Marie Anne Simonis (17 January 1758 21 November 1831), known as ''"La Grande Madame"'', was a Belgian textile industrialist. She played an important part in the
industrialization
Industrialisation ( alternatively spelled industrialization) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial society. This involves an extensive re-organisation of an econo ...
of what is now Belgium. Together with her brother, , she introduced the mechanization of the
textile industry
The textile industry is primarily concerned with the design, production and distribution of yarn, cloth and clothing. The raw material may be natural, or synthetic using products of the chemical industry.
Industry process
Cotton manufacturi ...
in the territory by adopting the
inventions of the British textile industry, such as the
Spinning Jenny
The spinning jenny is a multi-spindle spinning frame, and was one of the key developments in the industrialization of textile manufacturing during the early Industrial Revolution. It was invented in 1764 or 1765 by James Hargreaves in Stanhill ...
.
Life
![Filature Simonis Verviers](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3c/Filature_Simonis_Verviers.jpg)
Marie Anne Simonis was born in
Verviers
Verviers (; wa, Vervî) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium.
The municipality consists of the following districts: Ensival, Heusy, Lambermont, Petit-Rechain, Stembert, and Verviers. It is also the ...
on 17 January 1758. On 11 December 1777 she married the textile industrialist
Jean-François Biolley (1755-1822), the head of the Biolley firm. She took control over her spouse's company due to his health condition.
Showing hospitality to
French refugees
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
after the outbreak of the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...
, with the French invasion of the
Prince-bishopric of Liège
The Prince-Bishopric of Liège or Principality of Liège was an Hochstift, ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire that was situated for the most part in present-day Belgium. It was an Imperial State, Imperial Estate, so the List of ...
she became a refugee herself in 1795, first moving to
Brunswick and later
Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
, utc_offset1 = +1
, timezone1_DST = Central (CEST)
, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
. Returning to Verviers when matters had quietened down, she became closely associate with
William Cockerill
William Cockerill (1759–1832) was a British inventor, entrepreneur, and industrialist. Designing and producing machines for new industrial textile manufacturing, he is best known for having established a major manufacturing firm in what is now ...
, who produced machines for her husband's factory.
Out of concern for the condition of her workers, she founded schools and hospitals for the poor. She died at Hodbomont Castle, in the municipality of
Theux
Theux (; wa, Teu) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium.
On 1 January 2006 the municipality had 11,571 inhabitants. The total area is 83.36 km², giving a population density of 139 inhabitants per km². ...
, on 21 November 1831.
[G. Dewalque, "Biolley, Marie-Anne", '']Biographie Nationale de Belgique
The ''Biographie nationale de Belgique'' ( French; "National Biography of Belgium") is a biographical dictionary of Belgium. It was published by the Royal Academy of Belgium in 44 volumes between 1866 and 1986. A continuation series, entitled the ' ...
'', vol. 2 (Brussels, 1868), 433-436.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simonis, Marie Anne
1758 births
1831 deaths
People of the Prince-Bishopric of Liège
Businesspeople of the Austrian Netherlands
19th-century businesswomen
People of the Industrial Revolution
People from Verviers
Women of the Austrian Netherlands