The Industrial Revolution Began in the late-1700s, though it didn’t take full effect until 1830-1840 (in Great Britain)… Major changes in agriculture, transportation, manufacturing and mining – contributed to cultural and socioeconomic changes in Great Britain
Changes in Manufacturing & Labor
Village Farming Prior to the IR most people lived in small country villages Land was UNFENCED Wealthy controlled land; peasant families rented land
Village Farming Small families because of high infant death rate Harsh working conditions LOW life expectancy (40 years)
Domestic System Early industries in Europe: coal, glass, iron, clothing (textiles) Mid 1700s; wool became extremely popular in Europe Increase in DEMAND
Domestic System Merchants hired farming families to produce woolens in their homes
Domestic System Depended on a network of workers Each did a segment of the work Provided income during hard times
Why Great Britain?
Why Great Britain? In Britain, wealthy landowners started the Enclosure Movement
Why Great Britain? The Enclosure Movement: Landowners fenced off lands Led to greater efficiency & more successful farming practices Forces small farmers to move into the cities
Why Great Britain? The Industrial Revolution begins in Great Britain because it had the Factors of Production
Why Great Britain? Capital $$$/wealth to invest in labor, machines & raw materials Natural Resources harbors, rivers, iron and coal
Why Great Britain? Large Labor Supply better farming techniques led to more food which led to population growth Entrepreneurs risk takers who started new businesses Also, Britain’s gov’t was supportive
Why Great Britain? The textile industry was one of the first to become mechanized (powered by machines) in Britain This created a huge demand for cotton imports from Britain
Why Great Britain? Inventions like flying shuttle, the spinning jenny, and Eli Whitney’s cotton gin helped to meet this demand
Factory System Machines were too LARGE & too COSTLY for the domestic system Required more space & more workers
Factory System Production needed to be centralized Thus, the Factory System (brings workers and machines together under the control of managers) was introduced
The Spread of the Industrial Revolution
Industrialization Spreads Industrialization spread out of England to the United States in the early to mid 1800s Spread to continental Europe; Belgium and Germany industrialize first
Industrialization Changes Life
Transportation Technology in textile industry spurred progress in other industries Improvements in transportation like the steam engine and the railroad system allowed for more efficient transportation of people and materials
Living Conditions Growth of factory system caused urbanization – city building and the movement of people to cities Most urban areas doubled in size, some even more!
Living Conditions Because cities grew rapidly, they were not well planned and living conditions were poor Not sanitary or safe Sickness was widespread
Working Conditions To increase production, factory owners tried to keep their machines running as many hours as possible The average worker spent at least 14 hours a day at their job, 6 days a week
Working Conditions Women and children were employed because they were the cheapest source of labor Factories and coal mines were very dangerous
Social Class Social mobility caused the emergence of the middle class (factory owners, merchants, bankers) Middle class lifestyle: domestic servants, men work, women stay at home
Social Class The laborers made up the working class Saw little improvement in living and working conditions between 1800-1850