History of Dorset - Middle Ages

Middle Ages

The Domesday Book documents many Saxon settlements corresponding to modern towns and villages, mostly in the valleys, and there have been few changes to the parishes since. Over the next few centuries the settlers established the pattern of farmland which prevailed into the nineteenth century. Many monasteries were also established, which were important landowners and centres of power.

A number of military events took place in Dorset during The Anarchy of the 12th century, and this gave rise to the defensive castles at Corfe Castle, Powerstock, Wareham and Shaftesbury. In 1348 the Black Death came to England, probably landing in ports along the south coast, including Melcombe Regis now part of Weymouth. The then busy port was one of the first towns to experience the epidemic which went on to wipe out a third of the population of the country. In the 14th and 15th centuries the hilltop villages shrank further, and many disappeared altogether. Throughout the Medieval period, Dorset was popular amongst the nobility, including a number of kings, for its hunting estates, such as Gillingham and Sherborne. A number of deer parks still remain in the county.

The 12th and 13th centuries saw much prosperity in Dorset and the population grew substantially as a result. In order to provide the extra food required, additional land was enclosed for farming during this time. The quarrying of Purbeck Marble, a limestone that can be polished, brought wealth into the county and provided employment for stonecutters and masons. Large amounts of the stone were used in the construction of Salisbury Cathedral. The trade continues today but has declined since the 15th century when alabaster from Derbyshire became popular.

Another mediaeval industry, which continues today, was the manufacture of rope. Bridport was particularly famous for its rope, so much so that the phrase 'stabbed with the Bridport dagger' was commonly used to describe someone who had died at the hands of the hangman. Bridport rope was also purchased in large quantities by the Royal Navy. In the 15th century, Henry VII decreed that all hemp within a 5 mile radius of the town was to be reserved for the navy.