The Beginnings of Industrialization!
Origins in Britain• Agricultural Revolution paves way• Mid 1700s• Land ownership / enclosures• Technological advancements in farming and less
people involved in ownership leads to more people available for factory work…woohoo!!!
• Rotating crops– Rotate wheat, turnips, barley, etc. to regenerate
nutrients in soil
Why Did Ind. Rev. begin in Britain?• Natural Resources– Water and water, mainly
• Expanded economy – advanced banks
• Political stability• Factors of production
existed– Land, labor, capital, wealth
Spinning Shuttle – 1733
Spinning Jenny – 1764
Water Frame – 1769
Spinning Mule – 1779
Cotton Gin – 1793
Transportation Improvements• Watt’s Steam
Engine• Robert Fulton– Steam ship ‘ The
Clermont’• John McAdam– Macadam roads
(turnpike)• And
eventually….RR
The railroad transforms everything
RR Development• Steam driven locomotives• First developed – 1804, first RR line – 1821• First RR line in world – 1829 (Liverpool to
Manchester) “The Rocket” – 24mph• First RR line in Chicago – 1837 (Galena line, but only
to Oak Park…)• Changes in British life: spurred industrial growth,
created many jobs, encouraged Brits to take distant jobs
Urbanization• 1800s – population shifting towards cities• 1800 – 1850 – number of European cities with
more than 100,000 people rises from 22 to 47• London is largest city in world by 1830 (over
Beijing) between 1800 and 1900, London grows from 1.3 million to 6.6 million people
Living Conditions• No sanitation codes• Garbage piles in
streets• Overcrowded• Lack of police• Illness and cholera
spread• 1842 – avg. lifespan in
London – 17 years– avg. lifespan in rural
Britain – 38 years
Manchester England – mid 1800s
Working Conditions• 14 hours per day, 6 days per week• Injuries, dangerous• Avg. miner’s lifespan – 10 years shorter
Social Classes in Britain• Growing middle class– Business owners/managers move up in society to
equal of nobility• Working Class– Factory workers– Luddites – group of angry workers who attacked
factories, believed machines put them out of business
Positive Results of Ind. Rev. • Created jobs• Contributed to wealth of some nations• Fostered technological progress and belief in
prosperity• Any others we can think of?
CAPITALISM• Factors of production privately
owned• Laissez Faire– French for ‘let do’ – no
interference from gov’t• Adam Smith– 1776 – Wealth of Nations• Law of self interest• Law of competition• Law of supply/demand
CAPITALISM• Thomas Malthus– An Essay on Principles of Population 1798– Population increases faster than food production –
therefore most people will always be poor• David Ricardo– Principles of Political Economy and Taxation 1817– Believed permanent group would always be poor
Both thinkers opposed government intervention to assist poor.
Utilitarianism• Jeremy Benthem – late 1700s– People should judge ideas and gov’t based off their utility
(usefulness) – Gov’t should allow individuals to pursue their own
advantage without interference• John Stuart Mill – 1800s– Unregulated capitalism would deprive workers– Wanted more equal distribution of wealth
• Robert Owen– British factory owner who tried to create a utopia
SOCIALISM• Factors of production owned by public and
operate for welfare of all. • Any examples of socialism in modern United
States?
COMMUNISM• Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels
(Germans)• 1848 – Communist Manifesto• Battle between Bourgeoisie and
Proletariat • Workers will overthrow owners• Gov’t will wither away and cease to
exist• No private property• Led to 20th Century revolutions
(Russia, Cuba, China)
Karl Marx