Ancient rules, modern readers: a window into London’s craft trades and their governance.
This volume presents the original ordinances of the Clothworkers’ Company, together with the early rules of the Fullers and Shearmen. It preserves the exact form and spelling of the documents, printed from the original vellum skins for careful study of how these trades regulated work, membership, and city life.
Along with the core ordinances, the book includes the Deed of Incorporation for the guilds and related documents, showing how three crafts united to form a single company and how their governance traveled through centuries of city history.
- Verbatim reproductions of historic ordinances from the 15th–17th centuries.
- Context for how medieval and early modern crafts were organized and controlled in London.
- Appendices with connected documents and cross-references to other trades.
- Notes on authenticity, script, and the process of approval by city authorities.
Ideal for readers of London history, medieval trades, and archival editions seeking primary-source insight into how crafts regulated themselves and shaped urban life.
This edition is a reliable resource for researchers, students, and history enthusiasts who value accurately reproduced, historically grounded material.