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A writer of the 13th century credits the Order with 19,000 manors
in Europe...
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During the
Middle Ages in Irish towns a wide variety of people lived with a variety of
occupations much like today. Professionals were required for leather work,
carpenters and wood workers, blacksmiths for metal working, farriers for
horses, for transport there were carters and boatmen, in the fields;
shepherds and cattle drovers and herders. |
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No charter of
incorporation survives for the town but references to a portreeve show that
it was probably run by a corporation. This implies that there a number of
different craftsmen who would have worked at keeping the Church, Hospital
and Castle in repair. There would have been plenty of business to sustain
the local traders. |
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In Rindoon, there were also soldiers
and at least 36 oarsmen for the kings ship which was stationed in the Lough
to protect the boats on the Shannon from the Irish. These would have been
paid for their work and would also probably have had a small farm to grow
food for themselves and their families. |
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There were
also priests for the Church of St John, probably some Monks also lived in
the town who would also have worked in the Hospital. |
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With a walled
area of 50 hectares, and a wall of 500 meters to defend there would have
been a need to have substantial available manpower, perhaps 400 or so men to defend the
town walls against attack,
not all of these would have been professional soldiers but at least 10
percent must have been. |
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This implies
that the town must have been a bustling place with a population of 3,000 or
so. The towns first account to the exchequer was in 1241 by 1259 the town
was paying £8 and 5 shillings per annum which rose by 1285 to £320 per annum. |
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