British domestic economy

The Cloth trade

Banking and insurance

Impact of London

in the Middle Ages, the production of cloth had always been small scaled and often home-based

cloth ranged from low quality to high quality textile for the national and international markets

with increased population, more labour became available and the domestic system flourished in the first half of the 17th century

the value of exports rose from £600,000 in the 1560s to London alone exporting £1.5 million of textiles in the 1660s

cloth accounted for 92% of exports out of London in 1640

74% in 1660

72% in 1700

insurance companies based in London

banking was essential for the development of both the british economy and international trade

Marine insurance - a line of insurance applicable to the conveyance of cargo over land or water.

the royal exchange, the first commercial building in Britain, was opened by Gresham in 1571 and provided space for brokers to do deals

'New draperies' and protestant immigration

before banking, goods were traded or bartered for

bills of exchange were developed in the Middle Ages

marine insurance was introduced in 1601 in order to regulate the market and create a separate 'Assurance Court' to deal with insurance matters.

in the first half of the century, many British merchants were reluctant to part with large sums of money in order to take out insurance

Fire insurance - a contract of insurance against the loss/damage by accidental fire or other occurrences customarily included under a fire policy.

state funded fire insurance began in Germany in 1623, but the first insurance companies were established in London

records show that there was a scheme that existed created by Charles I in 1638 to insure London's citizens and business owners against fire.

insurance was clearly still a developing establishment but it was vital for the building of a prosperous economic system.

'new drapery' Also known as "perpets", perpetuana fabrics were made in France and Holland (Leiden).

the heavy woollen cloth that had been the stable of british textile industry was replaced with lighter textiles such as silk and linen.

many traditional centres of the cloth industry declined and changed their economic focus

just over 1,500 protestant dutch immigrants had settled in Colchester in 1565-68

by 1585, there were around 13,000 immigrants working in he cloth industry in England

in colchester, those employed in the textile industry rose from 26.4% in 1619 to 40% in 1699

mid 17th century, London was the biggest city of Western Europe , population of 400,000

many historians believe that the success of the Stuarts ws down to the drastic growth of London

the city saw a boom under the Stuarts (1603 - 1714)

by 1700, the population increased to 575,000

EAST INDIA COMPANY - INSURANCE

London was the economic, political and religious capital of England, resulting in migration of not only poor workers from out of town, but also gentry and their families

FRIENDLY SOCIETY 1683 and FIRE OFFICE 1681 - two companies set up near the end of the period