London and the towns of Continental Europe in the first period of the Hundred Years’ War

Abstract

The article examines the relations between London and the cities of Continental Europe in the first period of the Hundred Years’ War. It is shown that the beginning of the conflict for the citizens of London was associated with the need to strengthen the security of the city, supply armed detachments, subsidize the crown. London maintained contacts with the cities of Continental Europe, primarily Flanders, “English Gascony” and Normandy. The most important area of communication remained trade, which was implemented in various organizational forms, with extensive use of credit. Also, the fields for interaction were the return of runaway apprentices, the solution of property and inheritance disputes, issues of compensation in case of robbery and murder of merchants. It is concluded that the Hundred Years’ War created additional opportunities for enrichment, but also increased the risks that the citizens had to take into account.

Keywords

• london
• towns of flanders
• towns of france
• hundred years’ war
• towns government policy
• city defense
• piracy
• trade
• credit
• runaway apprentices
• property and inheritance rights