English and Scottish overseas trade, 1300–16001

Abstract

This article compares English and Scottish exports, from 1300–1600, using existing statistical data from England and a new data set of Scottish exports. It shows that the significant English and Scottish wool trades collapsed at almost identical rates. However, while England shifted towards exporting woollen cloth, a similar move in Scotland was weak—because of the poor quality of cloth and the urban form of the industry. In the second half of the sixteenth century, as English exports stagnated, Scottish trade began to grow, especially new and less‐established commodities. This ‘recovery’ was based on the heavy depreciation of the Scottish currency.