[MR] Makes you think...

[Marybeth Lavrakas]

Throughout late period, Norwich was England's second largest city with population est. 10,000. It's walls were 4 miles in circumference and it had a very large number of parish churches (more than50), plus a cathedral and a couple of friaries, and a hospital. And a river dividing the town (one district was familiarly known as 'over the water'.) Some time I think I'll try comparing a google map of Pennsic with one of the Elizabethan maps of Norwich for a good brain bender! One element of similarity is that you get what looks to be a solid block of tents/houses, but you walk through a gate and viola! Open space! That then might get 'built upon' when more people arrive...and there goes the city planning. Norwich's open air market is still functioning in the same location it's been in since the Normans invaded, but there were merchant establishments throughout the city as well, and smaller market areas (my person lives close to the 'maddermarket'). And one
 could think of the battlefield areas as the 'wastelands' that weren't built on within the medieval city walls--some of which was used for spreading out linen to bleach after washing (this is called 'tenting'!!)  

--- On Sat, 7/17/10, Jeff Harold <aleseller1745 at yahoo.com> wrote:

> From: Jeff Harold <aleseller1745 at yahoo.com>
> Subject: [MR] Makes you think...
> To: atlantia at seahorse.atlantia.sca.org
> Date: Saturday, July 17, 2010, 6:20 AM
> Greetings to the Tavern!
>  
> I just read a book called the Pox and the Covenant, by Tony
> Williams, about an 
> epidemic that hit Boston in the early 1700's.  The
> population of Boston was 
> about 11,000 at the time, and was the second-largest city
> in England or its 
> colonies (behind London).  (BTW - good book, well-written,
> *extensive* 
> bibliography)
>  
> Pennsic will have about 11,000 folks attending.  Not
> making a point about plague 
> conditions, just about relative population.  :)
>  
> Kinda makes you go, "Hmmm..."
>  
> Geoffrey of Doune
> CA, SE, Herald
> Pennsic-bound
> 
> 
>       
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