178 THE WAR FINANCES OF HENRY V April Usually there is a mere record of the sum, often a large one, and the fact that it was conveyed to the king in France. 1 Probably the intention was to keep the royal head-quarters supplied with money which could be spent at discretion. Normandy under the French kings was a separate division of the kingdom, and the English found there an administrative and financial system ready to their hands. There were seven 1 bailliages ', the Cotentin, Caen, Alencon, Evreux, Rouen, Gisors, and Caux, whose heads, the ' baillis ', administered justice, executed the royal ordinances, and led the local militia. Each ' bailliage ' was subdivided into ' vicomtes For the ' vicomte ' the most important duty was the administration of the royal domain, which meant the collection of the ordinary revenue from the king's manors and vassals, and the payment of the same into the ' chambre des comptes ' at Caen. To these ordinary revenues had been added, during the first half-century of the Valois period, the extraordinary imposts of the ' aides ' (taxes on sales and beverages), the ' gabelle ', and the ' fuage ', which necessitated the creation of other financial agents. The ' aides ' were farmed to the highest bidder, but the ■ gabelle ' called for the erection of salt granaries under ' grenetiers ' and ' controleurs ', Like- wise the ' fuage ' required special agents. Assessment was by parishes, and actual collection by certain men of the parish called ' elus '. These made payment to the 'sergents', who ordinarily were underlings of the ' vicomtes ', but who in this instance acted as subordinates to the receivers, the officials appointed to take in this revenue, whose bailliwicks corresponded to the ' vicomtes '. This latter tax still retained a feature of its extraordinary character in that it was not permanent but was levied only in time of need by the consent of the local estates. With this administrative system already in existence, it was necessary for the English conqueror merely to substitute his own countrymen or partisans for the officials of Charles VI in order to avail himself of the Norman resources. How the financial administration which Henry established in Normandy* was articulated with the treasury of war is not clear until the end of the period under consideration. The records for the first years, when Sir John Tiptoft was president of the Norman exchequer 2 and John Golafre was receiver- general of finances, 3 are almost completely lost. When William Alington became treasurer-general of Normandy 4 he replaced Tiptoft and Golafre, but his first account (1 May 1419—30 April 1 Issue Rolls 624, m. 14 ; 633, m. 3 ; 645, m. 14 ; 655, m. 2. H. Ellis, Original Letters, 2nd series, i. 82. 8 See below, p. 181, n. 7. 3 See below, p. 182, n. 7.
- See below, p. 187, n. 3.
