Weavers, Iron Smelters
and Factory Owners
Answers
Explanation:
his chapter tells the story of the crafts and industries of India during British rule by focusing on two industries, namely, textiles and iron and steel. Both these industries were crucial for the industrial revolution in the modern world. Mechanised production of cotton textiles made Britain the foremost industrial nation in the nineteenth century. And when its iron and steel industry started growing from the 1850s, Britain came to be known as the “workshop of the world”. The industrialisation of Britain had a close connection with the conquest and colonisation of India. The concepts mentioned in this chapter are all covered in our
Indian Textiles and the World Market
Around 1750, India was the world’s largest producer of cotton textiles renowned both for their fine quality and exquisite craftsmanship. They were traded in Southeast Asia (Java, Sumatra and Penang) and West and Central Asia. European trading companies bought Indian textiles and sold them in Europe.
Words tell us histories
European traders first encountered fine cotton cloth from India carried by Arab merchants in Mosul present-day Iraq. The Portuguese came to India in search of spices and the cotton textiles they took back to Europe, called “calico” (derived from Calicut). There were many other words which pointed to the popularity of Indian textiles in Western markets.
Different varieties of cloth were named differently such as printed cotton cloths were called chintz, cossaes (or khassa) and bandanna. Chintz is derived from the Hindi word chhint, a cloth with small and colourful flowery designs. A craze started for Indian cotton textiles in England and Europe mainly for their exquisite floral designs, fine texture and relative cheapness.
Bandanna, derived from the word “bandhna” refers to any brightly coloured and printed scarf for the neck or head produced through a method of tying and dying.
Indian textiles in European markets
Indian textiles became widely popular by the early eighteenth century, which worried wool and silk makers in England. They began protesting against the import of Indian cotton textiles. In 1720, the British government enacted legislation banning the use of printed cotton textiles – chintz – in England, called the Calico Act.
In England, textile industries had just begun to develop and they wanted a secure market within the country by preventing the entry of Indian textiles. The Calico printing industry was set up under government protection. Indian designs were imitated and printed in England on white muslin or plain unbleached Indian cloth.
In 1764, the spinning jenny was invented by John Kaye. Richard Arkwright in 1786 invented the steam engine which revolutionised cotton textile weaving. Indian textiles dominated world trade till the end of the eighteenth century. European trading companies purchased cotton and silk textiles in India by importing silver.
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Who were the weavers?
Weavers belonged to communities that specialised in weaving and skills were passed on from one generation to the next. Some of the communities famous for weaving were the tanti weavers of Bengal, the julahas or momin weavers of north India, sale and kaikollar and devangs of south India. Spinning is the first stage of production where charkha and the takli were used. The thread was spun on the charkha and rolled on the takli. After spinning the thread was woven into cloth by the weaver. For coloured textiles, the thread was dyed by the dyer, known as rangrez. For printed cloth the weavers needed the help of specialist block printers known as chhipigars.