Renaissance Guilds

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During the Renaissance era, trade and crafts were regulated under guilds; all the merchants had to join the merchant’s group, the same goes for the artisans. Those guilds had a strict specification to make sure that all products are on a good and same quality, and if any artisan/merchant could not provide the same quality, he would be kicked out immediately or he will distort the guild image. In addition, guilds usually set a standard price, which decreased rivalry between artisans and merchants. Moreover, guilds supported local industry, merchants from outside the town or the city is not allowed to sell his good until a late hour of the day. However, joining a guild was not easy task, as mentioned by Bruce Cole “Guilds were also social organizations …show more content…

Guilds arranged most of the city’s activities and helped the city grow stronger; however, those guilds also had problems for example, “Artisans were inclined to make far less money than the merchants who lived by trade” (Guild Hall). Unlike merchants if artisans wanted to use techniques or methods they had to get approval from the guild and guilds were usually not welcoming new methods. The Renaissance was the time of change, innovation, and creativity, the guilds who were not accepting changes starting to disappear gradually from Europe, and by the end of the Renaissance they were very few until they disappeared completely during the French Revolution. The guild members were in a disadvantage, because unlike other industries they were not allowed to use new techniques and inventions founded during the Renaissance. However, the guild played a big role during the Renaissance by supporting its members with money and supplies, which gave the members especially the new and not wealthy members opportunities to perform the same as any other old member, therefore, different guilds flourished especially the architecture and art

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