Rethinking the Great Transition: Community and Economic Growth in County Durham, 1349-1660 by Larson, Peter L. | Hardcover | History

About this book This case study of two rural parishes in County Durham, England uses a wide range of medieval and early modern sources to offer an alternate view on the economic development involved in the transition from medieval to modern, partly explaining England’s rise to global economic dominance in the seventeenth century. These are an example of agrarian expansion, as coal mining did not come to these parishes until the nineteenth century. Low population, favourable seigneurial administration, and a commercialized society saw the emergence of large farms on the bishopric of Durham soon after the Black Death; these secure copyhold and leasehold tenures were among the earliest known in England. Individualism developed within a strong parish and village community that encouraged growth while enforcing conformity. Along with low rents, this allowed for a swift expansion of agricultural production in the sixteenth century as population rose and then as the coal trade expanded rapidly. The prosperity of these families is reflected in their lands, livestock, and consumer goods. Yet not all shared in this prosperity, as the poor and landless increased in number simply by population growth. Through reformation and rebellion, these and other parishes prospered without experiencing severe disruption or destruction. In north-eastern England, agrarian development was an evolution and not a revolution. England’s economic development was a single narrative, but a collection of regional experiences at different times and at different speeds. Related topics History/Europe - Medieval.