The Gild Merchant Of The City Of Britain In The Middle Ages

The Gild Merchant,is an important form of economic organization of the city of England in the medieval ages. It is contains all the people who bought and sell goods in the city. Each city only one gild merchant,it is the management of industrial and commercial activities in the city. This paper aims to explore the gild merchant’s origin,meaning, privileges, and obligations, to describe an outline of the gild merchant,in order to explore its important role in the middle ages England cities, and make the reader have a clear understanding to the gild merchant.In this paper, content of each part are as follows:Introduction part mainly includes the selected topic basis and the research status at home and abroad,mainly tells the story of the gild merchant as an important economic organization in the medieval England city,but few specific studies in China, that is the reason of writing this paper. Through reading the related work of scholars at home and abroad,in order for the status of the medieval gild merchant has a comprehensive system of understanding.First chapter is the origin and meaning of gild merchant,mainly traces the gild merchant is when to appear in England,it is a local organization of England, or imported from outside. And further describes the meaning of it, a city can have only one gild merchant.The second chapter is the gild merchant’s members and institutions,mainly tells the story of the gild merchant members of the sources, whether in the cities of the merchants.craftsmen,or in the rural villagers,serfs,or the bishop and the abbot in the castle,oroutsiders,can join in the organization.The third chapter is the gild merchant’s privileges,mainly describes the merchant gild as a municipal trade agency,has the monopoly of the city and the right of first bid,and shall have the right to exempt from tolls; At the same time, the merchant gild should also follow the internal share system and common trade system,in order to reduce internal members of the competition,equality of opportunity,ensure that the common interests of most of the members.The fourth chapter is the gild merchant’s obligations,mainly describes the merchant gild as the municipal agencies, the main obligation is to pay tax. The duty to rescue each other,of course,there are some internal members, as a member of the gild merchant in poverty,illness,or hunger,other members have a duty to help him through difficulties.The fifth chapter is the gild merchant’s development in the middle ages England cities, mainly describes the merchant gild’s later development, and it’s influence as a privileged trade agency,in the middle ages England cities play an important role of political and economic,it not only promoted the development of the early city economy,also inspired people’s independent consciousness,encourage citizens to unite and strive for to win the autonomy of the city.Epilogue part is mainly to evaluate the historical significance of the existence of the gild merchant and it is the product of The Times,in the middle ages England at the beginning of the city has just set up,it’s a reasonable certainty.