The Middleton Accounts of 1526: #66

The next two entries in the Middleton household accounts for Sir Henry Willoughby in 1526 were dated 3rd November and both related to wick yarn. The first was described as payment for 2 lea of wick yarn and the amount was 5 pence, which was the equivalent of about £9.19 today. The second was payment for the spinning of a lea of wick yarn and the amount was 1 penny, which was the equivalent of about £1.84 today. This pair of entries is interesting because it directly shows how cheap the labour costs were and how much cheaper it was to make your own rather than purchase it pre-made from a merchant.

Lea, also known as lay, was a highly variable historical British unit of length. It was used to measure spun yarn and was formed by the amount of thread wound onto a standard reel. As the same yarn type could vary dramatically in weight depending on its thickness, dampness or simply how it had been spun, buying by the reel, which ensured a consistent length, was deemed to be more precise. Nevertheless, the yardage of a lea for different types of material could vary dramatically in length anywhere from 80 yards to 300 yards. However, for linen, the standard lea was fixed at 300 yards.

Candles in the John Ray Room at Middleton Hall for Open by Candlelight event, 2022.

Wick yarn was a vital domestic commodity used in the production of candles. It is known that candles of various types, including beeswax, tallow and rushlights, were made at Middleton Hall. Late-autumn was traditionally a key time for candle-making, specifically for making tallow candles and rushlights. This was because it was the traditional period when animals were slaughtered in advance of winter; a tradition that was a result of the lack of fodder availability for animals over winter. This slaughter produced an abundance of animal fat (tallow) that had to immediately be used. Thus, the tallow was used to make rushlights and tallow candles, for which only the latter would require a wick.

Wick yarn in this era was very different to the modern style of braided wicks, which were only invented in the 19th century. In the Tudor era, wick yarn consisted of simple twisted strands and was spun from linen/flax, hemp or coarse cotton. These twisted yarns burned unevenly and did not self-consume. The unburnt wick would char, dull the flame and issue excess smoke. Hence, candles in this era required constant maintenance and the wick had to be trimmed frequently using specialised snuffer scissors.

The twisted strands were formed by multiple strands or plies in order to create a thick core. Cheaper basic candles would have had a narrower core of about 20 ply, whilst candles that needed to create more illumination would have had a ply of about 30. As candles in this era were formed by repeated hand-dipping, rather than being poured into moulds, the wick and candle mass were directly related. Therefore, an estimate can be made that, if linen wick was the type used, from these entries in the accounts, Sir Henry might have been having around 165 basic candles or 100 good candles made.

Further Reading: W. H. Stevenson, Report on the Manuscripts of Lord Middleton, Historical Manuscripts Commission, 1911. p.380.

Author - Debbie Jordan, Middleton Hall Volunteer.

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