Pipe Rolls: Medieval England's Tax Records

In this episode, Lucas and Luna delve into the financial backbone of medieval England: the Pipe Rolls. These sheepskin parchment rolls, the oldest continuous set of financial records in English history, recorded every penny owed to the crown from 1130 to 1830. Lucas explains how sheriffs accounted for taxes, fines, and feudal dues, and how the Exchequer used tally sticks—notched wooden sticks split in half—as a receipt system. He reveals how the Dialogue of the Exchequer, a 12th-century manual, described this process, and how the Pipe Rolls offer historians a granular view of medieval society: who owed what, who evaded, and how the crown squeezed its subjects. Luna asks about the infamous 'Danegeld' and forest fines, and Lucas unpacks the social impact of these financial exactions. The episode also touches on the Great Roll of the Exchequer's survival through fires and negligence, and what it tells us about royal power, rebellion, and everyday life in medieval England. #PipeRolls #Exchequer #MedievalEngland #Taxation #HenryII #DialogueOfTheExchequer #TallySticks #Sheepskin #FexingoHistory #HistoryOfEngland #MedievalEconomics #CourtOfExchequer #Treasury #Feudalism #EnglishFinance #12thCentury #History #Podcast Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo