6/15/22, 6:22 PM
A History of Birmingham - Local Histories
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A History of Birmingham
By Tim Lambert
BIRMINGHAM IN THE MIDDLE AGES
Birmingham is the second-largest city in England. It began as a Saxon village. In
the early 12th century it grew into a town. In 1166 the King gave the Lord of the
Manor, Peter De Birmingham, the right to hold a weekly market at Birmingham.
Once a market was up and running merchants and craftsmen came to live in
Birmingham and it soon developed into a busy little town.
In 1250 the people of Birmingham were given the right to hold a fair each
Summer. In the Middle Ages, a fair was like a market but it was held only once a
year. Birmingham’s fair attracted buyers and sellers from all over the Midlands.
Medieval Birmingham became known for its wool industry. Wool was woven and
dyed in the town. By the late 14th century Birmingham was also known for its
metalworking industry. By then it was also known for leatherworking. Leather was
tanned then used to make gloves, saddles, bottles, shoes, and many other things.
In the Middle Ages, the church ran the only hospitals. In them, monks would care
for the sick and poor as best they could. In the early 13th century a ‘hospital’
dedicated to St Thomas was built in Birmingham.
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6/15/22, 6:22 PM
A History of Birmingham - Local Histories
In 1500 Birmingham was still a small market town with a population of about
1,500. It would seem tiny to us and even by the standards of the time, it was a little
town. The Old Crown House was built in the 14th century.
BIRMINGHAM IN THE 16th CENTURY AND 17th CENTURY
In the 16th century, Birmingham grew rapidly. In 1547 the population was around
1,800 people. By 1560 it had probably passed 2,000. In the 17th century,
Birmingham continued to grow rapidly. In 1650 it had a population of around
5,000. By then it was a fairly large and important place.
In 1570 a writer said Birmingham was ‘full of inhabitants and echoing with forges.
The lower part of it is very wet, the upper adorned with handsome buildings’.
Aston Hall was built in 1635.
In the Middle Ages there was only one fair in Birmingham but by the early 16th
century there were two. Furthermore, in the Middle Ages, there was also just one
general market but by the middle of the 16th century, there were three specialized
markets, the Cornmarket, the Welsh market, and the English market.
Wool was still woven and dyed in Tudor Birmingham. Leather was also tanned and
made into goods in the town. There was, in the 16th century, a leather hall in
Birmingham where it could be bought and sold.
However, the newer industry of metalworking was fast taking over. Tudor
Birmingham gained a reputation as a place where cutlers made knives, nailers
made nails and many blacksmiths worked at their forges. Birmingham had 3
natural advantages. Firstly it was near to a source of iron ore. Secondly, it was by a
coal seam, which provided fuel for forges. Lastly, it was surrounded by streams so
that watermills could power the bellows for forges.
Meanwhile, in the middle of the 16th century, a grammar school was founded in
Birmingham.
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