The Guild System under the Republic (Lima, 19th Century)

Abstract

This article analyzes the republican guild system inherited from colonial times in order to understand the changes and continuities of this controversial institution in economic and labor history. Its main aim is to evaluate the extent to which the surviving guilds after the advent of the Republic, as well as the new and republican ones, constituted a hindrance or a boost to the economic-productive activities of the city of Lima in the 19th century. In particular, it is interesting to discuss the specific validity of restrictions on the freedom of industries and entrepreneurship in general, as well as the impact of guilds on the labor market and on the capacity for technological innovation.