‘1245.—Again the King, of purpose, had consumed all the provision of corne and vittels which remained in the marshes, so that in Cheshire, and other parts adjoining, there was such dearth that the people scarse could get sufficient vittels to susteine themselves withall.
‘1258.—In this yeare was an exceeding great dearth, insomuch that a quarter of wheat was sold at London for foure and twentie shillings, whereas within two or three yeares before, a quarter was sold at two shillings. It had been more dearer, if great store had not come out of Almaine; for in France and in Normandie it also failed. But there came fiftie great ships fraught with wheat and barlie, with meale and bread out of Dutch land, by the procurement of Richard, King of Almaine, which greatlie releeved the poore; for proclamation was made, and order taken by the King, that none of the citizens of London should buy anie of that graine to laie it up in store, whereby it might be sold at an higher price unto the needie. But, though this provision did much ease, yet the want was great over all the realme. For it was certainlie affirmed that in three shires within the realme there was not found so much graine of that yeare’s growth as came over in those fiftie ships. The proclamation was set forth to restrein the Londoners from ingrossing up that graine, and not without cause; for the wealthie citizens were evill spoken of in that season, bicause in time of scarcitie they would either staie such ships as, fraught with vittels, were comming towards the citie, and send them some other way forth, or else buy the whole, that they might sell it by retaile, at their pleasure, to the needie. By means of this great dearth and scarcitie, the common people were constrained to live upon herbs and roots, and a great number of the poore people died through famine. They died so thicke that there were great pits made in churchyards to laie the dead bodies in, one upon another.
‘1289.—There insued such continuall raine, so distempering the ground, that corne waxed verie deare, so that whereas wheat was sold before at three pence a bushell, the market so rose by little and little that it was sold for two shillings a bushell, and so the dearth increased still almost for the space of 40 yeares, till the death of Edward the Second, in so much that sometimes a bushel of wheat, London measure, was sold at ten shillings. 1294.—This yeare in England was a great dearth and scarcity of corne, so that a quarter of wheat in manie places was sold for thirtie shillings; by reason whereof poor people died in manie places for lack of sustnance.
‘1316.—The dearth, by reason of the unseasonable weather in the summer and harvest last past, still increased, for that which with much ado was inned, after, when it came to the proofe, yeelded nothing to the value of that which in sheafe it seemed to conteine, so that wheat and other graine which was at a sore price before, now was inhanced to a farre higher rate, the scarcitie thereof being so great that a quarter of wheat was sold for fortie shillings, which was a great price, if we shall consider the allaie of monie then currant. Also, by reason of the murren that fell among cattell, beefes and muttons were unreasonablie priced.... In this season vittles were so scant and deere, and wheat and other graine brought to so high a price, that the poore people were constreined through famine to eat the flesh of horses, dogs, and other vile beasts, which is wonderfull to beleeve, and yet, for default, there died a great multitude of people in divers places of the land. Foure pence in bread of the coarser sort would not suffice one man a daie. Wheat was sold at London for foure marks a quarter and above. Then after this dearth and scarcitie of vittels issued a great death and mortalitie of people; so that what by warres of the Scots, and what by this mortalitie and death, the people of the land were wonderfullie wasted and consumed. O pitifull depopulation!
‘1335.—This yeare there fell great abundance of raine, and thereupon insued morren of beasts; also corne so failed this yeare that a quarter of wheat was sold at fortie shillings. 1353.—In the summer of this season and twentieth yeare, was so great a drought that from the latter end of March fell little raine till the latter end of Julie, by reason whereof manie inconveniences insued; and one thing is specially to be noted, that corne the yeare following waxed scant, and the price began this yeare to be greatlie inhanced. Also beeves and muttons waxed deare for the want of grasse; and this chanced both in England and France, so that this was called the deere summer. The Lord William, Duke of Baviere or Bavaria, and Earl of Zelund brought manie ships in London fraught with rie for the releefe of the people, who otherwise had, through their present pinching penurie, if not utterlie perished yet pittifullie pined.
‘1370.—By reason of the great wet and raine that fell this yeare in more abundance than had been accustomed much corne was lost, so that the price thereof was sore inhanced, in so much that wheat was sold at three shillings four pence the bushell. 1389.—Herewith followed a great dearth of corne, so that a bushell of wheat in some places was sold at thirteen pence, which was thought to be a great price. 1394.—In this yeare was a great dearth in all parts of England, and this dearth or scarcitie of corne began under the sickle, and lasted till the feast of Saint Peter ad Vincula—to wit, till the time of new corne. This scarcitie did greatly oppresse the people, and chieflie the commoners of the poorer sort. For a man might see infants and children in streets and houses, through hunger, howling, crieing, and craving bread, whose mothers had it not (God wot) to breake unto them. But yet there was such plentie and abundance of manie years before, that it was thought and spoken of manie housekeepers and husbandmen, that if the seed were not sowen in the ground, which was hoorded up and stored in barnes, lofts, and garners, there would be enough to find and susteine all the people by the space of five years following.... The scarcity of victuals was of greatest force in Leicestershire, and in the middle parts of the realme. And although it was a great want, yet was not the price of corne out of reason. For a quarter of wheat, when it was at the highest, was sold at Leicester for 16 shillings 8 pence at one time, and at other times for a market of 14 shillings; at London and other places of the land a quarter of wheat was sold for 10 shillings, or for little more or lesse. For there arrived eleven ships laden with great plentie of victuals at diverse places of the land, for the reliefe of the people. Besides this, the citizens of London laid out two thousand marks to buy food out of the common chest of orphans, and the foure and twentie aldermen, everie of them put in his twentie pounds apeece for necessarie provision, for feare of famine likelie to fall upon the cities. And they laid up their store in sundrie of the fittest and most convenient places they could choose, that the needie and such as were wrong with want might come and buy at a certaine price so much as might suffice them and their families; and they which had not readie monie to paie downe presentlie in hand, their word and credit was taken for a yeare’s space next following, and their turn served. Thus was provision made that people should be relieved, and that none might perish for hunger.
‘1439.—This yeare (by reason of great tempests, raging winds, and raine) there arose such scarsitie that wheat was sold at three shillings foure pence the bushell.... Whereupon Steven Browne, at the same season maior of London, tendering the state of the Citie in this want of bread corne, sent into Pruse certeine ships, which returned laden with plentie of rie; wherewith he did much good to the people in that hard time, speciallie to them of the Citie, where the want of corne was not so extreame as in some other places of the land, where the poore distressed people that were hunger-bitten made them bred of ferne roots, and used other hard shifts, till God provided remedie for their penurie by good successe of husbandrie. 1527.—By reason of the great wet that fell in the sowing time of the corne, and in the beginning of the last yeare; now, in the beginning of this, corne so failed, that in the Citie of London, for a while, bread was scant, by reason that the commissioners appointed to see order taken in shires about, ordeined that none should be conveied out of one shire into another. Which order had like to have bred disorder, for that everie countrie and place was not provided alike, and namelie London, that maketh her provision out of other places, felt great inconvenience thereby, till the merchants of the Stillard and others out of the Dutch countries brought such plentie that it was better cheape in London than in anie other part of England, for the King also releeved the citizens in time of their need with a thousand quarters, by waie of lone, of his owne provision.’
By the foregoing we see that the bad dearths came at longer intervals, probably owing to better husbandry, and the regular importation of foreign corn before a scarcity could arise. But, on the other side, I have to chronicle a few (unfortunately only too few) years of exceeding plenty. The first one recorded was in 1288, and is thus recorded by Stow: ‘The summer was so exceeding hote this yeere that many men died through heate, and yet wheate was solde at London for three shillings foure pence the quarter when it was dearest, and in other partes abroad the same was sold for twentie pence or sixteen pence the quarter; yea, for twelve pence the quarter, and in the west and north parts for eight pence the quarter; barley for six pence, and oats for foure pence the quarter, and such cheapnesse of beanes and pease as the like had not been heard. 1317.—This yeere was an early harvest, so that all the corne was inned before St Giles day (Sep. 1). A bushel of wheat that was before for X shillings was solde for ten pence; and a bushel of otes that before was eyght shillings was solde for eyght pence.’
Holinshed tells us that in 1493 wheat was sold in London at 6d. the bushel; and in 1557.—‘This yeare, before harvest wheat was sold for foure marks the quarter, malt at foure and fortie shillings the quarter, and pease at six and fortie shillings and eight pence; but, after harvest, wheat was sold for five shillings the quarter, malt at six shillings eight pence, rie at three shillings foure pence. So that the penie wheat loafe that weied in London the last yeere but eleven ounces Troie weied now six and fiftie ounces Troie. In the countrie wheat was sold for foure shillings the quarter, malt at foure shillings eight pence; and, in some places a bushell of rie for a pound of candles, which were foure pence.’