The Parish Clerks' Company was chartered in
1233.
The citizens of London had a common seal for the city. London
merchants traveled throughout the nation with goods to sell exempt
from tolls. Most of the London aldermen were woolmongers,
vintners, skinners, and grocers by turns or carried on all these
branches of commerce at once. Jews were allowed to make loans with
interest up to 2d. a week for 20s. lent. There are three inns in
London. Inns typically had narrow facades, large courtyards,
lodging and refreshment for the well-off, warehousing and
marketing facilities for merchants, and stabling and repairs for
wagons. Care-giving infirmaries such as "Bethlehem Hospital" were
established in London. One was a lunatic infirmary founded by the
sheriff of London. Only tiles were used for roofing in London,
because wood shingles were fire hazards and fires in London had
been frequent. Some areas near London are disclaimed by the king
to be royal forest land, so all citizens could hunt there and till
their land there without interference by the royal foresters. The
Sheriff's court in London lost its old importance and handled
mainly trespass and debt cases, while important cases went to the
Hustings, which was presided over by the Mayor with the sheriffs
and aldermen in attendance. From the early 1200s, the Mayor's
Court took on the work which the weekly Husting could not manage.
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