For instance, I desire a clearer picture of exactly what the experience of purchasing armour was like, especially in England during this period. Where would one go? Was it just a simple matter of walking down to the local armourer's workshop and plunking down a few pound sterling? What if I wanted an "off-the-peg" piece or two, not made to my exact measurements? In what quantities was armour exported to England? Can we speculate as to just how much armour was actually made in the country?

Have I asked enough questions yet?

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Do you wish to research the topic of Armour production and distribution or do you simply want to read up on current research (no small topic in itself)?

If you are interested in the availability and costs then you will need to start looking at the surviving personal accounts (and wills etc) from individuals, Households and Towns.
Then you will need to cross reference these accounts with the records they point to. For imported armour the Customs accounts for the individual Towns and Cities will be the key.

If you want to get started I'd recommend reading the Household Accounts of Sir John Howard. These give a lot of day to day information on armour purchases and values. The Paston letters (including Sir John Fastolf's inventory) although this is thinner pickings.

Then for import records I'd start with the Customs accounts for London ... these give extremely detailed listings of large quantities of all sorts of items ... including arms and armour.

This is a big undertaking ... there is a lot of published material ... and a lot unpublished. It's not a quick job but real investigation.

Good luck.

How do I go about getting ahold of the customs records for the port of London and the Cinque ports fo the years 1450-75 inclusive? I'd prefer 1440 - 80, but don't wish to bite off more than I can chew.

I'm looking specificaly for armour imports, but will gladly pour through the whole thing. Any help greatly appreciated.

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I'm assuming that as you say "I desire a clearer picture of exactly what the experience of purchasing armour was like, especially in England during this period.", you are more interested in knowing how your character got hold of his armour, than in the trade in armour itself.

A lot depends on the social status of your character.

If he is a knight, well, there is an account of Sir John Paston(i think - I'll check it out)travelling from the English territories in France to Flanders, where he bought three suits of Milanese armour for himself, his squire and a retainer. I don't remember the exact prices, but £6-8 pounds per suit.

At the top of the scale, there is an account in Spufford's "Power and profit" of a major english noble being measured, and armour made from those measurements being sent from Milan, together with four armourers to fine-tune the fit on arrival.

If you are of lower status, you'd probably be armed by your lord - there are several accounts listing the possessions of various lords, often including dozens or even a hundred or more harnesses, presumably to equip his retainers.

Hope that helps

I'll try and fish out the references to the published accounts. There are certainly published records for London 1480-1 (I think) for Hull (if you like fish) and quite a few of the years in the C15th in Southampton. Try the following to order Books from the Soton records Series ... for Imports you want the Port Books, for goods passing through the City gates you want the Brokage Books. http://www.soton.ac.uk/%7Esrs/srsndx.html

I could probably dredge out the armour imports if people want ... but it'll be a bit piece by piece.

Another place to look for Armour is the Cely Papers. They were Merchants in Calais and Armour is included in the goods they bought.

Also I had a look at some of the Wills for London and these include references to Armourers and Malemakers ... and by the mid C15th there was a Guild of Linen Armourers in the City of London.

Josh,
Sorry if what I suggested was not what you were after ... how far do you want to understand the process through research or how much do you just want to have a plausible story?

How does the University handle oversees ordering? I'll shoot them an e-mail, but I'm always amused there seems to be little thought that people outside of the UK might want to buy such things...

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Can I get a copy of what you have?

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Sorry if I'm being a bit slow but what do you mean by the 'big picture'?

As a BTW i was looking at an inventory of the goods of the Earl of Arundel in 1397 which lists his armour. This included breastplates and helmets etc. specifically described as from London, Flanders and, in one instance Milan and in another Lombardy and one in Westphalia

So by the end of the C14th there was clearly a real armour production going on in London, in addition to the most common Flemish source and the ability to get specifically Italian or German pieces.