I have recently started to become interested in the Livery companies of London (most notably the “Worshipful Company of Information Technologists” (WCIT)), and how they evolved from the Guilds of yesteryear. The livery companies seem to do a great deal, not only for London and the rest of the UK but worldwide too, primarily through charitable doings. The more practical/vocational livery companies, such as the WCIT, not only do charity, but seem to further develop their industry through schemes such as the Journeyman Scheme (i.e. pairing up a new member with a full member (aka “Freeman”) who has plenty of industry experience).

Now, one of the bigger differences between Guilds and Livery Companies, is that Guilds were primarily made up of self-employed members. Livery companies on the other hand have an intake of employed and self-employed members, and often work in cooperation with companies. So we could see the Guilds of yesteryear a little bit like loose (and pre-socialist) co-operatives.

In the early 1900s, when socialism in the United Kingdom and Europe started to boom, there seems to have been a few socialists who were also fans of the old Guilds. These notable socialists included: Arthur Penty, G. D. H. Cole and S. G. Hobson. The early 1900s saw the birth of what was called “Guild Socialism”, which although similar seems to be distinct from the (pre and post- socialist) “Co-operatives” and the socialist “Trade Unions”. [1]

This is where business hooks into politics. There are references out there which state that both Adam Smith (of Capitalism fame) and Karl Marx (of Marxist Communism/Socialism fame) were very strongly against the creation of Guilds, however, supporters of all political camps (Conservatives, Liberals, Socialists, Greens, etc) can be seen as supporters of Guilds, Livery Companies, Co-operatives and Friendly Societies [2]. This also happens to be the case with Freemasonry, which some say derived from the Medieval Stonemasons Guilds [3] - various people of all political camps are against it, and various other people of all political camps are for it [4]. Guilds are therefore non-political, yet political theorists have taken Guild ideas and applied their ideologies to them.

This ends part one of two posts on “Business, Technology, Politics and Religion”. This post has focused primarily on business and politics, and my next post shall focus more on technology and religion - and will bring everything together (hopefully coherently).

Footnotes

  1. One thing that I have not yet found out is whether the early theorists of “Guild Socialism” were members of any of the Livery Companies (or any existing Guilds) - or, indeed, what they thought of it. If anyone reading this has any idea then please do let me know, I would be very interested in hearing about it.
  2. Yes, Friendly Societies do appear too. Many Friendly Societies were born out of industries, as mutual benefit societies to help their members. Somewhat similar to Guild ideology don’t you think?
  3. I don’t necessarily believe that Freemasonry came from Stonemasons Guilds, although many people do believe this to be the case - However, it is certainly the case that the old Guilds put on “Mystery Plays” which were related to their industry - and these Mystery Plays may have inspired modern Freemasonry. Other people also believe that Freemasonry came from Rosicrucianism and/or the Knights Templar. The history is vague, and I haven’t made my mind up on it yet, it is quite possible that it was inspired from all three (Stonemasons Guilds, Rosicrucianism and Knights Templar)
  4. Politics is not allowed to be spoken in English Masonic lodges (i.e. UGLE based/related lodges) as it can cause disharmony in the order. However, many early English Speculative Freemasons were in favour of a protestant government and monarchy. Many Speculative Freemasons took part in the American and French revolutions. But one must note that English Freemasonry itself is not a political organisation, and the noted revolutions aren’t themselves a product of Freemasonry.

Comments

Please do comment on this post. Maybe you can answer any or some of these questions:

  1. What do you think about Guilds, Livery Companies, Guild Socialism, Co-operatives, Trade Unions and Friendly Societies?
  2. Do you think that any of the above societies/groups have a place in contemporary society?
  3. Research question: Were the early Guild Socialists involved with any Livery Companies (see Footnote 1 above).
  4. Is there anything that you would like to see in the next part to this post? Or would you like me to mention anything that I may have missed?
  5. Do you have any other thoughts/feelings/suggestions/comments in addition to this article?

[UPDATE]

Part two on £Business, Technology, Politics and Religion” is now available.