Localization of the Cotton Industry in Lancashire, England
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4043697 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Rollin S Atwood (corresponding author) |
| Year | 1928 |
| Volume | 4 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 187 |
| Publication date | 1928-04-01 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Economic Geography (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0013-0095 • E-ISSN: 1944-8287 |
| Publisher | JSTOR (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.2307/140277 |
| OpenAlex | W2038591183 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
By the early fourteenth century, Manchester had been mentioned several times as the seat of a growing woolen industry, but in the middle of the century it experienced a great change due to the arrival in England of many Flemish and Dutch workers at the invitation of King Edward III. This is the first time that the textile industry, as such, had been officially recognized. Fuller, in his Church History, says: Hitherto the English were ignorant of that art, as knowing no more what to do with their wool than the sheep that wear it. soon after followed a great alteration. For Edward III sent emissaries among the Dutch weavers. But oh, how happy, said the emissaries of Edward, they be, if they would but come over to England bringing their mystery with them, which would provide them welcome in all places. Here they should feed on fat beef and mutton till nothing but their fullness should stint their stomach. . ..The king, having gotten his treasure of foreigners, thought not fit to continue them all in one place, but bestowed them through all parts of the land, that clothing might thereby be better dispersed. 1 We notice that the distribution of the industry in this early period was affected primarily by the wishes of King Edward III. However, important social and economic conditions brought about the gradual concentration of the Dutch and Flemish textile workers in Lancashire. The first was the advantage derived from the presence of a comparatively large linen and wool industry, for even at that early date a considerable organization existed for the purchase of raw material and the marketing of the finished products. A second was the character of Manchester as a market town, governed by constables, and free from the strict regulations of the larger towns; therefore, it could offer foreign workmen the same rights enjoyed by freemen. Manchester had no stringent laws controlling apprenticeship, or the use of capital and credit, such as retarded development at this time in the south of England. A third incentive to settle in Manchester was given by the Wardens and Fellows of Manchester College. They gave workmen the right to cut from the college ground firewood and timber to construct their looms, for the total sum of four pence yearly. Last but not least, Manchester was isolated from southern England and lay outside the area ruled by the Merchant Adventurers, who were practicing a crushing sabotage at that time
Agricultural economics · Business · Economic geography · Economics · Historical Economic and Social Studies
| Citations per year | 0.23 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2013 - 2024 (12) |
| Highly cited | No |