Mutual Aid: A Factor of Evolution by Petr Alekseevich Kropotkin

Mutual Aid: A Factor of Evolution

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ments, represents the same authority and interests; food
supplies, labour and commerce, are organized on closely similar
lines; inner and outer struggles are fought with like ambitions;
nay, the very formulæ used in the struggles, as also in the annals,
the ordinances, and the rolls, are identical; and the architectural
monuments, whether Gothic, Roman, or Byzantine in style,
express the same aspirations and the same ideals; they are
conceived and built in the same way. Many dissemblances are
mere differences of age, and those disparities between sister
cities which are real are repeated in different parts of Europe. The
unity of the leading idea and the identity of origin make up for
differences of climate, geographical situation, wealth, language
and religion. This is why we can speak of the mediæval city
as of a well-defined phase of civilization; and while every
research insisting upon local and individual differences is most
welcome, we may still indicate the chief lines of development
which are common to all cities. ¹

There is no doubt that the protection which used to be

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The literature of the subject is immense; but there is no work yet
which treats of the mediæval city as of a whole. For the French Com-
munes, Augustin Thierry Lettres and Considérations sur l'histoire de France
still remain classical, and Luchaire Communes françaises is an excellent
addition on the same lines. For the cities of Italy, the great work of
Sismondi ( Histoire des républiques italiennes du moyen âge, Paris, 1826, 16
vols.), Leo and Botta History of Italy, Ferrari Révolutionsd'Italie,
and Hegel Geschichte der Städteverfassung in Italien, are the chief sources
of general information. For Germany we have Maurer Städteverfassung,
Barthold's Geschichte der deutschen Städte, and, of recent works, Hegel
Städte und Gilden der germanischen Völker (2 vols. Leipzig, 1891), and
Dr. Otto Kallsen Die deutschen Städte im Mittelalter (2 vols. Halle, 1891),
as also Janssen Geschichte des deutschen Volkes (5 vols. 1886), which,
let us hope, will soon be translated into English (French translation in 1892).
For Belgium, A. Wauters, Les Libertés communales ( Bruxelles, 1869-78,
3 vols.). For Russia, Byelaeff's, Kostomaroff's and Sergievich's works.
And finally, for England, we possess one of the best works on cities of a
wider region in Mrs. J. R. Green Town Life in the Fifteenth Century (2 vols.
London, 1894). We have, moreover, a wealth of well-known local histories,
and several excellent works of general or economical history which I have
so often mentioned in this and the preceding chapter. The richness of
literature consists, however, chiefly in separate, sometimes admirable,
researches into the history of separate cities, especially Italian and German;
the guilds; the land question; the economical principles of the time;
the economical importance of guilds and crafts; the leagues between cities
(the Hansa); and communal art. An incredible wealth of information
is contained in works of this second category, of which only some of the
more important are named in these pages.

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Publication Information: Book Title: Mutual Aid: A Factor of Evolution. Contributors: Petr Alekseevich Kropotkin - author. Publisher: New York University Press. Place of Publication: New York. Publication Year: 1921. Page Number: 143.

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