The Reasons for the Industrial Revolution in Britain
Britain experienced an Agricultural Revolution that led to an increase in food supply, leaving more disposable income for manufactured goods. 91
Britain had an abundant supply of capital, with many successful entrepreneurs from the cottage industry investing in new manufacturing methods. 【7,8】
Britain had a well-designed central bank that could loan capital to entrepreneurs. 90
Britain had an abundance of entrepreneurship due to a favorable environment created by Parliament's rejection of absolutism. 【10,11,12】
Britain had favorable government policies, such as the repeal of the Corn Laws, which facilitated the movement of labor from farms to factories. 【13,14】
Britain was rich in mineral resources, especially coal and iron, which were crucial for industrialization. 【15,16】
Britain had a vast empire and ready markets to sell its manufactured goods. 【17,18】
Britain provided significant incentives for inventors, leading to key innovations like the spinning jenny and the steam engine. 【19,20,21,22】
The Spread of Industrialization to Other European Regions
France was slower to industrialize, lacking the abundant coal and iron deposits of Britain and facing political instability after Napoleon's exile. 【27,28,29,30,31】
Southern and Eastern Europe were also slower to industrialize, due to a lack of mineral resources and the persistence of old economic arrangements, such as the landed nobility and peasant systems. 【33,34,35,36,37,38】
The uneven pace of industrialization across Europe led to significant social upheavals and consequences, such as the devastating Irish Potato Famine. 【37,38】
The Second Industrial Revolution in Europe (1870-1914)
The second wave of industrialization in Europe was similar to the first, but on a larger scale. 1
The factory system became the dominant mode of production, replacing handmade goods. 【2,3】
Key Developments and Technologies
The Krupp family in Essen, Germany became a dominant player in the steel industry, supplying weapons across Europe. 【4,5】
Manchester, England emerged as the first "industrial city", with a designated industrial park and a rise in living standards. 【6,7】
New technologies revolutionized communication, manufacturing, and transportation:
Electricity and the telegraph connected distant locations. 【8,9,10】
Chemical engineering led to improved materials like vulcanized rubber. 2
Railroads expanded commerce and facilitated urbanization. 【12,13,14】
The internal combustion engine powered new industries like automobiles. 【15,16,17,18,19】
Impacts on Industry and Society
The growth of consumer goods and department stores led to the rise of the advertising industry. 【20,21,22,23,24,25】
Economic Challenges and Responses
The "Long Depression" in the late 19th century was caused by a scarcity of money due to the gold standard. 【26,27,28】
Corporations responded by creating monopolies to control prices. 【29,30】
Governments used protective tariffs and free trade agreements to address the economic crisis. 【31,32,33,34】
Industrialization of Germany
Rapid industrialization in Prussia, driven by its abundant coal and iron resources. 【35,36,37】
The Zollverein agreement in 1834 lowered trade barriers between German states, economically unifying them. 【38,39】
The Prussian government implemented the "National System" to protect its nascent industries with tariffs. 【40,41】
The Rise of European Conservatism
The French Revolution led to liberal reforms and the overthrow of monarchical tyranny. 14
However, the radical phase of the Revolution, including the Reign of Terror, led to a conservative backlash. 4
After Napoleon's defeat, the conservative powers of Europe (Britain, Austria, Prussia, Russia) sought to restore the traditional order. 5
Key Conservative Thinkers
Edmund Burke argued that authority and hierarchy were part of the natural order, and that people were incapable of governing themselves. 6
Joseph de Maistre believed that true political authority must be rooted in religious and moral principles, and advocated for a return to monarchy. 7
The Concert of Europe
The Congress of Vienna imposed a conservative ideology on the European continent, led by Austrian Foreign Minister Clemens von Metternich. 8
Metternich's three goals were: 1) Restoring the balance of power by installing legitimate (conservative) rulers, 2) Upholding the rights of the landed aristocracy, and 3) Promoting organized religion as the bulwark of stable states. 9
This "Concert of Europe" or "Congress System" maintained relative peace in Europe until the Revolutions of 1848 and World War I. 10
Suppression of Liberal and Nationalist Movements
Metternich and other conservative rulers used the principles of the Concert of Europe to justify the suppression of liberal and nationalist uprisings across Europe. 11
For example, the Carlsbad Decrees in Austria outlawed nationalist organizations and removed liberal professors, while the Russian Tsars used secret police to uphold their conservative system. 13
The Greek War of Independence
The Greek War of Independence began in 1821 as Greek nationalists rebelled against the Ottoman Empire, which was a conservative government. 30
The Greeks were initially outmatched by the Ottomans, but eventually received support from Britain, France, and Russia, who saw an opportunity to weaken their shared enemy. 31
Greece won its independence in 1832, which was an early sign of the discontent that would lead to the Revolutions of 1848. 32
The Decembrist Revolt in Russia
In 1825, a group of Russian officers known as the Decembrists, who were influenced by liberal ideals, attempted a coup against Tsar Nicholas I. 17
The Decembrist Revolt was quickly crushed, and in response, Nicholas I significantly increased the use of the secret police to suppress dissent. 18
The July Revolution in France
In 1830, the conservative French King Charles X stripped the middle class of voting rights and censored the press, leading to an insurrection in Paris. 19
Charles X was forced to abdicate, and Louis Philippe was installed as king, but he was also relatively conservative. 20
The Revolutions of 1848
The Revolutions of 1848 began in France, where Louis Philippe's conservative policies led to demands for a more liberal government and a bread shortage that sparked protests. 33
The French Revolution of 1848 was initially successful, with the establishment of a provisional government and liberal reforms, but class divisions within the government led to its downfall. 34
The revolutionary spirit also spread to the German states and the Austrian Empire, where various ethnic groups revolted for self-rule, but these revolutions were ultimately suppressed. 35
While the Revolutions of 1848 failed to achieve their goals, they represented a widespread rebellion against the conservative status quo in Europe. 36
Reforms in Russia
After Russia's defeat in the Crimean War, Tsar Alexander II enacted liberal reforms, including the emancipation of the serfs and the creation of an independent court system. 37
However, Alexander II was assassinated, and his successor, Alexander III, was more interested in Russian greatness than liberal reform, though he did modernize the Russian economy. 28
The lack of further liberal reforms in Russia led to the Revolution of 1905, where the people demanded a more liberal government. 29
Liberalism
Liberalism emphasizes the individual and their natural rights, as well as popular sovereignty and limited government. 30
Key figures associated with liberalism include Jeremy Bentham, who developed utilitarianism, and John Stuart Mill, who built on Bentham's work and emphasized acting for the happiness of society as a whole. 16
Liberalism was often embraced by the elite class, who argued that fundamental rights like the right to vote should be limited to property owners. This was opposed by the Chartist movement in England, which pushed for universal male suffrage. 38
Women were often overlooked in liberal reforms, but figures like John Stuart Mill and Flora Tristan argued for women's rights. 39
Socialism
Socialism emerged as an ideology that called for the means of production to be owned by the community, rather than private individuals, in response to the inequalities of the Industrial Revolution. 22
There were two main types of socialism: Utopian Socialism, represented by figures like Saint-Simon, and Scientific Socialism, developed by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. 23
Marx and Engels believed that history moved through patterns and stages, and that the proletariat would eventually rise up and overthrow the bourgeoisie in a cataclysmic revolution. 40
Some women, like Clara Zetkin and Rosa Luxemburg, became significant Marxist leaders during this time. 41
Anarchism
Anarchism was the idea that all forms of governmental authority were unnecessary and should be overthrown or replaced with a society based on voluntary cooperation. 42
Key anarchist figures included Mikhail Bakunin in Russia and Georges Sorel in France, who advocated for secret societies to lead revolutionary movements to destroy the state. 43
Rise of Mass-Based Political Parties
Political parties had to appeal to more voters as European nations extended the right to vote to more people. 55
In England, the Conservative Party represented the interests of the landed elite, while the Liberal Party increasingly represented the interests of the working class. 45
The Liberal Party in England gained influence as more of the working class gained the right to vote, and they enacted policies for a national education system and public health benefits. 46
In Germany, the Social Democratic Party was built on Marxist principles of class struggle and worked to improve the lives of the German working class. 47
Labor Unions and Worker Activism
Workers joined together in labor unions, which promoted social and economic reforms, and some even turned into political parties, especially prominent in England after 1870. 48
The General German Workers Association and the Social Democratic Workers Party merged to form a political party that worked for the rights of the working class. 49
Women's Rights Movements
Women pressed for legal, economic, and political rights, as well as improved working conditions, motivated by their involvement in broader reform movements. 50
Barbara Smith Bodichon in England worked to extend voting rights to women and recognize their rights to property apart from their husbands. 51
The Women's Social and Political Union in Britain, created by the Pankhurst family, organized rallies for women's suffrage, leading to the British Parliament passing a law in 1918 enabling men over 21 and women over 30 to vote. 52
Religious-Based Reforms
The Sunday School movement aimed to provide education for working-class children, with most of the teaching done by women, leading to a more literate and empowered society. 53
The Abolitionist Movement, led by William Wilberforce in England, successfully abolished slavery across the British Empire by 1838. 54
Governmental Reforms in Europe
Governments began to play a bigger role in people's lives during the 19th century, moving away from a laissez-faire policy to a more interventionist approach. 83
This was driven by the significant problems of overcrowding and crime created by urbanization, leading people to demand liberal reforms from the government. 2 59
Public Health Reforms
Edwin Chadwick in Britain sought reform for the poor, finding that diseases were transmitted among the poor due to their filthy and unsanitary living environment. 60 64
This led to Britain's first Public Health legislation, which built modern sanitary systems including sewers and clean water systems. 65
Urban Planning Reforms
Napoleon III charged George Haussmann with tearing down and rebuilding Paris, widening boulevards, building public parks, and installing sewers and aqueducts to mitigate disease. 66 68 69
The new Paris became a model for urban planning throughout Europe. 70
Law Enforcement and Prison Reforms
Governments began training and hiring professional police forces to maintain order in the overcrowded industrial cities. 71
Prisons were also reformed, with segregation by gender and opportunities for education and employment, inspired by reformers like Elizabeth Fry. 72
Compulsory Education Laws
Between 1870 and 1914, most European governments passed compulsory education laws for children aged 6-12, for three main reasons:
To maintain public order by keeping children occupied and off the streets. 73 76
To engender nationalism by shaping a generation of patriotic citizens. 77 78
To prepare students for the more technical and specialized jobs of the Second Industrial Revolution. 79
The development of kindergartens in Germany, pioneered by Friedrich Froebel, was an example of this educational reform. 80 81