Sandwich

Who holds it

Name

The prior and monks of Christ Church, Canterbury

Title

Lords of the town

Since

Cnut's grant to Christ Church (eleventh century)

Confidence

medium

The monks hold the town, its tolls and the river; the portsmen hold the liberties of the Cinque Ports in return for ship service. Domesday says Sandwich rendered the king the same sea service as Dover.

Lord in 1200

Christ Church priory, Canterbury; the portsmen have the liberties of the Cinque Ports.

Overlord

King John

Allies and rivals

St Augustine's abbey and its men of Stonar; the monks of Christ Church as lords.

How things stand that morning

At peace.

Wealth

Port tolls and fishing. No figures.

Military

Ship service.

Threats

• Silting of the Wantsum

Charter

Cinque Port liberties; Christ Church's lordship by Cnut's grant. A charter of John in 1199 is not pinned.

Council

The barons of Sandwich with their reeve and court; the monks' bailiff collects the lord's dues.

Communities

Seamen and merchants; the hospital of St Bartholomew.

Militia

Ship service equal to Dover's in Domesday.

Walls and castle

Earth banks and ditches (later walls); no castle.

Trade and crafts

Wool and corn exports; fishing; the haven for the king's fleets.

Places of note

• Sandwich haven: Fleet anchorage

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: Lordship and service are well known; the 1199 charter is not pinned.

On the map: The town only; its limbs are not drawn.

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.