Abstract
This article studies the role of a group of craftsmen in the development and consolidation of the woolen towns of the southern interior of Valencia during the second half of the fifteenth century. In certain towns of this area (Vall d’Albaida, Alcoia and el Comtat, and other smaller towns such as Ontinyent, Bocairent, Alcoi and specifically Cocentaina which will be the focus of this study) a small group of craftsmen were able to centralize management of textile activities through direct participation in the wool, dye and oil market. They also controlled the different phases of processing of the cloth (shearing, fulling, and dyeing) as well as the sale of the textiles without the intervention of merchant capital from outside of the sector. With the example of Bernat Marti, woolen carder from Cocentaina, and using a prosopographical methodology, it is possible to study their coordinated action and management of local industrial capital and its progressive shift towards the field of commerce.
Highlights
This article studies the role of a group of craftsmen
specifically Cocentaina which will be the focus of this study
They also controlled the different phases of processing of the cloth
Summary
En febrero de 1491, Nicolana, viuda residente en una pequeña ciudad del interior valenciano, inició una inteligente estrategia de inversión: comenzó a prestar dinero a sus vecinos a través del crédito censal. Su trayectoria es también interesante, pues lo encontramos numerosas veces vendiendo paños −tintados y sin tintar− aceite, ganado, y prestando dinero en el mercado local y comarcal; muestra además ciertas estrategias de ascenso social: contrae matrimonio con Montserrat, hija del notario contestano Miquel Pérez; nombra procurador a su tío, el draper vecino de Valencia antes comentado; y nace y se gesta con una clara vocación pañera (¿posible asociación productiva?, ¿posible complementariedad empresarial?), y se nos muestra así como una calculada estrategia por parte de las dos familias para el fomento del negocio textil. La posterior trayectoria de sus negocios confirmará tal objetivo[21]
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