Trade, Trade Routes and Guilds

Class 7 Social Science · Chapter 5: The Rise of Empires · NCERT Exploring Society: India and Beyond section 5.2

Learn

Armies are costly: soldiers must be fed, armed and paid, horses and elephants cared for, roads and ships built. So economic strength, from production and trade, was key to keeping an empire and the welfare of its people. Rulers worked to build and control trade routes: more trade meant more income for producers and more tax for the state. Textiles, spices, grain, gems, handicrafts and animals moved across India and to distant lands by land and sea, from ports like Bharukachchha and Tāmralipti.

Traders soon formed guilds (śhrenīs): associations of traders, craftspeople, moneylenders or farmers, with an elected head and officers expected to be honest. Members became collaborators rather than competitors, sharing information on markets, supply and demand. Guilds could make their own rules, and a wise king did not interfere. Like the village councils, guilds show Indian society's ability to organise itself, and their spirit lived on in Indian business for centuries.

Explore: strengths of an empire.

1. Sort each strength.

Remember

• Trade and production gave empires the wealth to run armies and serve people.
• Guilds were self-governing associations whose members cooperated.

Quick check

Why were guilds remarkable?

1. members cooperated and could make their own rules
2. they were armies
3. they banned trade
4. the king ran them directly

Think about it

Do you see anything like a guild today?

Practice

Practise with fresh questions at three levels (easy, medium, hard), some answered hands-on, with hints and worked answers. Get 4 of your last 5 right to finish the topic.