London Guided Walks » Episode 152: The Peasants’ Revolt Part I – How It Came About

Episode 152: The Peasants’ Revolt Part I – How It Came About

Uncover the causes behind the revolt—from oppressive taxation and the aftermath of the Black Death to social tensions with the crown and the church—and follow the rebels’ march from Essex and Kent to the heart of London. Discover the people, events, and lasting impact of this pivotal moment in the city’s history.

Host: Hazel Baker

Hazel is an active Londoner, a keen theatre-goer and qualified CIGA London tour guide.

She has won awards for tour guiding and is proud to be involved with some great organisations. She is a freeman of the Worshipful Company of Marketors and am an honorary member of The Leaders Council.

Channel 4: The Orient Express: A Golden Era of Travel (Episode 1). Channel 5’s Walking Wartime Britain(Episode 3) and Yesterday Channel’s The Architecture the Railways Built (Series 3, Episode 7). Het Rampjaar 1672, Afl. 2: Vijand Engeland and Arte.fr Invitation au Voyage, À Chelsea, une femme qui trompe énormément. Yesterday Channel / UKTV Play: The Architecture the Railways Built (Series 3, Episode 7). Yesterday Channel / UKTV Play: Secrets of the London Underground (Series 3, Episode 2) and Secrets of the London Underground (Series 4, Episode 10). NPO (Netherlands): Het Rampjaar 1672 – Afl. 2: Vijand Engeland. Arte France: Invitation au Voyage – À Chelsea, une femme qui trompe énormément

Guest: Ian McDiarmid

Ian McDiarmid qualified as a City of London tour guide in 2017 and has a particular passion for Roman and Medieval history, having in an earlier incarnation studied history at Cambridge and London universities.

He began working life in the early 80s in the City, and has since written extensively on the share and bond markets as a journalist. He loves talking finance and taking people around the narrow alleys where today’s massive trading centre was born.

When not walking and talking, Ian enjoys pottering about in the garden. His expertise is such that he often spends several hours doing this.

Hazel : Welcome to the London History Podcast, where we explore the stories, people, and places that have shaped this incredible city. I am Hazel Baker from London Guided Walks. In this episode, we’re travelling back to one of the most dramatic moments in medieval London, the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381. What began as a protest against taxes in rural Essex and Kent erupted into a full-scale uprising that brought thousands of rebels into the heart of the city, demanding justice, freedom, and reform. London suddenly became the stage for a violent confrontation between commoners and the crown. Joining me to unpack this turbulent chapter in two episodes is Ian McDiarmid,

The Rising of 1381: Causes, Misnomers, and the Road to London

Hazelbaker introduces a London History Podcast two-part series with City of London guide Ian McDiarmid on the 1381 “Peasants’ Revolt,” noting historians now reject the label because participants included artisans and even petty gentry, while monastic chroniclers biased accounts. Ian outlines key causes: oppressive, regressive poll taxes driven by costly, failing Hundred Years’ War campaigns; intrusive investigations into widespread tax evasion; and post–Black Death economic tensions, including landowners’ efforts to restrain wages via the Ordinance/Statute of Labourers and to reassert control over labor, land, and customary obligations. The discussion covers resentment toward ecclesiastical landlords and charters, political distrust of a weak government under the young Richard II, and hostility to John of Gaunt and foreigners. The episode traces how unrest in Essex and Kent escalated into coordinated marches to Blackheath, an abortive royal meeting at Deptford, entry into London, and early attacks on prisons, Lambeth Palace, the Temple, and the Priory of St John.