These called for more varied industries, and a class of people soon
became numerous who had little or no dependence upon the feudal lord.
To protect themselves, craftsmen engaged in the same kind of work
united and formed guilds, and the various guilds, though often warring
with each other, united for the common defense. The leaders of the
guilds gradually became the heads of notable burgher families who
became influential and wealthy. As the cities became powerful the
feudal system declined, and in many regions the powerful burghers were
able to maintain their independence, not only against their old lords,
but also against the monarch who ruled many lordships.
5. Between the monarch and the lords there was a natural
antagonism--the monarch endeavoring to gain power, and the lords
endeavoring to retain their privileges. The burghers made use of these
contending forces; and by sometimes siding with the one and sometimes
with the other, they not only secured their own freedom, but laid the
foundation for the freedom of the people which is now generally
recognized, and which forms the very corner-stone of our republican
institutions.
6. But the rise of the burgher class, and the evolution of human
liberty through their work, was by no means an easy task. As the
military spirit was dominant, the calling of an artisan was considered
derogatory, and lords and soldiers looked down upon the industrious
classes as inferior beings.
Pages:
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167