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28 chapters
WELFARE WORK.
WELFARE WORK.
Employers’ Experiments for Improving Working Conditions in Factories. By E. Dorothea Proud , B.A., C.B.E. With a Foreword by the Right Hon. David Lloyd George , P.C., M.P., Prime Minister. Demy 8vo. Second Edition. 8s. 6d. net. Mr. Lloyd George says: “Her knowledge of welfare work is unique, and her book bids fair to become the standard work on the subject. I warmly commend it to employers, to Lady Superintendents, and to all those members of the general public who care for the welfare of the wo
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WOMEN IN MODERN INDUSTRY.
WOMEN IN MODERN INDUSTRY.
By B. L. Hutchins . With a Chapter on the 1906 Wage Census by J. J. Mallon . 4s. 6d. net. “Miss Hutchins’s book, which attempts for the first time to give a coherent account of women’s labour problems, will be found of great value in helping us to understand the question.... It is an excellent piece of work, upon which she is much to be congratulated, and the bulk of it will be of permanent value.”— The Times....
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THE GIRL IN INDUSTRY.
THE GIRL IN INDUSTRY.
A Scientific Investigation. By D. J. Collier . With a Foreword and Introduction by B. L. Hutchins . 9d. net. “... an important book from the point of view of applied economics, but, in the light of the coming continuation schools, it is scarcely less important in education.”— The Times....
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DOWNWARD PATHS.
DOWNWARD PATHS.
An Enquiry into the Causes which contribute to the making of the Prostitute. With a Foreword by A. Maude Royden . Second Edition. 3s. net. “... the authors treat their very difficult and complicated problem with sympathy, earnestness and moderation.”— The Spectator....
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A RATIONAL WAGES SYSTEM.
A RATIONAL WAGES SYSTEM.
Some Notes on the Method of Paying the Worker a Reward for Efficiency in Addition to Wages. By Henry Atkinson , Member of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers; Engineer Expert to the Mixed Tribunal, Cairo. Paper, 1s. net. Cloth, 1s. 6d. net. “Certainly deserves the earnest consideration of both masters and men.... We trust this book will sell by the hundreds of thousands, for it deals boldly with topics too many people try to shelve as disagreeable.”— Practical Engineer....
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THE FEEDING OF SCHOOL CHILDREN.
THE FEEDING OF SCHOOL CHILDREN.
By M. E. Bulkley , of the London School of Economics. Crown 8vo. 4s. 6d. net. “An admirable statement of the history and present position of the problem.”— New Statesman....
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LIVELIHOOD AND POVERTY.
LIVELIHOOD AND POVERTY.
By A. L. Bowley , Sc.D., Reader in Statistics, University of London, and A. R. Burnett-Hurst , B.Sc., formerly Research Assistant at the London School of Economics. With an Introduction by R. H. Tawney , B.A. Crown 8vo. 4s. net. “This book should serve, as Mr. Rowntree’s served in its day, to rivet the public attention on the problem of low wages. It is emphatically a book which every one who possesses either patriotism or conscience should study and reflect upon.”— Manchester Guardian. LONDON:
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SELF-GOVERNMENT IN INDUSTRY.
SELF-GOVERNMENT IN INDUSTRY.
By G. D. H. Cole , Fellow of Magdalen College, Oxford. Second Edition. 4s. 6d. net. “The argument is bold, original, and challenging ... a book which is indispensable to every student of social institutions and every citizen who is thinking about the kind of society that will develop from the catastrophe of the war.”— The Nation. “... a praiseworthy attempt to explain the future organisation of British Government on National Guild lines.... Mr. Cole’s volume may be commended as by far the most t
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THE WORLD OF LABOUR.
THE WORLD OF LABOUR.
By G. D. H. Cole , Fellow of Magdalen College, Oxford. With a Frontispiece by Will Dyson . Third Edition revised. 4s. 6d. net. “The most informative and best-written book on the Labour problem we have ever read.”— English Review....
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GUILD PRINCIPLES IN WAR AND PEACE.
GUILD PRINCIPLES IN WAR AND PEACE.
By S. G. Hobson . With an Introduction by A. R. Orage . Crown 8vo. Second Edition. 2s. 6d. net. “His analysis of the wage-system and its effect on national character is masterly and incisive; so, too, his inquiry into industrial partnership.”— The Nation. “... quite the best brief exposition of the general doctrine of this school of reform.”— Manchester Guardian....
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NATIONAL GUILDS.
NATIONAL GUILDS.
An Enquiry into the Wage System and the Way Out. By S. G. Hobson . With an Introduction by A. R. Orage . Crown 8vo. Third Edition. 6s. net. “A well-written, well-arranged, and attractive book, setting forth the whole argument.... It is an advantage to have so lucid and so complete an exposition of a scheme which ... many people are finding attractive.”— New Statesman....
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THE COLLECTIVIST STATE IN THE MAKING.
THE COLLECTIVIST STATE IN THE MAKING.
By E. Davies , Chairman of the Railway Nationalisation Society. Crown 8vo. 5s. net. “... of high interest and real value ... contains a short but able analysis of the causes which make for the spread of collectivism.”— Times. “Mr. Davies has made a compilation that is worthy of himself and his subject.”— New Age....
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THE WAR OF STEEL AND GOLD.
THE WAR OF STEEL AND GOLD.
By Henry Noel Brailsford , Author of “The Broom of the War God.” Ninth Edition. 3s. 6d. net. “This book is, within its range, the most complete study of our recent foreign policy that we have seen ... it is an admirable piece of work, and in its synthesis of ideas original.”— Manchester Guardian. The Three Latest Publications of the Ratan Tata Foundation....
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CASUAL LABOUR AT THE DOCKS.
CASUAL LABOUR AT THE DOCKS.
By H. A. Mess , B.A. Crown 8vo. 2s. net....
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THE HOMEWORKER AND HER OUTLOOK.
THE HOMEWORKER AND HER OUTLOOK.
A Descriptive Study of Tailoresses and Boxmakers. By V. de Vesselitsky . With an Introduction by R. H. Tawney . Crown 8vo. 2s. net....
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EXPENDITURE AND WASTE.
EXPENDITURE AND WASTE.
A Study in War-Time. By V. de Vesselitsky . Crown 8vo. 8d. net. LONDON: G. BELL AND SONS, Ltd....
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GUILDS IN THE MIDDLE AGES
GUILDS IN THE MIDDLE AGES
[Pg ii] [Pg iii] GUILDS IN THE MIDDLE AGES BY GEORGES RENARD TRANSLATED BY DOROTHY TERRY AND EDITED WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY G. D. H. COLE LONDON G. BELL AND SONS, LTD. 1918 [Pg iv] [Pg v]...
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PREFACE
PREFACE
This short book is the first part of a larger work by M. Georges Renard, the well-known French economic writer. The second part of the original deals with the modern Trade Union movement, and the part here reproduced is complete in itself. G. D. H. COLE. October 1918. [Pg vi] [Pg vii]...
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INTRODUCTION TO THE ENGLISH EDITION
INTRODUCTION TO THE ENGLISH EDITION
It is a curious gap in our economic literature that no simple introductory study of Mediaeval Guilds has yet been published in England. The subject is, of course, dealt with in passing in every text-book of economic history, and there have been several admirable studies of particular aspects of Mediaeval Guild organization, particularly of the period of its decay; but no one has yet attempted to write a short account of the system as a whole, such as might serve as a text-book for those who desi
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CHAPTER I ORIGIN AND GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION
CHAPTER I ORIGIN AND GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION
1. The origin of guilds has been the subject of a great deal of discussion, and two opposing theories have been advanced. According to the first theory they were the persistence of earlier institutions; but what were these institutions? Some say that, more particularly in the south of France, they were of Roman and Byzantine origin, and were derived from those collegia of the poorer classes ( tenuiorum ) which, in the last centuries of the Empire, chiefly concerned themselves with the provision
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CHAPTER II THE ORGANIZATION OF THE GUILDS
CHAPTER II THE ORGANIZATION OF THE GUILDS
1. It is sometimes imagined that the guilds united all the merchants and all the craftsmen of one region. This is a mistake. At first those who lived in the country, with rare exceptions, [5] did not belong to them: certain towns, Lyons for instance, knew nothing of this method of organization, and even in those towns where it was in existence, there were trades which remained outside, and there were also isolated workers who shunned it—home-workers, who voluntarily or involuntarily kept themsel
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CHAPTER III THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE GUILDS
CHAPTER III THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE GUILDS
The administration of the guilds was everywhere almost uniform. The guild was a voluntary association of men carrying on the same trade or allied trades and pledging themselves by oath to defend their common interests. It demanded of those who, in virtue of their mastership, wished to belong to it, proofs of capability, morality, orthodoxy, political loyalty, and often the regular payment of a contribution. Once enrolled, a member could not leave without first publicly announcing his intention t
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CHAPTER IV THE AIMS AND METHODS OF THE GUILDS
CHAPTER IV THE AIMS AND METHODS OF THE GUILDS
The guilds appear to have had three essential aims: an economic aim, a social and moral aim, and a political aim. 1. The economic aim comes first in time and importance. The guild was first and foremost a fighting organization for the defence of the trade interests of those who belonged to it. It was jealous both of the welfare and of the honour of the craft—two things intimately connected; for it realized that good reputation is one of the conditions of good business. Naturally the first means
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CHAPTER V THE MERITS AND DEFECTS OF THE GUILD SYSTEM
CHAPTER V THE MERITS AND DEFECTS OF THE GUILD SYSTEM
We are now in a position to estimate the merits and defects of the guilds before they fell into decadence and decrepitude. It is necessary to consider separately the two types of guilds which we have described; for although they had characteristics in common, they present more differences than resemblances. Let us see, then, how each acted on production and sale, and on producers and sellers. The guild system in the “small” crafts was at once a guarantee of, and a check on, production and sale.
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THE CLOTHIER’S DELIGHT; OR, THE RICH MEN’S JOY, AND THE POOR MEN’S SORROW
THE CLOTHIER’S DELIGHT; OR, THE RICH MEN’S JOY, AND THE POOR MEN’S SORROW
Wherein is expressed the craftiness and subtility of Many Clothiers in England, by beating down their Workmen’s Wages. To the tune of “Jenny, come tae me,” etc., “Paddington’s Pound,” or “Monk hath confounded,” etc. and so on, for twelve stanzas. From now onwards can be found all those motives for disagreement with which the “social question,” as it has developed and grown more bitter, has made us familiar;—increase of hours of work, lowering of wages by the employment of apprentices, women, and
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CHAPTER VII INTERNAL CAUSES OF DECAY
CHAPTER VII INTERNAL CAUSES OF DECAY
The guilds could only have been successful in their resistance to all these menaces if they had possessed plasticity, flexibility in adapting themselves, a desire for reformation, an eagerness to fall in with every new demand society might make, a spirit of continuity, unity, and justice,—in fact, such a combination of strong and great qualities as is rarely to be met with in the history of human institutions. We shall find that, instead of this, they allowed their inherent faults and failings,
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CHAPTER VIII THE DEATH OF THE GUILDS
CHAPTER VIII THE DEATH OF THE GUILDS
1. Their suppression in European Countries. —( a ) The eighteenth century, the first half of which was an age of analysis, criticism, and social satire, was in its second half a time of innovation and invention, bold in its theory and practice, eager to correct and reform social organization in accordance with an ideal of justice born of reason. It was therefore both destructive and constructive. In its first years it saw the beginning of a new economic phase. A revolution, as serious as that ca
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AUTHOR’S BIBLIOGRAPHY
AUTHOR’S BIBLIOGRAPHY
Arte dei medici, speziali e merciai. (State Archives of Florence.) Arte di Calimala. (Statutes, edition Filippi Giovanni, Torino, 1889. Gr. 8vo.) Arte di Por Santa Maria. Statutes, Archives of Florence, and for all the other Arti . Ashley (W. J.). Economic History. Bodin (Jean). De la République. (Paris, 1576-1578. Folio.) Boissonnade (P.). Essai sur l’organisation du travail en Poitou, depuis le XI e siècle jusqu’à la Révolution. (Paris, H. Champion, 1900. 2 vols. 8vo.) Bonolis. Rivista italian
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