The County Community

Abstract

The magnates were the leaders of political society, but they did not, and could not, act alone. The knights and others, who formed what may anachronistically be termed the gentry, had their grievances, and played their part in public affairs. The complexity of royal administration in the shires meant that knights were increasingly drawn into public affairs, sitting on juries, assessing and collecting taxes, recruiting troops, maintaining public order and undertaking multifarious other tasks essential to the good running of the country. The interface between royal government and local gentry society was often jagged. Grievances accumulated, adding to the tensions of political affairs. Recent work has stressed the way in which these grievances were articulated in the county communities. The horizontal links which brought men together in such communities have been stressed in contrast to the vertical links provided by lordship. A further debate has taken place as to whether the gentry’s role in politics was founded on a self-confidence drawn from economic success, or whether they were driven to act by economic misfortune.

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