Seign's autres du cōe qi les voillent achatre pour lour oeps demesne nemie a retaille sur mesme la peine Et q les Drapers enfranchiez en la mestere de draperie en la dite Citee puissent elire chescun an quatre psones de lour mestier ppre q soient iurrez vne foitz pan en Psence du Mair de suruere q nul defaute ne deceite soit vse ne feit en les mestiers auantditz @ de reuler goûner le dit mestier de draperie en mesme la Citee au cōe pfit du poeple & de due punissement ent faire de ceux en queux defaut Sra troue selonc lauis discrecion des ditz quatre psones p laide du Mair des viscontz qnt il embusoignera les queux Mair & viscontz nous volons qils soient entendantz as ditz quatre psones qant ils 3ront a ce peux requis. Et volons auxint t donons poair as ditz quatre psones qi Sront issint eslieux iurrez de Pndre sement de toux ceux qi Sront receux au dit mestier de draperie en mesme la Citee de vsir faire ce qapptient a mesme le mestier bien loialment sanz fraude mal engin ou subtil compassement faire encontre les pointz ordenances auantditz Sauue touz io's a ñre chier en dieu le Priour de Smythfeld autres seign's _qont feires en les dites suburbes p ğntes de noz pgenito's de nous lour feires franchises & franches custumes the lords and others of the commons who wish to buy them for their own use, and by no means by retail under the same penalty. And that the Drapers enfranchised in the Mystery of Drapery in the said City may elect each year four of their own Mystery, who shall be sworn once a year 1 in the presence of the Mayor, to oversee that no default nor deceit be used or done in the Mystery aforesaid; and to rule and govern the said Mystery of Drapery in the same City to the common profit of the people, and to duly punish those in whom default shall be found, according to the advice and discretion of the said four persons by the aid of the Mayor and the Sheriffs if need be; the which Mayor and Sheriffs shall listen to the said four persons when they shall be requested by them. And we also will and give power to the said four persons who shall be elected and sworn, to take an oath of all those who shall be received into the said Mystery of Drapery in the same City, that they will and do whatever appertains to the same Mystery well and lawfully without fraud, evil design, or subtle compassing contrary to the points and ordinances aforesaid. Saving always to our beloved in God, the Prior of Smithfield, and other lords, who have fairs in the said suburbs by grant of our progenitors, or of us, their fairs, franchises, and free customs which they In the mandate ordering the publication of the Charter they are to be sworn twice a year. Cf. Herbert, Livery Companies, i. 482. queux ils ont vsez en leur ditz feires du temps des dites Entes encea as queux p colour de ceste ñre gnte @ ordenance nous ne volons piudice ne damage estre fait en aucun mañe et sauue les franchises p nous ğntez as Marchantz Vineters Dengletre de Gascoigne queux nous volons demorer en lour force en touz pointz En tesmoignance de quele chose nous avons fait faire cestes noz tres patentes Don A Westmoustier le quinzisme iour de Iuyl lan de ñre regne trent oetisme. p ipm Regem & cons. have exercised in their said fairs from the date of the said grants, with regard to whom we do not wish that any prejudice or damage shall be done to them in any way under pretext of this our grant and ordinance; and saving the franchises by us granted to the Merchant Vintners of England and Gascony, which we will shall remain in force in all points. In testimony of which we have caused to be written these our Letters Patent. Given at Westminster the 15th day of July in the 38th year of our reign, By the King and his Council. VII PETITION OF THE MYSTERY OF DRAPERS AGAINST THE ELECTION OF NICHOLAS BREMBRE AS MAYOR IN 1384 Ancient Petitions, File 94, No. 4664, Public Record Office, London. A? sexcellent & spuissant s nie s le Roy & ? snobles & sages s's de cest Psent plement ....nt hublement ses poves liges Drapers de sa Citee de Loundres & se pleynent vs Nichol Brembre Chtr & sez acomplices & autres de son assent de ce q le dit s Nichol ove lassent de lez qux furent de son assent accrocha s lui roiale poair de ce q encontre lor chartre dez Roys gunte & conferme de lo fraunchise de la dite Citee & en mayntenance de sa ....... mondre fist Oteins gentz q furent de son assent al Gyhall du dite Citee en To the most Excellent and Puissant Lord the King and the very noble and wise lords of the present Parliament their poor lieges the Drapers of the City of London humbly [address themselves] and complain against Sir Nicholas Brembre knight, and his accomplices and others of his faction, that the said Sir Nicholas, with the assent of those who were of his faction, accroached to himself the royal power, in that, contrary to the Royal Charters granted and confirmed concerning their privileges in the said City of London, and |