...the British Empire between 1750 and 1850?” Between 1750 and 1850 Britain had revolutionised internally as a dominant industrial figure in Europe. However, although it would be argued that most advances were constitutional, Britain’s foreign relations also enhanced to a certain extent during this period. In the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, Britain had established itself as the first country to industrialise therefore instantly granting it a dominant position in the world economy, this would continue for a further century. During this time it was also advantaged in acquiring the largest empire seen of its time. This therefore suggests that the two developments had a relationship, as without one the other would have been inevitable. The Industrial Revolution and the British Empire are dependent on each other. There would not be an Empire without the Industrial Revolution and vice versa. Although the revolution that occurred was not political, it did however have a number of implications that followed, advantages included its geographical location and nature, expanding empire and worldwide trade network, growing transportation network, rich supply of natural resources, available labour supply and relatively high labour productivity, and expertise in developing technology. Together, these necessary factors set up a suitable foundation on which an industrial revolution could occur. This revolution was an economic one in which there was a transformation from the...
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...Joel Mokyr, Entrepreneurship and the Industrial Revolution in Britain, in: David S. Landes, Joel Mokyr, William J. Baumol, The Invention of Enterprise, Princeton, Oxford 2010, 183-210 1) Welche kulturellen Änderungen bzw. kulturellen Haltungen waren für die Entstehung und Ausbreitung von E. im England der industriellen Revolution förderlich? (184-186). Welche Rolle hatte insbesondere ‚Gentlemanship‘ (188-194) * 2) Wie lässt sich das Verhalten der E.in der industriellen Revolution in England erklären? Was waren wichtige (positive und negative) Anreize für unternehmerische Innovation? (194-197) Welche Rolle hatten hohe Gewinne als Anreize? (S. 195) 3) Welche Typen von Persönlichkeiten (bzw.Kombinationen davon) waren erfolgreiche Innovatoren im England der Industriellen Revolution (S. 187) 4) Was war die Rolle des Staates / der öffentlichen Hand ggü E.? (185, 187, FN 26/S.205) Mark Casson & Andrew Godley, Entrepreneurship in Britain, 1830-1900, in: David S. Landes, Joel Mokyr, William J. Baumol, The Invention of Enterprise, Princeton, Oxford 2010, 211-242. 1) Was war(en) die wichtigste(n) technologischen Innovationen der Viktorianischen Periode? (S. 211) * (The Factory System - Industrial Revolution) * The Introduction of Railways * The switch from sail to steam in oceangoing shipping * Very innovative in the sectors of infrastructure, transport and communication systems * (there was NO radical innovation in the manufacturing...
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...By the second half of the nineteenth century Britain was a mature industrial society and was able to experience many of the benefits of the industrial revolution. Discuss. By the end of the nineteenth century, Britain experienced enormous industrial expansion, thereby creating an improvement in the lives of most of its people. The middle classes fare well by the opening of new opportunities in employment, residing, for the most part, in the new suburbs of the industrial cities and towns. They surrounded themselves with the clutter of possessions associated with a new consumer age. There were modest improvements in the working and living conditions of working class people, many of whom were drawn to the cities from rural areas in the hope of a better life. This essay will examine the conditions of life in late Victorian Britain in order to establish the extent of the benefits brought about by industrial transformation, insofar as they affected the lives of the different classes. In 1800, twenty five per cent of the population of England lived in the cities and towns. Within a period of eighty years this position was reversed. In 1850, the year of the Great Exhibition, which was a celebration of British industrial achievement, the ‘number of urban dwellers exceeded those who dwelt in the countryside’. The cities of Birmingham and Manchester more than doubled their populations between 1801 and 1831. The industrial revolution was synonymous with the cotton industry in...
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...Discuss the claim that the middle classes gained most from the Industrial Revolution in Europe. Refer to at least two o f the following countries: Britain, France or Germany. The Industrial Revolution had a major impact on the structure of society in Europe. As in all major changes, there were winners and losers. This essay will examine the effect of the Industrial Revolution on the position of the middle class. The difference in income was significant even within what was considered middle-class as the concept of middle class was so vast. The middle class compromised of professionals, merchants, craftsmen, overseers, factory managers, lawyers, doctors and alike in the nineteenth century. The Industrial Revolution brought with it a general rise in living conditions throughout Europe. This was possibly one of the greatest of the benefits the middle classes enjoyed from the Industrial Revolution. Demand rose and new industries emerged stimulating the economy, resulting in more jobs being available and more wealth in general. The economical boost of the Industrial Revolution mainly benefitted the middle classes. The middle class generally amassed more wealth and attained more buying power; this had a straight effect on their livelihood and can be seen especially in housing. For example in London many middle-class families could afford to buy their own terraced home with two or three bedrooms. The housing enjoyed by the middle class was luxurious as opposed to the one...
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...prerequisites allowed the industrial revolution to begin in Britain? Somewhere between 1740 and 1780, Britain experienced a series of rapid economic and social changes. This was to be the beginning of the Industrial revolution. Whilst this revolution would spread to other major countries around the world, it is undeniable that it all started off in Britain. There are many reasons for this, and it is important to note that there was nothing particularly unique about Britain in comparison with the rest of Europe, it was simply a combination of factors came together at the right time for Britain and allowed it to gain a head start in its own industrial revolution. One of the reasons why Britain’s industrial revolution began first actually has a large element of luck involved. Britain was very fortunate in that it had a large amount of natural resources, especially coal, that could be mined. This meant that Britain did not have to rely on foreign trade in order to manufacture their own goods, they could simply mine it for themselves. Iron was another natural resource that Britain was lucky to have in abundance. Both coal and iron would prove to be crucial in the construction of railways, which were vital for transporting resources, goods and people around the country at a much faster rate than had previously been possible. Coal and iron would also be required to build and, subsequently, fuel the factory machines that would manufacture all of Britain’s industrial goods. So we can see...
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...Industrial Revolution: The Future of Western Europe The Industrial Revolution was the moment in history when Europe began to change from a hands-on age to more of a mechanical age. The Industrial Revolution began mainly in Western Europe and soon spread across the world, including North America. Britain accelerated its manufacturing, business, and even daily life, being the center head of the Industrial Revolution. Britain first led the way back in the 18th century, and by 1850, its entire society was changed forever, both economically and socially. Britain’s decisions in the previous decades shaped the prime location for an economic boom, mainly by not wasting its time with an absolutist rule nor with too many disputes with other European countries. Through technological and scientific means, Britain propelled itself economically forward, letting the rest of Europe play catch up. By controlling the seas, it shielded itself from disaster in markets across waters. The living and working standards transformed with longer life spans and whole family units working in industries. Although these families faced horrid conditions in these factories, they were still able to make money in the long run through labor unions and new legislation. Overall, Britain became the leading industrial power in Europe, if not the world, as a result of a new prominent social class, a strong capitalist ideal, life altering inventions, revamped living and working conditions, and revolutionary maritime...
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...Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was an unprecedented period in European history that occured in 18th and 19th century. It represents one of the most significant eras of the modern European history, during which major changes took place in everyday lives of millions across the continent and further beyond. These major changes included improvements in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation and technology, withboth, positive and negative consequences. The main focus of the essay will be the Industrial Revolution in Great Britain (after 1707), an empire (U.K.) that included colonies from all over the world. Practiacally, the Great Britain is the place where it all began. The question is why does the Industrial Revolution occurs in the Great Britain? There are many reasons. The most significant one is that the Britain had an empire which included colonies from Canada to Austalia. It controlled many trade channels and imposed itself as the leading naval superpower. The preconditions were fulfilled and the Britain practically controlled half of the world before, for example, Germany was even unified. The colonies provided many raw materials, with many of them being so rare, that they could be found only in those particular parts of the world. The industrialization, however, had not took place in Britain's colonies. This was not a coincidence, on the contrary. By this, the Great Britain made an access to new markets. Indeed, it does sound absurd that the...
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...The Industrial Revolution The term Industrial Revolution refers to the social and economic changes that led to the transition from an agricultural and commercial society to a modern industrial one. This revolution relied on machinery instead of basic tools. This happened in Great Britain in the middle of the 18th century until the middle of the 19th century. The Industrial Revolution spread to other parts of Europe as well as other parts of the world. The period of explorations from the 14th to the 16th centuries helped in laying the foundations for the Industrial Revolution. Because of the explorations and subsequently colonialism, gold and silver from the New World flooded Europe. Prices of commodities rose, industries bloomed and a money-based economy fully developed. The expansion of trade and the economy based on money led to the creation of financial and lending institutions. Thus, the necessary factors for the emergence of an Industrial Revolution had already been established in the 15thcentury. The term Industrial revolution does not imply that changes happened only in the industry. In fact, the rise in the number of factories, the economic changes and the new inventions in science all had a great impact in the lives of the people in Europe and even the whole world. THE RISE OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION IN GREAT BRITAIN From the 18th to the 19th centuries, Great Britain was the leading force in industry. It had large deposits of coal and iron. Because...
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...Why Did The Industrial Revolution Happen First in Britain? The industrial Revolution began in Great Britain almost 250 years ago, in the 1760s. Within a half century it started to spread, first to northwestern Europe and the newly formed United States. The Industrial Revolution consisted of the application of new sources of power to the production process, achieved with transmission equipment necessary to apply this power to manufacturing which involved an increased scale of human organization that facilitated specialization and coordination at pre-industrial levels groupings rarely contemplated. The key invention in Europe’s industrial revolution was the steam engine, which harnessed the energy potential of coal. Later, the industrial revolution also used electric and internal combustion motors and petroleum as well as coal. This revolution, progressively introduced steam or other power to the production process and steadily increased the proportion of the process accomplished by equipment without direct human guidance. The organizational facet of the industrial revolution was initially symbolized by the factory, but the organizational principles spread beyond the factory itself. The two central features of industrialization were the revolution in technology and organization of production, which yielded one clear result of a great increase in the total of goods and individual worker’s output. The revolutionary quality of industrialization is particularly obvious in the world...
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...The industrial revolution began in the 1700 till the late 1800’s it was an era that began in Britain and slowly spread across the globe. It was a transition to new manufacturing processes which changed Britain from a land of small towns, villages and farms to large towns and factories. The industrial revolution marked a turning point in Britain’s history. Every aspect of daily life was affected in some way. The standard of living increased greatly as did the life expectancy of humans. It was a time where new technologies were invented. During the industrial revolution new medical inventions helped increase the standards of healthcare and with the invention of the vaccination many diseases were prevented. Before the industrial revolution the only means of transport were horses and they provided the only motive transport on land and sails for the sea. The industrial revolution brought railways and canals to Britain. People could move from one place to another faster and in a cheaper price. Due to these new inventions raw materials were transported quicker and easily to factories which helped in the growth of the industry. Population increased rapidly during the industrial revolution due to the improved living conditions. The increase was due to the better health care, as a result less infant mortality. The increase in Britain’s population allowed more people to work which lead to Britain becoming richer and richer and eventually the most powerful country in the world...
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...The Agricultural Revolution of Europe started in the 1700’s; it was widely spread throughout Europe and America by the 1800’s. The results of the revolution, was the farming processes became more efficient, and productive due to several inventions, and discoveries. The Agricultural processes became faster, and less manpower is required in the field, as a result the population from the countryside had no means of supporting themselves. They were forced to move into the urban cities in search of factory jobs. The Industrial Revolution began in Great Britain during the 1700s. The term Industrial Revolution refers both to the changes that occurred and to the period itself. During the 1700s and early 1800s, great changes took place in the lives and labor of people in several parts of the world. These changes resulted from the development of industrialization and it started spreading to other parts of Europe and to North America in the early 1800s. By the mid-1800s, industrialization had become widespread in Western Europe and the northeastern United States. America Transformed In 1781 Peace Commission occurred and what it meant was Congress appoints a Peace Commission comprised of Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Jay, and Henry Laurens. The commission supplements John Adams as the sole negotiator with the British. Recognition of American Independence was on November 30, 1782, the Paris draft agreement which after approval led to the peace between Britain and the newly...
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...To understand how industrialization changed the world, starting in Britain, it is vital to look at how the world operated pre-industrialization. Living conditions were awful all around the world prior to the 1800’s. The world did not yet have adequate technology to defend itself against natural disasters, famines, and diseases. In addition, some places were not able to sustain enough resources for the population as it increased. Although these problems existed around the world, “before 1800 income per person —the food, clothing, heat, light, and housing available per head—varied across societies,” creating a gap before industries came to widen it. Prior to the Industrial Revolution, Britain did not have as much income as China did. Britain’s land made it difficult to farm, exposing the difficulties of what an ever growing population did to society. In his book, The Great Divergence: China, Europe, and the Making of the Modern World Economy, Kenneth Pomeranz demonstrates how Britain’s, like the rest of Europe’s, “disadvantages were concentrated in areas of agriculture, land management, and the inefficient use of certain...
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...The Industrial Revolution was a worldwide transition which led to quick industrialisation starting off in Britain in the late 1700s and early 1800s, before expanding to other areas such as Asia and the Americas. This essay aims to explore how the Industrial Revolution affected the textile industry in India and Iran as a result of the amalgamation of the webs into a single cosmopolitan web, where communication, new inventions and technology were easily shared within different aspects of the world. During the course of this essay, the focus will be on the emergence of the Industrial Revolution and the discovery of fossil fuels as a cheap energy source, and how this affected the British position in the textile industry. Furthermore, factors affecting...
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...BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR HISTORICAL INTERPRETATIONS OF THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION IN BRITAIN Gerard M Koot History Department University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Allen, Robert C., The British Industrial Revolution in a Global Perspective, New York: Cambridge University Press, 2009. Pp. viii, 331. Allen’s book is an excellent example of the persuasiveness of the new economic history. It is solidly rooted in statistical data and uses sophisticated methods of economic analysis but its analysis is presented in plain English. He argues that the first industrial revolution occurred in northwestern Europe because its high wages during the early modern period encouraged technological innovation. Although high wages were initially a consequence of the demographic disaster of the Black Death, they were reinforced during the early modern period by the economic success of the region around the North Sea, first, in European trade and manufacturing, especially in wresting the textile industry from the Italians, and then in world trade. According to Allen, the first industrial revolution took place in Britain instead of the Low Countries primarily because of Britain’s abundant and cheap coal resources, combined with the central government’s ability to use mercantilist policies and naval power to reap the greatest benefits from an expanding European and world trade. Once it had taken the lead from the Dutch, and defeated the French, Britain used its comparative advantage to consolidate its...
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...The Industrial Revolution can be considered as one of the most significant watersheds in our human history. It was a result of the economic development and expansion that happened in the sixteenth century yet achieve a global presence in less than 250 years. It is axiomatic to say that the Industrial Revolution started independently in one place, to be more specific, it began in Britain with the invention of steam engine, new industrial landscapes in which iron and textiles which are the characteristics products of this revolution. The very name of Industrial Revolution also clearly depicted its relatively tardy impact on Europe. There will be two important questions to be explained in this paper which are the revolutionary changes resulted...
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