Golden Age.... Leiden Cloth n the 14th and 15th century Leiden was famous for its cloth, made of English wool. Towards the end of the 15th century demand for this thick woollen fabric declined. Also, the English began to process their own wool, so less wool was exported to Leiden. After the surrender of Antwerp in 1584 a huge stream of refugees came north. Textile craftsmen among them imported know-how about the production of different woolleen fabrics, like "saai", a more supple and cheaper fabric than cloth. A new industry was established. The different stages of the production process were each given their own hall. For example, in 1590 the production of "saai" was established in the St. Jacob's Hospital, where nowadays the Lodewijk Church is housed.The most striking and rich building which resulted from the cloth industry is the Lakenhal (Cloth Hall), which now houses the municipal museum. Leiden grew from app. 10.000 inhabitants in 1574 (the year the siege was lifted) to 45.000 in 1622. This was mainly due to the invasion of refugees from the south. | back to stories of... Golden Age |