In the history of the medieval European towns, a guild was an association or organization of individuals who had common goals or interests of protecting their members. It must, however, be noted that the earliest guilds were developed as a conglomeration of tradesmen and merchants. The local governing bodies established by the tradesmen varied between a cartel, a secret society, a professional association, or a trade union and each guild focused on a particular art or trade such as candle making or tanning. To this end, this paper seeks to discuss the importance of these guilds during the medieval times in the European towns.
Guilds in the medieval European towns were fundamental in the daily economic lives of the Europeans due to several reasons. Firstly, being a member of the guild accorded an individual a higher and esteemed social status. In addition, it came with benefits for self and family. Often, as a member, the guild would step in to support in instances of sickness. There were two types of medieval guilds; merchant and craft guilds. For one to be an elite member of the craft guild, they would have to advance through three stages; apprentice, journeyman, and master. It is important to note that the guilds were developed with the primary purpose of protecting their members due to the increased tax rates demanded by the lords of the medieval England. In simple terms, the guilds were like the modern day labor unions (Lords and Ladies, 2017).
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The importance of the guilds was modeled around the benefits they provided to their members. According to Trueman (2015), the guilds ensured that any product made or produced by the member was sold at a fair price and was up to standard. Trueman further contends that the guild catered for the funeral expenses in case a member was deceased. If there were orphans as a result of the demise of the member, they were taken and cared for by the guild. The guilds also ensured transparency and honesty and those members found cheating the public were punished through expulsion (Renard, 2000). The guilds also protected goods and merchants when they were traveling or transporting the goods. Furthermore, the guilds acted as charitable institutions funding religious schools and helping the poor in the society.
It is, however, critical to note that the importance of the guilds was not only to the benefit of their members but also in protecting the consumer. This was done through regulation of prices by developing and enforcing fair price policies (World History Center, 192). Guilds also ensured the quality of the goods and products and as such required the craftsmen to take their work outside where the consumers could observe and choose what they liked. Overall, the importance of the guilds in relation to protecting the consumers was in playing a regulatory role. Other than prices and quality of goods, the guilds regulated the competition, the number of masters, and trade secrets. For instance, in Florence, workers processed essential trade secrets, and any of them who ran away to another territory was tracked down and killed to protect the secrets lest they fall into enemy hands.
By providing fundamental roles such as the regulation of trade, protecting the members from high taxes, protecting the consumers, and the forming of local governments, towns such as Florence were able to develop ultimately leading to improved economic standards. The guilds were particularly important in the development of the Western lay education by financing the monastic and cathedral schools. Additionally, guilds propelled religion in the middle-ages especially in England and the Crusaders through building churches and duly funding them. In addition, guilds were fundamental in maintaining and conserving culture. For instance, the guilds provided dowry for poor girls.
Despite their fall and dissolution, guilds were an integral part of history, and their importance still trickles down to the contemporary society as seen in the development of trade unions which trace their origins to the guilds. The guilds were therefore crucial in the development of the towns in the Medieval European towns.
References
Lords and Ladies. (2017). Guilds in the Middle Ages. Lords and Ladies. Web. Retrieved from: http://www.lordsandladies.org/guilds-in-the-middle-ages.htm
Renard, G. (2000). Guilds in the Middle Ages. Botche Books, Kitchener, Canada, ISBN: 1-55273-049-2. Web. Retrieved from: https://socserv2.socsci.mcmaster.ca/econ/ugcm/3ll3/renard/guilds.pdf
Trueman, C.N. (2015). Medieval Guilds. The History Learning Site. Web. Retrieved from: http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/medieval-england/medieval-guilds/
World History Center. (1992). The Middle Ages. World History Center . Web. Retrieved from: http://history-world.org/midtowns.htm
