The Industrial Revolution Begins Mr. Meester World History

Vocabulary Enclosure James Watt Urbanization Proletariat

Why Britain? Enclosure in Britain Caused farmers to lose their jobs & the population to increase. (Workforce) Britain contained lots of natural resources Large amounts of both coal & iron. (Raw Materials) Britain’s wealthy middle class large amounts of capital to invest in businesses. (Money) This made Britain the perfect place to start the Industrial Revolution. (I.R.)

James Watt’s Invention Watt perfected the coal powered steam engine. The steam engine would be the main power source of the early IR. Lived in Great Britain

Textiles take off Britain had used the cottage industry system. Flying Shuttle Britain had used the cottage industry system. Textiles were an important trade good. New inventions like the flying shuttle & spinning jenny were to big to be used in the home. Investors built factories to house these large machines. Textiles 1st process to industrialize. Spinning Jenny

Transportation Problems These new factories lead to an increase in production. More goods means cheaper prices Owners needed better methods to transport goods & raw materials. They needed to be able to transport heavy loads quickly & cheaply. This lead to a Transportation Revolution

New Transportation Early in the I.R. Britain used canals. Easy to ship heavy iron & coal, & then distribute finished goods. Later railroads would take over. They were faster & cheaper to build.

Social Changes The I.R. caused rapid Urbanization. The increasing demand for workers led to a massive migration to the cities. The middle class (bourgeoisie) benefited the most from the I.R. As owners they made lots of money. The working class (proletariat) fought to survive. They lived in the city slums & endured disgusting living conditions.

Life in a Factory Factory workers faced harsh conditions, long hours & low wages. There were no safety devices & shifts commonly lasted 12-16 hours everyday. Women were exploited by owners. They were paid ½ that of a man.

Life in the Mines Demand for iron & coal increased the need for miners. Miners were paid more than factory workers. The conditions were even more dangerous. Coal dust, explosions, collapses, & brutally hard work were facts of life.

Child Labor Children were highly sought after during the I.R. They worked cheap Were given many of the most dangerous jobs. Child Labor Laws would be passed setting up rules outlaws hiring children younger than 8 years old limiting them to 12 hour workdays.

Results of Industrialization Early on industrialization was both good & bad. Prices dropped because production went up, and the middle class made lots of money. The working class was exploited for low wages in awful conditions. Over time reformers & labor unions would bring about change.