THE CRAFT GUILDS IN EARLY MODERN MADRID: A RE-EXAMINATION

Authors

  • José Antolín Nieto Sánchez Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
  • Juan Carlos Zofío Llorente Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
Keywords: Work, guilds, artisans, qualification

Supporting Agencies

  • Proyectos de investigación HAR2011-27898-C02-02 (Permanencias y cambios en la sociedad del Antiguo Régimen
  • ss. XVI-XIX. Una perspectiva desde Madrid)
  • Proyecto coordinado– HAR2011-27898-C02-00 (Cambios y resistencias sociales en la edad moderna...)MICINN

Abstract

This paper analyses the behaviour of Madrid artisan guilds in the early modern period, taking into account the latest continental findings in this field. The first part of this paper is devoted to debunk some clichés commonly held about the guild system, such as their schematic production organization, their aspiration to a middling social position and their excessive attachment to ordinances. In the second part, we question the alleged professional inbreeding of trade guilds as a universal formula to face up historical change. To this purpose, we have gathered evidence from over 2,600 indenture contracts together with nearly 10,000 mastership charts of the 17th and 18th centuries. Contrasting these data with guild regulations and tax rolls, a rich and a dynamic view of urban economics is provided, quite far from the parasitical role attributed by former historiography to the capital of the Spanish monarchy.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.
Published
28-12-2015
How to Cite
Nieto Sánchez, J. A., & Zofío Llorente, J. C. (2015). THE CRAFT GUILDS IN EARLY MODERN MADRID: A RE-EXAMINATION. Areas. International Social Science Journal, (34), 47–61. Retrieved from https://revistas.um.es/areas/article/view/247161
Issue
No. 34 (2015): Gremios y corporaciones laborales en la transición del feudalismo al capitalismo. Siglos XIII-XIX
Section
Artículos

The published works by this Journal are subject to the following terms:

1. The Publication Service of the University of Murcia (the Editor) owns the copyright of its publications. It promotes and allows its use under the indicated licence in Section 2.

© Servicio de Publicaciones, Universidad de Murcia, 2011

2. Papers are digitally published under the licence Creative Commons Reconocimiento-NoComercial-SinObraDerivada 3.0 España (legal text). They can be copied, used, disseminated, transferred and publically presented if: i) the author is quoted, as well as the original source of publication (Journal, editorial and URL); ii) they are not used for commercial purposes; iii) the licence of use is mentioned.

3. Auto-file Conditions. It is allowed and authors are encouraged to digitally disseminate their pre-print versions (versions prior to review) and/or post-print (reviewed version accepted for its publication) since it promotes its early diffusion and the corresponding increase of quotes and scope within the academic community. RoMEO Colour: green.