Using the examples of the Royal Porcelain Manufactory and the Royal Medicial Manufactory, the study examines working and power relationships in the large centralized production units before and during industrialization in Prussia. The focus is on the division of employers into "Officiants" (state officials and salaried emplyees) and "Ouvriers" (workers). It is shown how such production units formed the basis for the formation of important groups which influence social structures up to the beginning of the 21st century. The development of the two state manufactories points to the potential for social, economic and technical innovation which marked the organizational form of the manufactory around 1800.

Author Biography

The author is a freelance historian.