Industrial Revolution
The Beginnings
Changing World
1. New Ways of Life
The Industrial Revolution did not happen overnight.
1750: Most people worked the land.
Exchanged goods locally
Made their own clothing
By 1850: Many villages grew into cities.
Major shift in daily life and work becomes visible
2. Why Britain?
Britain had several advantages that helped industrialization begin there first:
Factors of Production
Land – natural resources (coal, iron)
Capital – money to invest
Labor – skilled workers and mechanics
Entrepreneurs – people willing to take risks
Strong and efficient agricultural system
3. A New Agricultural Revolution
Most farmers were subsistence farmers
Farmed only to survive
Used handmade tools
Population growth created pressure to find better farming methods
4. New Farming Inventions and Techniques
Seed Drill – Jethro Tull
Planted seeds in rows and buried them
Reduced waste and increased crop yields
Enclosure Movement
Wealthy landowners took over and combined land
Forced many small farmers off their land
Crop Rotation – Charles Townshend
Alternated crops to restore soil nutrients
Increased food production
5. Textile Industry Initiates Industrialization
Early production used the domestic system
Thread spun and cloth woven in homes
Finished by skilled artisans in towns
Demand for cloth increased rapidly
Hand-powered machines were too slow
6. Textile Industry Creations
Flying Shuttle – John Kay
Sped up the weaving process
Spinning Jenny – James Hargreaves
Spun multiple threads at once
Water Frame – Richard Arkwright
Used water power to spin thread
Cotton Gin – Eli Whitney
Quickly removed seeds from raw cotton
7. The Factory System
Large machines made home production obsolete
Machines moved to large factories
Often located near water sources
Work life changed dramatically:
Workers reported to a central location
Fixed work hours
Paid regular wages
8. Coal, Steam, and the Energy Revolution
Thomas Newcomen (1712)
Created early steam engine to pump water from mines
James Watt
Improved the steam engine
Factories no longer needed to be near rivers
9. Iron and Steel Production
Coal became a crucial energy source
Used to smelt iron (separate iron from ore)
Bessemer Process
Improved steel quality
Removed impurities
Allowed mass production of steel
10. Revolution in Transportation
Steam Locomotive – George Stephenson (1814)
Allowed transportation beyond rivers
Steamboat – Robert Fulton (1808)
Used steam power on rivers and canals
Turnpikes
Privately funded toll roads built by investors
11. Industrialization Spreads
Spread unevenly across the world
Most successful in countries with:
Strong governments
Natural resources
Germany and the United States industrialized rapidly
First American textile mill in Pawtucket, Rhode Island
British machine designs were smuggled out
Social Impact of Industrialism
Urban Growth
12. Industry Causes Urban Growth
Rapid urbanization – movement of people from farms to cities
Small towns grew into major cities
Example: Manchester
1750: 17,000
1780: 40,000
1801: 70,000
13. The Rise of New Social Classes
Growth of the middle class
Merchants, factory owners, professionals
Bourgeoisie
Benefited the most
Lived in nicer neighborhoods
Often lacked sympathy for the poor
Embraced consumer culture
Changes in gender roles
Middle-class women staying home signaled wealth
Many working-class women worked in factories
14. Working Class City Living
Many lived in tenements
Overcrowded, poorly maintained apartments
Unsafe conditions:
Poor ventilation
Cheap construction materials
No running water
Sewage dumped into streets and rivers
Drinking water contaminated
Life expectancy declined (less than 40 years old, 1550–1850)
15. Harsh Working Conditions
Long hours:
12–16 hours per day
6–7 days a week
Low wages
Repetitive, monotonous labor
Strict rules and discipline
Workers fired easily
Women and children employed often
Paid less
Considered easier to control
16. Factory Act of 1833
First major attempt to improve factory conditions
Government inspectors appointed
Could fine factory owners
Child labor limits:
Ages 9–13: 8 hours/day
Ages 14–18: 12 hours/day
Under 9: required 2 hours of schooling
17. Creation of Unions
Workers formed unions to demand:
Higher wages
Shorter hours
Safer conditions
Used strikes to pressure employers
Some strikes turned violent
Collective bargaining
Negotiations between unions and employers
Contracts applied to all workers, not individuals
18. Combination Acts (1799–1800)
Made labor unions illegal
Punishments included:
3 months in jail
2 months of hard labor
Rarely enforced
Repealed in 1824
19. Better Standards of Living
Standard of living: level of goods and services available
Long-term improvements:
Advances in medicine
Healthier populations
Better housing
Cheaper clothing
Economics of Industrialism
20. New Economic Ideas
Mercantilism
Wealth measured by trade
Exports should exceed imports
Supply and Demand – Adam Smith
Low supply + high demand = high prices
High supply + low demand = low prices
Laissez-faire
Minimal government involvement in the economy
21. Laissez-Faire Economics
Law of Competition
Competition leads to better goods and lower prices
Free Enterprise System
Capitalism controlled by private individuals
Prices set by the market
22. Utilitarians Support Limited Government
Laissez-faire often favored employers
Jeremy Bentham
Utilitarianism: greatest happiness for the greatest number
Laws judged by their usefulness
John Stuart Mill
Supported limited government intervention
Believed employers should not harm workers
23. Socialist Thought Emerges
Sought to eliminate poverty and inequality
Means of production owned by the people
Factories, farms, railways
Government often regulated production
No profit motive or competition
Goal: eliminate class differences
24. Marx and the Origins of Communism
Karl Marx & Friedrich Engels
Engels’ father owned a textile factory
Criticized capitalism
Created wealth for a few and poverty for many
Proletariat (working class)
Marx believed workers would eventually revolt