[MR] Wikipedia: St. Scholastica’s Day Riots

[Garth Groff and Sally Sanford]

Noble Friends,

On this date in 1355 the St. Scholastica Day riot erupted in Oxford,
pitting students against the townspeople.

There had long been simmering tensions between the students/scholars and
the secular town folk. Part of the problem was that the university was
protected and favored by church law in any dispute, to the detriment of the
laity.

The riots were sparked by an argument in the perhaps
appropriately-named Swindlestock Tavern. When some scholars complained
about the quality of the wine they were served, one of them threw his wine
into the face of the bartender, then brained him with a pot. The dispute
degenerated into a fist fight, then into a general brawl. and finally a
full-scale riot as townies began to pour into the tavern.

On the second day the university chancellor issued a proclamation against
bearing arms in an effort to prevent more violence. However, the town
bailiffs were urging citizens to arm themselves, and were even hiring armed
thugs from the countryside to support the town. Then a group of students at
St. Giles Church was attacked by a mob of armed men, with one student
killed and others maimed. Later that day some 2,000 countrymen flooded the
town. The mobs ran rampant through the town, breaking into student's
rented rooms and murdering or maiming any scholars they caught.

On the third day, a proclamation against the violence from King Edward III
was ignored by the towies, and the riot continued with attacks on the
university itself. When the fighting finally ended that evening, about half
the town was in ruins and the streets were littered with bodies. The actual
death toll is not known for sure, but modern estimates put the total at 63
students and 20 town or country people, with many more injured.

King Edward was not pleased. He came down firmly on the side of the
university, pardoning the scholars for any offenses. The town was heavily
fined, and the mayor and bailiffs were thrown into prison. In addition, the
Bishop of Lincoln put the entire town under religious interdiction,
forbidding all sacraments except infant baptism. A subsequent royal charter
gave the university chancellor *de facto* control of the entire town, and
even the right to tax food and drink.

The tavern stood until 1709. One can't have a university town without
watering holes, even one with bad booze.

More details about the riots are found at
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_Scholastica_Day_riot .

Yours Aye,

Mungo Napier, Laird of Mallard Lodge 🦆 (Who was better behaved at college,
except for having the only "distillery" in the dorms, actually a wine
bubbler.)

Continuing a crusade to keep the original Merry Rose relevant and in
business.