Question

Why did artisans organize medieval craft guilds?

Answer 1

A guild is an association of people of the same trade or pursuits (with a similar skill or craft), formed to protect mutual interests and maintain standards of workmanship and ethical conduct. Historically guilds were formed as mutual benefit societies or small business associations. A guild was a trade union of sorts, since each crafter was a self-employed individual artisan or part of a small craft shop or co-operative. Guilds exist in modern and medieval incarnations. A historian's view of guilds tends to be colored by one's view of political economy, since the whole history of trade, technology, intellectual property, regulated professions, social security, and professional ethics are entwined with the history of the guilds in Europe.