Wednesday 13th March 2018
The Edinburgh ‘Incorporation of Mary’s Chapel’ was a composite body which sought to control the town’s building trades from its foundation in 1475 until the abolition of ‘exclusive privileges of work’ in 1846. Intriguingly, this Incorporation chose to refer to themselves in their minute books as ‘the House’, laying claim to their place as one of the building blocks of a godly society, and emphasising their desire for unity amongst their brethren. While this tells us much about the master craftsmen, it does not give a full picture of the wider building industry. Building sites relied on more than just the ‘brethren’ of the Incorporation, so therefore we must look beyond ‘the House’ to the households to get a clearer picture of the craft economy. By using the concepts of ‘family’ and ‘household’ to explore the building trades we can learn a great deal about the wider organization of work in an early modern European capital. While the masters were indeed important, there were many other men – and women – who contributed both skill and labour to the building of what would become a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Lectures are held at 7pm at the
Augustine United Church,
41 George IV Bridge,
Edinburgh, EH1 1EL
There is access for the disabled and an induction loop at the hall.
View the location of the Augustine United Church on a map.
Lectures are free to members (please show Membership Card at the door) and open to non-members paying a small fee (currently £5.00).