A comprehensive picture of the life and responsibilities of an English medieval shipmaster. Using a rich range of examples drawn from contemporary sources, this book illuminates the evolving relationships between shipowners, shipmasters, crews and merchants. It also brings to life aspects of seamanship and the frequently harsh conditions on board. Despite a background of war, piracy, depopulation, bullion shortages, adverse political decisions, legal uncertainties and deteriorating weather conditions, between the mid-fourteenth and the mid-fifteenth centuries the English merchant shipping industry thrived. New markets were developed, voyages became longer, ships and cargoes increased in size and value, and an interest in ship ownership as an investment spread throughout the community.