Spitalfields Silk
Homes & Antiques|March 2024
During the 18th century, thousands of skilled Huguenot silk weavers settled in east London’s Spitalfields, kickstarting the golden age of English silk design and production, says Celia Rufey
Celia Rufey
Spitalfields Silk

Silk cloth has spelled luxury for centuries, and a golden age of weaving it in England was kickstarted in the 1680s, with the arrival of Protestant Huguenots fleeing religious persecution in France. These skilled weavers, many from Lyon and Tours, were known for advanced styles that were admired, imported, but not then practised in England. Many Huguenots settled in Spitalfields, London's silkweaving district east of the city, that expanded to cover Bethnal Green, Shoreditch, Whitechapel and Mile End. In the following years, it's estimated that 40,000 Huguenot émigrés settled in England, with two more sizeable silk centres established in Canterbury and Norwich.

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