Local Customs Accounts of the Port of Exeter 1266–1321

Ed. Maryanne Kowaleski

ISBN 10: 0901853364 / ISBN 13: 9780901853363

Published by Devon & Cornwall Record Society, 1993

About this Item

Exeter?s port customs accounts are notable, not only for their survival as early records of the ships, merchants and commodities of overseas trade, but also as giving rare detail of coastal trade and importers, whether liable to custom or not. This volume presents a translation of the customs accounts, with an introduction to the medieval port of Exeter, its customs collection, ships and mariners, and imports.

Seller Inventory # 517870

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Local Customs Accounts of the Port of Exeter 1266?1321
• Publisher: Devon & Cornwall Record Society
• Publication Date: 1993
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0901853364
• ISBN 13: 9780901853363
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

Exeter possesses the best series of local customs accounts from medieval England, beginning in 1266 and surviving for almost 70 per cent of the years up to 1498. They are also far more complete than other local accounts: listing ships' names, home ports, shipmasters and dates of arrival, as well as the importers and their cargoes. Equally remarkable is their focus on coastal as well as overseas traffic, unlike the better known national customs accounts which recorded only overseas trade. From the Exeter accounts we can follow the movements of foreign and domestic shipping, grain imports during the great Famine of 1315-17, and the identity of the merchants, shipmasters and marinerswho carried on the various kinds of trade.
Dr Kowaleski's introduction provides the first detailed account of the port of Exeter and its activities during this period, followed by a complete translation of the surviving accounts from 1266 to 1321. The book also includes a specimen Latin account, a glossary of weights and measures, map, and full indexes.

About the Author

Maryanne Kowaleski is Joseph Fitzpatrick S.J. Distinguished Professor of History and Medieval Studies at Fordham University; having previously graduated from University of Michigan, Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies and the University of Toronto