A Short History of the Worshipful Company of Horners

by H. G. Rosedale

Amongst the Companies called upon to do this was certainly the Horners, who would not have been foolish enough to seal the “charters” had they not needed the support of the City in the maintaining their own prescriptive rights based on Royal grants. The term sealing is quite a natural one, inasmuch as no charters were signed until Tudor times.

Renewed activity.

Doubtless the troubles of the period and the expenses to which the fraternity had been put, caused the Gild to value its rights and to claim further recognition, even to the extent of promoting a special Act of Parliament. They did not seek to obtain a charter, be it noted, which rarely meant any advantage to the unfortunate persons who were practically compelled to accept such charters, but, on the contrary, in most cases proved to be an invasion by the Crown of former prescriptive privileges.

The Horners were successful in obtaining a special Act of Parliament in the year 1465. The Act is worth quoting as showing to what importance the Horners’ Company must have risen by that date.

IV Edward IV, c. 8.

The Horners’ Act.

“Our soveraigne lord the Kyng perceyving by grevous complaint made in this Parliamente, by men of occupation of horners beynge enfraunchysed in the Cytie of London, howe that the people of straunge landes hath come into this lande, and into dyvers partyes thereof, and hath boughte by the handes of theyr hostes and guydes, the great and chiefe stuffe of Englyshe hornes unwrought, of tanners & bochers, & cary the same over the sea, and there employ the same in dyvers workes, to the great damage of this land and to the finall preiudice of a great numbre of men beinge of the same occupacion: hath by the advice and assent of the sayd Lordes, & at the request of the sayd commons, and by the auctority aforesayd, ordeined established & enacted, that from the feast of Easter, which shall bee in the yere of our Lord God M.CCCCLXV, no maner straunger nor alien by himselfe or by any other, shal buy any Englysh hornes unwrought of any Tanners, bochers, or any other persons Gathered or growing within the sayd city and, xxiii myles on every syde of the sayd city next adioyning. And that no Englishman nor other personne sell anye Englyshe hornes unwrought to any straunger or cause them to be sente over the sea, so that the sayd horners will buy the sayd hornes at lyke pryc as they be at the tyme of the making of this acte, uppon payne of forfayture of all suche hornes so bought, sold, or sent. And that the Wardeins of the sayd mistery for the tyme beyng by the sayd authority shall have full power to serch all manner ware perteyning to their mistery wrought or to be wrought in all places within the sayd citye of London, and xxiii miles on every syde next adioyning to the same citye, and within the Feyres of Sturbrydge and Ely in whose handes they may be founde, and if they by theyr serch fynd any suche ware or stuffe in any place within the sayd citye of London and xxiii miles next adioyning to the same citye or within the Feyres of Sturbrydge and Elye, in whose handes soever they be to sell, that is defective & insuffycient. It shall be lawful to them to take the same ware and stuffe, and bring it before the Mayre of the same citye of London, the mayre & bayliffes of the foresayd Feyres for the tyme beynge, and the same there beyng proved defective to be forfayt: the one halfe thereof to oure Soveraigne lord the king, and the other halfe to the sayd wardens, to be ordred at their pleasure. Provyded alwayes that after that me of the sayd occupacion within this land have taken out & chosen such as many hornes as shal bee nedefull to theyr occupacions: that then it shal be lawfull to them all and every of them and other persons of this realme of Englande, to sel and deliver al the hornes refused, which be not able to be occupyed in theyr mistery to any straunger or other persons to send or cary beyond the sea or elles where, as shal please them.”

Bottlemakers absorbed by Horners in 1477.

This Act of Parliament must have proved of great benefit to the Horners; but with it came greater demands from the Company on the part of the King and the City. The frugal minds of the Craft rulers at once saw the advantage of paying one set of assessments instead of two, and asked that in future the Horners and Bottlemakers might be treated as one Company, and not be called upon to pay the shares of two separate Companies. Thus the prosperity of the Horners, coupled with the increasing demands for money made on the City Gilds, led to the union of the Horners and Bottlemakers just twelve years after the passing of the Horners’ Act, i.e., in 1477 (sixteenth year of Edward IV), facts indicating in no uncertain way that the Horners must have been very firmly established and legally constituted at the time, both in order to make the assessments possible as well as to give them the right to absorb the Bottlemakers.

Deeds of Agreement.
Deed of 1590.
Deed of 1599.