Hostmen of Newcastle upon Tyne
Encyclopedia
The Hostmen of Newcastle upon Tyne
were a cartel
of businessmen who formed a monopoly to control the export of coal
from the River Tyne
in North East
England
. They were so known from the medieval practice of "hosting", whereby local businessmen provided visiting merchants with accommodation and introduced them to local traders. The Hostmen acted as middlemen with whom the coal producers and those who shipped the coal to London
and elsewhere were forced to deal.
, the burgesses of Newcastle tried to gain a monopoly over its export. In 1216, King John
granted Newcastle the right to elect a mayor and also to form trade guilds. These guilds sought to ensure that trade in various commodities was concentrated in Newcastle. The desire of the Newcastle burgesses to monopolise trade on the Tyne led to a dispute with the Prior of Tynemouth
regarding the shipment of coal from nearby settlement of North Shields
, which was owned by the priory. In 1267 the mayor of Newcastle, Nicholas Scott attacked North Shields with a band of merchants, setting fire to several buildings. In 1290 the burgesses petitioned the King regarding North Shields and succeeded in suspending the export of coal, as well as other trade, from the new settlement. Henceforth, North Shields remained solely as a fishing port. In 1350 Edward III
granted a licence to the Newcastle burgesses to excavate coal from Forth Banks and the Town Moor area. From 1446, shipments of coal from North Shields were permitted, but in 1530 a royal act confined all shipments of coal to Newcastle quayside, thereby giving the Newcastle burgesses the monopoly they desired. This reinforced a medieval monopoly granted by Henry I, which was still in place.
, most of the north-eastern coal deposits were in the hands of the monasteries
. The monasteries leased out land for mining but generally set limits on the rate of extraction so as to keep the price high. This meant that the production of coal stayed at a constant level. After the dissolution of the monasteries
in 1539, the coal deposits fell into private hands and the restrictions on output disappeared. The yearly rate of extraction increased from approximately 15,000 tons prior to the Reformation, to 162,000 in 1603, to 239,000 in 1609 and to 425,000 in 1634, nearly all for export from the Tyne. Coal was exported to London and other parts of England, but also to Holland, France
and Flanders
. Coal became by far the most valuable local commodity. As with other traded items, coal could only move through the city of Newcastle if its buying and selling were handled by the town's burgesses. The Hostmen had formed a group within the Company of Merchant Adventurers of Newcastle to exploit this monopoly. In practice, the Hostmen owned the "keels", large boats that were used to transfer the coal from the riverbank to the waiting colliers that were moored downstream. The men who worked these boats were known as "keelmen
". The keelmen led a very precarious existence, being paid casually, and they were regarded with distrust by the Hostmen with whom they were often in dispute.
, John Dudley
, the Duke of Northumberland
sponsored an act allowing Newcastle to annexe Gateshead
and its surrounding area from the bishopric of Durham. This would have allowed the Newcastle burgesses to mine for coal on Gateshead land. The plan was foiled by the death of Edward and the downfall of Dudley. The Newcastle burgesses made a similar attempt in 1576 during the reign of Elizabeth I
but were opposed by the queen's privy council.
to two Newcastle merchants, Henry Anderson and William Selby, who in turn apportioned them to the leading Hostmen. This became known as the "Grand Lease", and the Hostmen came to be known as the "Lords of Coal", as they now controlled both production and export of this commodity. In 1590 the lord mayor of London complained that the regulation of coal exports from the Tyne was unfairly raising prices.
tax on every chaldron (wagonload) of coal shipped from the Tyne. The charter allowed an exclusive body of electors, in practice the Hostmen, the right to elect the mayor and burgesses of the town. In 1600, 240,000 tons of coal were shipped from the Tyne, 20 times more than the tonnage produced by the Durham
coal industry and shipped from the River Wear
.
The tightly knit Hostmen, with their cartel and control of the Tyne, now controlled the coal production business. They had capital and economies of scale on their side. Few local coal entrepreneurs could survive if they were not members of the Company of Hostmen. The Commons in 1621 included the Newcastle Hostmen in a list of monopolists who should have their privileges revoked, but an act of 1623 specifically exempted them.
, in an attempt to raise revenue, doubled the tax on Tyneside coal in return for allowing the Hostmen to regulate production and set the price of the coal. The London coal importers and the East Anglian ship-owners were outraged and resolved to boycott Tyneside coal. As a result, the price of coal rose and the royal revenues dropped. Charles was forced to cancel the Hostmen's monopoly. When the Scots rose in 1639 against Charles' introduction of the English Prayer Book
into Scotland, the anti-royalist London merchants encouraged the invading Scots to capture Newcastle. This they did in 1640, totally disrupting the export of coal. The Scottish army remained in Newcastle for a year and charged the Corporation a regular fee for billeting its troops.
began between Charles I and the Parliamentarians
, and the Newcastle burgesses sided with the monarchy. In 1644 Cromwell
's forces blockaded the river to prevent the royalist burgesses from profiting from their coal exports. As a result, London passed that winter almost without coal to burn. To ease this situation Parliament
encouraged the export of coal from Blyth
and from Wearside
. Unfortunately not enough coal was available from those sources to replace the Tyne coal. In the winter of 1644, Scottish troops again crossed the border and Newcastle was besieged for three months before the garrison capitulated. The Scots occupied Northumberland
and Durham
for two years and taxes from the coal trade were used to pay for the occupying army. After the Civil War had ended, in 1648, Puritans replaced the Royalist burgesses on the Newcastle Corporation, but the new men were just as anxious to maintain Newcastle's trading monopoly as the burgesses that they replaced. It was at about this time, in 1655, that Ralph Gardiner of Chirton accused the Newcastle Corporation of "tyranny and oppression". He was imprisoned for illegally brewing in North Shields and contravening the monopoly of the Bakers and Brewers Company of Newcastle. Gardiner petitioned Parliament for the abolition of the regulations that forced traders to deal through Newcastle. His petition was unsuccessful.
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
were a cartel
Cartel
A cartel is a formal agreement among competing firms. It is a formal organization of producers and manufacturers that agree to fix prices, marketing, and production. Cartels usually occur in an oligopolistic industry, where there is a small number of sellers and usually involve homogeneous products...
of businessmen who formed a monopoly to control the export of coal
Coal
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
from the River Tyne
River Tyne
The River Tyne is a river in North East England in Great Britain. It is formed by the confluence of two rivers: the North Tyne and the South Tyne. These two rivers converge at Warden Rock near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The Meeting of the Waters'.The North Tyne rises on the...
in North East
North East England
North East England is one of the nine official regions of England. It covers Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear, and Teesside . The only cities in the region are Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland...
England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. They were so known from the medieval practice of "hosting", whereby local businessmen provided visiting merchants with accommodation and introduced them to local traders. The Hostmen acted as middlemen with whom the coal producers and those who shipped the coal to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
and elsewhere were forced to deal.
Beginnings
From the time in the mid-13th century when coal began to be exported from the River TyneRiver Tyne
The River Tyne is a river in North East England in Great Britain. It is formed by the confluence of two rivers: the North Tyne and the South Tyne. These two rivers converge at Warden Rock near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The Meeting of the Waters'.The North Tyne rises on the...
, the burgesses of Newcastle tried to gain a monopoly over its export. In 1216, King John
John of England
John , also known as John Lackland , was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death...
granted Newcastle the right to elect a mayor and also to form trade guilds. These guilds sought to ensure that trade in various commodities was concentrated in Newcastle. The desire of the Newcastle burgesses to monopolise trade on the Tyne led to a dispute with the Prior of Tynemouth
Tynemouth
Tynemouth is a town and a historic borough in Tyne and Wear, England, at the mouth of the River Tyne, between North Shields and Cullercoats . It is administered as part of the borough of North Tyneside, but until 1974 was an independent county borough in its own right...
regarding the shipment of coal from nearby settlement of North Shields
North Shields
North Shields is a town on the north bank of the River Tyne, in the metropolitan borough of North Tyneside, in North East England...
, which was owned by the priory. In 1267 the mayor of Newcastle, Nicholas Scott attacked North Shields with a band of merchants, setting fire to several buildings. In 1290 the burgesses petitioned the King regarding North Shields and succeeded in suspending the export of coal, as well as other trade, from the new settlement. Henceforth, North Shields remained solely as a fishing port. In 1350 Edward III
Edward III of England
Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...
granted a licence to the Newcastle burgesses to excavate coal from Forth Banks and the Town Moor area. From 1446, shipments of coal from North Shields were permitted, but in 1530 a royal act confined all shipments of coal to Newcastle quayside, thereby giving the Newcastle burgesses the monopoly they desired. This reinforced a medieval monopoly granted by Henry I, which was still in place.
The Reformation
Prior to the ReformationProtestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
, most of the north-eastern coal deposits were in the hands of the monasteries
Abbeys and priories in England
Abbeys and priories in England lists abbeys, priories, friaries and other monastic religious houses in England.-Article layout:The list is presented alphabetically by ceremonial county...
. The monasteries leased out land for mining but generally set limits on the rate of extraction so as to keep the price high. This meant that the production of coal stayed at a constant level. After the dissolution of the monasteries
Dissolution of the Monasteries
The Dissolution of the Monasteries, sometimes referred to as the Suppression of the Monasteries, was the set of administrative and legal processes between 1536 and 1541 by which Henry VIII disbanded monasteries, priories, convents and friaries in England, Wales and Ireland; appropriated their...
in 1539, the coal deposits fell into private hands and the restrictions on output disappeared. The yearly rate of extraction increased from approximately 15,000 tons prior to the Reformation, to 162,000 in 1603, to 239,000 in 1609 and to 425,000 in 1634, nearly all for export from the Tyne. Coal was exported to London and other parts of England, but also to Holland, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and Flanders
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
. Coal became by far the most valuable local commodity. As with other traded items, coal could only move through the city of Newcastle if its buying and selling were handled by the town's burgesses. The Hostmen had formed a group within the Company of Merchant Adventurers of Newcastle to exploit this monopoly. In practice, the Hostmen owned the "keels", large boats that were used to transfer the coal from the riverbank to the waiting colliers that were moored downstream. The men who worked these boats were known as "keelmen
Keelmen
The Keelmen of Tyne and Wear were a group of men who worked on the keels, large boats that carried the coal from the banks of both rivers to the waiting collier ships. Because of the shallowness of both rivers, it was difficult for ships of any significant draught to move up river and load with...
". The keelmen led a very precarious existence, being paid casually, and they were regarded with distrust by the Hostmen with whom they were often in dispute.
Gateshead
In 1553, during the reign of Edward VIEdward VI of England
Edward VI was the King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death. He was crowned on 20 February at the age of nine. The son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, Edward was the third monarch of the Tudor dynasty and England's first monarch who was raised as a Protestant...
, John Dudley
John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland
John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland, KG was an English general, admiral, and politician, who led the government of the young King Edward VI from 1550 until 1553, and unsuccessfully tried to install Lady Jane Grey on the English throne after the King's death...
, the Duke of Northumberland
Duke of Northumberland
The Duke of Northumberland is a title in the peerage of Great Britain that has been created several times. Since the third creation in 1766, the title has belonged to the House of Percy , which held the title of Earl of Northumberland from 1377....
sponsored an act allowing Newcastle to annexe Gateshead
Gateshead
Gateshead is a town in Tyne and Wear, England and is the main settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead. Historically a part of County Durham, it lies on the southern bank of the River Tyne opposite Newcastle upon Tyne and together they form the urban core of Tyneside...
and its surrounding area from the bishopric of Durham. This would have allowed the Newcastle burgesses to mine for coal on Gateshead land. The plan was foiled by the death of Edward and the downfall of Dudley. The Newcastle burgesses made a similar attempt in 1576 during the reign of Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I of England
Elizabeth I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death. Sometimes called The Virgin Queen, Gloriana, or Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth was the fifth and last monarch of the Tudor dynasty...
but were opposed by the queen's privy council.
The Grand Lease
Towards the end of the 16th century, the Hostmen began to buy up leases in the Tyneside coalfield until they soon had a near total monopoly of the production of coal. This move was aided in 1583 when Queen Elizabeth leased the ex-palatinate mines of Gateshead and WhickhamWhickham
Whickham is a town in North East England, four miles south west of Newcastle upon Tyne and four and a half miles west of Gateshead. Whickham is part of the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead. Its postal address is Whickham, Newcastle upon Tyne. Whickham is situated on high ground overlooking the...
to two Newcastle merchants, Henry Anderson and William Selby, who in turn apportioned them to the leading Hostmen. This became known as the "Grand Lease", and the Hostmen came to be known as the "Lords of Coal", as they now controlled both production and export of this commodity. In 1590 the lord mayor of London complained that the regulation of coal exports from the Tyne was unfairly raising prices.
Incorporation
In 1600 the Company of Hostmen was incorporated through a charter granted by Elizabeth I. This gave them exclusive rights to trade coal in the Tyne in return for a one-shillingShilling
The shilling is a unit of currency used in some current and former British Commonwealth countries. The word shilling comes from scilling, an accounting term that dates back to Anglo-Saxon times where it was deemed to be the value of a cow in Kent or a sheep elsewhere. The word is thought to derive...
tax on every chaldron (wagonload) of coal shipped from the Tyne. The charter allowed an exclusive body of electors, in practice the Hostmen, the right to elect the mayor and burgesses of the town. In 1600, 240,000 tons of coal were shipped from the Tyne, 20 times more than the tonnage produced by the Durham
Durham
Durham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...
coal industry and shipped from the River Wear
River Wear
The River Wear is located in North East England, rising in the Pennines and flowing eastwards, mostly through County Durham, to the North Sea at Sunderland.-Geology and history:...
.
The tightly knit Hostmen, with their cartel and control of the Tyne, now controlled the coal production business. They had capital and economies of scale on their side. Few local coal entrepreneurs could survive if they were not members of the Company of Hostmen. The Commons in 1621 included the Newcastle Hostmen in a list of monopolists who should have their privileges revoked, but an act of 1623 specifically exempted them.
Scottish invasion
In 1637 Charles ICharles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
, in an attempt to raise revenue, doubled the tax on Tyneside coal in return for allowing the Hostmen to regulate production and set the price of the coal. The London coal importers and the East Anglian ship-owners were outraged and resolved to boycott Tyneside coal. As a result, the price of coal rose and the royal revenues dropped. Charles was forced to cancel the Hostmen's monopoly. When the Scots rose in 1639 against Charles' introduction of the English Prayer Book
Book of Common Prayer
The Book of Common Prayer is the short title of a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion, as well as by the Continuing Anglican, "Anglican realignment" and other Anglican churches. The original book, published in 1549 , in the reign of Edward VI, was a product of the English...
into Scotland, the anti-royalist London merchants encouraged the invading Scots to capture Newcastle. This they did in 1640, totally disrupting the export of coal. The Scottish army remained in Newcastle for a year and charged the Corporation a regular fee for billeting its troops.
Civil War
In 1642 the English Civil WarEnglish Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
began between Charles I and the Parliamentarians
Roundhead
"Roundhead" was the nickname given to the supporters of the Parliament during the English Civil War. Also known as Parliamentarians, they fought against King Charles I and his supporters, the Cavaliers , who claimed absolute power and the divine right of kings...
, and the Newcastle burgesses sided with the monarchy. In 1644 Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
's forces blockaded the river to prevent the royalist burgesses from profiting from their coal exports. As a result, London passed that winter almost without coal to burn. To ease this situation Parliament
Parliament of England
The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England. In 1066, William of Normandy introduced a feudal system, by which he sought the advice of a council of tenants-in-chief and ecclesiastics before making laws...
encouraged the export of coal from Blyth
Blyth, Northumberland
Blyth is a town and civil parish in southeast Northumberland, England. It lies on the coast, to the south of the River Blyth and is approximately 21 kilometres northeast of Newcastle upon Tyne...
and from Wearside
Wearside
Wearside is an area of north east England, centred on the continuous urban area formed by Sunderland, Seaham and other settlements by the River Wear. Mackems is a nickname used for the people of Wearside....
. Unfortunately not enough coal was available from those sources to replace the Tyne coal. In the winter of 1644, Scottish troops again crossed the border and Newcastle was besieged for three months before the garrison capitulated. The Scots occupied Northumberland
Northumberland
Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...
and Durham
Durham
Durham is a city in north east England. It is within the County Durham local government district, and is the county town of the larger ceremonial county...
for two years and taxes from the coal trade were used to pay for the occupying army. After the Civil War had ended, in 1648, Puritans replaced the Royalist burgesses on the Newcastle Corporation, but the new men were just as anxious to maintain Newcastle's trading monopoly as the burgesses that they replaced. It was at about this time, in 1655, that Ralph Gardiner of Chirton accused the Newcastle Corporation of "tyranny and oppression". He was imprisoned for illegally brewing in North Shields and contravening the monopoly of the Bakers and Brewers Company of Newcastle. Gardiner petitioned Parliament for the abolition of the regulations that forced traders to deal through Newcastle. His petition was unsuccessful.