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"Jericho Locks is home to its Guild of Gondoliers: the canal-men and women who live and work the necessary but distasteful trade routes between the two great cities of the west."
"The canals are full of barges, black-painted and sombre. Some are adorned with silver bells, others heavy with crates, bottles and stacks of padded envelopes. Each barge is staffed by two gondoliers: one to row, the other to play a reedy viol."[1]
The Guild of Gondoliers is a trade guild based in Jericho Locks.
"Barges steered by black-liveried oarsmen pass by slowly. Somewhere, a distant viol plays, before being lost upstream."[2]
The Guild of Gondoliers' members, stationed in the canal hub of Jericho Locks,[3] travel the rivers of the Hinterlands between Hell and London,[3] facilitating trade and transporting passengers.[4][5] The Gondoliers have a somber aesthetic: they wear black uniforms,[6] and their boats and oars are painted the same color.[7][8] Captains of the Guild wear silver half-masks,[9] and other senior members of the Guild wear black and silver full masks when on duty.[10] Each of the Guild's barges is staffed by two gondoliers, one an oarsperson, and the other a viol player.[11]
The Guild is a highly structured organization. At the bottom are water carriers who perform menial tasks like wayfinding.[12] Above them are pole-arms, explorers, and scouts. At the top are masters, captains, and the Gonfaloniere himself.[13] The Doleful Poleman is a captain and the Gonfaloniere's second-in-command, who handles affairs in his superior's absence.[14][15] The Guild's governing body is called the Court of Penances.[16] Not all of the Gondoliers are human: some are devils, such as the Saturnine Gondolier who is apparently "on loan."[17]
The Guild oversees the Hinterlands' waterways, demanding tolls and firing upon those who refuse.[18] They also defend their territory from enemy factions and monsters of the canals.[19] They do not often explore the waterways, however, outside of expanding their trade interests.[20] Gondoliers congregate at meeting places like the Fiddler's Scarlet, an inn which they run to house their own.[21] They also have secret dealings with certain factions,[22] such as the renegade devils of the Cedar-Woods.[23]
Origins
"A Neapolitan scholar details the exodus in the wake of political upheaval. A time of promises hastily made, of opportunity opening in deep below...."[24]
"A rose-hued text details the fierce competition with the bargemen contracted by Hell from the docks; the mysteries of their disappearance, its totality..."[24]
The founders of the Guild were workers from Naples who migrated to the Neath in the wake of the Fall of London.[25][26] These workers may have also worked on the Cumaean Canal.[27] In its early days, Hell assisted the gondoliers in navigating the Hinterlands' rivers,[28] and the two factions forged many a contract between them.[29] At some point, the Guild faced competition from dockworkers contracted by Hell, but the latter group disappeared under mysterious circumstances.[30]
The members of the Guild believe their organization dates back to before the First City, at which point its membership consisted of devils and "other things."[31] It is said this ancient Guild forged a treaty with the Neath's powers, leaving behind a monument in a language called the Tongue of Ash.[32]
Culture
"The traditions of the Gondoliers are legion: feastdays of the old world syncretise with the new. Once adopted, a tradition is held in the highest reverence. By such codes, the Gondoliers are willingly and eternally bound."[24]
"A green tome slick with amber reveals a tradition of leaving coins in the river for the Swan Bride, in the hopes of paying a debt. The debt goes unsaid, the Swan Bride entirely unaware of the custom. "Given no one will sell a thing to me, I think the execution leaves a little to be desired," she says wearily."[24]
The Guild has many rules and traditions its members would never dare violate.[33] Examples include a ban on any music in Jericho except the viol,[34] a rule that anyone who charters a gondola can choose their gondolier,[35] and a ban on conferring with the Swan Bride.[36] Not all of the Guild's traditions arose organically; the Masters of the Bazaar rely on the Guild for trade, so they manipulated its previously unaffiliated workers by setting up hierarchies and rules to ensure their compliance.[37] In fact, several of these rules were justified using fabricated tomes.[38]
The Thoroughly Experienced Gondolier, a former Guild member.
The Guild's members are typically conservative in their outlook,[39] and have strong faith in their hierarchy.[40] Since they are often away from London for months if not the rest of their lives, their knowledge of current events may be outdated.[41] Conversely, they focus heavily on the Guild itself and its history, staging parades to celebrate it.[42] The Guild views the Great Hellbound Railway with distrust, as it poses a threat to their business.[43] Members are known to call its locomotives "the devil's own chariots,"[44] and some even attempt to sabotage the railway.[45] The Gondoliers also view zailors as rivals, despite their frequent interactions.[46]
Weddings and marriage are treated especially seriously among the Guild.[47] A member of the Guild may typically only marry another member.[48] Many choose not to marry at all, but some may symbolically marry the water itself.[49] In fact, water has a very special place in the Guild's culture, described as the "mother and bride and mistress of ceremonies all."[50]
↑Jericho Locks: The Lockside, Fallen London"Jericho Locks [...] its Guild of Gondoliers: the canal-men and women who live and work the [...] trade routes between the two great cities of the west."
↑Watch a parade, Fallen London"[...] order of rank within the Guild. Waterboys and girls [...] pole-arms, explorers and scouts [...] masters, captains and the Gonfaloniere [...]"
↑Ask him about himself, Fallen London"Why is a devil working for the Guild? [...] "Might be that a person's on loan. Might [...] has his own reasons for being here. Might [...] doesn't like too many personal questions."
↑Ask about the palace, Fallen London"[...] the Guild doesn't want me to. [...] If it doesn't support trade, they're not interested in exploring further."
↑Leave the barge (The Cedar-Woods), Fallen London"[...] devils guard the woods [...] An accord with the Guild lets them make use of the river that runs through the grove, in exchange for [...] intelligence. [...] the bargewoman confers with senior members of the devils [...] [...] the [...] junior devils [...] grow bold and blaspheme against Hell."
↑The Poisoner's Library, Fallen London"[...] migrations of peoples in the mid 19th century is, [...] the 'Translation of London'. [...] the 'Neapolitan Exodus.'"
↑The Poisoner's Library, Fallen London"A Neapolitan scholar details the exodus in the wake of political upheaval. [...] opportunity opening in deep below...."
↑The Poisoner's Library, Fallen London"[...] the efficacy of Hell's assistance to the Guildsmen as they set up to service the [...] trade route between Hell and its newest neighbour."
↑The Poisoner's Library, Fallen London"[...] the [...] competition with the bargemen contracted by Hell from the docks; the mysteries of their disappearance, its totality..."
↑Support the motion of the Wandering Gondolier regarding a route to Moulin, Fallen London"The Wandering Gondolier's information comes out in the form of ditties and rhymes, [...] Failed gondola expeditions [...] before the First City. [...] the Guild of Gondoliers cannot [...] predate the First City. [...] The Wandering Gondolier shakes his head [...] "The Gondoliers were here before the city was, [...] the guild was mostly devils [...] And other things, they say.""
↑Persuade the Hell-Scarred Gondolier/Tables, Fallen London"The Hell-Scarred Gondolier [...] where the treaty was made between the ancient Guild and the powers of the Neath. [...] a monument, [...] inscribed in the Tongue of Ash, [...] words are never used [...] except in eulogy.""
↑Ask him about the prohibition on music, Fallen London"Why are viols the only permitted instrument in Jericho? [...] an old superstition. [...] blow a trumpet in Jericho, the walls will come tumbling down." [...] No music, except the viol. [...]"
↑The Poisoner's Library, Fallen London"A woman [...] wears a mask depicting a golden swan, [...] The Gonfaloniere [...] forbids contact with her; [...] barred from the Arborist's Hands [...] no bargeman will carry her."
↑Ask about the Guild of Gondoliers, Fallen London"[...] not always been a Guild here. Just boatmen [...] Kept things flowing, trade [...] they started to get uppity. [...] the Masters give 'em something to aspire to: traditions, honours, ranks. A boss. Gives 'em meaning. [...] keeps 'em quiet.""
↑Provide news from London, Fallen London"[...] disappointed to learn the outcome of the most recent election, repulsed by the latest fashionable trends, [...] pleased to learn [...] Mr Fires' efforts against the unions."
↑The Poisoner's Library, Fallen London"A [...] tome on the duties of the Gondoliers reaffirms [...] importance of [...] captain, the [...] tragedies that arise when the hierarchy goes ignored."
↑Provide news from London, Fallen London"The bargemen work [...] months away from the Fifth City. Many never go back, [...] Much of their information is out of date [...]"
↑Watch a parade, Fallen London"[...] the Guild of Gondoliers stages processions [...] to honour [...] great gondoliers. [...] banners depicting saints of Hell, former regiments of London's armies, [...] prestigious confraternities within the Guild. Barges go by in order of rank within the Guild. [...]"
↑The Poisoner's Library, Fallen London"[...] jokes are crude on all [...] but marriage. [...] the holiest state [...] cannot be broken. [...] a gondolier will not be unbound."
