2. HISTORY
• The guilds in the Middle Ages were an
important part of life in Medieval times.
• A higher social status could be achieved
through guild membership, and feudalism
encouraged people to do this.
• There were two main kinds of Medieval
guilds - Merchant Guilds and Craft Guilds.
3. WHAT GUILDS ARE
• The word “guild” is from the Saxon “gilden”
meaning "to pay" and refers to the subscription
paid to the Guilds by their members.
• Other words associated with the term guild
include
association, society, brotherhood, company, fello
wship, fraternity and livery.
• The guilds of the Middle Ages were licensed
from 1170 and were similar to modern labor
unions where the guilds set standards for their
professions and protected the interests of their
4. WHY GUILDS WERE CREATED
• The system of Feudalism during the
Middle Ages allowed the lords and owners
of the land to tax the towns people and
their trades.
• In Medieval England which was run to the
feudal system it was impossible for just
one man to make objections to the rate and
amount of tax that the lord demanded.
5. PURPOSE FOR THE GUILDS
• The purpose of the guilds was to keep each
member's territory exclusive. If you were a
baker, your guild promised you a certain
amount of space before another baker
could build a shop.
• If your shop burned down, the guild would
care for you and your family.
• Guilds also arranged social occasions and
festivals for its members.
6. THE MERCHANT GUILDS
• The Merchant Guild was able to negotiate with
the lord and the trade levy became regulated.
• The Merchant Guilds controlled the way in
which trade was conducted in the towns and
cities and applied rules to the way in which
trade was conducted during the Middle Ages.
• The power of the Merchant Guild members
increased greatly. The livelihood of individual
trades or crafts within a medieval town, or
city, was being jeopardized.
7. THE CRAFT GUILDS
• The Merchant Guilds were
imposing regulations on the
individual traders or craftsmen to
regulate prices and supply.
• The individual crafts and trades
established their own guilds.
8. CRAFTS MADE FROM THE GUILD
These trades or crafts included:
Masons
Carpenters
Painters
Cloth Makers
Tanners
Bakers
Shoemakers, or cobblers
Apothecaries
Candle makers
