Industrial history
"Saxon Manchester"
As early as 1859, Berthold Sigismund described Chemnitz as "the Saxon Manchester":
"... In Chemnitz as well as in the surrounding area, the factory buildings predominate, of which only some of the most recent reveal the endeavour to consider beauty as well as practicality."
The comparison with the English industrial metropolis was suggested by the large number of chimneys in the factories and foundries, the associated smoke and pollution and the miserable social conditions.
However, the term "Saxon Manchester" also reflects the pride in the achievements of local industry, especially mechanical engineering, which was increasingly able to break the dominance of its English competitors. It was precisely in the 1960s that the machine and locomotive builder Richard Hartmann and the machine tool builder Johann Zimmermann achieved their breakthrough on the international stage - at world exhibitions, they received multiple prize medals for their machines, which were in no way inferior to their British counterparts.
Textile industry
Textile production in the 18th century
Cotton weaving and calico printing were the pillars of Chemnitz's economy in the 18th century.
The 5000 inhabitants lived primarily from the production of bark and canvas. The steady increase in the number of people employed in weaving is proof of this:
- 1712: 185 masters and 146 journeymen
- 1720: 254 masters
- 1726: 319 masters including widows, and 345 journeymen
- 1730: 400 masters and 400 journeymen
The increase in the number of employees in the weaving mill was accompanied by an increase in production volume. While 18,957 pieces of fabric were produced in 1699, by 1731 the figure had risen to 41,218 pieces, some of which came from the town's neighbourhood.
In addition, 31,729 bales of fabric were imported in the same year, some of which were stamped in the city, so that in 1731, 72,947 pieces of fabric of various kinds came onto the market from Chemnitz. The barchent used for underwear and lining fabrics, a fabric napped on one side on the reverse and consisting mainly of cotton, had been produced in double width in Chemnitz since 1675.
This double barchent, called "Vierziger", was 40 cubits (about 22.5 metres) long. Depending on the quality requirements, bleached linen yarn and raw Smyrna cotton or flax yarn and cotton or, for the cheapest goods, only cotton were used. Kanevas, a fine and smooth fabric, was woven from flax, hemp or cotton yarn depending on the intended use.
Kanevas had also been produced in Chemnitz since 1675, initially in a length of 24 cubits (about 14.1 metres), later in 22 1/2 cubits. The width was a three-quarter cubit (about 0.4 metres). The goods were inspected according to strict standards. Hosiery knitting also developed into an important branch of industry in Chemnitz and the surrounding area.
Calico printing became particularly important. In 1770, the bleacher and colourist Georg Schlüssel introduced calico printing, which was dependent on closed establishments, as a precursor to factory production. This was followed in 1771 by the calico printing works Pflugbeil and Co., coupled with a publishing house for woven goods, which employed around 1,200 people around 20 years later and undertook its first experiments with the use of machines in 1799.
By the way ...
The bleaching privilege issued in 1357 was significant for the development of textile production in Chemnitz, as a result of which the state bleaching plant was established on the banks of the Chemnitz river.
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