Q.5. Briefly describe guild system.
Related Questions -
Q. Give the characteristics of guild system. Also, explain the reasons for decline of guild system. (AKTU. 2009 - 10)
Ans. The Guild System: -
In guild system, two types of guilds were initiated, namely, Merchant Guild, and Craft Guild. A merchant guild was an association of merchants engaged in trade in a particular locality. The purpose of a merchant guild was to enforce equality of opportunity for the members of the guild, to protect their interest, to avoid competition among the members and also to regulate the conduct of its members by prohibiting unfair practices. On the other hand, a craft guild was an association of the skilled artisans engaged in the same occupation. Thus, there were several guilds in a town. The craft guild regulated entry to the craft, prescribed standards of workmanship and regulated the conduct of the members. The guild system began to decline by the end of 15th century due to the narrow attitude of the guilds and the increasing rivalry among their members.
Decline of the Guild System: -
The exclusive privilege of a guild to produce certain goods or provide certain services was similar in spirit and character with the original patent systems that surfaced in England in 1624. The modern patent system was set up to break the power of the guilds. These systems played a role in ending the guild’s dominance, as trade secret methods were superseded by modern firms directly revealing their techniques, and counting on the state to enforce their legal monopoly.
Modern antitrust law could be said to derive in some ways from the original statutes by which the guilds were abolished in Europe.
Q.6. Write short note on feudal system. (AKTU. 2009 - 10)
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Q. What is Manorial or Feudal system? (AKTU. 011 - 12)
Ans. The Feudal System: -
In this system, our society was divided into different class. It was believed that the land belonged to the King who got it from God. He gave that to the nobles and could also take that back at any time. It was the duty of the feudal lord to remain loyal to the King. The cultivators served their feudallords in. several ways. Class distinction became well established. The priest worshipped the Kings, and nobles fought wars and serfs rendered manual services to other classes. The traders engaged themselves in trade and commerce. Slavery and serfdom were well established id socially recognized institution.
Gradually, feudal system gave birth to capitalism which gave greater importance to machine than man. Later with the onset of industrial revolution, industrial societies began to emerge.
Q.7. Explain briefly the domestic or putting out system.
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Q. What is the meaning of domestic system? Describe in detail. (AKTU. 2011-12)
Ans. The Putting-Out System: -
The putting-out system was a means of subcontracting work. It was also known as the workshop system. In putting-out, work was contracted by a central agent to subcontractors who completed the work in their own facility, usually their own home.
In 1854, the British obtained their military small arms through a system of contracting with private manufacturers located principally in the Birmingham and London areas ... Although significant variation occurred, almost all of the contractors manufactured parts or fitted them through a highly decentralized, putting-out process using small workshops and highly skilled labor. In small arms making as in lock production, the “workshop system” rather than the “factory system” was the rule.
It was replaced by inside contracting and the factory system. All of the processes were carried out under different cottage roofs.
The domestic system was a popular system of cloth production in Europe. It was also used in various other industries, including the manufacture of wrought iron ironware such as pins, pots, and pans for ironmongers.
It served as a way for entrepreneurs to bypass the guild system, which was thought to be cumbersome and inflexible. Workers would work from home, manufacturing individual articles from raw materials, then bring them to a central place of business, such as a marketplace or a larger town, to be assembled and sold. The raw materials were often provided by the merchant, who received the finished product, hence the synonymous term putting-out system. The advantages of this system were that workers involved could work at their own speed while at home or their home and children working in the system were better treated than they would have been in the factory system, although the homes were polluted by the toxins from the raw materials. As the woman of a family usually worked at home, someone was often there to look after any children. The domestic system is often cited as one of the causes of the rise of the nuclear family in Europe as the large amount of profits gained by common people made them less dependent on their extended family.
The development of this trend is often considered to be a form of proto-industrialization and remained prominent.
