The chief town of Essex, inside its Roman walls on the Colne, with the largest Norman keep in England built on the temple of Claudius.
Its burgesses have governed themselves since Richard's charter of 1189: they elect bailiffs and a justice, hold the Colne fishery and guard their market against rivals. Two great religious houses stand at its edges: St John's abbey, with its fair on St John's Green, and St Botolph's, the first Augustinian priory in England. Its port at the Hythe trades corn to the Low Countries, and it has a Jewish community with its own council.
Who holds it
- Name
- The burgesses' elected bailiffs (names for 1199-1200 not pinned)
- Title
- Bailiffs of the borough
- Since
- Richard I's charter of 1189
- Confidence
- medium
Richard I's charter of 1189 (the day is usually given as 6 December; not re-checked) recognised the burgesses' right to elect their bailiffs and a justice to hold the crown pleas, their sole right to the fishery of the Colne from North Bridge to Westness, and freedom from tolls. The castle is royal and outside the bailiffs' power.
Lord in 1200
The king; the burgesses govern the borough and its liberty through their bailiffs under the 1189 charter.
Overlord
King John
Allies and rivals
The abbey and the priory, with their own fairs and tenants; the king's castle.
How things stand that morning
Self-governing under its 1189 charter, at peace.
Wealth
The port, the fishery and the market. No figures.
Military
The walls; the castle is royal.
Charter
Richard I, 1189 (bailiffs and a justice elected by the burgesses; the Colne fishery from North Bridge to Westness; freedom from tolls; pleas in the Moot Hall). In force. No charter of John is known to me by 31 December 1199.
Council
Two bailiffs and a justice elected by the burgesses; the borough court in the Moot Hall.
Communities
The Jewry, with its own council and court; by 1220 a Jewish bailiff. St John's abbey (Benedictine) and St Botolph's priory (Augustinian).
Fairs and markets
St John's abbey fair on St John's Green (granted 1104); St Botolph's priory fair at the feast of St Denis (9 October); the fair of St Mary Magdalen's hospital (granted 1189); the borough market, jealously guarded.
Militia
Not recorded.
Walls and castle
Roman walls; the royal castle (see Crown (south-east)).
Trade and crafts
Corn and wool shipped from the Hythe to the Low Countries; the Colne oyster and fish fishery. The cloth boom comes in the fourteenth century.
Places of note
- Colchester castle: Royal keep
- St Botolph's priory: First Augustinian house in England
- The Hythe: The borough's port on the Colne
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: The 1189 charter and the religious houses are well known; the bailiffs' names that winter are not.
On the map: The borough with its four out-parishes (Lexden, Mile End, Greenstead, Berechurch or West Donyland), the liberty of later centuries; the 1200 bounds are close to this but not pinned.
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.
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.