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From the Margins to the Mainstream: Dutch History to 1384 - The Prosperous Thirteenth Century - Economic Developments

4 important questions on From the Margins to the Mainstream: Dutch History to 1384 - The Prosperous Thirteenth Century - Economic Developments

What was flaunted in the Church?

Although Christian devotion may have become more intense than ever before, this hardly meant that all prescriptions, increasingly spelled out by the Church in Rome, were obeyed.
One prohibition imposed on Christians that was openly flaunted in the thirteenth century was the lending of money with interest, condemned by the Church as usury.

What happened in Arras?

Flemish cloth merchants, who sought ways to invest their earnings, began to offer short-term credits at interest, and the historically Flemish city of Arras became the regional hub of this financial activity.
By around 1300 this development, already long evident in Flanders, was beginning to impact the economy north of the great rivers.

What happened for Dordrecht because of the new locks at Spaarndam?

It placed Dordrecht, where the Maas and Merwede meet, at the center of this new trade. For that reason, Dordrecht was accorded staple rights in 1299, which required all passing ships to offload their cargoes for possible sale at Dordrecht before moving on - a privilege that would make it the leading town in Holland for the better part of two centuries.

What shows the superiority of Flanders?

The economy of Flanders, though it had peaked by around 1270, remained much larger than Holland's economy. This can be seen in the size of the cities: Dordrecht housed perhaps 5000 people in 1300, Utrecht a few more, and Maastricht as many as 10000, compared with up to 65000 in Ghent.

The question on the page originate from the summary of the following study material:

A Concise History of the Netherlands | 9780521699174 | James C Kennedy

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