It has been attributed to Alfred the Great that amongst the many wise and beneficial measures he took for the advancement of this kingdom, was the establishment of fairs and markets. I have already shown that this is not quite so; but certain it is that the first general measures for the regulation of commerce in England, are dated back to his reign. Hence it was then provided that alien merchants should come only to the “four fairs,” and should not remain in England more than forty days. This was in the latter half of the ninth century. But I have already shown that fairs were held in other parts of Europe, and in Asia, centuries earlier than this date. The point of importance in the regulation of Alfred is that foreign merchants were permitted by royal authority to attend these English fairs.

King Ethelred II. (end of tenth and commencement of eleventh centuries) proclaimed that the ships of merchants, or of enemies from the high seas, coming with goods into any port should be at peace. The principle here enunciated, of commerce being deemed an act of peace, is believed to be of high antiquity in Great Britain; but whether it originated here is by no means clear, nor is it material to determine. At later periods the practice has not been continuously upheld.

Henry I. granted to the citizens of London (inter alia) that they should be free throughout England and the sea ports from toll, passage through towns, ports, gates, and bridges; and lestage, or a toll paid for freedom to sell at Fairs.

Magna Charta (1215).—The demand of the Barons presented to King John embodied the following: “That merchants shall have safety to go and come, buy and sell, without any evil tolls, but by antient and honest customs.” In the completed Charter the actual grant took the following shape:

All merchants shall have safety and security in coming into England and going out of England, and in staying and in travelling through England, as well by land as by water, to buy and sell without any unjust exactions, according to ancient and right customs, excepting in time of war, and if they be of a country at war against us: and if such are found in our land at the beginning of a war, they shall be apprehended without injury of their bodies and goods until it be known to us, or to our Chief Justiciary, how the merchants of our country are treated who are found in the country at war against us; if ours be in safety there, the others shall be in safety in our land.

The doctrine of international reciprocity is here very clearly stated.

Macpherson (“Annals of Commerce”) is of opinion, after an examination of the trading of the chief commercial ports of Great Britain, that by the middle of the twelfth century (A.D. 1156) “the foreign trade was almost entirely conducted by foreign merchants;” indeed he declared it to be “evidently” so. I expect to be able to show that the great centres of trade at this period were the fairs held in various parts of the kingdom. The case of Sturbridge Fair (Cambridge) is a remarkable instance.

1216.—The first Great Charter of Henry III. confirmed the provisions of Magna Charta as to merchants, except in the case of those who had been before publicly prohibited. The privileges thus accorded to foreign merchants were seven. (1) To come into England (2) To depart thereout (3) To remain (4) To travel by land or water (5) To buy and sell (6) To be free of evil tolls[3] (7) To enjoy the ancient customs. This last was of material consequence, and implied privileges not common to ordinary persons. The promise of freedom from “evil tolls” hardly less so, as will hereafter appear.

These early privileges accorded to foreign merchants who visited our shores seem so natural to us, in these free-trade times, that we have a difficulty in realizing at the first glance the full measure of their significance. It may aid us in doing so if I review the general regulations regarding foreigners which prevailed (reciprocally) in most of the countries of Europe prior to this period (thirteenth century) and in many cases long thereafter. Every foreigner was answerable to the debts, and even crimes of all other foreigners of his own nationality[4]—and the question of nationality was very freely interpreted in some such cases. And in the case of the death of a foreign merchant his property in possession was either forfeited to the King or fell a prey to the rapacity of the lord of the soil in whose territory the death occurred.[5] Further, by an early custom of London, merchants giving reference for strangers, who purchased goods on the credit of such references, were held liable to pay for the goods so obtained. Thus under the custom of merchants, two persons of the same nationality being found in arrear, the whole debt might be charged to one of them—as the creditor might select!

These restrictions removed, or greatly modified, it is no wonder that fairs greatly increased in numbers and importance.

1235. This same monarch Henry III. gave special permission to the merchants of Cologne to attend fairs in all parts of England. This was probably in consequence of some claim from the branch of the Hanseatic League established in London, to trade in its corporate capacity exclusively for the cities which belonged to the confederacy. There was another association of German merchants settled in London at this date.

1275. The First statute of Westminster (c. 23) was intended to remedy the state of primitive justice already spoken of, and which to a large degree arose out of local jurisdictions. Under it no foreign person—that is to say, one who was not free of the town he visited—which is of this realm (i.e. of England) was to be distrained for any debts but his own in any city, burgh, town, market or fair.

1283. The statute de Mercatoribus (11 Edw. I.) was intended to assist merchants in the recovery of their debts, and thus to encourage them to trade in England. When they supplied goods and the debt was acknowledged before royal officers in specified towns, they could be empowered under the King’s seal to distrain for debt in default of payment. At Acton Burnel this new scheme was determined on, for trial in London, York, and Bristol; and after two years it was decreed (Statutum Mercatorum, 1285, 13 Edw. I.) that it should be brought into much more extensive operation by giving similar facilities in many other places, especially in fairs, and a much greater number of royal officers were empowered to act in the matter. These privileges were not limited to men from particular towns or countries: all foreign merchants could avail themselves thereof, except when this kingdom was at war with their native land. The clause relating to the “Seal of the Fair” was as follows:—

“And a Seal shall be provided that shall serve for Fairs, and the same shall be sent unto every Fair under the King’s Seal, by a Clerk sworn, or by the Keeper of the Fair, and the Seal shall be opened before them, and the one piece shall be delivered unto the aforesaid merchants, and the other shall remain with the Clerk; and before them, or one of the merchants, if both cannot attend, the Recognizances shall be taken as before is said.”

In the case of London two merchants of the Commonalty should be chosen that should swear compliance with this law.

And by a charter of the following year granted to foreign merchants then resident in England, it was ordained, “that one weight shall be kept in every fair and town; that the weigher shall show the buyer and seller that the beam and scales are fair, and that there shall be only one weight and measure in our dominions, and that they be stamped with our standard mark.” All students of history, know how well this ordinance has been observed!

By the Statute of Wynton [Winchester] attributed to the reign of Edw. I., but probably of earlier date it is enacted (c. 6) “And the King commandeth and forbiddeth that from henceforth neither Fairs nor markets be kept in the Church-yards for the Honour of the Church.”[6]

1321. About this date—reign of Edw. II.—there is supposed to have been enacted “Articles of the Office of Escheatry.” Amongst the duties of this officer of the crown, he was to hold inquest (inter alia) of markets, fairs, tolls, passage-monies, and customs, unjustly levied without license of the King; also where, when, and from what time, and how much they are worth by the year. Under the power so granted various inquisitions regarding fairs, and the tolls charged, and the privileges asserted, were conducted.