Population
expansion had allowed landlords to insist on shorter leases and
higher rents, instead of having to choose between accepting a long
lease and good rent or allowing their estates to pass out of
cultivation. Over 50% of the population were on the margin of
subsistence. 90% of the population lived in the countryside and 5%
in the London and 5% in the other towns. Life expectancy was about
40 years of age. Over 50% was under the age of 23, while only
about 9% were over 60. Fluctuations in rates of population growth
were traceable back to bad harvests and to epidemics and the two
were still closely related to each other: "first dirth and then
plague".
Most of London was confined within the city wall. There were
orchards and gardens both inside and outside the walls, and fields
outside. Flower gardens and nurseries came into existence. No part
of the city was more than a ten minute walk to the fields. Some
wealthy merchants had four story mansions or country houses
outside the city walls. The suburbs of the City of London grew in
a long line along the river; on the west side were noblemen's
houses on both sides of the Strand. East of the Tower was a
seafaring and industrial population. Goldsmiths' Row was replete
with four story houses. A few wealthy merchants became money-
lenders for interest, despite the law against usury. The mayor of
London was typically a rich merchant prince.
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