Chichester

Who holds it

Name

King John, by his reeves

Title

Lord of the city

Since

1193

Confidence

medium

Henry I gave Chichester to Queen Adeliza (1121); it passed with her to William d'Aubigny, earl of Arundel, who held it until 1176; his son recovered Adeliza's estates in 1189 and on his death in 1193 the city seems to have passed to the crown (VCH Sussex vol. 3). In 1204 it is granted for life to the bishop-elect Simon, with the reversion to Queen Isabella (later).

Lord in 1200

The king, through reeves who answer at the Exchequer; the bishop holds the cathedral close, his own fee and the fair.

Overlord

King John

Allies and rivals

The bishop and the citizens share the city; the earl of Arundel's rape surrounds it.

How things stand that morning

Royal, at peace.

Wealth

Trade and the cathedral. No figures.

Military

The walls and the castle.

Charter

Stephen's charter (probably 1135), addressed to the bishop and the reeves, confirms the rights of a borough and a gild merchant as held under William I, William II, Henry I and Earl Roger de Montgomery. Henry II granted two charters, probably in 1155, confirming the customs of Henry I's time with the ports of Wittering and Horemouth. No charter of Richard or John. The first grant of the city at farm to the citizens is 1226 (later).

Council

One or more reeves, who appear in the Pipe Rolls of the 1190s answering for the citizens; the gild merchant organises trade.

Communities

The cathedral chapter and the bishop's household; a Jewish community is not recorded in the source checked.

Fairs and markets

The bishop's fair of eight days at the feast of St Faith (6 October), granted by Henry I about 1107-08 (moved to Trinity in 1204, later); a market on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Militia

Not recorded.

Walls and castle

Roman walls; a castle mound in the north-east of the city.

Trade and crafts

Overseas trade through the harbour creeks (Wittering, Horemouth, Dell Quay), corn and wool of the coastal plain. Needlemaking comes in the thirteenth century.

Places of note

• Chichester cathedral: The bishop's see

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: VCH Sussex vol. 3 gives the charters and the lordship.

On the map: The walled city and its suburbs.

Primary sources for England

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

• Chronicle of Jocelin of Brakelond, Jocelin of Brakelond (about 1198 to 1203). An inside account of Bury St Edmunds under Abbot Samson, written while the events were fresh. Read online
• Chronicle of Melrose, Anonymous (monks of Melrose abbey) (about 1173 to 1270, in many hands; the 1200 entries are near contemporary). The main Scottish annal for the year, kept at a Cistercian house on the Tweed. Read online
• Chronicle of Roger of Howden, Roger of Howden (about 1192 to 1201). The fullest single narrative for the year. Read online
• Chronicle of the Princes, Anonymous (Welsh translation of a lost Latin chronicle kept at Strata Florida) (Latin original to about 1282, compiled from contemporary annals; Welsh versions about 1300 and later). The native Welsh record of the year. Read online
• Chronicle; Deeds of the Kings, Gervase of Canterbury (Chronica about 1188 to 1199; Gesta Regum about 1199 to 1210). The Chronica stops in 1199, so for 1200 the witness is the briefer Gesta Regum, which notes John's peace with Philip, the coronation of Isabella at Westminster on 8 October 1200, and matters touching Canterbury: the archbishop Hubert Walter as chancellor, the cathedral priory's quarrel with him, and the Lambeth college dispute lately settled by the pope. Read online
• English Chronicle of Ralph of Coggeshall, Ralph of Coggeshall (about 1200 to 1224, in stages). Short but independent entries for 1200 from a Cistercian house in Essex: John's levy on the Cistercians and the carucage, the peace with Philip, the king's new marriage and the queen's coronation, and the death of Hugh of Lincoln. Read online
• Flowers of History, Roger of Wendover (about 1220 to 1235 at St Albans). For 1200 Wendover is mostly Howden rewritten, so he is a second witness only where he adds St Albans material: a long account of Hugh of Lincoln's last months, death and funeral, and anecdotes about John's conduct toward the Cistercians and his new queen. Read online
• Images of History, Ralph de Diceto (about 1188 to 1202). A London view of the year from the dean of St Paul's, who knew the justiciar and the bishops personally. Read online

22 more in the sources library for The British Isles.