If you were a noble in the Middle Ages, you were most likely very rich. What did you do with your money? The expense records of a 14th-century English noble reveals how she spent her fortune – sometimes for necessities and sometimes for lavish occasions.
Elizabeth de Burgh, Lady of Clare (1295-1360), was one of the more wealthy nobles in England in the early 14th century. A granddaughter of King Edward I, she found herself caught up in the tumultuous politics of the country during the reign of her uncle Edward II (1307-27). She was married three times, and when her brother died at the Battle of Bannockburn she and her sisters inherited the family fortune. When her last husband died in 1322, Elizabeth decided never to remarry and for next 38 years she was able to run her large estate, centred around Clare Castle in Suffolk.
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In Elizabeth de Burgh Lady of Clare (1295-1360): Household and Other Records, Jennifer Ward has edited and translated the surviving administrative accounts of this lady during her widowhood. They reveal much about the daily life of Elizabeth and the staff of around 100 she employed, as well as how her vast estate was managed.
Upkeep at Clare Castle
Some of the records deal with the maintenance and upkeep of Elizabeth’s properties, including Clare Castle. They note how workmen were coming into the castle to carry out various jobs and tasks.
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For example, in the year 1324-5 these expenses were recorded just for plumbing:
For 1 man’s pay making the gutter between the Hall and the Lady’s Great Chamber and repairing other gutters, for himself and his boy, 4s. 10d. Henry Golde’s pay carrying sand for the said man and helping the said plumber for 6 days, 1s. 3d. 1 tiler’s pay tiling between the Hall and the Lady’s Great Chamber and repairing the porch at the door of the Lady’s Great Chamber and fitting the ridge-pieces of the cloister between the Hall and the Chapel for 31 days, 12s. 11d., taking 5d. a day for himself and his helper. 1 groom’s pay carrying sand for the said tiler for making mortar for 3 days, 6d. For 6,000 tiles purchased, 17s., at 2s. 10d. per 1,000. For 200 tiles purchased for the ridge-pieces, 5s. 8d., at 2s. 10d. per 100.
An account from 1343 details some new buildings within Clare Castle:
For pay and wages of divers carpenters, sawyers, masons, plasterers and divers other workmen working on Clare castle for the time of this account, making a new building between the hall and kitchen, with solar and divers chambers in the same for the Scullery, Saucery, Larder, Oven-house and other buildings for offices, and also divers new pentices under the walls of the castle between the chamber called Colingham’s chamber and the gate of the castle. With the making of divers fireplaces in the same making another new building in the outer bailey of the castle for the Lady’s huntsmen and dogs, and repairing divers other in the castle, with tiles, lime, straw, lead, timber, iron nails and divers other items purchased the aforesaid in the particulars sown to this roll and examined, £34 2s. 1½d.
Today, little is left of Clare Castle – Photo: Evelyn Simak / Footpath to Clare Castle / CC BY-SA 2.0
We even get to see the household had minor nuisances to deal with:
Item paid to Thomas Molecatcher taking moles in the garden and the outer bailey of the castle at the term of All Saints [1 November], 2s. For his wages taking moles in the manor this summer, 3s.
Provisioning the estate
Other accounts detail the many different items that were being purchased for the household. Men were sent to London and other parts of England to arrange orders and bring back supplies, and that there were several merchants who Elizabeth preferred to deal with. For example, Bartholomew Thomasin, an Italian grocer living in London, was used on several occasions during the years 1339-1340. He sold the Clare estate many things, and often there were also repeat orders. Here is a list of some of the goods they bought from the grocer, along with price paid for them:
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15 sugar-loaves weighing 100 lbs, at 1s d. a lb. £5 8s. 4d. 1 piece of Polish wax weighing 1½ cwt 18 lbs., at £2 15s. per cwt, plus in total 4d., £4 11s d. 5 gallons 1 quart of olive oil with 1 barrel, 7s 8d. 1 quire of paper 4d. 12 lb. of pine-seed, 6s. 6 lbs of plums, 3s. 6 lbs of almonds, 1s. 3d. 6 lbs of currants, 6s. 2 lbs of cloves, 11s. 3 lbs of sandalwood, 16s 6d. 12 lbs of pepper, 14s. 20 lbs of cumin, 5s. 1 box of pistachio nut confections containing 3¾lb., 6s. 4d. 1 box of royal pastries containing 4 lb., 4s. 2 lbs of violet sugar in gobbets, 3s. 1 peck of figs from Malaga, 18s.
Elizabeth de Burgh, Lady of Clare, by an unknown artist in 1714
The food supply
Having a household of dozens of men and women (and horses) meant that a lot of food was needed. The managers also kept careful records of how much food was available. Here is the list of available supplies for one week in the year 1340:
Expenses of the household from 17 December to 23rd of the same month, both days counted: Pantry: 10 qr 4b. of wheat baked which rendered 2,032 loaves and 3b. 1 peck of flour. And 2,234 loaves used from the stock. Buttery: 30 sesters, 2 pitchers of wine from stock. And 880 gallons of ale from stock. Kitchen 5½ carcasses of beef, 7½ bacons, 11½ carcasses of sheep, 1 pig and 1 deer from stock. Item 1,820 herring, 41 stockfish, 8 ling, 21 cod, 3¼ salmon, 230 eels from stock. Poultry: 4 pheasants, 6 rabbits, 3 partridges and 18 mallards from stock. Marshalsea: 32qr 3½b. of oats of which 4qr 6½b. 3 pecks from increment. Item 3qr 1 peck of bran, 68 loaves. And 47 horseshoes from stock.
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While these food supplies were usually bread, ale, wine, meats and fish, the records also reveal that sometimes the household had access to some more unusual meals:
Apples, ½d 360 eggs, 2s ½d. 3 swans 1¼ gallons of honey, 1s. 9d. 3 pieces of sturgeon and 2 pieces of dolphin 500 oysters, 1s. 3d. 3 slices of whale-meat 8 crabs and crayfish, 1s 4d.
Elizabeth would entertain guests on a regular basis – there always seemed to be some family member, noble, or important church official who came by with their numerous servants – more food and gifts had to be bought.
The most extravagant expenses would be the feasts that Elizabeth held during special religious days like Christmas. Dozens of guests could attend, and the amount of money spent on these occasions was impresssive. For example, on 31 May 1358, Elizabeth was staying just outside London when she celeberated the Feast of Corpus Christi. Here is what was bought just for that day:
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Pantry: 6 quarters of wheat supplied which gave 1,150 loaves and 3 pecks of flour. 510 loaves from stock used. Fruit purchased, 4d.
Buttery: 24 sesters of wine from stock. 150 gallons of ale bought in London, 25s.
Kitchen: 1/2 a quarter of beef, 2 bacons, 11/2 quarters of dishes of boar, and 6 deer from stock. 11/2 carcasses of beef, 29s; 61/2 pigs, 30s 6d; 21/2 carcasses of mutton, 6s 3d; 12 calves, 27s 81/2d; 3 heads and 2 dishes of boar, 9s 4d.
Stables: hay for 26 horses, and 10 hackneys from stock. For their provender, 7 bushels and 1 peck of oats, and 124 loaves from stock; wages of 6 grooms and 1 page, 10d.
Sum total for the pantry: 4d Sum total for the buttery: 25s Sum total for the kitchen: 102s 91/2d Sum total for the poultry: £6 18s 71/2d Sum total for the hall and chamber: 9s 3d Sum total for the stables: 10d Sum total of purchases: £13 16s 10d Sum total from stock: £4 19s 6d Sum total for the day: £18 16s 4d No. of messes: 136
If you were a noble in the Middle Ages, you were most likely very rich. What did you do with your money? The expense records of a 14th-century English noble reveals how she spent her fortune – sometimes for necessities and sometimes for lavish occasions.
Elizabeth de Burgh, Lady of Clare (1295-1360), was one of the more wealthy nobles in England in the early 14th century. A granddaughter of King Edward I, she found herself caught up in the tumultuous politics of the country during the reign of her uncle Edward II (1307-27). She was married three times, and when her brother died at the Battle of Bannockburn she and her sisters inherited the family fortune. When her last husband died in 1322, Elizabeth decided never to remarry and for next 38 years she was able to run her large estate, centred around Clare Castle in Suffolk.
In Elizabeth de Burgh Lady of Clare (1295-1360): Household and Other Records, Jennifer Ward has edited and translated the surviving administrative accounts of this lady during her widowhood. They reveal much about the daily life of Elizabeth and the staff of around 100 she employed, as well as how her vast estate was managed.
Upkeep at Clare Castle
Some of the records deal with the maintenance and upkeep of Elizabeth’s properties, including Clare Castle. They note how workmen were coming into the castle to carry out various jobs and tasks.
For example, in the year 1324-5 these expenses were recorded just for plumbing:
For 1 man’s pay making the gutter between the Hall and the Lady’s Great Chamber and repairing other gutters, for himself and his boy, 4s. 10d. Henry Golde’s pay carrying sand for the said man and helping the said plumber for 6 days, 1s. 3d. 1 tiler’s pay tiling between the Hall and the Lady’s Great Chamber and repairing the porch at the door of the Lady’s Great Chamber and fitting the ridge-pieces of the cloister between the Hall and the Chapel for 31 days, 12s. 11d., taking 5d. a day for himself and his helper. 1 groom’s pay carrying sand for the said tiler for making mortar for 3 days, 6d. For 6,000 tiles purchased, 17s., at 2s. 10d. per 1,000. For 200 tiles purchased for the ridge-pieces, 5s. 8d., at 2s. 10d. per 100.
An account from 1343 details some new buildings within Clare Castle:
For pay and wages of divers carpenters, sawyers, masons, plasterers and divers other workmen working on Clare castle for the time of this account, making a new building between the hall and kitchen, with solar and divers chambers in the same for the Scullery, Saucery, Larder, Oven-house and other buildings for offices, and also divers new pentices under the walls of the castle between the chamber called Colingham’s chamber and the gate of the castle. With the making of divers fireplaces in the same making another new building in the outer bailey of the castle for the Lady’s huntsmen and dogs, and repairing divers other in the castle, with tiles, lime, straw, lead, timber, iron nails and divers other items purchased the aforesaid in the particulars sown to this roll and examined, £34 2s. 1½d.
We even get to see the household had minor nuisances to deal with:
Item paid to Thomas Molecatcher taking moles in the garden and the outer bailey of the castle at the term of All Saints [1 November], 2s. For his wages taking moles in the manor this summer, 3s.
Provisioning the estate
Other accounts detail the many different items that were being purchased for the household. Men were sent to London and other parts of England to arrange orders and bring back supplies, and that there were several merchants who Elizabeth preferred to deal with. For example, Bartholomew Thomasin, an Italian grocer living in London, was used on several occasions during the years 1339-1340. He sold the Clare estate many things, and often there were also repeat orders. Here is a list of some of the goods they bought from the grocer, along with price paid for them:
15 sugar-loaves weighing 100 lbs, at 1s d. a lb. £5 8s. 4d.
1 piece of Polish wax weighing 1½ cwt 18 lbs., at £2 15s. per cwt, plus in total 4d., £4 11s d.
5 gallons 1 quart of olive oil with 1 barrel, 7s 8d.
1 quire of paper 4d.
12 lb. of pine-seed, 6s.
6 lbs of plums, 3s.
6 lbs of almonds, 1s. 3d.
6 lbs of currants, 6s.
2 lbs of cloves, 11s.
3 lbs of sandalwood, 16s 6d.
12 lbs of pepper, 14s.
20 lbs of cumin, 5s.
1 box of pistachio nut confections containing 3¾lb., 6s. 4d.
1 box of royal pastries containing 4 lb., 4s.
2 lbs of violet sugar in gobbets, 3s.
1 peck of figs from Malaga, 18s.
The food supply
Having a household of dozens of men and women (and horses) meant that a lot of food was needed. The managers also kept careful records of how much food was available. Here is the list of available supplies for one week in the year 1340:
Expenses of the household from 17 December to 23rd of the same month, both days counted: Pantry: 10 qr 4b. of wheat baked which rendered 2,032 loaves and 3b. 1 peck of flour. And 2,234 loaves used from the stock. Buttery: 30 sesters, 2 pitchers of wine from stock. And 880 gallons of ale from stock. Kitchen 5½ carcasses of beef, 7½ bacons, 11½ carcasses of sheep, 1 pig and 1 deer from stock. Item 1,820 herring, 41 stockfish, 8 ling, 21 cod, 3¼ salmon, 230 eels from stock. Poultry: 4 pheasants, 6 rabbits, 3 partridges and 18 mallards from stock. Marshalsea: 32qr 3½b. of oats of which 4qr 6½b. 3 pecks from increment. Item 3qr 1 peck of bran, 68 loaves. And 47 horseshoes from stock.
While these food supplies were usually bread, ale, wine, meats and fish, the records also reveal that sometimes the household had access to some more unusual meals:
Apples, ½d
360 eggs, 2s ½d.
3 swans
1¼ gallons of honey, 1s. 9d.
3 pieces of sturgeon and 2 pieces of dolphin
500 oysters, 1s. 3d.
3 slices of whale-meat
8 crabs and crayfish, 1s 4d.
Elizabeth would entertain guests on a regular basis – there always seemed to be some family member, noble, or important church official who came by with their numerous servants – more food and gifts had to be bought.
The most extravagant expenses would be the feasts that Elizabeth held during special religious days like Christmas. Dozens of guests could attend, and the amount of money spent on these occasions was impresssive. For example, on 31 May 1358, Elizabeth was staying just outside London when she celeberated the Feast of Corpus Christi. Here is what was bought just for that day:
Pantry: 6 quarters of wheat supplied which gave 1,150 loaves and 3 pecks of flour. 510 loaves from stock used. Fruit purchased, 4d.
Buttery: 24 sesters of wine from stock. 150 gallons of ale bought in London, 25s.
Kitchen: 1/2 a quarter of beef, 2 bacons, 11/2 quarters of dishes of boar, and 6 deer from stock. 11/2 carcasses of beef, 29s; 61/2 pigs, 30s 6d; 21/2 carcasses of mutton, 6s 3d; 12 calves, 27s 81/2d; 3 heads and 2 dishes of boar, 9s 4d.
Poultry: 3 swans, 7 herons, 5 squirrels, 24 rabbits, and 3 geese from stock. 12 piglets, 13s; 2 swans, 10s; 60 capons, 30s; 4 hens, 10d; 47 geese, 13s 51/2d; 16 lambs, 14s 8d; 10 egrets, 25s;72 130 chickens, 16s 3d; 8 rabbits, 16d; 1,300 eggs, 9s 9d; 17 gallons of milk, 17d; 4 gallons of cream, 16d; 3 cheeses, 12d; onions, 7d.
Hall and chamber: rushes purchased, 9s 3d.
Stables: hay for 26 horses, and 10 hackneys from stock. For their provender, 7 bushels and 1 peck of oats, and 124 loaves from stock; wages of 6 grooms and 1 page, 10d.
Sum total for the pantry: 4d
Sum total for the buttery: 25s
Sum total for the kitchen: 102s 91/2d
Sum total for the poultry: £6 18s 71/2d
Sum total for the hall and chamber: 9s 3d
Sum total for the stables: 10d
Sum total of purchases: £13 16s 10d
Sum total from stock: £4 19s 6d
Sum total for the day: £18 16s 4d
No. of messes: 136
Jennifer Wards’ book Elizabeth de Burgh, Lady of Clare (1295-1360): Household and Other Records is published by Boydell Press. See also For Her Good Estate: The Life of Elizabeth de Burgh, by Frances A. Underhill.
Top Image: British Library MSRoyal 19 C. VIII, fol. 11
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