guilds

1. Organizations of artisans in the Middle Ages that sought to regulate the price and quality of products such as weaving and ironwork. Guilds survived into the eighteenth century.

Notes

Guilds gave way to trade unions, a very different type of organization. The artisans in the guilds were self-employed, unlike most members of trade unions.

Example Sentences

They operate in a realm largely untouched by legislation, unions, and guilds.

From The Daily Beast

Associated in corporations which limited their number, they were still further united into guilds by the Church.

From Project Gutenberg

One of the finest sights in the church is that which the guilds of the place periodically make.

From Project Gutenberg

The church has two or three “guilds,” the female members thereof numbering about 200, and the males 100.

From Project Gutenberg

Cordwainer was the old name for "shoemaker," and is still kept in the names of shoemakers' guilds and societies.

From Project Gutenberg

Beginning with the first of these two traditions, we find that guilds of working masons existed in very ancient times.

From Project Gutenberg