Wool smuggling from England's eastern seaboard,c. 1337–45: An illicit economy in the late middle ages
本文利用皇家法庭的法律诉讼记录，首次详细描述了14世纪英格兰羊毛走私活动，揭示商人如何通过走私应对政府严格监管和高额税收，并探讨走私对海关行政改革的影响。
Abstract The medieval English wool trade was a commercial activity of huge economic importance. The historiography of the medieval wool trade, however, has focused overwhelmingly on its legitimate side. This article uses the evidence of legal proceedings prosecuted in the royal courts to provide the first detailed account of wool smuggling in the fourteenth century, a time of heavy governmental regulation and hugely increased taxation. It demonstrates that a substantial number of merchants responded to these challenges by participating in a flourishing trade in smuggled wool which was considered a serious threat to crown fiscality. In particular, the article explores how smaller‐scale smuggling took place along under‐regulated areas of coastline away from customs ports; how major export operations were able to smuggle wool through the customs system itself; and how concerns over smuggling influenced a series of administrative reforms designed to improve the efficiency of commercial regulation.