In Germany too textile manufacturing was first to be mechanised, primarily in established trading centres like Aachen (thread), Krefeld (silk) and Saxony. The first German spinning machines were built in Chemnitz in 1782 and the town subsequently became a pioneer in engineering. In Upper Silesia the unstoppable spread of spinning machines and looms gave rise to rebellions by hungry weavers and the uprisings became a symbol of the epoch in contemporary literature.