Joseph Marie Jacquard Patents the Jacquard Machine

Using a system of punched cards to reflect a patterned design, Jacquard’s loom allows for the manufacture of elaborate, patterned textiles at a faster pace in mills, without the inputs or efforts of a master weaver. The mass-production of patterned cloth causes its cost to fall sharply. By the 1850s, jacquard looms are aiding the manufacture of Kashmir shawls in Europe at a faster and larger scale than Indian artisans working with traditional means. The mass availability of British-manufactured textiles at lower costs, and the consequent devaluing of Indian artisanal traditions will make textiles a crucial symbol of resistance in the Indian Independence movement.