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 to do so, and discharging any debts owing
to the guild. He could be expelled for any serious breach of its
regulations or of the laws of the state.
The association thus constituted was autonomous; it was a moral and
legal person; it could possess wealth in lands, houses, money, or
bonds; it could contract, bargain, bind itself, appear in court through
representatives whom it nominated (syndics, proctors, etc.). It had its
guild halls, which were decorated with its coats-of-arms. It had its
banner, funds, seal, and archives. It was, then, within the limits of
its jurisdiction, self-governing. Its constitution was semi-democratic
in the sense that the masters of whom it was composed were looked on
as possessing equal rights. The legislative power was in the hands of
the General Assembly, which made, or at least sanctioned, the statutes
and the revisions of the rules, and it is remarkable that from one end
of Europe to the other identical formulae on more than one point are
found; the words relating to the subject of prohibition, for example:
"Let none presume or be so bold as to...."[30]
No act of any importance pledging the whole guild could be carried
through without the advice and ratification of the assembly. The
interests involved were, however, so complex, the business of such
daily occurrence, that it would have been impossible to convoke the
assembly on every occasion; it therefore became necessary to create an
organ of government, an executive, and at the same time a judicial,
power--in other words, to nominate officers to act in the name of the
guild. The method of nomination varied in every age and region. In
most cases the election was made directly by the masters alone, or
indirectly by electors whom they nominated; sometimes, but rarely, the
inferior _members_ of the complex guilds, journeymen of the simple
guilds, took part, and a certain number of those elected belonged to
their group. In other cases the nomination depended on the lord or on
some one to whom he had delegated his authority; in others it was held
by the municipal magistrates, as at Toulouse; and in others again the
resigning officials nominated their successors or filled vacancies as
they occurred. In Italy there were complicated systems in imitation
of those in use for the communal magistracies. The candidates' names
were proposed, and accepted or rejected by acclamation or by secret
ballots; those approved were written on tickets which were placed
in sealed and padlocked bags. In this way a supply of candidates was
provided for several years, and whenever necessary, a child or a
priest drew at hazard one of the names for each post.[31] This curious
combination of chance and of popular choice was often to be met with in
the Italian Republics. At Arras, in the butchers' guild, as many balls
of wax as there were masters present were placed in an urn. The words
"Jésus-Marie" were inscribed on one of the balls, and the man who drew
it became head of the guild.
In course of time the right to office was restricted by an age limit,
by a longer or shorter period of matriculation, and even by wealth or
social standing. Thus, among the old-clothes dealers of Florence no one
who cried his goods in the streets, and among the bakers, no one who
carried bread from house to house on his back or on his head, could be
elected rector.
The officials thus nominated (and none could escape the duty which
fell to him) were sometimes quite numerous; the _Arte di Calimala_
at Florence had four consuls, a treasurer or _camérier_, a cashier,
a syndic, and a proctor, not to mention two notaries and other
subordinate officers whom the consuls chose with the assistance of
a general council, and of a special council of the guild. The heads
or chiefs were called in the south of France, _consuls_, _recteurs_,
_bailes_, _surposés_, etc.; those in the north were called _gardes_,
_eswards_, _jurés_, _prud'hommes_, _maïeurs de bannières_, etc. In
certain texts one comes across "bachelor" masons and carpenters,
curious titles given to ex-officers, who, though they had resigned
their headship, might still have some official duties.[32]
These officers were usually not long in power--sometimes only a few
months, and practically never longer than a year; their duties ended
with a statement of accounts which carried with it ineligibility to
re-election for a certain time.
There was always a fear of creating magisterial dynasties which might
perpetuate themselves at will, and of encouraging the development of
cliques; for these reasons several members of a family or business
house were not allowed to sit on the guild committee simultaneously.
The reason why so much trouble was taken to divide the responsibilities
was because they conferred considerable power and entailed a great
deal of absorbing work. The heads of the guilds, by whatever name
they were called, took an oath that they would first and foremost see
that the rules were carried out--no easy matter. In this respect they
had legal powers, and they not only acted as arbiters in the quarrels
which arose among the members, but also in the conflicts which in the
great merchant guilds might arise in the course of trade even with
foreigners: disputes over weights and measures, bankruptcies, frauds,
reprisals, etc. They were, in fact, public officials, and their
consular tribunals were to become in time the organs of the Commune.
In the industrial guilds they had to watch over production, inspect
the articles of manufacture in the workshops, to make sure that they
were in conformity with the prescribed rules. In cases of delinquency
they had the right to seize and burn the goods and to inflict a fine
on the offenders. In some places it was their duty to protect the
apprentices, to examine the candidates for mastership, and to provide
the necessary funds for the pious works which were under the control of
the community.
At Florence the _Arte di Calimala_ had the care of the monastery of San
Miniato, the baptistery of St. Jean, and the hospital of St. Eusèbe;
the _Arte della Lana_ took charge of the building and decoration of
the dome. In short, everything which could contribute to the welfare
and reputation of the guild was under the jurisdiction of the heads,
who, controlled by their colleagues, had thus an extensive sphere of
activity.
The consuls of the Calimala had among their duties the maintenance of
roads and hostels, and even the safe conduct of Florentine travellers
in a district extending as far as the fairs of Champagne and St. Gilles.
But it will be easier to judge of the multiplicity of duties which
the guilds demanded of their officers if their aims are more closely
studied, and this will best be done by carefully investigating their
guiding principles as shown in their statutes.