Batley is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees, in West Yorkshire, England. Batley lies south-west of Leeds, north-west of Wakefield and Dewsbury, south-east of Bradford and north-east of Huddersfield. Batley is part of the Heavy Woollen District. In 2011 the population of Batley including Hanging Heaton, Staincliffe, Carlinghow, Birstall, Birstall Smithies, Copley Hill and Howden Clough was 48,730.
Batley is recorded in the Domesday Book as 'Bateleia'. After the Norman conquest, the manor was granted to Elbert de Lacy and in 1086 was within the wapentake of Morley. It subsequently passed into the ownership of the de Batleys, and by the 12th century had passed by marriage to the Copley family. Their residence at Batley Hall was held directly from the Crown; at this time the district was part of the Duchy of Lancaster.
Howley Hall in Soothill was built during the 1580s by Sir John Savile, a member of the great Yorkshire landowners, the Savile family. The house was besieged during the English Civil War in 1643 before the Battle of Adwalton Moor but appears to have sustained no serious damage. It continued to be occupied during the 17th century but fell into disrepair. Howley Hall was destroyed in 1730. Among the numerous ruins that are still present are the cellars of its great hall.
During the late 18th century, the main occupations in the town were farming and weaving. The Industrial Revolution reached Batley in 1796 with the arrival of its first water powered mills for carding and spinning. During the next half century the population grew rapidly, from around 2,500 at the start of the 19th century to 9,308 at the 1851 census. The parish of Batley at this point included Morley, Churwell and Gildersome, with a total population of 17,359.
Before the industrial revolution, wool was made in Batley for centuries as a cottage industry.