Trade and Industry
udor London was a centre for trade and industry. A huge number of different trades operated in the busy City of London and most were overseen by City livery companies - these were organisations that set trading standards for their members to make sure the products they made were of the right quality. For example, the Goldsmiths' Company looked after craftspeople making items out of precious metals and gemstones; the Butchers' Company was in charge of traders who sold meat in the City. Many of these companies still exist today though their work has changed. London had trade links with countries around the world and these increased in the Tudor period following the discovery of the Americas. Both foreign and English merchants brought products to London such as decorative pottery from Germany and the Low Countries, tobacco from America and ivory from Africa. London was the place to buy high quality English woollen cloth. Local craftspeople made all kinds of goods that were useful for everyday life - leather shoes, clothing and vessels, pins and pottery.
Find out about the cloth trade and how it made London rich
Bottle imported to London from Frechen in Germany, mid-16th - 17th century
Find out how Tudor pins were made
Pinner's bone, used in the making of pins, 16th century
Find out how thimbles were used for sewing
Thimble used to protect a person's finger when sewing
Find out how Tudor people first started to smoke tobacco
Clay tobacco pipe, used for smoking, late 16th century
Find out how Tudor people kept their hair looking nice
Wooden comb
Find out how combs were made from ivory
Pieces of elephant ivory left over after making combs and knife handles, 16th century
Find out how a leather purse was made
Leather drawstring purse, opened out flat, late 16th century
Find out what it was like to be Lord Mayor of Tudor London
Studying law
ondon was also home to other businesses like law. Young men from around the country came to the law schools called Inns of Court to study law and work as lawyers.
