Wool manufactures in Béjar during the Early Modern Period. The shaping of an industrial landscape: its character and pro-tection

Abstract

While in the Castilian Meseta, several textile manufacturing hubs enjoyed their heyday during the Early Modern Period, only the town of Béjar still retains some textile activity. The reasons for the survival of this local industry must be sought in the circumstances that surrounded manufacturing in the ducal town in former days.The present paper probes into the early stages and the later expansion of Béjar-based wool manufacturing and analyses the main factors that contributed to its location in this town.Centuries of textile activity have left a valuable cultural heritage as well as an indelible mark in Béjar by shaping a unique industrial landscape whose main elements are characterised in this paper. Last but not least, the current state of this heritage is likewise described before examining several conservation proposals.

Keywords

• paisaje industrial. manufactura textil. béjar. edad moderna. patrimonio industrial