Post on 02-Jan-2016
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution began in Great Britain in the 1780’s and took several decades to spread
to the other Western nations
Contributing factors to industrialization Increased food supply
Expansion of farmland Good weather Improved transportation New crops (potato)
Contributing factors to industrialization
Increase in population Parliament passed laws allowing people to
fence off land- enclosure movement Forced many peasants to move to cities to
work in factories
Contributing factors to industrialization Capital
Invest in factories and machines Wealthy citizens- entrepreneurs
Interested in finding business opportunities to make money
Contributing factors to industrialization Natural resources
Rivers provided water power and a way to transport raw materials
Supply of coal and iron ore Large supply of markets
Could sell products almost anywhere in the world
Contributing factors to industrialization Cotton production
Two step method Spinning cotton to thread Weaving thread on a loom
Cottage industry- done at home by individual Flying shuttle- made weaving faster
Spinners could not produce thread fast enough Spinning Jenny (James Hargreaves) - spin
cotton to thread faster Now thread was produced faster than weavers
could weave the thread Edmund Cartwright- water powered loom to
weave faster Needed workers in factories near rivers and
streams
James Watt- improved the steam engine in 1782 Fired by coal Now a steam powered factories could be placed
anywhere 1760- 2.5 million pounds of cotton was imported 1787- 22 million pounds of cotton was imported 1840- 360 million pounds of cotton was imported
Coal and Iron industry
Steam engine depended on coal Production of coal increase
Aided transformation of the iron industry 1780’s better production of iron Use of puddling- burned away impurities in crud
iron to produce a higher quality 1740- 17,000 tons 1780- 70,000 tons 1852- 3 million tons
Railroads
1804- first steam powered locomotive Could carry 10 tons of ore and 70 people at 5mph
1830 the rocket first public railway line 16mph Liverpool to Manchester
20 years later could go 50mph Created jobs Lowered the price of goods Larger markets
New factories
Created a new work environment Factory owners wanted work done around the
clock Workers worked in shifts to make this possible
Workers were fined if they were late and dismissed for misconduct
Child workers were beaten
Industrialization spread throughout Europe
Belgium, France, and Germany Governments spent money on industrialization Railroads were built across Europe
United states In 1800 6 of 7 workers were farmers By 1860 population grew from 5 million to 30
million 9 cities had population above 100,000
Only 50% of workers were farmers
Social Impact of Industrialization
Social life drastically changed with industrialization Between 1750 and 1850 population almost doubled.
Decline in death rates, wars, and disease (small pox and plague)
Increase in food supply Famine almost disappeared
Cities population grew Left farm land to work in the city Living conditions in the cities were bad
Industrial Capitalism- an economic system basked on industrial production
Brought a new middle class
Before middle class were merchant, official, artisan, professionals, bankers
New middle class included people who built factories, bought and sold machines, and found markets to sell products Often greedy
“getting of money…is the main business of the life of men”
Working class
12-16 hour days, 6 days a week, ½ hour lunch
No job security No minimum wage Unhealthy working conditions
Sometimes 80-84 degrees Dirty, dusty Dangerous- cave-ins, explosions, gas fumes
Factory Act 1833- had to be 9 to work in a factory 9-13 year olds could only work 8 hour days 13-18 years could only work 12 hour days Women made 50% of work force
Paid half as much as men
During the cottage industry the whole family worked together
Now men had to bring in the most money and women did the house work
Industrialization led to socialism Society owns and controls the means of
production Robert Owen was a utopian socialist- humans
would show their natural goodness if they lived in a cooperative environment Created a town in Scotland that flourished Tried in the United States but failed