City and Guild Chapter Six: Fairs & Markets
See Also
- The Ars Magica Reference Document
- The City & Guild Open Content page
- The City & Guild product page on this wiki
Chapter Six: Fairs & Markets
The inhabitants of Mythic Europe do not make everything they need. Even peasants buy tools and clothes, and the nobility and towndwellers buy even more. This supports a network of markets, for local exchanges, and fairs, for trade on a national and international level. Many covenants also make extensive use of the opportunities these trading venues offer.
Markets
The market is the primary source of foodstuffs that one does not produce for oneself. No farming family, smallholder, or community of nuns is likely to exist entirely on what they produce themselves or can obtain by barter with acquaintances. Some covenants may be largely self-sufficient where day-to-day provisions are concerned, but most need to obtain at least some of their requisites from the market. It acts as a center of exchange for the neighborhood, drawing in buyers and sellers from up to seven miles away — a distance that allows enough time to travel to market, conduct business, and return home in one day. Markets have the same purpose the world over, but differ from one another in the range of goods on sale (see Chapter 8: The Goods of Europe), the smells of the foodstuffs and other merchandise, the language used to shout out the virtues of the goods, the dress of the people crowding round the stalls, the animals there to be bought and sold or carry goods, and the setting of the market, which might occupy an open area but is just as likely to be spread out along the streets (see Chapter 1: Towns and Cities, Markets).
In large villages and small towns, the market is held regularly, in the same place on the same day of the week. Larger towns probably have two market days every week, and a city may well hold a market of some sort every day. In many instances, a market has been held in the same town or village forever, and although strictly speaking it is necessary to have permission to hold the market, in such cases this is quite often overlooked. In towns that have recently grown to a size where a market is needed, permission to start one is necessary. This comes from the local landowner, be it nobleman, cleric, or — in the case of cities free of a feudal overlord — the local council. A charter giving permission to hold a weekly market often includes the grant of an annual local fair as well, both being opportunities for the owner to derive income from taxes and tolls (see Chapter 1: Towns and Cities, Town Charters, Common Privileges). In all but the very smallest or most fortunate markets, people with goods to sell have to pay a toll, the amount depending on whether they are happy to sell their wares while carrying them or standing with them laid out around their feet, or whether they want to sell from a booth or stall. It is not uncommon for an additional tax to be levied on buyers and sellers for a limited period to raise funds for a particular cause such as the repair of a bridge or the town's defenses.
Sunday Trading
The Biblical Commandment to keep the Sabbath day holy was so widely and blatantly ignored in England that the Pope sent Eustace, Abbot of Flay in 1200, to lead a mission. So eloquent was his preaching, and so marvelous were the miracles that he performed, that many places closed down their Sunday markets entirely or moved them to another day of the week. The mission was such a success that by 1220 the transfer of Sunday markets to other days is almost complete throughout the country.
Market sites often persist for centuries, so any attempt to move a market, perhaps to make way for a new church or to oblige a wealthy and powerful citizen who wants to have a new house just there, is very unpopular. In the most rural locations, the old custom of holding the market just outside the church, or in the churchyard itself on a Sunday, persists. This takes account of the agricultural peasants' scant free time and the coming together of the community for Mass. Even markets where a religious community is the beneficiary of the tolls are not infrequently held on Sunday morning. In the recent past, a trend has started to move market day to a weekday, and to move the market place away from the immediate vicinity of the church. Complaints by some churchmen about buying and selling in and around churches have grown more vociferous, with many preaching sermons against those who turn a place of prayer into one of worldly commerce.
In most parts of Europe, the market is only open for business in the morning; a bell is rung to signal the start of trading, and it is rung again around noon to mark the closing. In some places a market cross stands in the marketplace, as a symbol of divine protection, as a reminder to everyone to uphold honest dealings, and to protect the area from disturbances and wrongdoing. The cross may be simply symbolic, but if some of the buyers and sellers pray there sincerely before trading for the day begins, the local aura may be tempered to Just for the day (see Realms of Power: The Divine, page 40). The benefits are, unsurprisingly, more strongly felt the closer one is to the cross, so on the fringes of a large market people are more likely to be tempted to swindle and steal as greed and avarice thrive. There are laws governing the quality and maximum price of bread and ale, and for standardizing weights and measures within that particular market. Punishments for breaking these laws vary, and can be a fine, if the culprit is rich enough to pay, or if he is too poor to make this enforced contribution to the market owner's income, a period on display in the marketplace's pillory.
When buying goods in a market, coin normally changes hands even though the customers are usually poor or of only moderate means. If a member of the community is known to be suffering hardship and a seller feels charitable, then an informal credit arrangement is often permitted with payment promised in cash or kind at a later date. Prices of common goods are affected by growing conditions, by illness among livestock, and when an excessive amount of clipped coin is in circulation. Payment by installments is often arranged for expensive items like oxen or carts.
Competition
The grant of permission to start up a new market is good news for the local lord or institution that is going to benefit from the tolls collected, but can be bad news for others. If the new one is sited too close to a pre-existing market, it threatens the prosperity — and even the existence — of the older market and the income enjoyed from its tolls by the landowner. A particularly determined sponsor may offer to charge no toll for the first few years a new market operates in order to lure trade away from the pre-existing market.
If a new market is started up some way away, but on the main road that many sellers use to reach the older market, a forceful owner can intercept these people and oblige them to sell at the new market. In rarer instances, a new market close by but held two or three days after an existing one can benefit the previously established market by making the area more attractive to traders coming some distance, so the range of goods on sale improves.
A rare threat to a market occurs only in time of war, when a ruler can decree that instead of taking food to market, all must be supplied directly for the sustenance of the army when they are in the area. On a smaller scale, a similar restriction may be imposed when a visiting nobleman and his entourage or an equivalent group of high status comes to visit, when markets for as much as ten miles around may be temporarily closed so that everyone with surplus foodstuffs to sell has to bring them to where the honored host can acquire them to feed his visitors. This might cause problems for a covenant that depends on purchasing locally.
Story Seed: Competition
Permission is granted to start a market within five miles of the one where some of the covenant's provisions are bought regularly, or where the beneficiary of the market tolls is a nobleman or religious house allied to a player character. If the new one cannot be stopped, perhaps it can be moved to a different day of the week? Some delicate political negotiations will be necessary. Alternatively, the new market may benefit a valuable ally, pulling the covenant in both directions at once.
Goods on Sale
Early in the morning, those with goods to sell travel to the appointed place and set out their wares. Frequently — especially in village and small town markets — these are individuals selling the excess that remains after taking what their own families need from what they grow, rather than professional traders. As well as grain, flour, bread, pulses, green and root vegetables, fruit, nuts, mushrooms, honey, eggs, butter, cheese, ale, meat, and the like, there is often live poultry. The location, the season, and the weather play a big part in controlling what is available. Other goods often available include candles, simple wooden and ceramic dishes, cooking pots and pans (the metal ones often mended), second-hand clothing, small leather items like pouches and belts, items carved from horn or bone, yarn, combs, simple buckles, ornaments and pins, and baskets. If there happens to be a craftsperson in the neighborhood, and they make things that are affordable by and useful to ordinary people, then her presence can make one market distinct from others, although in urban areas it is more usual to buy such goods at the workshop. The availability of some commodities depends on local geography, for example, fishing nets and reeds. Similarly, local edible specialties, perhaps fresh sea fish or bacon, are only found in certain places.
In cities and larger towns, rural products required by urban artisans are on sale and markets usually offer cloth, firewood, hides, rope, horses, oxen, cows, sheep and goats, and also a few exotic and luxury items acquired by merchants at a fair. If the market is in a port where foreign traders come, or on a route they often use when heading to a fair, their wares are also available here to those who can afford them. Within a large market, it is likely that those offering similar goods are found together. The livestock market is likely held in a different part of the town to the food market, but coincides with one of the regular market days.
If the market is held in a place of pilgrimage, there are plenty of people catering to the pilgrims. There are certainly badges of lead or pewter showing a symbol connected with the history of the relevant saint that a pilgrim can buy to adorn his hat as proof that he arrived. Another common souvenir is a small tin or pewter ampoule of holy water to be worn on a string around the neck as a portable source of blessing. This is particularly relevant where a sacred spring or well is involved, but the custom is often followed in other places using water blessed by a priest. If the pilgrim has undertaken the journey to pray for healing on behalf of someone else, an ampoule is just the thing to take back to him since, if handled throughout with piety, use of the blessed water — for example by dipping the patient's fingers into it before making the sign of the cross, or reverently washing the patient's face with it — can grant a +3 bonus to the next Recovery roll. While the badges are authentic when purchased at the site of pilgrimage and the water in the ampoules is usually blessed, any reputed relics on sale are less reliably genuine, for while there is no doubt at all that there are many miraculous relics of the blessed saints and holy martyrs, such are most often kept by the Church or the nobility in honor and safety; it would be a very fortunate woman indeed who bought something so precious at a market. From time to time, one of the heavenly host guides a truly deserving person to where they can obtain a genuine holy relic. (See Realms of Power: The Divine, pages 44–46, for details of relics and their powers.)
On market day, the local population can more than double, and all these visitors need sustenance, so food and ale for immediate consumption is available from sellers in the marketplace and from buildings close by. Menfolk who have driven to market in a cart often spend much of the morning talking and drinking here while their wives are busy spending money. For many, attendance on market day is a social highlight, and the opportunity to chat and exchange news is as important as any shopping. This can be an excellent opportunity to pick up the local gossip and ask questions of people who are more likely than many to have the time and inclination to be informative.
Story Seed: The Legend of Lady Godgifu
The populace of a market town not far from the covenant is suffering under a heavy tax burden imposed by the local lord. His wife has taken the side of the townsfolk against her noble husband's heavy taxes and has been nagging him for quite a while about the matter. Exasperated, he has promised to reduce them if she is willing to ride naked on a horse through the busy marketplace. He has no doubt that she will refuse to do this.
If the noblewoman knows someone at the covenant, she comes to him for help in meeting her lord's demand without putting herself through the humiliation. If the covenant is in town, or regularly obtains supplies there, a contact tells them in confidence that they heard of the offer from the lady's maid.
Weights and Measures
Across Mythic Europe, the units used to measure out goods vary. The same quantity can have different names, and the same word can mean different amounts, from one place to another. Even when using the same measuring vessel, the amount may be heaped or striked (filled to the brim then leveled off). Some goods have their own special systems of measure. Even counting is not uniform, for example in parts of England "one hundred" of something might as likely mean 120 as 100. This table based on the British system may be useful as a quick guide to units for retail transactions, with sufficient detail to add flavor to the game.
Length
12 inches = 1 foot 3 feet = 1 yard* 1.25 yards = 1 ell** * This was originally the distance between the nose and the tip of an outstretched arm. ** This is an English measure; the Scottish ell is only just over a yard.
Capacity
4 gills = 1 pint 2 pints = 1 quart 4 quarts = 1 gallon 2 gallons = 1 peck 8 gallons = 1 bushel
Weight
7000 grains* = 1 ounce 16 drams = 1 ounce 16 ounces = 1 pound 14 pounds = 1 stone 112 pounds = 1 hundredweight 20 hundredweight = 1 ton * This was originally based on the weight of a grain of barley.
Weights for Gold and Silver
24 grains = 1 pennyweight 20 pennyweights = 1 Troy ounce
Weights for Apothecaries
20 grains = 1 scruple 3 scruples = 1 drachm 8 drachms= 1 ounce
Story Seed: Golden Grains
A chicken served up to the grogs at the covenant one feast day contains three grains of gold. It may be that the fowl sometimes scratch up and ingest grains of gold and if they can trace the origins of the bird, there may be riches for the taking! It was purchased locally last market day from a woman who has sold the covenant poultry before. She obtains birds from a number of suppliers, and not always the same ones. Recently she has had difficulty finding enough, so has bought from a few sources further away. It was from one of these that this chicken came, but the seller cannot identify the origin of a particular bird, least of all a plucked, cooked one. Will the magi care enough to help the grogs? Will they try to stop them going adventuring?
In fact, the hen had been feeding in a yard near a goldsmith's workshop.
Story Seed: A Run of Bad Luck
Some time ago, two traders fell out. One went to a cunning man and had a charm made, which he concealed in the part of the marketplace where his rival usually set out his goods. From then on, goods arrayed there have always looked rather shoddy. The first victim of the charm soon went out of business, much to the other trader's satisfaction, but he did not live long to enjoy the benefit of eliminating his rival, succumbing to an ague a few months later. So, the charm remains without anyone knowing why no seller prospers in that position.
Story Seed: Changeling
An odd-looking newcomer starts to come regularly to market for food. She does not buy much and says very little, but pays with good silver coin. Many take her for a foreigner. No one knows who she is or where she comes from, and when a local lad tried to follow her for several weeks running, he somehow always lost her in the crowd. The woman is of the fae, part of a group living in a patch of woodland not far away, which has taken a human child to raise and needs human food to sustain it. The covenant may be asked for help by the distraught parents. A covenant servant might find the stranger has bought the last of the cheese on sale and, rather than risk the consequences of returning without it, follows the woman to offer to buy it, and does not lose sight of her until he has become lost on the faerie regio hidden in the woods.
God of Commerce
The god of trade in the Greek pantheon was Hermes, or Mercury as the Romans knew him, so it is unsurprising that he continues to watch over certain markets, mainly in towns in the more remote areas of Greece, and in regions once colonized by Greece or Rome where the Dominion is unusually weak.
Fairly ordinary people sell ordinary goods at such markets, but where a visitor from Western Europe might expect to see a market cross there is a herm pillar, old and worn so it looks like a simple standing stone. (Originally it would have been a fertility symbol having a bearded human head surmounting a phallus. These were often set up in cities outside houses and on street corners, or set along roads as milestones in the Hellenic world.) Close by is a fount of water from a spring once sacred to the god. Before the market opens, superstitious traders pour a libation from the spring over the herm and sprinkle their booths and — if it will not damage them — their wares also, in hopes that it will help them turn a good profit. The marketplace normally has a magical aura of 1, rising to 2 when the market is in progress, which may be sufficient to overwhelm any Dominion aura and make all natural foodstuffs and materials, and also goods manually crafted from natural materials, appear just a little more vivid and attractive.
Other Traditions
In areas where the Norse pantheon was revered, the god who oversaw trade and commerce was Odin under his title Farmagud (god of cargoes), because he frequently took on human form to wander about the world; he was known as Wotan in German lands and as Woden in Britain. Among his many other areas of interest is magic. His symbols include the spear, raven, and wolf, any of which could take the place of the herm pillar in the Roman example. As a fickle god, any dealings with him are risky.
In places where Celtic and Gallic influence was strong, people held Lug as god of trade and commerce. He was known as Lleu in Wales, Lugh in Ireland, and Lugus in the lands that were formerly Gaul. While originally a sun deity, he was also associated with war, crafts, poetry, music, and magic. A sun symbol or menhir could take the place of the herm pillar in the Roman example.
Alternatively, this part of the market may be in a regio within a busy city market. The regio is reached by going down a certain narrow alley between two stalls. If the marketplace lies over a suitable pagan site, such as the foundations of a Roman temple, one or two of the people collecting dues from the stallholders inside the regio are devotees of Mercury or servants of his priests, who may be persuaded to conduct individuals to the higher level of the regio, which can be reached in no other known way. The higher level has a magical aura of 6 and contains a paved forecourt and temple in the style of ancient Rome. A fountain in the center of the courtyard gushes out around the base of a large stone statue of Mercury in his role as god of commerce. Carvings around the temple depict a busy market in a thriving Roman city. The priest guarding access to the temple's inner room may be willing to offer something of value in exchange for a particular service, for example increasing devotion to Mercury among the population in the surrounding area. If the Church finds out about this, the market will very soon lose its pagan and magical aspects.
Goods from St. Michael?
Sellers tend to occupy the same spots in the market every week, but in a large, busy city market, sometimes a visitor or even a local resident can become confused. In a relatively quiet location, she may come across a previously unnoticed booth where the salesman is the patron saint of some trade.
The saint and goods discovered depends on the situation; many options are listed below. A pious, holy person in need of something particular might have the opportunity to acquire something very special indeed. The goods on offer are, at the very least, particularly fine examples, and may bestow blessings of some sort. The seller may appear exactly as he looked in his prime, or perhaps his dress and speech betray very little of his origin. If it is the saint's feast day, the customer need not necessarily be pious at all to find the unusual booth, which could lead to an interesting meeting.
The patron saints of merchants in general are Homobonus (see below) and Nicholas (the fourth century Bishop of Myra in Turkey), and either of these might serve if none of the following are appropriate.
St. Crispin and St. Crispianian: Leatherworkers, cobblers especially. Feast: October 25. These brothers were members of a noble Roman family who preached in Gaul in the third century. Some say they traveled as far as Faversham in England.
St. Dunstan: Metalworkers, locksmiths, and embroiderers. Feast: May 19. A tenth century English Benedictine monk who became Abbot of Glastonbury and later Archbishop of Canterbury.
St. Eloi: Goldsmiths and jewelers. Feast: December 1. A preacher who became Bishop of Noyon, northern France, in the seventh century.
St. Homobonus: Cloth and tailoring. Feast: November 13. Homobonus died in 1197 and was canonized in 1199. He lived in the north Italian city of Cremona and appears as a well-dressed citizen of that time and place.
St. Joseph: Woodworkers. Feasts: March 19 and May 1. The foster father of the Son of God lived in that part of the Roman Empire known as Judaea and died in the first century.
St. Maurice: Dyers and weavers. Feast: September 22. Maurice was an Egyptian soldier in the Roman army during the third century who became the principal officer of the Theban legion.
St. Michael: Wholesalers. Feast: September 29. The archangel appears in his role as the weigher of souls.
St. Vincent: Wine. Feast: January 22. A deacon who lived in Saragossa, northern Iberia, and was martyred in 304.
Infernal Trading
The most attractive market of all may appear wherever and whenever there is a good chance to corrupt people. It is run entirely by demons or their agents, some of whom may be human and others not. It is a bustling place, where the smell of good food and the sound of lively music draw people in. Infernal deceit makes the goods seem better than they really are. The goods on sale are cheap enough to be affordable, but not suspiciously so — indeed, the price asked may vary to fit the means of the potential customer. Tempting free samples are offered when someone is wavering on the edge of a fall.
Articles on sale may be the result of sin, for example a forged document or a unique item that must have been stolen, but mostly they are inducements to sin, where the reason for buying is potentially sinful. Visitors to the stalls may be urged to buy something specifically to arouse envy or lust in someone they know; to buy something they don't need just to make sure a rival cannot have it; to over-indulge in food, drink, pretty ribbons, or books; or to gloat over how much they have saved by making such a clever bargain.
Games of chance or skill in such markets start off fairly harmlessly, but before long the player fi nds her money has run out and she is being urged to pay with a kiss, her clothing, and eventually — if she persists — her child, and fi nally her soul. Or perhaps a wrestling bout goes the player's way after strong initial opposition, and he is cheered on to seriously injure his opponent. A simple game of accuracy in throwing or shooting an arrow may develop so the participant fi nds she is asked to knock the miter off a dummy representing the bishop, and then fi nally to take aim at a crucifi x to be victorious.
Faerie Trading
Fairs and markets held by and for the fay are not uncommon, but it is usually hard for anyone outside that milieu to fi nd out about them. One needs an informative contact, a certain knowledge of Faerie Lore, or a degree of luck. Whether it is good luck or bad luck depends upon the nature of the faeries concerned and the behavior of the visitor. Such a market may be entirely the province of one group of faeries, for example those associated with one particular aspect of the world, or it might involve many kinds. Whatever its character, the fair or market refl ects human events suffi ciently closely that it should soon be clear to the visitor that it is a gathering for the purpose of exchange.
As to what is being exchanged, just about anything could be. It may be unusual variants of items common in mundane markets, entirely different things that yet bear a superfi cial resemblance to mundane objects, or things never normally the object of trade. Of course, with the fay appearances are often misleading, but they could well become annoyed if someone uses obvious spells to try to learn their secrets or penetrate their glamour.
The fay often have odd ideas on what constitutes fair exchange, and negotiations can be prolonged and perhaps bewildering. Some faeries stick to bargains when they are unable to avoid making them, although it can be exceedingly diffi cult to bring them to the point. It is highly unlikely for a faerie trader to have any interest in accepting coin, but it may be possible to exchange a fay item for a different type of payment, perhaps a lock of golden hair, a particular service, or — in the case of the rash or desperate — for an unspecifi ed future favor. The consequences of any exchange made may remain obscure for a long time. It is generally recognized that consumption of faerie food and drink is best avoided; tales of those trapped for ages in Arcadia or other Faerie realms after ingesting just a sip or morsel are too numerous to all be untrue.
Fairs
For many people, the height of excitement is to go to the fair. It is a place to see and be seen, to witness strange sights, meet new people, acquire new and unusual things (by purchase, barter, trickery, or theft), and to exchange news and other information. A fair is largely exempt from the restrictive rules of the guilds that prevent foreigners from selling in town, placing few limitations on the sources of goods. Luxuries are on sale, but for every rich and renowned merchant, there are many lesser traders and peddlers dealing in smaller quantities and humbler goods.
Story Seed: The Lost Child
A child of about four years of age is found hiding underneath a stall towards dusk. The child is frightened, tearful, and lost. Few are inclined to help because the child seems alarmingly odd. She looks much like any other scruffy little child, but has The Gift or some other supernatural power — such as the Tainted with Evil Flaw — that repels most people. At fi rst, the child is too scared to make much sense if anyone does get her to talk. If she has The Gift, mundane characters do not trust the child, and the same effect makes it hard for a Gifted character to win the child's trust.
For days before the fair, roads in the vicinity are crowded with lumbering carts mostly drawn by oxen, with milling herds of animals, and with heavily laden chapmen on foot. For merchants, a fair is a place where business is done wholesale or retail; often they purchase with the intention of selling elsewhere at a profi t. For those with large households to run — royal households, prosperous noble households, larger monasteries, and affl uent covenants, for example — fair are places where bulk buying is possible from an extensive range of merchandise. Regularity is key to the success of a fair. If it is held always in the same place at the same time, everyone can depend on it. A merchant takes a considerable risk when he trusts his precious goods and his own life to the dangers of travel, so he only sets out when he is sure of buyers at the end of his journey.
There are Redcaps at all the largest fairs, taking the opportunity to pass on messages, and to trade in gossip and information as well as vis (see Houses of Hermes: True Lineages, pages 84–89). A tent is designated as a temporary Mercer House, where all members of the Order and covenant representatives are welcome. Safe inside, Hermetic gossip is shared and trade in vis, books, and so on are conducted. A Redcap may pose as a trader of mundane goods outside the tent to defl ect unwelcome curiosity, possibly backed up by guards. Most often, a suitably experienced companion attends the fair to conduct business for the magi, but covenants may commission a Redcap to make special purchases on their behalf if none of the covenant's residents wish to attend. The presence of one or two Gifted people may be suffi cient to discourage mundane interference, since they are likely to be perceived as untrustworthy, but there is always the risk of inviting too much attention, so discretion is the rule.
If the owner of a fair also has control of the local town or city, it is usual for them to appropriate much of the town for the fair, as happens at Bury St. Edmunds and St. Ives in England, and Provins in Champagne. Here tenants renting properties in the town fi nd that they are obliged to vacate their ground fl oor rooms that give onto a main thoroughfare so that the landlord, usually the same person as the owner of the fair, can let these out to traders for additional income. There are fines for anyone else who takes a fee for allowing someone to trade from a back room. Temporary wooden shops are erected in the streets and squares for the fair, making an already congested situation worse, and the whole town acquires something of a carnival atmosphere.
Where the owner of the fair lacks the power to take over the town, a fairground is established outside the urban area, and temporarily takes on the appearance of a thriving town. A fair booth is typically a wooden framework with a wooden roof and canvas sides, but the largest fairs provide more durable booths that are left standing from one year to the next, most often of wood, but the most affluent merchants have been known to build in stone. Tents of all sizes are erected also.
Despite the advantages that a fair brings, relations between the town and the fair are often antagonistic, since the owner of a fair frequently has the right to close down all trade in town during the period of the fair, forcing the local inhabitants to buy and sell at the fair and so contribute to the income the owner gains. He can also requisition sleeping accommodation, obliging townsfolk to take in visitors. There is a distinct division between lodgings and places where sales are allowed.
Part of the fairground is set aside for animals, and there the air is filled with the din of horses, oxen, sheep, goats, and pigs, plus dogs, both those for sale and those that accompany their masters as a defense against wolves and thieves. Another group set apart are the cooks, bakers, and smiths, since the risk of fire is taken very seriously. A local regulation may require every stallholder and householder to have a bucket of water ready in case of emergency. For safety, fires are prohibited in the fairground at night, and a curfew between sunrise and sunset is likely.
From Over the Hill and Far Awau
Any being that has or can assume human form could turn up at a mundane fair or market as buyer or seller. Such folk probably seem odd in some way, most commonly something about their eyes, teeth, clothing, or use of language, or unfamiliarity with local facts. Only the most cosmopolitan or sensitive person is likely to realize that these are not just signs of someone from a distant part of the country, or another mundane country entirely. In more isolated districts, many may think they are just from the other side of the forest, or from over the mountains.
Denizens of other realms attending a mundane fair might simply be there out of curiosity, or they may be after a particular commodity — perhaps just what the magi need to build into an enchantment. The question for sellers is, do these buyers have acceptable coin, and if not, how can they pay? Supernatural creatures may have very odd requests, for example trying to purchase something that is not on sale. A rash, greedy, or gullible trader might regret agreeing to sell his nose or his good name. Magical or faerie creatures do not necessarily make such offers with malicious intent, they simply have a very different view of the world.
Animals with supernatural characteristics are also likely to go to a fair once in a while. Some operate independently and simply exploit the opportunities, such as a jackdaw come to steal by application of cunning and persistence. A bird that is much more than the mundane variety may give itself away by going after something that isn't small and shiny. Supernatural animals might be drawn together from over a wide area to meet at a great fair. Faerie versions of domesticated beasts could mingle with their ordinary counterparts to get in without attracting too much unwanted attention. Just like anybody else, they might exchange news and gossip with others of their kind, negotiate or bargain, and even fight.
Law & Finance
By 1220 there is a system of very well-established trading conventions and practices for mundane fairs.
Grant of a Fair
It is a great honor to be given the right to hold a fair. Such permission is usually only given by the ruling monarch to a member of the nobility, an abbot, or a bishop, but a town may be awarded the right. It is a highly desirable gift because the right to hold a fair comes with the right to make money out of it in a myriad ways (see insert), and also to dispense justice during it, and take profits from any court proceedings. A medium-sized fair, such as one drawing customers from across a county and having a special attraction like a large sale of horses, might provide the owner with over 100 pounds in profit, while a small fair for a single village might make him a few shillings. The cost to the owner for administration of a mediumsized fair is likely to be around three pounds a week, with most going to pay for staff to run the fair and its court. Once a fair has been granted to someone, the ruler may show his favor again by permitting an extension to the duration. In the past, the right accorded simply made official a fair that was already held regularly, but by 1220, in the most civilized parts of the continent, all but the most local fairs require explicit permission.
A covenant might find a way to become the owner of a lucrative fair, perhaps through a companion who is a minor nobleman, and use it as a significant source of income if they can continue it without attracting unwanted attention from the mundane authorities. A typical annual fair for a town counts as a Lesser Source of Income, a county horse fair combined with sale of cloth and a wide range of other goods counts as Typical, while one that draws traders from across Europe counts as Greater. See Covenants, page 16, for the Minor Resources Boon Rights, under which a covenant could have the right to hold a fair.
Making Money from a Fair
Tolls: Payments required for carts, people and beasts, to pass town gates and roads.
Passage, Carriage: Tolls for carrying goods past a checkpoint.
Portage: A fee for carrying cargo from one navigable river system to another.
Lastage: A toll based on the weight of goods carried.
Pontage: A toll for carrying goods over a bridge.
Seldage, Stallage, Picage, Terrage: Payments due for setting up a booth, sometimes paid in goods.
Fees: For entry to the fair. (In extreme cases, fees may be higher for late arrivals to encourage merchants to arrive for the start of trading.)
Pesage: A fee for the weighing of goods, paid by the purchaser.
Tronage: A fee for making use of the public weighing beam.
Brokerage: A fee for acting as a broker in negotiating a deal.
Rent: For use of a fixed stall in a fair with permanent buildings, or for overnight accommodation.
Grazing Payments: For the right to graze animals, both those for sale and those who pull the cart home.
Animal Care Payments: To those who care for the animals during the fair.
Trading Law
For the system of trade to work, making it economic for merchants to transport goods over long distances and risking the dangers of travel, it is essential that there is trust between trading partners and an understanding that agreements can be enforced. Courts of law set up at the great international fairs provide a means of settling disputes in front of an international audience. People pass on news of the
judgments made, the names of those found guilty, and fines levied against their fellow guild members when they return home, so reputations and knowledge of international trade laws spread.
Frequently goods are sold for cash or exchanged for other goods, but if delivery or payment is not to be immediate — as is often the case where large quantities are involved — a contract is required. This is commonly sealed by a payment of God's penny (any small coin given as a token of the agreement) in front of a witness, by a tally, or by a written bond. A tally is a piece of wood several inches in length. Notches of varying size are cut on the upper and lower faces to denote the sum of money or value of goods involved in the deal, with identical identifying words also written on each face. A cut is made about half way through the stick on one face, about three inches from one end, and then the stick is split from the other end as far as that cut. Each of the people involved take one of the two unequal pieces so that the pair can be reunited to settle any later dispute about the debt. The instrumentum ex causa cambii, or recognizance, is a document signed by the seller, the buyer, or the buyer's agent, and by an independent witness or notary, which is used to record a sale agreement. At the larger fairs, wardens are appointed to oversee contracts and ensure that the details are properly recorded.
Weights and Measures
The legal process of assize covers the quality, price, and measure of bread, wine, and ale on sale at the fair, and the accuracy of the weights and measures used. Someone has the duty of tasting the ales to make sure they are good enough, which is important because ale only keeps a few days yet is in such demand that up to half the local women may brew for the occasion. A standard set of vessels is kept as the legal measures for fluids, flour, grain, and so on, and a set of weights is similarly kept. There is also a bar of iron for use as a recognized standard of length. All of these may be used by all. The problem lies in the fact that such standards only apply locally, and may be quite different elsewhere, even when the same measuring words are used. Accurate measurement is unlikely, and opportunities for fraud abound. (See Chapter 8: The Goods of Europe, for details of units for quantities of goods).
The Group Responsibility for Quality Control
Merchants from the same region often band together at fairs, especially when trading abroad and facing foreign rules and customs of trade. Before offering anything for sale at a fair, it is usual for a merchant to open his goods for inspection by the other merchants from his home area, so that they can be sure of their quality, since their collective reputation is at stake. Groups may appoint guild wardens or inspectors to monitor activities during the fair to ensure their reputation is maintained. Any wrongdoing, such as selling goods falsely weighed, prepared, or described, may result in a merchant being fined by his peers or, for a serious offense, ostracized.
Foreign merchants may be asked to prove that they have sufficient resources at hand, in coin or in trade goods, to keep themselves and their servants while away from home. It is common for a guild to ban their members from engaging in games of chance during a fair. They may also be banned from standing as pledge in court for anyone outside their own group. If any merchant fails to pay a debt, it is likely that all merchants present from the same city will be obliged to pay up at a later fair, for example paying a fee of one penny for each shilling's worth of goods they have to sell.
Royal Prise
At all the great fairs, royalty and other powerful customers makes purchases, either in person, or, more frequently, through agents or servants. They often buy in bulk, to clothe and feed their large households, whether they consist of servants and men at arms, or monks or nuns. A royal customer is generally undesirable, since any kudos are outweighed by the loss of earnings due to the royal prise, which is a special low price that royalty expects, such that it is a form of tax on the seller. A group of merchants from the same guild may agree to share the burden jointly. Despite a low price, it is not at all uncommon for a powerful buyer to delay payment for a long time, or not to pay at all. This is often acknowledged by the king, so there is a public announcement made and a ceremony conducted in which the royal agent's credentials are presented to an official of the fair for scrutiny, to ensure that the merchants know who is buying on behalf of royalty. The royal agent may be instructed by his employer to only obtain goods from those merchants known to be affluent enough to not be much injured by the attentions of royalty.
Story Seed: Cloth of Gold
A covenant requires a very special gift for a noble family and so commissions a Redcap or a companion to purchase a rare and rich fabric, perhaps an Italian silk brocade or cloth of gold, from the fair. When the agent tries to buy some on display at one of the stalls, the seller apologizes, saying that the clerk of the great wardrobe has demanded all that the merchant has on behalf of the king, or if more appropriate in the saga, that the archbishop requires it for a new vestment. How will the covenant manage if their agent returns without the gift? Will the potential purchaser insist, at the risk of drawing attention from crown or Church? The covenant is offering to pay immediately in cash, while the others insist on credit and may never pay — will the merchant take the money? If he does, will the covenant help him avoid the inevitable trouble?
Money is the Root
In Christian countries it is usual to mark the opening of the fair by celebrating a special Mass, which tempers the aura to Just according to the rules for ceremonial influence (see Realms of Power: The Divine, pages 38–41). Initially, a fair starts under the protection of its patron saint, but as time passes people forget about the saint and the protection fades quickly. With so many opportunities to sin on hand, it is likely that Infernal agents are busy at work. Characters with Second Sight or Sense Holiness and Unholiness may notice demons urging sellers to give short measure, whispering in the ears of those collecting tolls that they should overcharge, prompting bankers to charge interest, or guiding those of weak morals to prostitutes.
Paying Up
All small payments are made on the spot in cash, but bills for large amounts of the best woolen cloth can run to 100 pounds, with prices for individual lengths running two to four pounds. Customers are not expected to carry such large sums, and the custom is for payment and
delivery to take place at a later fair, usually elsewhere. When the customer is another merchant, attending the fair to both buy and sell, it is usual for each individual's debts and credits to be accumulated and then sorted out at the end of the fair. When the day of reckoning arrives, clerks work out who owes what to whom, making use of signed documents, tally sticks, and details of debts recorded on written rolls during the course of the fair.
If the covenant is negotiating for several months' supply of wine or fabric to clothe all their servants, they attract attention if they are seen to hand over several pounds' worth of silver coins. It may provoke unwanted curiosity from pushy salesmen, or they may become targets for thieves and confidence tricksters. It is safer to send a companion or another agent, and follow the same payment procedures as mundane customers. Only the richest people can afford to buy the rarer luxuries, and at many fairs, the rich attendees expect to know all the other rich people in the area. Well-established covenants make use of contacts built up over a long period of time to avoid exciting curiosity, but a new covenant might have a problem. A busybody or provocateur may stir up altogether too much interest in finding out who these unknown big spenders are.
The larger fairs have clerks to keep note of the sums of money spent and owed, but the Roman numerals used outside Arab regions do not lend themselves to easy recoding and arithmetic, so that errors are frequently made in long account rolls.
Jurisdiction at the Fair
The noble or ecclesiastic who has been given the right to hold a fair also has the right to uphold justice during the fair, over-riding any such rights of a nearby town. This often extends beyond the bounds of the fair itself — the income from fines is so attractive that the fair court (sometimes known as the Court of Piepowder, from the French pied poudre, referring to the dusty feet of the itinerant tradesman) takes over all trade-related prosecutions in the vicinity for the duration of the fair, whether associated with the fair or not.
Merchant law concerns itself mostly with debt and contract, is less formal than the other legal systems in force, and is noted for common sense and swift decisions. Cases are conducted by making statements on oath and producing witnesses to testify to the veracity of the statements. These witnesses may be two or more people who can swear to the truth of a statement because they were present when the transaction in question was made, or might be a group of wellrespected persons who simply swear that they believe the statement to be true without having personal knowledge of the incident or agreement. In some cases, particularly where details of a contract are in dispute, a jury typically of twelve persons who are believed to be in a position to know the truth of the matter — reviews the statements; their verdict is nominally unanimous.
The owner of a fair rarely presides herself, and is more likely to appoint someone with extensive administrative and legal experience to hold this prestigious office. Clerks are engaged to keep records of the cases, and bailiffs are recruited to carry out the orders of the court. Punishments are most often fines, though at some fairs a local building is rented to serve as a temporary prison for those convicted of serious crimes, particularly theft, and occasionally a pillory is put to use.
Regulations particular to the fair are enforced, and watchmen and armed guards are employed to patrol the fairground and apprehend wrongdoers. Butchers can be required to obtain a license to operate at the fair, as a means of reducing health risks and taking in money. Fires are forbidden on the fairground. Rubbish must be disposed of so as to leave the ways clear. Prostitutes and lepers are banned from the fairground and anyone discovered letting out a room to a harlot is fined (but it keeps on happening anyway).
Godric — Peddler, Pirate, Hermit, & Saint Story Seed:
Saint Godric's veneration is centered in northeastern England, but his career took him over much of Mythic Europe. He started as a peddler, then became a merchant, shipping cargo between Scotland, Denmark, and Flanders. His business partner was lost at sea and, when hard times reduced his resistance to temptation, Godric took up piracy in the Mediterranean. An encounter with King Baldwin I of Jerusalem led to repentance and pilgrimages to the shrines of St. James at Compostela, Rome, and Jerusalem before he returned to settle in England. In a vision, St. Cuthbert told him to settle at Finchale near Durham, where he dwelt as a hermit. He became renowned for his austere lifestyle, the hymns he composed, and his prophecy. He died on 21 May 1170 at the age of 105. His grave is against what was the north wall of his church, although the monks of Durham have since built a shrine to St. Godric and established a priory on the site. Pilgrims often go there as part of a visit to the shrine of St. Cuthbert at nearby Durham cathedral.
Godric claimed that the shortest of his hymns, just four lines, had been given to him by his sister Burchwen, also a hermit, after she died; perhaps Godric will pass on posthumous hymns as his sister did. He might make a prophecy or provide information to guide characters. The earthenware vessel which he would fill with cold water so he could stand in it praying all night might be a source of Aquam vis. Elements of Godric's life story could also provide an unusual background story for a merchant player character.
Story Seed: Joint Ventures
It is a considerable expense to build up sufficient stock to take to a fair, and to pay for servants, transport, and a booth to trade from. Sometimes merchants go into partnership with others who can provide capital in return for a share in the profits, including members of the nobility, ecclesiastics, and even rich widows. Such an arrangement might suit a covenant very well as a means of making money with minimal time and effort, although it is risky. Will the magi be tempted to provide their active partner with magical devices to facilitate his part of the arrangement, or to get involved if things go wrong?
Traders and Goods
See Chapter 8: The Goods of Europe for details on the sources of raw materials and everyday items on sale at every fair, and the luxury goods that may be available but can only be reliably found at the largest fairs. The closer the fair is to a major source, the more likely a commodity is to be on sale. It is perfectly possible for items of supernatural origin to turn up as exotica, and the seller may well be entirely unaware of the source.
Along with the wide range of goods on sale, the following craftsmen are likely to be available at every fair: tailors, leather workers, barbers, blacksmiths, wheelwrights, and farriers. Larger fairs are attended by armorers and weaponsmiths, where the rich visitor may take the opportunity to place orders for items to be custom made and delivered later. If your saga follows history, it will be a few decades before Italian merchants regularly attend fairs as far from home as England, but they may already be found at the Champagne fairs, offering for sale fine silks, brocades, and cloth of gold suitable for rich church vestments or royalty.
On the fairground, whether it is in the city or outside it, booths are grouped according to the goods they are selling and, within that grouping, are clustered by the merchants' city of residence. A city guild often takes responsibility for renting the booths on behalf of its members, so each is always well represented, but not always by the same merchants. Any one merchant probably attends a few fairs but not all. Merchants typically have their base in a town where they own property, and it is not unusual to find that the most prosperous make as much from money-lending and land speculation as they do from trade in goods.
There is often vigorous competition between merchants, although temporary partnerships may be created for short-term cooperation. A merchant bringing goods a long way might send a courier ahead to be there when the fair opens to cry the praises of the goods due to arrive in hopes of making an early sale. This is quite often successful, with goods being purchased sight-unseen. Rich merchants employ factors and brokers, who may be found mingling with the crowds while praising their employer's merchandise.
The Great Fair Cycles
The largest fairs in a region often occur in a cycle, since the owners of both fairs lose out if two are held too close together. A few of these cycles are particularly important in Mythic Europe, but the Champagne cycle is easily the most significant.
The Champagne Cycle
The Champagne cycle fairs form the trading center of Mythic Europe, providing an opportunity for goods to move to England, Flanders, Scandinavia, and the Baltic from Italy, Spain, and Byzantium, and vice versa. The region is well placed with respect to the overland routes to Italy, Provence, Flanders, Bohemia, the Baltic, and Iberia. The pre-eminence of the Champagne fairs in recent years is based on the ability of the counts of Champagne to guarantee to all merchants their personal security and the security of their property while at the fair and while traveling to and from the fair. They are even known to offer restitution for any goods stolen in transit. In order to make the guarantee work, they prohibit use of their fairs by merchants from places where the ruler refuses to cooperate with the fair administrators, including the assurance of safe conduct and the pursuit of debtors.
The clerks in Champagne are more diligent than most about recording contracts where a fee is involved; unlike other fairs, Champagne has importance apart from the trade in goods as a financial center for the exchange of coins, arrangement of credit, and settlement of accounts.
The Champagne Cycle
Lagny: January 1 for 6 weeks
Bar-sur-Aube: mid-Lent for 2 weeks
Provins: Ascension week for 6 weeks
Troyes: June 24 for 6 weeks
Provins: September 14 for 6 weeks
Troyes: November 2 for 6 weeksGenerally there is an interval of about two weeks in between fairs.
Unlike other fairs, where everything on sale is available throughout the fair, the Champagne fairs regulate trade during the six-week fairs as follows: 1 week for setting up stalls, then ten days for cloth trading, 11 days for leather trading, and 19 days for trade in other goods, followed by a few days for settling accounts.
The Five Fairs of Flanders
The Flanders cycle comprises fairs successively in Lille, Mesen, Ypres, Torout, and Bruges, held between February and November. Like the Counts of Champagne, the Flemish rulers make efforts to keep the roads safe for those going to or from their fairs. They are built on the cloth trade centered on Ypres, Ghent, Douai, and Bruges, particularly the trade in fine woolen and linen cloth. Transport of goods by water is very much the rule here, with tolls to be paid to different authorities along the way; at Lille cargoes must be off-loaded and carried on horseback past rapids, while at Douai boats must negotiate a lock. Transport this way is quicker than by road, but costly.
The English Fair Cycle
Stamford: Ash Wednesday to Palm Sunday (owner: Earl Warenne)
St. Ives: Easter Monday for 3 or 4 weeks (owner: Abbot of Ramsey)
St. Botolph's, Boston: Feast of St. John the Baptist (June 24) for 1 month
Bury St. Edmunds: July 22 for 6 days (around the feast of St. James on July 25) (owner: Abbot of St. Edmund's)
King's Lynn: July 20 until the Feast of the Beheading of St. John the Baptist (August 29) (owner: Bishop of Norwich)
St. Giles', Winchester: August 31 for 15 days (owner: Bishop of Winchester)
Northampton: Feast of St. Martin (November 11) for 8 days
England's Great Fairs
The fairs at Boston, Stamford, St. Ives, King's Lynn, and Winchester, and possibly also Northampton and Bury St. Edmunds, are major ones. They serve as local fairs for their own area, but also attract merchants from far afield. Merchants from all over England, and visitors from Flanders, France, Italy, Ireland, Brabant, and beyond are found there. The primary purpose of these fairs is the sale of English wool to the merchants of Flanders, and also the sale of cloth woven both in England and Flanders from that wool. Other English products most in demand abroad are tin, lead, hides, and fish.
Looking Ahead
If your saga follows real history, the Champagne and Flanders fair cycles fade in the 14th century, as those in southern Germany increase in importance when trade routes to the east and over the Alps develop. After 1300, the major fairs are held at Bergenop-Zoom, Antwerp, Leipzig, Friedberg, Frankfurt-am-Main, Geneva, Lyon, Bozen, and Medina del Campo.
The timing of the Boston fair means more deals for wool are done there than at any of the others. King's Lynn fair is famed for offering the best selection of hunting birds in the country. St. Ives's fair is associated with a very small town, much of which is requisitioned for the fair, but has one of the few bridging points over a navigable river that flows into the North Sea. Some goods arrive by water and some are even sold from boats. The fair there thrives because it is well managed under the rule of the Abbot, who makes a considerable sum from it.
The fair on St. Giles' Hill, Winchester is the most important in the country and the only one where Redcaps are always in attendance. It attracts merchants from Aragon, Toulouse, Normandy, Germany, and Flanders, many of whom tend to stay on and trade in the town until the end of September. Tin from Cornwall and gold from Wales can be obtained there. The fair site has grown out from its origins at the foot of an old barrow where a pagan festival was held at about the same time of year.
A grid of streets with permanent buildings has been laid out around the church of St. Giles, outside the city walls. Many of these are only occupied part of the year. Open land around is used for temporary stalls, a parking area for carts, and a place to tether horses and other animals.
Unfair Competition
If your saga follows history, the success of St. Giles' Fair will be threatened when in 1245 King Henry III establishes a fair at Westminster to be held in mid-October to benefit Westminster Abbey and celebrate his devotion to St. Edward the Confessor. At this fair he promises that the king's prises (the reduced prices of goods to royalty) will be dropped, and also that royal debts will be settled immediately. To make sure it is a success, he bans all other trading in London for the duration and has proclamations made at all the major fairs, putting pressure most heavily on Winchester.
Hermetic Mid-Summer Fair
It is often inconvenient to trade in secret or through agents at mundane fairs, so for some years now a covenant in the Tribunal of the Greater Alps has held a gathering in early June, lasting for up to eight days. Here magi trade in vis, books, enchanted devices, and anything else.
Trades may be negotiated individually, or goods entered into an auction run by the Quaesitores, which takes place on the fourth day of the fair. All exchanges are by barter or by use of vis as currency.
The hosts are not expected to provide lavish hospitality. Very senior visiting magi are accommodated in guest quarters, but most visitors make use of the field set aside for tents and other temporary structures. Feasts are held on the first and last day of the fair, to which all visiting magi are invited, and on other days food and drink are available as at any other fair. Games and contests are arranged to keep grogs and servants occupied while the magi negotiate and chatter.
Thessalonica
While of lesser importance than Champagne to covenants in the western tribunals because of distance, the great fair of Thessalonica, known as the Demetria, rivals those of Champagne in size and the range of goods on offer. Covenants in the tribunals of Novgorod, Transylvania, Thebes, and the Levant often take advantage of this opportunity. Merchants come from as far as France, Portugal, Castille, Sicily and Italy, Egypt, Nicea, Hungary, and Bulgaria as well as the immediate surroundings. Proximity to Constantinople means that rare and rich goods from the East are more easily come by here than at any of the western fairs, which is enough to tempt many covenants to send a representative, particularly when exotic materials are required for enchantments.
Regional and Local Fairs
Many towns and some villages have the right to hold a fair once a year. Such a fair is almost always fixed to start on a saint's day and, if the place is blessed with the relics of a saint or martyr, the fair is held on that feast day, since all those pilgrims need food and drink and may well be persuaded to spend on other goods and entertainments. The duration is unlikely to be more than two or three days at first, though this may be extended as a reward or favor. While some fairs are to benefit local nobles, many minor fairs have been established to raise funds for a monastery, abbey, convent, or some other charitable cause, for example a leper hospice.
A significant fair which offers more than the local market is likely to be sited close enough to a navigable river that goods can arrive by boat, and also close to a major road, as goods are often carried by ox-drawn cart or — as with cattle, horses, and geese — come on their own feet. There one can purchase agricultural equipment and minor luxuries as well as livestock and agricultural produce. The smallest fairs take place in the grounds around a church, but such are unlikely to attract visitors from further than the next village. Such a local event would be timed to fit into the agricultural cycle so that most people would be free to attend. Foodstuffs and the products of local craft workers are on sale; itinerant peddlers offer ribbons, trinkets, a few common spices, pouches, and pins; and there may be a hedge magician offering minor charms and cures. Everyone is expected to attend, and rents for land and buildings are often payable at fairs.
Examples
Saint Denis's Lendit Fair near Paris was founded by King Dagobert in the seventh century and was the most important fair in France until the Champagne cycle took over. Now it attracts fewer foreign merchants but it is still regionally important. It runs from the feast of St. Denis (October 9th) for a month. More recently, in 1109, a second Lendit fair was initiated, starting on 12th June. Both Lendit fairs are for the benefit of the Abbey of St. Denis, although the University of Paris has the right to send representatives to the June fair to request their annual allowance of parchment and money donated, willingly or otherwise, by the merchants.
In the Rhineland, the most important fairs are held in Cologne at Easter and in August. Linen cloth and thread, glass, and metal goods from bells to copper dishes are produced locally, but a far wider range of goods is brought for sale from all directions.
In England, the university town of Cambridge controls three local fairs — Garlic, Midsummer (Barnwell), and Stourbridge — and one at Reach, the fenland end of the Devil's Dyke (a linear ridge and ditch earthwork). In addition there are fairs permitted at ten of the surrounding villages.
Attribution
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