economic developments Flashcards
How large was the population of England at the beginning of the 15th century ?
2.2 million
How large was London’s population at the beginning of the 15th century ?
50,000
How much of the value of English exports did the cloth trade account for ?
90%
During Henry VII, what was the estimated increase in the volume of cloth exports ?
60%
When were the merchant adventurers founded ?
1407
What were the merchant adventurers ?
one of the wealthiest and most influential companies in London
What industry/ trade did the Merchant adventurers come to dominate ?
the London cloth trade
Most people in England were _____ dwellers
urban
Henry traded largely with the _______ ___________ in Wool and cloth
The Burgundian Netherlands
When was Henry’s first navigation act ?
1485
What did Henry’s first navigation act of 1485 aim to do ?
to promote trade and break the monopoly by the hanseatic league.
What was the hanseatic league ?
A group of German states who had a tight hold over European trade
What did Henry do in 1489 to further encourage trade and break the monopoly of the Hanseatic league (to do with Portugal)
Henry renewed an earlier treaty with Portugal to encourage trade
When did Henry introduce a treaty with Florence ?
1490
What did Henry’s treaty with Florence in 1490 do ?
Florence, which was one of Venice’s trading rivals, was now able to market English wool in Florence controlled Pisa.
In 1492, what import duty did Henry introduce ?
He introduced an import duty on wine brought to England on Venetian (venice) ships.
A the beginning of Henry’s reign, What happened to the export of raw wool ?
The export of raw wool was halved and overtaken by woollen cloth.
What processes involved in the production of woollen cloth took place in the home ?
carding, spinning and weaving
What processes involved in the production of woollen cloth took place in factories as commercial processes ?
fulling and dyeing
Who organised and financed the operation of fulling and dyeing as a commercial process in order to produce woollen cloth ?
clothiers
What were the 3 main districts in England for woollen cloth ?
1) Yorkshire
2) East Anglia
3) The West Country
What small towns within 2 of the main 3 districts for the production of woollen cloth grew to be very prosperous due to the increase in its export.
1) Lavenham in Suffolk (East Anglia)
2) Totnes in Devon (The West Country)
What links did the Merchant adventurers have that meant English cloth could be transported all over Europe ?
With Antwerp
How did Henry use the navy to help the Merchant adventurers with trade ?
In times of Peace, he would let the merchant adventurers rent ships from his navy
Other than woollen cloth, what 2 other industries were being exported at the time of Henry’s reign ?
Metal and Coal
Give one of the 3 mains areas of lead mining in Britain at the time of Henry’s reign
1) pennines
2) north and central wales
3) Mendips
Give one of the 2 main areas of Tin Mining in Britain at the time of Henry’s reign
1) Cornwall
2) Devon
What new metal emerged in the industry at the time of Henry’s reign ?
Brass
Where did the different components needed to produce brass come from ?
copper in cumberland, zinc in the Mendips and metallurgical skills brought from Germany.
(Exchange of technological knowledge and expertise with Europe was not uncommon)
Where was coal mainly mined ?
Durham and Northumberland (North East England) (since the 13th century)
Why, in Henry’s reign, was there the belief that the output of coal mining was beginning to accelerate ?
Because, in areas where there was no timber, it was cheaper to transport coal by water than to bring in wood from other areas.
Where was coal shipped from after it had been made in North East England ?
Newcastle
Where did the coal shipped from Newcastle travel to ? (2)
1) London - to meet the growing demand for domestic and industrial fuel
2) Germany & the Netherlands - made up a small part of the export trade
By 1500, how much of England’s population was employed in the cloth industry ?
around 1.3%
How was exploration a key part of the Tudor legacy ?
During Henry VII’s reign, exploration was increased. Not only this, but under Elizabeth I, new colonies in America were founded.
Give 2 examples of adventurers Henry patronised (gave patronage) to in order to increase exploration.
1) John Cabot
2) Sebastian Cabot
Give one success of John Cabot
1497 - John Cabot discovered NewFoundland
What system was most of farming and agriculture based on under Henry VII ?
open field husbandry
What was open field husbandry ?
Strips of land within a field and tenants could use these strips for animal or crop farming.
What was the main problem that Henry faced in farming/ agriculture ?
enclosure
What was enclosure ?
Where land was fenced off which ended the common rights of the land
Why was there a move towards sheep farming under Henry VII’s reign and at the beginning of the 15th century ?
This is because there was an increase in the profitability of sheep as the woollen cloth trade boomed.
Give two ways in which Henry tried to deal with the issue of enclosure.
1) 1489 - Henry’s Parliament passed the first legislation against enclosure
2) 1489 - a law was passed forbidding the destruction of houses attached to 20 or more acres of land. The law also criticised the conversion of lands from arable (crop) to pasture (animal)
Give 3 advantages of enclosure in farming.
1) benefited areas more suited to sheep farming rather than arable crops
2) land partitioned into properly fenced off fields rather than open field husbandry
3) enabled selective breeding
Give 3 disadvantages of enclosure in farming.
1) eviction of families
2) loss of rights to use common land
3) led to vagabondage
Give one failure of Sebastian Cabot (son of John Cabot) in exploration.
1508 - led an unsuccessful attempt at Asia
