Legislación gremial y prácticas sociales: los artesanos de Pasto (1796 -1850)

Authors interested in the late 18th century Bourbon reforms have paid quite a lot of attention to both the Enlightenment ideal and to the economic and administrative measures implemented by the Spanish empire in the context of the so-called "defensive modernization". However, it is also true that they often fail to mention the legislation regarding guilds and the mark it has left on the life of craftsmen. The present article focuses not only on said legislation but on its continuity and the influence it had on guilds during the early 19th century as well, in an attempt to evercome the limitations of the viewpoint from which independence is seen as a dividing line after which the colonial period does not seem to have any influence on republican life. Furthermore, although in this same direction, the social practices (civil and religious festivities) maintained by the craftsmen of Pasto during this period are described and contrasted.