Pipe Rolls - Studies By Historians

Studies By Historians

A number of historians have studied the surviving Pipe rolls, using them as the basis for study of financial and governmental history, especially of the medieval era. A study from 1925 compiled the royal income that passed through the Exchequer for each year of Henry II and Richard I, as well as a sample of some years from John's reign, attempting to compare how the royal revenues compared in the various reigns. Recent work by Nick Barratt on the reigns of Richard and John have updated the earlier research. Historian David Carpenter has carried out further studies on the early years of King Henry III's reign. The Pipe rolls have also been used to identify royal officials, especially those that were involved in local government and were not high ranking. Because they recorded judicial fines, the Pipe rolls also can be used to shed light on how the judicial system in medieval England worked, as well as identifying royal judges. Although they don't provide exact revenue figures, most historians believe they represent a close approximation of revenue, and can be used to gain a general understanding of how much financial resources the English kings had available in the Middle Ages.

The lone surviving Pipe roll from Henry I's reign, that of 1130, has been a popular subject of study. Recent investigations include Judith Green's search for evidence of Henry's financial system. Another historian, Stephanie Mooers Christelow, has studied the roll along with those from the reign of Henry II, looking for the exemptions and grants made by both kings to various royal favourites. Christelow has also studied the 1130 roll to see what light it can shine on Henry I's judicial system, as well as on the growth of royal courts during Henry's reign. The historian C. Warren Hollister used the 1130 Pipe roll to study the rewards of royal service during Henry's reign.

The Pipe rolls from the 13th century onwards are less important for historical study because there are other surviving financial records. Some, such as the receipt rolls, were also kept by the exchequer, and were used by the treasury clerks to prepare the Pipe rolls. Other surviving records were kept by the sheriffs for their own use in submitting accounts to the Pipe rolls.