Aachen's cloth story: an inheritance in danger!

in Aachen there has been a flowering cloth industry for centuries, but it has experienced drastic change since the last cloth factory Becker was closed in 2003. In addition to Becker, numerous other cloth factories closed, which led to a decline in jobs in the region. The increasing import of clothing from Asia caused the strong decline in domestic textile production. In order to preserve the history of Aachen's cloth production, closing factories gave their machines to the cloth, but this now faces challenges.

As reported by the Aachener Zeitung, the Tuchwerk association currently does not receive financial support from the city of Aachen, while funds flow into other projects such as the "House of Curiosity". Rüdiger Haude emphasizes the historical importance of the Aachen cloth industry for the industrialization of Germany and criticizes city policy for its lack of commitment in the preservation of the collection in the cloth. At the same time, there is a risk that important museum pieces of the cloth are scrapped. The history of the cloth industry in Aachen dates back to the 12th century, as well as the wikipedia documented.

The cloth industry in Aachen - a review

The Aachen cloth industry was of great importance and experienced its heyday between the 18th and 19th century, when about 250 cloth factories, spinning mills and dyeing used the hydropower of the surrounding streams. Milestones such as the introduction of mechanical machines by William Cockerill led to an increase in cloth factories from 90 to 93 in 1812. Due to the changes after the takeover of Prussia in 1815 and as a result of industrialization, there were also challenges, including poor working conditions and child labor.

The last years of the cloth industry in Aachen were shaped by a slow but steady decay. After the Second World War, the industry suffered strong setbacks due to lack of raw materials and economic changes, which finally led to the closure of the last factory in 2003. Since then, many old factory buildings have been converted from the 1970s and have been listed. The development of cloth history has been documented in the wool route and in the cloth.