The New Order
The predicament of the handloom weavers, experiencing
the miseries of change, became a national concern. As traditional
sources of obtaining credit disappeared and the routes to becoming
a clothier steadily faded away opportunities for social advancement
decayed.
 Woollen
workers believed their jobs were safeguarded by statutes dating
from Tudor times and demanded that their livelihoods were entitled
to protection by enforcement of the law. Factory masters argued
that the old laws were archaic and an obstacle to the development
of the industry.
Parliament appointed a Select Committee in
1803 and again in 1806 (see report image opposite, click for
details) to investigate the issues. In 1809 the government repealed
all existing legislation, the woollen trade was thrown open to
the forces of the free market, the new order, the factory age
had arrived.
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