What Was the Industrial Revolution?
The Industrial Revolution (c. 1760-1840) was the transition from hand production to machine manufacturing. It began in Britain and transformed human civilization.
Why Britain First?
- Coal and iron deposits
- Navigable rivers and harbors
- Colonial raw materials (cotton)
- Stable government
- Property rights protected
- Social mobility for entrepreneurs
- Scientific culture
- Agricultural Revolution freed labor for factories
- Enclosure movement pushed peasants to cities
Key Developments
- Spinning Jenny, Water Frame, Power Loom
- Cotton production exploded
- First factories concentrated workers and machines
- James Watt's improved steam engine (1769)
- Powered factories anywhere, not just near water
- Enabled locomotives and steamships
- Coke-smelting replaced charcoal
- Bessemer process (1850s) enabled cheap steel
- Railroads, bridges, buildings transformed
- Canals connected industrial centers
- Railroads (from 1825) revolutionized speed and capacity
- Steamships dominated oceanic trade
Factory System
Before: Production in homes and small workshops (cottage industry).
- Division of labor
- Machine-paced work
- Strict schedules
- Wage labor
Workers lost autonomy but gained (eventually) higher living standards.
Spread
- Belgium and France (1820s-1840s)
- Germany and United States (1840s-1870s)
- Japan (1870s-1900s)
- Rest of world (ongoing)
The gap between industrialized and non-industrialized nations grew enormous.
Related Reading
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