THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND Early 1700s to late 1800s. Begins in Britain, moves across Europe and rest of the world.

AGRICULTURAL REVOLUTION Technology  more crops  more food  more healthy people  more labor Enclosure Movement – Land owners bought land and enclosed it with fences or hedges. Peasants forced to work in factories or become tenant farmers. Peasants forced out

ROOT OF INDUSTRIALIZATION Renaissance Spirit By emphasizing life in this world, Industrial Revolution encouraged Europeans to seek material comfort. Inquiry paved way for invention.

BRITAIN LEADS THE WAY Plentiful Resources – rivers, harbors, coal, iron, ore, labor Transportation and Communication – costal trade, canals, port towns, postal service, newspapers, NAVY The Industrial Revolution began in Britain Coal used to develop the steam engine. Steam engine powered by coal… Coal also used to produce iron.

BRITAIN LEADS THE WAY Colonial Superpower – Britain created an overseas market and demand for goods (mercantilism)  MORE RESOURCES!

BRITAIN LEADS THE WAY Population Growth – created a market and demand for goods, ready supply of labor. Agricultural Rev = less famine Population explosion b/c declining death rates (famine risk down), women ate better and had stronger babies and also better hygiene and medical care slowing deaths from disease

BRITAIN LEADS THE WAY Stable Government and Economy – fair taxes, capital, banks. Powerful Middle Class – invested money in new ventures including shipping, mining, railroads Navy protected trade

BRITAIN LEADS THE WAY Textile Industry – new technology increased output, factories replace putting out system.  IR started in GB’s largest industry, textiles. Putting out system was when peasant families spun raw cotton into thread and wove it into cloth at home. Skilled artisans in town then finished and dyed the cloth. NOW, inventions such as the flying shuttle, spinning jenny and waterframe (from Urban Game) revolutionized industry. First factories run by water power, then steam engines.

Transportation Turnpikes = privately built roads charging a fee to travelers Canals linked rivers or connected towns to ports Stronger bridges and harbors Greatest invention = steam locomotive Steamships

Looking Ahead Chain reaction: supply of goods increases and makes prices fall Low prices made goods more affordable and created more consumers who further fed the demand for goods