Norwich was a large self-governing City by the 15th century. It was relatively democratic in that all freemen were entitled to elect the common Council of 60 which governed the City. The Common Council had an input into the selection of aldermen to serve on a Mayor’s council of 24. To qualify for full citizenship, men served their apprenticeships and after a few years applied in their trade for admission to the Freedom. These records provide invaluable information on which the changing fortunes of crafts and trades. They bear witness to a dominance of the textile trades in Norwich for over 300 years.

A relatively harmonious situation existed in which many of the urban elite had similar economic interests; so they were able to serve the city’s cause and their own simultaneously. As textiles prospered so mercers, worsted weavers, hosiers and dyers began to dominate the ranks of mayors and aldermen. As the City’s members in parliament, these men were able to act as advocates for the city’s textiles interests. The Council was able to solve problems as they came up, deal with plague, fires, and the poor as they had a common outlook. They did by making sure Norwich was seen as a centre of consumption and shopping for prosperous gentry and yeoman throughout East Anglia. When necessary, they were able to look outside the City to address difficulties within textiles manufacture, such as by fostering new techniques pioneered by Flemish, Dutch and Walloons.

As time went on there was a widening of the gap between those wealthy citizens able to participate in civic government and textiles workers who were not. Well into the 19th century the ranks of the aldermen were still dominated by textiles interests such as Ives and Springall. But eventually the old textiles families saw the writing on the wall and moved their capital into other sectors.