Archery and Crossbow Guilds in Medieval Flanders, 1300-1500
Title Details

269 Pages

23.4 x 15.6 cm

6 b/w, 1 line illus.

Imprint: Boydell Press

Archery and Crossbow Guilds in Medieval Flanders, 1300-1500

by Laura Crombie

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  • Contents
  • Reviews
First full study devoted to the archery and crossbow guilds which grew up in Flanders in the middle ages.

The notion of "guilds" in civic society might conjure images of craft guilds, the organisations of butchers, bakers or brewers set up to regulate working practises. In the towns of medieval Flanders, however, a plethora of guildsexisted which had little or nothing to do with the organisation of labour, including chambers of rhetoric, urban jousters and archery and crossbow guilds.
This is the first full-length study of the archery and crossbow guilds, encompassing not only the great urban centres of Ghent, Bruges and Lille but also numerous smaller towns, whose participation in guild culture was nonetheless significant. It examines guild membership, structure and organisation, revealing the diversity of guild brothers - and sisters - and bringing to life the elaborate social occasions when princes and plumbers would dine together. The most spectacular of these were the elaborate regional shooting competitions, whose entrances alone included play wagons, light shows and even an elephant! It also considers their social and cultural activities, and their important role in strengthening and rebuilding regional networks. Overall, it provides a new perspective on the strength of community within Flemish towns and the values that underlay medieval urban ideology.

LAURA CROMBIE gained her PhD from the university of Glasgow.
Introduction: Archery and Crossbow Guilds in Flemish Civic Society
'For security, guard and defence' of this town: guilds' origins and military service
'Guild-brothers': guild organisation and the membership of the archery and crossbow guilds of Bruges 1437-1481
'For Drinking in recreational assemblies': the Archery and Crossbow Guilds as Social and Devotional Communities
'For the honour of the Duke and of the Town': Guilds and authority
'For friendship, community and brotherhood': Archery and crossbow competitions as part of civic honour and identity
Archery and Crossbow Guilds and their Competitions in Regional Networks and as tools of Social Peace
Conclusion: Guilds in Civic Society
Bibliography
"A well-written, original and thought-provoking book." URBAN HISTORY
"This is an important study of groups that have all too often been regarded as colorful but marginal institutions. . . . [This] rich study offers a new angle of vision on medieval Flanders and suggests areas worthy of further study." SIXTEENTH CENTURY JOURNAL
"[An] excellent study.....This is an important book on a topic that most earlier literature has dealt with only superficially or in local studies." HISTORY
"A welcome addition [and] very readable." THE RICARDIAN
"With numerous examples and an eye for relevant detail Crombie offers us the first study integrally devoted to a comparative study of these Flemish guilds. Furthermore, she uses abundant secondary literature, and, more importantly, interesting source material, of which much was never consulted before by historians. In sum, Crombie has written an important work for scholars of guild activities and urban Flanders in particular, and late medieval community life in general." RENAISSANCE QUARTERLY

Paperback

9781783273058

June 2018

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9781782046530

June 2016

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Hardcover

9781783271047

June 2016

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Title Details

269 Pages

2.34 x 1.56 cm

6 b/w, 1 line illus.

Imprint: Boydell Press