Antique Clockmakers - Freedom of One of the London Trade Guilds.

​All trade in the City of London, from very early times, was controlled by the trade guilds or companies. A craftsman had to be a freeman of one of these guilds in order to trade within the City boundaries. The guilds also tried​ to regulate the tradesmen working outside the City by making sure that every craftsman and trader had been fully trained.

In 1630 the Blacksmiths’ Company discovered Ahaseurus Fromanteel working as a clockmaker in East Smithfield, outside the City boundary. They made him attend the next Court of Assistants meeting with proof that he had been properly trained. He was able to bring along his apprenticeship indenture which proved that he had been fully trained and was made a brother of the Company, but because he was not a full freeman of the company he had to trade outside the City.
The twelve largest, liveried companies had most power in the City. The twenty six City aldermen were selected from these 12 companies and one of their number was chosen annually to be Lord Mayor of London. The 12 companies included the Mercers, Grocers, Drapers, Fishmongers, Goldsmiths, Skinners, Merchant Tailors, Haberdashers, Salters, Ironmongers, Vintners and Clothworkers.

Freedom of one of the 79 London guilds (91 by the end of the century) could only be obtained by one of four ways:-

1. By patrimony, the son of a freeman could claim his freedom of his father’s company at the age of 21 years.
2. Most freeman qualified by serving an apprenticeship of a least 7 years to a freeman of that Company.
3. Those craftsmen trained outside the city could take their freedom by redemption if they paid a large fee.
4. If someone was a very important person, and wealthy, they could claim the right to join the company. Very few became freemen by this method.

Apprentices were usually bound to a freeman at the age of 14 years. Younger boys would have to serve a longer period; some boys served for up to 10 years. Older boys had to serve a least 7 years. An indenture was drawn up stating the terms of the agreement, by a solicitor, signed by the boy, his guardian and the master, before the master could register the apprenticeship with the company clerk and then with the City Chamberlain at the Guildhall; all three being present.
After completing the term of service, the apprentice would have to serve one or two years as a journeyman with his master before he could claim his freedom of the Company. It normally took several years before a journeyman could afford to set up his own workshop. In order to be freed by the Court of Assistants a journeyman had to produce a proof piece (or masterpiece) to prove that he had been properly trained and could teach others the craft. If his proof piece was accepted he then had to swear an allegiance to the Company, before he was admitted and paid his admittance fee. Quarterage was the membership fee which had to be paid every quarter.

The Court Minutes of the Blacksmiths’ Company (BC) for 11th July 1605 state that :-“ John Drake, late apprentice of Mr Starkie brought in a plate-locke for his proofe piece which was allowed and paid 3/4d for his admittance.” Henry Starkie and John Drake were clockmakers. The Court Minutes of the Blacksmiths’ Company (BC) for 11th July 1605 state that :-“ John Drake, late apprentice of Mr Starkie brought in a plate-locke for his proofe piece which was allowed and paid 3/4d for his admittance.” Henry Starkie and John Drake were clockmakers.

Fig. 2: John Drake Ivory & silver pair-cased verge watch by John Drake c 1682-1685

Another clockmaker in the BC was Humphrey Osborne who was apprenticed to John Norman on 15th September 1606 for ten years. In 1615 John Norman made a new clock for St Andrew Hubbard Church in London. Humphrey Osborne was freed and admitted to the BC on 28th August 1717 when he produced a clock as his proof piece which was accepted by the Court of Assistants.
Not all apprentices managed to complete their apprenticeship for various reasons only one third of boys managed to complete their term. Some apprentices did not like the work and went to a different craft; while others died quite young. One apprentice who died soon after starting his service, was John Edwards. We read in the Parish Records of his burial :- John Edwards servant of Mr Warfeild, watchmaker in Fleet Street, buried at St Dunstan in the West Church on 2nd October 1651.” John Edwards son of Thomas a deceased husbandman of Llanberis, Cae, Wales, had been apprenticed to John Warfeild on 19th Feb 1650/1.
A freeman could not be freed in more than one company. If he wanted to join another company he could only join the second company as a brother with the permission of his first company. This meant he had to honour the oath he had made to his first company; continue to attend meetings and continue to pay his quarterage. This situation presented problems when the watchmakers in the BC wanted to start their own company in order to control the trade with so many foreign watchmakers working around London. The watchmakers could not leave the BC and had to have the Company’s permission to join the new Clockmakers’ Company (CC) when it had its first meeting in October 1632. Some watchmakers did join the new company but not all the clock and watchmakers did join.
In 1636 the two companies the BC and the CC signed an agreement which stated that the CC would only enrol the watchmakers and the makers of domestic clocks, but the “great clockmakers” (turret clockmakers) would remain in the BC. This agreement created problems for some of the watchmakers who joined the CC. We read in the Court Minutes of the BC on 21 0ctober 1630 :-“ Richard Childe being a clockmaker, paid for his admittance 3/4d”. Richard Child then joined the CC in October 1632. Later we read in BC Court Minutes on 19th July 1638 “ Richard Childe was threatened for breach of oath”. Perhaps he was refusing to pay his quarterage to the BC.
​

​Two other watchmakers were in trouble with the BC in 1639. John Whitlache (Whitcrafte) had been apprenticed to John Harris on 8th October 1629 in the BC but on the 16th January 1638/9 we read “John Harris and Sampson Shelton were fined 40/- for freeing the apprentice without the authority of the Court”. Sampson Shelton had joined the CC as one of the first Wardens in 1632 and had been Master of the CC in 1634 and 1638. While John Harris had been made one of the first Assistants of the new company in 1632, made a Warden in 1633 and was Master of the CC in 1641 and 1644. 
​

Fig. 1: A silver-gilt, engraved & pierced inner cased verge watch by John Harris, London 1680 - 90

These two watchmakers were still working as freemen in the BC even when they had a higher status in the CC. In the early years of the CC the company depended heavily on the watchmakers from the BC who ran the new company as well as carrying out their duties in the BC.

​​Another freeman who went over to the CC was Benjamin Hill who had been apprenticed to Richard Child in the BC on 30th July 1632, was freed in 1640 but joined the CC on 30th November 1640. He was then admitted to the BC with his proof piece in March 1641. When he was chosen steward in 1653 by the BC he refused because he had already been elected Assistant in 1651 and Warden in 1652 by the CC. The BC took Hill before the Lord Mayor’s Court where he was ordered to comply, which he refused. The BC then offered to translate him to the CC if he paid a fine of £5 (equivalent to £1000 today). Hill paid his fine and was translated to the CC in October 1653.

Fig. 3: A gold filigree & blued steel cased round watch by Benjamin Hill c. 1660.

 ​When Benjamin Hill died in 1670, his substantial estate was appraised by three freemen of the CC , Edward East, Jeremy Gregory and Nicholas Coxeter and one freeman from the BC, Joseph Drake. The majority of Hill’s stock was made up of a large number of watches in various stages of manufacture which were valued by Joseph Drake a watchmaker from the BC. Drake at this time employed a former apprentice of his late father, William Young, who could well have assisted him in assessing the watches because the following year William Young married Benjamin Hill’s daughter Mary in 1671.

The two companies continued to have their differences because there were a number of clock and watchmakers in the BC who wished to remain in that company but the CC wanted all these craftsmen to join their company. ​

​The Plague epidemic of 1665 halted all trade and some clockmakers like Ahasuerus Fromanteel lost members of his family and several watchmakers including John Warfeild died from the disease. Worse was to come in September 1666 the Great Fire of London destroyed the premises of a number of the Companies, including the BC and many of the individual clockmakers lost their premises. Most of the buildings in the City were destroyed and all the companies were in turmoil. The only craftsmen who did not lose their premises were those in Southwark, south of the river. William Clement was able to continue his business in Southwark. He had been freed by the BC in 1664 and introduced the anchor escapement into his clocks about this time. He was able to supply a new clock to the Society of Middle Temple (lawyers) with his new escapement in 1667 which he erected on the roof of the building in September 1667.

​With the City in turmoil the CC disregarded their agreement with the BC and started enrolling a number of “great” clockmakers into their company. Between 1668-1689 the CC enrolled 28 great clockmakers as free brothers of the Company including Thomas Grimes, Thomas Tompion, Daniel Quare, Joseph Windmills, Christopher Gould, Isaac and Jonathan Lowndes, James and John Clowes, and Nathaniel Hodges. William Clement resisted the CC pressure to make him join the company for a number of years but eventually he gave in to them and joined the CC in 1677.

There were a number of clock and watchmakers who remained in the BC. We can find then in that company and other companies right through the 17th and 18th centuries. ​

Fig. 4: An 8-day walnut & marquetry Longcase clock by William Clement, London c. 1695

​The BC had lost its hall and all its properties and went to great expense to replace their buildings so they could not afford to lose any quarterage paying members to the CC. After the Fire, the BC were casting their nets farther afield and enrolling smiths from the surrounding areas outside the City.
The clockmakers in the BC were making clock movements from about 1670 and selling them to some of the leading clockmakers just as watches had been produced by varies craftsmen for the clock and watchmakers who were really just retailers of clocks and watches long before the end of the century. Brian Loomes records an instance of John Layton making clock movements for Nathaniel Barrow in May 1679. John Layton, son of Thomas was freed by patrimony in the BC on 29th October 1646 and joined the CC on 10th March 1653/4. Nathaniel Barrow had been apprenticed to Job Betts, a freeman of the BC, in the CC in January 1653/4 and freed on 28th January 1660/1. The Betts brothers Job and Samuel never officially joined the CC but made some excellent clocks and watches. Both had been apprenticed to John Drake in the BC.

There are many fascinating stories about the relationship between the Blacksmiths' Company and the Clockmakers' Company. My latest book, Early clock and watchmakers of the Blacksmiths' Company sheds light on this relationship, as well as featuring information about many of the most well-known clockmakers of the time, some of whom have been mentioned in this post.