John and William Merfold  John and William Merfold were yeomen brothers in Sussex, England, in the mid 15th-century. Both were indicted in 1451 after publicly inciting the killing of the nobility, clergy, and the deposition of King Henry VI. They also advocated rule by common people. Minor uprisings spread throughout Sussex until authorities intervened and four yeomen were hanged. The Merfold statements followed a major rebellion in Kent led by Jack Cade, and are considered demonstrative of underlying class and social conflicts in 15th-Century England. For 150 years following the onset of the Black Death in 1348–9, England's population, agricultural production, prices, and credit available for trade all declined. This phenomenon reached its apex between 1440–1480, in a downturn known as the Great Slump. Economic activity associated with the wool trade was especially affected, and Kent, Sussex and Wiltshire all suffered during the slump. This situation was aggravated by the final conflicts of the Hundred Years' War, which devastated regions of France critical to English trade, resulted in economic blockades, and caused some to blame Henry VI for their economic hardship. For artisans or labourers who had previously known greater prosperity, even small fines, chevage, and customary emblems of authority became intolerable. Articles of impeachment from 1449–50 against William, Duke of Suffolk, suggest that he and other noblemen used their privileged access to the courts and regime to oppress their subjects and advance themselves personally. These injustices and "systematic abuse of power in the king's name" were as egregious in Kent and Sussex as anywhere in England, and led to a series of insurrections. January 1450 saw an uprising by labourer Thomas Cheyne, who called himself "the hermit bluebeard," in Kent. Uprisings followed in February and March. In June, these culminated in a major and unsuccessful rebellion, in Kent, led by Jack Cade, whose forces were able to take London before his defeat. The uprising was deeply unsettling to the nobility. Without peace and prosperity, complained the Commons, 1450 saw many "murders, manslaughters, rapes, robberies, riots, affrays and other inconveniences greater than before." But the aftermath of the uprising in no way satisfied England's poor. While Henry VI showed clemency to his principal rival Richard Duke of York during the Wars of the Roses, he was merciless to Jack Cade and his followers. Residents of Sussex who had followed Jack Cade and received pardons were hunted by royal forces and either imprisoned or killed.