The territorial dynamics of cotton enterprises in Lombardy : clusters, deals, commercial and credit networks 1815-1860

When discussing the beginning of the factory system in Europe, scholars underline that credit and financing were strongly localized, socio-economic networks had a decisive function and growth was gradual and due to family firms as well as to small production units. This process developed in England during the three-four decades preceding 1815. In Lombardy as well, the spreading of the factory system had its roots in the extensive presence of a domestic production of cotton yarns, fustians and other fabrics, located in several areas within the region (Monza, Bergamo, and above all Busto and Gallarate). The most dynamic district was the Olona valley and its surroundings, concentrating 7/10 of the production of industrial yarn, the largest part of clothes manufacturing and the leading enterprises in the cotton sector.