The Agrarian Revolution

Why was the Agricultural Revolution so important to the industrial revolution? Agricultural change 1750-1900 In the sixteenth century, land used for crops in England was organised in what was known as the open field system large fields were divided into strips Farmers would farm strips in each of the fields  fields would be sown every year with wheat, barley and oats  each field would have a different crop each year and one year in three it would be left fallow (with nothing growing in it)  crops would be rotated (changed) every year to allow the soil to recover some of its goodness  common land on which all the villagers could graze their animals would be available near the village  meadows and woodlands were also common land; from the meadows, villagers could collect wood for fires and building and keep their pigs there. 

Open Field System

Open Field System The open field system was useful as the means of feeding a stable population, but there were disadvantages. Farmers' strips were often scattered far and wide so time was wasted travelling between them. The arrangement of the strips meant that there was little possibility for innovation (new ideas) or the use of new machines. This meant that land was often badly drained and less productive than it could have been. Seed was sown by hand, most often by the broadcasting method, where seed was simply thrown onto the ground. Another problem was that disease could spread quickly amongst the animals on the common land.

Why was there pressure on farmers to produce more? The population began to rise steadily. Urbanisation resulted in a larger number of people who did not grow their own food. From 1793-1815 Britain was at war with France, During this war Napoleon attempted to blockade Britain to prevent food coming into the country. 

Enclosure An important change was introduced called the Enclosure Act Enclosure was when a field, made up of a number of strips, was surrounded by a fence or a hedge. Enclosure meant that more land, including common land, was put under cultivation (planted with crops}. The owners of the new fields could experiment with new farming methods. However, enclosure was expensive - hedges, ditches, drains and roads cost a considerable amount to maintain. Many farmers lost their strips and could not afford to enclose the land given to them. Many were forced to sell their land to wealthy landowners and work as labourers. As a result many more large farms were created. The Napoleonic Wars (1793-1815) had a great impact on the development of agriculture: food prices rose and farmers rushed to enclose the land - during the war around 3 million acres were enclosed. As prices rose, so did landowners' incomes and they were able to spend money on new machinery and develop new techniques of farming.

“Enclosed” Farming

The innovators JethroTull (1674-1741) believed that the broadcasting method of sowing seed was wasteful, His answer was to invent the seed drill in 1701, This new machine would sow seeds by drilling into the earth and then cover the holes. Charles 'Turnip' Townshend (1725-67) encouraged a rotation of new crops, turnips, barley, wheat and clover. The turnips and clover put nutrients back into the soil. Unlike the crop rotation of the open field system there was not the waste of a fallow year. Robert Bakewell (1725-95) experimented by cross-breeding animals. He cross-bred sheep to produce the New Leicester variety because this provided more meat. He did the same with cattle and horses.

The seed drill These innovations produced bigger quantities and better quality of farm products which could feed the demographic increase. A side-effect was less employment for farm labourers. Many of them migrated to the cities where they worked in the first factories.

New mentality New mentality (page 4) history notes Many of these changes were possible thanks to the expansion of the ideas of economic liberalism. Individuals and not the State should develop the economy. To do this, people ought to be free to create their own companies, the basic production unit. The main objective for this new system was the search for profit. To be able to compete, companies needed to create cheaper and better products by introducing innovations to their production systems.