MACMILLAN Work, Regulation, and Identity in Provincial France: The Bordeaux Leather Trades, 1740–1815

The 18th-century French leather industry was a strategically important manufacturing sector, one vital to both civilian and military life. This study examines the production of leather in the Bordeaux trades during the 18th and 19th centuries, illuminating the realities of a craft economy and its relation to the wider French political economy. Review “By choosing to study the leather trades in the city of Bordeaux at the end of the ancient régime, Daniel Heimmermann aims both to deepen our understanding of the provincial corporate world and to shed light on a productive sector that is still little known … . The book offers a valuable, lively, and well-documented social history … . Heimmermann set his careful study of the leather trades in a quite conventional interpretive framework … .” (Philippe Minard, Journal of Modern History, Vol. 89 (2), June, 2017) Review 'In this welcome addition to early modern studies of the craft economy, an especially important argument stands out. In Heimmermann's analysis rooted in archival evidence, he demonstrates that resilient artisans, responding to soaring demand, defied government and guild regulation, and their actions thereby display an effectively unregulated manufacturing economy long before the official abolition of the guilds in 1791. This craft economy, far from stifled by regulation, was in fact diverse, creative and responsive to the shifting conditions of revolutionary times.' - James R. Farr, Germaine Seelye Oesterle Professor of History, Purdue University, USA "With a focus on the commodity of leather, which offers an analysis of several trades, and situating his study in the bustling port city of Bordeaux, Heimmermann provides a fresh perspective on the world of work during the eighteenth century. His ground-level view is a welcome addition to the literature." - Michael P. Fitzsimmons, Professor of History, Auburn University Montgomery, USA "Heimmermann reconstructed the artisanal culture of Bordeaux's leather trades between 1740 and 1815. His deeply researched account demonstrates the vital importance of both the locality and the specifics of individual trades to the evolution of a key economic sector. " - Jeff Horn, Professor of History, Manhattan College, USA About the Author Daniel Heimmermann, Ph.D. is Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs University of Texas of the Permian Basin, USA.