Wool town

[1] They came to prominence when weavers from Flanders settled in the area, having been displaced by what came to be known as the Hundred Years' War.

However, exports of woven cloth quickly replaced the export of raw wool (the latter being heavily taxed by Edward III to help finance the war) and those engaged in the trade began to amass great wealth.

[2] This wealth in Suffolk wool towns is marked by the beauty of large churches, known as wool churches, built from the prosperity of the wool trade: Long Melford's Holy Trinity "is one of the most moving parish churches in England, large, proud and noble", "so many thin, wiry perpendiculars".

"[6] Several of the towns in East Anglia that were prosperous during the peak of the English wool trade have retained many of their medieval buildings: Clare "now an exceptionally attractive small town",[7] Long Melford "a rich legacy" with "two fine Tudor mansions";[8] Lavenham "rightly celebrated",[9] "There is nothing in Suffolk to compete with the timber-framed houses of Lavenham",[10] Hadleigh's "High Street is remarkable for having retained nearly all of its oldest buildings unspoilt while remaining busy and commercial".

The English Wool Market, c.1230–1327 includes York, Boston, Winchester and Hull in the group, and it has also been applied to towns in the Cotswolds and Yorkshire.