This #MysteryPlayMonday we’re excited to talk about our partnership with the Gild of Freemen of the City of York, a local civic organisation build on medieval foundations with more than three decades of involvement with the modern Mystery Plays.

As we’ve previously mentioned, the play “The Fall of the Angels”, which this year has been rename “The War in Heaven”, was owned, in the Middle Ages, by the Tanners’ Guild. This organisation, made up of those men who worked in the creation of leather, has ceased to exist in the city (as indeed has the industry itself), and so we “represent” them only in the theatrical and historical sense.

Modern York does, however, continue to have guilds- largely industry-based fraternal organisations today- as do several other cities around the UK. In York, there are seven: the Merchant Taylors, the Merchant Adventurers, the Guild of Building, the Cordwainers, the Butcher, the Scriveners, and the Gild of the Freemen of the City of York. This last is unique among them, in that it is not based on a particular industry in which its members work; rather, its origins lie in the citizens who occupied a unique niche in the social and governmental hierarchy of England. 

Medieval freemen were a sort of proto-middle class, men who were not among the nobility but were not tied to land or lords as serfs, nor under indenture to a trade master. They were, literally, free: to move around, to establish a career, to farm land that they might rent or own, but to which they were not permanently tied. In order to join any guild, or to trade within the city, one first had to have the status of freeman. And those who had such status also had privileges like being allowed to graze their animals on the common land, which in York we know as the Strays. They had responsibilities, too: freemen had to pay taxes, maintain the city’s infrastructure, defend it if needed, and help manage the city and its trade. In time, freemen became the only residents eligible to vote. This menu of privilege and responsibility meant that freemen were often the officeholders of the city, and the ones in charge of its various functions, both civic and economic. 

In the Middle Ages, “freeman” was a status, but it wasn’t a group, or organisation, or guild unto itself. Their precise role changed over the centuries, but they were never a coherent, unified body. In 1953, however, the freemen of York came together and decided that their shared status would have greater meaning and usefulness to the city if they formed a formal organisation. The Gild of Freemen was thus established: a modern society built on ancient roots. 

In 1994, the Mystery Plays, having been revived on a quadrennial basis since 1951 as large, staged productions, were shifted back to their historic performance method: processional waggons performing in open air throughout the city of York. The city guilds once again became involved in the event, which had been a key part of their civic responsibility during the Middle Ages. The Gild of Freemen, however, did not “own” a play from the medieval period, as all members of all the guilds were simply “free men”. But, civic-minded as the members were, the Gild got involved anyway, pairing, as the other guilds did, with organisations and dramatic groups keen to be part of this special, very York event. In 1998 and 2006 they were responsible for  “The Temptation of Christ”, in 2002 the Gild partnered to stage “The Conspiracy Against Jesus”, and from 2010-2022 they settled into working on “The Fall of Man”, the story of Adam & Eve, with “Cain & Abel” as well in 2010. 

With the Gild’s mission being focused on the “enhancement of the City of York and the furtherance of the interest of its citizens”, they couldn’t choose a better project than supporting the Mystery Plays! Although seemingly small in scale (none of the plays are longer than half an hour, and waggons are obviously quite petite as stages) they are an enormous undertaking, and there is nothing else in the world quite like them. Hundreds of York residents, York-born and those who have adopted the city as home, take part, reflecting the rich tapestry of a city that punches far above its weight in terms of theatre and performance. Even those who don’t participate or even watch the Mystery Plays on their quadrennial outing seem to be aware, and proud, of this event. Moreover, as one had first to hold the status of freeman in medieval York before one was permitted to join a guild or trade in the city, in a sense the Freemen may feel a special connection to the plays, since they were, if not as a formal entity but as an idea, the foundation for all of the plays and those involved with them. 

We’re so pleased to be working with the Gild this year! Their history as something new built upon the shoulders of something deeply historic feels very close to our own story, and we share their deep affection for the beautiful city of York, which is certainly the home of our hearts if not always our bodies. It really does add an extra layer of connection to our production! We look forward to having members of the Gild process with us and our waggon during the performance days, and to working with them to add another proud chapter to the history of York.

If you’d like to know more about the Gild of Freemen of the City of York, please visit their website at freemenofyork.co.uk