Home Page | Knitting Together | Timeline | Origins of the industry 1589-1750

Origins of the industry 1589-1750

Browse the collection for Origins of the industry 1589-1750

William Lee

Fashionable stockings
Hand knitting in England expanded as an industry in Tudor times (1485-1603). Knitted caps and stockings were highly fashionable. From the time of Henry VIII, fine knitted silk stockings imported from Spain were part of court fashion. Previously, a piece of cloth was cut to the shape of a leg and the edges sewn together to create a stocking.

Leicester Longwool Sheep

The Midlands woollen industry
The English woollen industry predates the arrival of the Romans. The Norman invasion in the eleventh century encouraged the industry to expand, and fleeces and cloth were exported across Europe. In many areas, land previously used to grow corn was turned over to provide grazing for sheep. By the time of James I, demand for wool in England was so high that an export ban was introduced. This aimed to provide a plentiful supply of fleeces for manufacturers in the various divisions of the textile industry.

William Lee Stocking Frame

The foundation of the knitting industry
During the early seventeenth century, knitting frames remained an expensive investment and few were built. Even in the 1660s, frames could cost as much as £20 to £30 each, more than a worker's yearly wage. The hand knitters did not have to pay such high costs and could knit as long as they had a pair of knitting needles. Demand for the output of hand knitters and framework knitters allowed both branches to expand during the two centuries after Lee's invention.

Silk Mill Arches

The origins of the Derby silk industry
Silk stockings that copied the Italian fashion leaders were highly prized from their introduction in England in Tudor times. Worsted knitting had located itself in the East Midlands by the start of the eighteenth century, but the silk industry remained in London a little longer. Imported silk from the Continent came into London where it was processed for use in weaving and knitting. Waste from the weaving process was often recycled and turned into silk yarn for knitting. This link between the two industries allowed London to compete with the East Midlands on price. The London industry also benefited from being located close to the main market for tailor-made garments.

Lee-type stocking

The development of the cotton industry in Nottingham
The use of cotton for weaving had been established in seventeenth century Lancashire. At this time cotton yarn was irregular in thickness and tended to break at thin, weak points. The yarn was unsuitable for knitting on frames and produced poor quality stockings that laddered easily. Henson reported that the first pair of cotton stockings were knitted in Nottingham in 1730.

Hawley's Hygenic Dye

Dyeing
As hosiery was a fashion industry, colours and patterning were of vital importance from its earliest years. The largest fortune in the eighteenth century industry was made by William Elliot (1707-1792) of Brewhouse Yard, Nottingham, who developed a technique to produce a superior black for men's stockings. Black hosiery was high fashion for the sober middle class for many years.

The Worshipful Company of Framework Knitters
James Lee returned to London in 1612. He brought seven framework knitters and eight frames with him and set up a small industry. Workers and their apprentices gradually created rules by which the industry and the prices charged could be controlled. The quality of knitted goods produced by framework knitters was widely recognised and by 1655, more of their stockings were sold abroad than in London.

Timeline

Copyright 2002 Knitting Together