Mary, Queen of Scots', Instacart Delivery (1575)

No. CIX.

(Talbot Papers, Vol. P. fol. 723.)

" FRANCE. The accompt of me, RALPH BARBER, for one voyage made unto Rouen for your Lordship, as followeth, 1575."

The lordship addressed here is the Earl of Shrewsbury. He has been in charge of keeping Mary, Queen of Scots, in house arrest, since 1569, when she so unwisely fled to England for protection.

The itemized list provided by Ralph Barber provides us with information about her life in captivity and about how shopping was done for the wealthy of the time as well. Some of the items may have been intended for the earl's own household. Shopping by an agent in London would have been only slightly less involved. For example, the “boxes and cotton” would still have been required for packaging the “42 pounds of comfitures and other sugar works”. Food items did not come prepackaged much less in custom boxes.

In France

Item	£.	s.	d.
Imprimis, paid unto Mr. Jasper Dublett, for three tons of French wine, at £12. 14. the ton	38	2	0
Item, more, unto Peter Delaport, for eight tons of French wine, at £13. 14.	109	12	0
Item, more, for one ton of Orleans wine	15	0	0
Item, more, for half a ton of white wine	5	4	0
Item, more, to Peter Delaport, for 27 ells 2 qrs. of fine damask for table cloths, containing in breadth seven qrs., at 12s. 6d. the ell	17	6	4
Item, more, for one ton of red vinegar, one puncheon of white	14	0	0
Item, more, for 30 ells of damask, for table napkins, which is but payable 10 ells, at 12s. 6s. the ell	6	6	0
Item, more, for 22 ells of diaper, of Rouen making, at 8s. 2d. the ell	9	0	4
Item, more, for 19 ells of whited canvas, at 3s. 6d. the ell	3	6	6
Item, more, for 42 pounds of comfitures and other sugar works, at sundry prices	5	12	0
Item, for boxes and cotton for the same, &c. 0 4 0	0	4	0
Item, more, for 14 lbs of fine sleyed silk, for mv Lady, being of all colours, at 32s. the lb	22	8	0
Item, more; 3 ells of whited canvas, at 3s. 5d. the ell	0	10	3

The purchase of quails, such as were readily available in the English countryside, might suggest that Mary was particular in her tastes. Only French quails, wines and vinegars would do. There being no refrigeration at the time the quails would need cages to be kept in until preparation. Then there would seem to be brokerage fees and kick-backs to be paid to the local gendarmerie.

Item, more, for 4 reams of fine paper	0	14	10
Item, more, for 12 pieces of coarse buckram	1	12	0
Item, more, for 48 dozen quails, at 6s. the dozen	14	8	0
Item, more, for 2 cages for the said quails, two bushels of hemp seed, with 2 weeks' charges before I received them	0	18	6
Item, more, at Rouen, for custom of 12 tons of wines	1	2	0
Item, more, in the Viscompt there, and unto the officers of the Romain	0	18	0
Item, more, for carriage of the afore said wines and vinegar upon shipboard, with rummaging and plankage of the same	1	4	0
Item, more, for 5 ells of canvas and cord to truss the said diaper and damask in, with packing of the same	0	6	0
Item, for a panyer, a lock, sear cloths, and cords, for trussing the said comfitures and sugar-works in	0	6	0
Item, more, for carriage of the same, by land, from Rouen to Dieppe	0	11	10
Item, unto one Robert Godden, for brokage in Rouen	2	0	0
Item, more, for the charges of me and my man in Rouen, being there the space of 21 days, at 4s. per diem	4	4	0
Item, more, for extraordinary charges during my being in France	0	6	10

The entire shopping trip seems to have taken 21 days plus shipping in France, over the Channel, and in England. Including side trips from home-base at the port of Dieppe, where French “searchers” hunted down the items on the Queen's list, to Rouen.

Item, more, for a post horse from Dieppe to Rouen, and from Rouen to Dieppe again, with the charges of two several returns	0	16	0
Item, more, at Dieppe, to the officers and searchers there	0	4	10
Item, more, for my passport there	0	2	10
Sum disbursed in France, as appears	275	18	1

Back in England, Barber pays his bill to the inn for keeping himself, his man and horse, while they gathered the groceries and arranged for shipping to whichever of Shrewsbury's estates she was living in at the time. The horse did not likely travel with him to France as such arrangements, when available, were expensive and unwieldy, and the rental of a post-horse is mentioned.

In England

Item	£.	s.	d.
Paid for the charges of myself, my man, and my horse, from the last of April to the 26th of May, that I took shipping for France, being 26 days, at 3s. per diem	3	18	0
Item, for my passage by sea made, my man and myself, with duties unto searchers at Rye	1	2	0
Item, for passage of me and my man by sea, with two cages of quails and one hamper, in my return from France into England	1	0	0
Item, for two horses from Rye to London, in carriage of the said quails and hamper	0	11	0
Item, more, for my horse grass at" Rye, three weeks, 16d. per week	0	4	0
Item, unto John Boys, for the freight of 12 1/2 tons of wine from Rouen to London, at 14s. the ton	8	15	0
Item, more unto him, for primage and average accustomed, with 3s. paid at the new haven	1	15	0
Item, more, unto John Poge, for the freight of four puncheons of vinegar, from Rouen to London, with average primage accustomed	0	18	8
Item, more, unto John Boys, for the freight of one fardle of diaper and damask from Rouen to London	0	3	0
Paid for 82 dozen hoops, for hooping and cupping of ten tons and one hogshead of wine, at London, at lOd. the dozen	3	6	8
Item, more unto the said cooper for filling of the said wines, being twelve tons and a half, laden at Rouen; being filled at London, ten tons, one hogshead, and a half, at 4d. per ton	0	3	4

Most of the charges in England amount to room and board and shipping and handling.

Item, unto the porters, for taking in and delivering forth the said wines at London	0	11	0
Item, more, to John Widgeon, of London, for wharfage and cranage of the said wine and vinegar	0	12	0
Item, unto him for cellarage of the said wines for ten days	0	4	4
Item, for entering the said wines in the Custom House, with Is. 6d. Towards a cocket for Hull	0	3	8
Item, for my man.s charges in the country for two days and one night, that is to say, in country flies, with meat and drink, 6s.; to the Sheriff of London for blood and frey, 6s 8d; to a man of law in Guild Hall, 3s. 6d.	0	16	2
Item, more, for two shirts for my man, at 3s. 4d. a piece	0	6	8
Paid for my charges of myself and horse, from the 16th of June, that I landed in England, in my return, with 10s. for ten days' charges of my man before his departing from me at London, until the 19th of July, that I came to Sheffield, being 33 days, at 1s. 3d. the day	3	5	0
Sum disbursed in England as appears	28	0	2
Sum total disbursed in this voyage, as particularly appears	303	18	3

I hope the reader will have her or his own fun deciphering the information in each of Barber's entries.

Source: Lodge, Edmund. Illustrations of British History (1838). II.68-73.

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