London’s Guild System Guild System, London’s Author Kimberly Wallace Supervising Editor Kate McPherson Editor Kate McPherson Copy Editor Leah Hamby Senior Encoder Leah Hamby Encoding and Metadata LEMDO Team Copyright Holder (Content) Kate McPherson Copyright Holder (XML and interface) University of Victoria Early Modern England EncyclopediaEMEE

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Early Modern England Encyclopedia

By Kimberly Wallace, inspired by Michael Best’s Shakespeare’s Life and Times, Internet Shakespeare Editions

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Overview

The guild system was a large part of the economic system in medieval and early modern Europe, so it also dominated the business world of London. Guilds are professional organizations, usually of specialized trades. Guilds were a powerful economic influence in Europe from the years 1000–1800. At the peak of the guild system, large cities could have over a hundred different guilds.

Guilds were made up of craftsmen (and some women) in specific trades. Guilds mainly existed for those trades which were involved in the manufacturing of goods or the service industry. Guilds existed for painters, wine merchants, goldsmiths, drapers, weavers, musicians, physicians, wine-growers, miners, fishermen, blacksmiths, carpenters, stone masons, bakers, and a variety of other trades and industries.

Guild members had status and respect among the common people, although perhaps less among the aristocracy if Shakespeare’s Richard II is any indication, as the titular character complains about his cousin gaining favor with the common people: How he did seem to dive into their hearts With humble and familiar courtesy, What reverence he did throw away on slaves, Wooing poor craftsmen with the craft of smiles And patient underbearing of his fortune, As ’twere to banish their affects with him. Off goes his bonnet to an oyster-wench; A brace of draymen bid God speed him well And had the tribute of his supple knee, With Thanks, my countrymen, my loving friends; As were our England in reversion his, And he our subjects’ next degree in hope. (Richard II 1.4.25–35)

Power of Guilds

Guilds fulfilled many different purposes. They defended the interests of the craftsmen within the guild, regulated the quality of products and services, trained new guild members, and provided support or welfare to their members when needed. Guilds also helped give craftsmen a political voice in their communities. Once a craftsman reached a certain level of skill, they were given the status of a freeman by the guild, which gave the craftsman the opportunity to vote for candidates for different city councils.

Though guilds were extremely helpful to guild members, the power which guilds held both economically and politically often meant that they would create monopolies within their cities. Guilds often set the standard of what was acceptable regarding tools and techniques used, wages, hours of labor, and working conditions. They were also major influences on the prices of the final product or service.

Membership and Training

Apprentices had the lowest skill set within a guild. They often joined between the ages of ten to fifteen-years-old, and their apprenticeship could last between three to seven years depending on the craft. Apprenticeships were the best system for young men to gain a vocational education and helped secure their financial future. Apprentices came from all backgrounds of life, but primarily from the working classes rather than the gentry. Would-be apprentices could join the guild in which their father was a member or pay a fee to the guild they wanted to join. Apprenticeships were culturally important because they marked a child’s entrance into adulthood and independence from their parents. Apprentices would work side-by-side with the masters they were assigned to.

Journeyman was the next skill level within the guild system. Journeymen were men who had completed their apprenticeships and who had gained the needed skills to begin working on their own. They still worked under the supervision of their masters but were no longer required to stay strictly by masters’ side. They could take on their own clients and even travel to other areas for work. Journeymen still had several more years of training and work until they could become master craftsmen.

Master Craftsman was the title journeymen earned when they reached the highest level of skill. This last level required the craftsman to create a masterpiece which demonstrated their skill. They would present the masterpiece to their guild masters for approval. Once approved, they gained all the benefits of full admission into the guild. Those benefits included financial help if the craftsman fell on hard times, support for their widows and families if they died, and the opportunity to own their own business. A new business would hire other apprentices and journeymen, continuing the cycle.

The term mastercomes from the Latin root of magister, which means teacher, captain, or director. It is from the title of master that the modern abbreviation of Mr. arises. The female equivalent is mistress, now abbreviated as Ms., Mrs., or Miss. To become a master craftsman within the guild system was a high honor that came after more than a decade of work, and it came with the privilege, opportunity, and duty to train apprentices. A master had the duty to train both the hands and the minds of young craftsmen.

Charity

Guilds took care of their members if they experienced financial difficulties. They would also help provide for the widows and families of their members in the event of the member’s death. The funds needed to help support the guild members and their families came from either legacies (donations) of other members or distributions of company funds raised by fees. Guilds were also well known for donating generously to the poorhouses.

Women and Guilds

Not all guilds accepted women, and those that did often limited the activities that women could participate in. Examples of guilds which did include women were the butchers, ironmongers, shoemakers, bookbinders, and goldsmiths. Some guilds were exclusively female, such as brewing, spinning, and silk making. If a guild was not exclusively female-run, a woman often became a member of a guild if her husband died. She would take on his trade and would become a master in his stead. She would have to give up this title, though, if she married another man who belonged to a different guild.

Decline of the Guilds

Starting in the late 17th century with the beginning of industrial technologies, guilds began to lose their economic power as they lost their influence on the labor market, although they still played large political roles in their communities for some time. In London, the decline of the guilds accelerated in 1666, when the carpentry guild (or carpentry company) relaxed their regulation on admittance into the guild as they helped rebuild the city after the Great London Fire.

Key Print Sources Bosshardt, William, and Jane S. Lopus. Business in the Middle Ages: What Was the Role of Guilds? Social Education vol. 77, no. 2, 2013, pp. 64–67. Epstein, S. R. Craft Guilds in the Pre-Modern Economy: A Discussion. The Economic History Review vol. 61, no. 1, 2008, pp. 155–174. Moll-Murata, Christine. Merchant and Craft Guilds. State and Crafts in the Qing Dynasty (1644–1911). Amsterdam University Press, 2018. 321–348. Ogilvie, Sheilagh. The Economics of Guilds. Journal of Economic Perspectives vol. 28, no. 4, Fall 2014, pp. 169–192.
Key Online Sources Best, Michael. Guilds in Shakespeare’s Day. Shakespeare’s Life and Times. Internet Shakespeare Editions. University of Victoria. https://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/Library/SLT/society/city%20life/guilds.html. Accessed 13 Sep. 2018. Broomhall, Susan. The Fragility of Women’s Rights: How Female Guilds Wielded Power Long Ago. The Conversation. Academic Journalism Society, 7 Mar. 2017. https://theconversation.com/the-fragility-of-womens-rights-how-female-guilds-wielded-power-long-ago-73265. Guilds. London Lives: 1690 to 1800. London Lives, https://www.londonlives.org/about/guilds. Accessed 25 Jan. 2026. Kranzberg, Melvin, and Michael T. Hannan. History of the Organization of Work: Craft Guilds. Encyclopedia Britannica. 11 May 2023. https://www.britannica.com/money/history-of-the-organization-of-work.