Gilds and Fraternities Flashcards
What were gilds and fraternities?
Clubs of people with common factors (occupation, gender, neighbourhood ties).
What were their core functions?
They aimed to regulate the religious lives of their members (promotion of discipline and charity enhanced the moral character of the parish).
Maintained a light in honour of a saint for intercession.
Masses were celebrated for deceased brethren.
Charity was promoted: members too poor to have a proper burial were assisted (burial = corporal work of mercy), financial relief was offered to orphans and widows of deceased brethren.
How many gilds were there in London?
Around 150.
Give an example of an elitist gild.
The Crypt of St Paul - devoted to the worship of Christ and was comprised of rich and royal members.
Material enhancement was a facet of gild activity, give examples.
The gilds of the Trinity, St Mary and All Saints’ based in the parish church of Roughton, Norfolk were founded to improve the parish church.
The Chesterton Resurrection gild paid £29 to equip the parish with bells and £11 for a new Easter sepulchre.
Describe the building of Bodmin church (1469-72).
The building was predominantly a gild initiative. 35 gilds contributed - around £10 was raised by the Gild of Erasmus the Bishop, 5s. was donated by the gilds of the Holy Trinity at St Leonard and St Nicholas and the Virgins of Fore Street and Bore Street raised over £2 together.
The total contribution from the gilds was around £69.
Who were the Carpenters of York and what did they do?
They were a trade fraternity with records from 1482.
Every member paid 6d. annually to sustain the fraternity.
They kept torches for the feast of Corpus Christi: a procession of torches and the blessed sacrament from the abbey to the cathedral.
Held 2 meetings a year celebrating masses for deceased brethren.
Torches were carried at deceased brethrens’ funerals.
Any members who had fallen on financial hardship received 4d. weekly from the fraternity’s funds.
Anniversaries arranged: 10s. were paid annually to the Augustinian friars for the singing of 2 trentals for deceased brethren.
