‘Serious Money’: The Benefits of Marriage in London, 1400–1499

Abstract

An alderman of fifteenth-century London had to be worth £1000, and the lower civic ranks were not immune from financial evaluation. A wealthy marriage could propel a man up the civic hierarchy, and it was the best source of capital with which to trade. The richest catch was a widow, with or without children, for London custom protected the estates of both, and there was a plentiful supply of widows. Examples are culled from the 181 aldermen from 1400–1499, and show the coincidence of election with marriage. Some of the wealthiest widows were mayoresses more than once.

Keywords:

• aldermen
• heiresses
• marriage
• trades
• wealth
• widows

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Anne F Sutton

Anne F. Sutton is archivist and historian emerita of the Mercers’ Company. She is author of The Mercery of London 1130–1578 (2005) and many articles on aspects of both the Mercers and fifteenth-century London.