fairs were carried out in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries,5 and even the
most recent empirical accounts date back to the 1970s.6 The time is thus ripe for a
renewed examination of the historical evidence on these fairs and a critical assessment
of any lessons they might hold for economic development.
2. The Ascendancy of the Fairs and ‘Generalized’ Institutional Provision
What explains the outstanding success of the Champagne fairs in attracting and
mediating international trade in the medieval Commercial Revolution? Champagne
had periodic fairs from at least the early twelfth century, although initially they
enjoyed no international importance. Between 1137 and 1164, merchants from
Flanders, Arras, and many parts of the kingdom of France began to attend fairs in
Champagne, and by 1174 they had been joined by Italians.7 By 1190 Italian merchants
were visiting Champagne in significant numbers and the annual cycle of six fairs was
well established.8 On this basis, the beginning of the Champagne fairs’ European
preeminence is usually taken to be about 1180. During the first half of the thirteenth
century the volume and sophistication of business at the fairs increased as
international merchants attended in ever greater numbers. At least until c. 1260,
scholars are universally agreed that the Champagne fairs were in their ascendancy,
both as an emporium for the trade in wares and as the ‘money-market of Europe’.
How can this ascendancy be explained?
The policies of the counts of Champagne played a major role in the rise of the fairs.
The counts had an interest in ensuring the success of the fairs, which brought in very
significant revenues.9 These revenues in turn enabled the counts to consolidate their
political position by rewarding allies and attracting powerful vassals.10 As a result, the
counts were willing to provide various institutional mechanisms needed for the
5 Notably Bourquelot (1865); Huvelin (1897); Bassermann (1911); Laurent (1935); Chapin (1937).
6 New findings are presented in Bautier (1953), of which Bautier (1970) is a curtailed translation;
Thomas (1977) presents new evidence on the declining, fourteenth-century fairs. Surveys based on
secondary literature are provided by Verlinden (1965), 126-34; Schonfelder (1988); and Knights (1992).
7 Bautier (1953), 110-11; Laurent (1935), 49-50, 84-5, 96, 100-01.
8 Reynolds (1931), 380; Face (1957); Bautier (1953), 115; Laurent (1935), 86.
9 Bassermann (1911), 3; Bourquelot (1865), II:175-206.
10 Alengry (1915), 50-1. For examples, see Evergates (2010), 166, 169, 219-26, 237-8, 242-3, 250, 286.