elevated to a city and thus released from feudal dues. The bourgeois was exempt from: Feudal rents Inheritance tax Personal services for the lords of the manor Maintenance of the mills Duties and excise in the markets. However, the borough was obliged to undertake maintenance of the arches of the bridge, the town defence structures, the feudal mound and the sergeant's premises, as well as to remunerate the latter every year in the form of: One pair of "good and sufficient" shoes A small contribution on the occasion of marriages One sheaf of corn for each harvester Two deniers per year for policing the markets Two eggs at Easter and two deniers at Christmas for each family Fees for participating in rent collection. Economic history Markets: Every Tuesday and Friday the residents of the town, people from surrounding parishes and more or less regular peddlers descended on the Place d'Armes and the Place du Marché, while those who kept permanent shops under the porches of their houses in the Main Street served an increased number of customers. Purchases were made by barter or with hard cash. Deals were made orally for the most part and always ended with a glass in one of the numerous taverns in the town. Commercial and festive activity was accentuated with annual fairs: Candlemas, 3 February (2 days) Ascension Friday (1 day) Angevine, 9 September (3 days), which existed already under Philippe le Bel (King, 1285–1314) Saint François, the Friday before 4 October (1 day) Sainte Catherine, the Friday before 25 November (1 day) Commercial activity in Écouché was such that in the 16th century the value of the bushel in Argentan was changed to 16 pots so as to be the same as the Ecouché bushel. The high degree of commercial activity is confirmed by the market halls consisting of four buildings, the large market, the small market, the grain market and the meat market. The Industrial Revolution of the 19th century halted this economic development: already in 1842 the textiles market closed and in 1922 the meat market was pulled down. Sixty per cent of the old buildings have now been destroyed – a sign of the decline of the once intense commercial life. Of the great gatherings, only the Angevine and the weekly Friday market remain. Saint Mathurin's Hospice: first Hôtel-Dieu, then a hospice, then a hospital, now a retirement home. LIME