Introduction
Industrial revolution refers to rapid expansion of industries and drastic growth of production as better innovative methods is employed in production. The industrial revolution which began in the 18th century effected class structure, urban life and manufacturing globally. In the industrial revolution, many new technologies and systems appeared. The Industrial revolution is important because it was a changing point in history. It started in the 18th century in England. First it happened in Britain, then in Western Europe, North America, Russia and Japan. Machines and factories transformed agrarian societies into industrial societies. Industrial machinery transformed economic product by producing high-quality products quickly, cheaply and efficiently. Preindustrial societies’ family members used to work together on agriculture, domestic manufacturing or commerce (Bentley & Ziegler, 2008).
Industrial societies moved economic production outside of the home and created a sharp distinction between work and family life (Bentley & Ziegler, 2008). New social classes were; enterprising business people who were very powerful and wealthy; middle classes who were small business owners, engineers and teachers; working class people who were miners, laborers and were less skilled than the artisans and craftsmen of earlier times (Bentley & Ziegler, 2008).
Technological development in the industrial revolution, the new spinning machines and weaving machine development permitted the mass production of inexpensive textile goods. Steam engines were predominantly used in the British textile industry as they allowed greater productivity for manufacturers and cheaper prices for consumers (Bentley & Ziegler, 2008). Steam engines led to improved transportation technology. Railroad and steamships lowered the cost of transportation, as they were able to carry greater capacity. The Factory system was the predominant method of production in the 18th and 19th century, because machines were too large and expensive for home use (Bentley & Ziegler, 2008). Centralization brought together more workers doing specialized tasks. The industrial revolution affected class structure, urban life and manufacturing in the United Kingdom.
Why Industrial Revolution Happened
The fact that England was an Island made the country ideal for trade and this triggered Industrial revolution. The population was huge as the country was endowed with lots of natural resources. The population provided labor force to industries as well as market for goods. With the good economy, investors would eventually establish factories that would make goods which were traditionally made from homes and small workshops. The revolution stated to spread to other regions in Europe and America. The revolution brought productivity and technical efficiency in the manufacturing sector.
Coal replaced wood as the major source of energy since demand for energy was growing fast, especially from the iron and textile factories. The advancement made in the field of medicine provided vaccination to the population against deadly diseases. This not only led to steady growth of population but also healthier labor force that worked in the factories and coal mines. Industries and factories provide employment to the growing population and this led to increased income among the households. Before the establishment of factories, people used to work in the farm, a professional that earned people less money since farming was considered to be in primary industry. The increased incomes led to better standard of living. The huge and healthy population is one of the major causes of industrial revolution (Fischer, 1973).
Between 1760 and 1830, most of the cultivatable land in Britain was transformed from open-field into compact farms and enclosed field that made farming more systematic. Most of the vast lands were owned by wealthy landowners who even bought lands from small scale farmers. The enclosure of farms made people to move from the countryside to the cities, including the small scale farmers driven away from their farms.
This ensured constant flow of workforce for the factories. Despite the movement of people to the cities, there are those who remained to work in the farms. Better farming techniques were discovered and four-course rotation of wheat, turnips, barley, and clover was implemented in most of the farms. More food was generated as more land was turned into productive farms. The food generated was enough to feed the whole population and triggered the farmers to look for markets to their surplus food. The growth of population meant more workers and this led to cheap labour in factories thereby minimizing production costs of goods. The analysis indicates that the presence of huge population and availability of food was another cause of industrial revolution.
In the mid-eighteenth century, there was a big network of canals that facilitated transportation of goods meant for trade.
Industrialization and Demand for Coal
Industrialization is a process that modernizes the manufacturing procedures by bringing in better and efficient ways of manufacturing goods. The economics conditions of the population can be greatly improved since there is a huge potential of employment in the manufacturing sector. There is still a debate on whether industrialization creates new jobs or it actually diminishes labor demand and creates unemployment (Skeath, 1993).
Some critics argue that technical progress purely reduce the workforce since the invented machine can perform some of the work that was done manually. Other theorists, however, disagree with this proposition arguing that as machine takes up some tasks formerly performed by humans, other tasks are created which need human attention. The old firms are presumed to be inefficient and production cost for the goods are relatively high. Technological advancement is a catalyst for increased efficiency and this leads to reduction of costs and increase in production (Clark & Jacks, 2007).
The increase of factories in the manufacturing sector led to a huge demand for energy. For a long time, wood was the primary source of fuel in cooking, heating and in iron production until coal was discovered in early eighteenth century. According to many historians, coal was very critical in meeting the energy demand. Coal played an important role in the growth of British economy between 1830 and 1931. Britain in particular, had access to coal deposits near populated areas. The population provided labor force to the many mining fields. During industrial revolution, exploitation of coal required new technological methods of extraction. In 1712, a steam powered engine was made and this was a great technological breakthrough in coal extraction. These engines were used across Europe bringing rapid transformation in the industry within a few decades (Clark & Jacks, 2007).
There was vast coal reserve in the eighteenth century which was still unexploited, especially in the northeast coalfield. The huge extraction of coal made the miners to sink deeper steams. The cost of extraction would have been higher were it not for the steam power. However, the hauling costs remained high since haulage in all the mines was done using horse power. The major factors that influenced the output of coal were: urban demands for coal; reduction in transport and taxation costs and increased demand from iron production (Clark & Jacks, 2007).
Industrial Society and Effects on Population
There existed a special economic relationship between Europe and America. British had colonized major American lands where slave based plantations provided Britain with much needed cotton and sugar. Cotton was very critical in driving the growth of textile industries in Europe. The supply of cotton from America was a relief to Europe because cotton could not grow well in Europe. The availability of coal and other resources like cotton from America provided a major industrial breakthrough in Britain (Bentley & Ziegler, 2008).
In 1830, the value of Americans became significant as large amounts of timber, grain and cotton grown on colonial acreage were transported to different European destinations. The American lands provided ready market for the farm equipment manufactured in Britain. In the mid-eighteenth, the huge consumer demand for cotton led to rapid growth of textile industry and this marked the beginning of industrial expansion in Britain. Wool was initially the material used to make clothes in Europe but cotton later became the most sought after fabric in clothing because it was lighter and easy to wash. The producers of cotton had to speed up weaving and spinning to meet the huge demand from different markets. New machines had to be invented in order to increase demand and the led to mechanization of cotton textile industry. In 1733, Manchester mechanic John Kay invented the flying shuttle, which made weaving process much faster (Bentley & Ziegler, 2008).
It did not take long before other new spinning machines were made. In 1779, Samuel Crompton’s “mule” was built and was later adapted for steam power to become the most sought after machine for spinning cotton. The production of thread was greatly improved and this triggered weavers to invent new weaving machines in order to match up with thread production. A water-driven loom was built in 1785 and later modified so that it could be powered by steam. Hand weavers were no longer needed as the power looms could produce fifteen times more cloth than an experienced hand weaver. The technological breakthrough in both spinning and weaving led to mass production of inexpensive textile goods (Bentley & Ziegler, 2008 p.499). By 1830, the flourishing British cotton business accounted for 40 percent of total exports and employed more than half a million people.
In 1765, James Watt built the first general purpose steam engine which consumed less fuel which made it more efficient in pumping water from the coal mines. This was a major breakthrough across the industries especially in coal extraction. In late eighteenth century, coke (a purified form of coal) was used as fuel in iron production to replace the expensive charcoal. The iron industry experienced huge growth as it was easy to produce a lot of iron at reduced cost. The inexpensive iron was used to manufacture machinery, industrial fittings, bridges, buildings and ships.
Britain had a head start in industrial revolution for the fact that industrialization had been there for fifty years before it spread to other countries. At some point, the British government in collaboration with entrepreneurs forbade the export of manufacturing methods and techniques, equipments and skilled workers in an effort to maintain the Britain monopoly position in industrialization. However, their efforts did not bear much fruit as more enterprising entrepreneurs ignored the rules and sold machinery and skilled worker to other countries in Europe and North America (Bentley & Ziegler, 2008 p.500). This resulted to spread of industrialization to France, Belgium, United States and France. By late nineteenth century, the net effect of industrialization was felt across these economies and production of goods continued to increased.
At the initial phase of industrialization, cotton textiles were the first factory-made products. Later, between1765-1825, factory system was implemented in other industries. This led to mass production of standardized articles in mid-nineteenth century, which became the hallmark of industrial societies.
A lot is talked about the material benefits gained from industrialization that include: cheaper manufactured goods, better standard of living and population growth. The material standard of living was improved to great extent with poor able to afford several clothes since the cost of clothing had been drastically reduced. However, it is important to note that Industrialization caused disturbance in the social setting of the society. There was immense internal and external migration that took place during this period. People in the country side moved to the new established industrial cities to seek employment in the factories, while other Europeans moved to United States and France.
Rural Industrialization and Population Change
The interaction of rural industrialization and population during the period preceding and accompanying the Industrial Revolution has been studied over the years. The understanding of this relationship helps many historians and scholars to have an idea as to why some regions industrialized early and successfully than others. The regions of study include rural areas in Western and Central Europe, which had existing domestic industries. Between seventeen and eighteenth century, domestic industries and small workshops were established in locations with sparse population. In this region, population was growing at a faster rate than other regions with no domestic industries (Fischer, 1973). People in this region marry earlier, more frequently and bear more children than in typical peasant communities.
Fischer (1973) argues that some innovative city merchants moved to the country side to establish domestic industries since labour was cheap and available. The economic structure of these regions changed, thereby influencing population patterns. The population pattern was created if not reinforced by the establishment and growth of rural industries. The rural industries provide livelihoods to the families and this led to establishment of more families. This way, marriage, fertility and mortality patterns changed. The possibility of young children working in these rural industries contributed to increase in family income and this encouraged bigger family size. In their study, Wrigley and Schofield discovered that fertility was the major factor that led to rapid population growth in eighteenth-century. Nuptiality changes accounted for the rapid increase in fertility, which then caused the rise of population by more than 70 percent (Schellekens, 1997).
The set-up costs for rural industries were relatively low and this is believed to have encouraged early marriages. The population trend during the seventeenth century was determined by the numerous marriages as opposed to the one in the eighteenth century, which was determined by earlier marriages. The shift from agricultural to industrial occupation enabled many people to get married, subsequently, the spread of rural industry encouraged earlier marriages, rather than more marriages (Schellekens, 1997).
In mid-eighteenth century, the rise in life expectancy coincided with the shift from agrarian system and the increase in agricultural output. This presented a situation where farmers would work hard at the time they were young and save part of their income to cater for consumption at old age (Nicolini, 2004). In general economic terms, they preferred capital accumulation. In pre-industrial England, capital accumulation referred to improving the quality and fertility of land in order to secure future land productivity.
Global Effects of Industrialization
The early industrialization had deep global implications. Britain, western-Europe, and North America were the economies that experienced early industrialization. These economies used their economic power, technologies and transportation networks to obtain resources, especially the raw materials from preindustrial societies across the globe. For example, British colonized large land plantations in America so that it could get cotton grown from these farm to supply to the textile industry back home.
Industrialization led to a unique international division of labor brought about by changes in the economic and social structure within the societies. Most of the raw materials needed by the Industrial societies to supply their factories were obtained outside the country. Although global trade existed before, industrialization led to increased demand for additional raw materials like rubber, which was sourced from Brazil and Congo River Basin (Bentley & Ziegler, 2008).
Specialization of the production process in these vast lands improved production which paved the way for rapid economic growth. The specialization of farming techniques was particularly applied by European colonists who had vast lands in United States, Canada, Uruguay, South Africa and New Zealand. These countries also experienced economic growth due to flow of foreign capital and labor derived from exportation of the primary product. Another notable factor that led to growth is the high wages paid out to workers. The living standards of the society improved as income increased.
These regions also provided ready market to the goods manufactured in Europe. However, little or no industrialization took place in Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa and Asia as a result of exporting raw materials like sugar, rubber, and cotton. This was because such crops were produced from lands owned by foreign expatriates who expatriated income into Europe, which could have been critical in developing domestic industries (Bentley & Ziegler, 2008). The unrestricted entry of foreign manufacturers permeated them to exploit the residence by paying them poorly and this was major barrier to indigenous industrialization.
Eventually, economies that exploited mechanized production build their economy to a great extent making them possess both financial and military strength. This made the other economies covet their success and forced them to pursue their own path towards industrialization. The preindustrial economies had to carry out economical and social reforms in order to catch up with the few industrial powers. Around 1870, countries like Russia and Japan embarked on rapid industrialization programs to strengthen their societies (Bentley & Ziegler, 2008).
Conclusion
Britain was the first country to experience industrialization with its textile industries leading the way. England as an island made it an ideal country for trade to take place. The textile factories relied on supply of cotton produced from colonized lands in America. Industrial revolution was made possible by the huge population and the availability of food to feed the work force. There were several benefits that came with industrialization including the production of relatively cheaper manufactured goods, increased incomes among the communities that led to better living standards, and increased population growth. It is important to note that Industrialization also brought some negative effects in the society.
There was emergence of social classes in the society and working conditions in the factories deteriorated. Urbanization contributed to rapid population in the cities, building pressure on the infrastructure system that could not handle huge population (Getler & Miguel, 2006). Many workers, including women and young children, lacked decent housing, police protection and sanitary codes. Most of them lived in small dirty shelters. The introduction of steam powered machines in the factories made matters worse for most of the workers. Numerous injuries were reported and this made the factory owners to look for the cheapest labor by hiring women and children who could work long hours for low wages.
By the beginning of nineteenth century, the Industrial revolution had created a huge gap between the rich and the poor. Many economists and social activists challenged the government to take a proactive role in improving the standard of living for the as well as ensuring equal rights to resources. Some economists came up with a system referred to as socialism, advocating for state influence in controlling the resources and ensuring improved standards to all. Since then, other economists have come up with theories of solving the prevailing social-economic challenges.
From the above discussion it is clear that Industrial revolution brought huge developments in many economies starting with Britain. The benefits of Industrialization are enjoyed even today.
Reference List
Bentley, J., & Ziegler, H. F (2008). An Age of Revolution, Industry, and Empire. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Web.
Clark, G., & Jacks, D. (2007). Coal and the Industrial Revolution, 1700-1869. European Review of Economic History, II, 39-72. Web.
Fischer, W. (1973). Rural Industrialization and Population Change. Comparative Studies in Society and History, Vol.15.No.2 pp. 158-170. Web.
Getler, P., & Miguel, E., (2006). Does Industrialization Build or Destroy Social Networks? Economic Development and Cultural Change. Berkeley: University of California. Web.
Nicolini, E.A., (2004) Mortality, Interest Rates, Investment, and Agricultural Production in 18th Century England. Explorations in Economic History, 41 pp. 130-135. Web.
Schellekens, J. (1997). Nuptiality during the First Industrial Revolution in England: Explanations. The Journal of Interdisciplinary History, Vol.27, No.4 pp.667-654. Web.
Skeath, S. E., (1993). Industrialization and Labor Demand. Eastern Economic Journal, 1993; 19, 2 pp.209. Web.