Industrialization

Manchester from Kersal Moor, by William Wyld in 1857, a view dominated by chimney stacks as a consequence of the Industrial Revolution.

Industrialization

c. 1750-1900

Objectives

Explain how environmental factors contributed to industrialization from 1750 to 1900.
Explain how different modes and locations of production have developed and changed over time.
Explain how technology shaped economic production over time.

Explain the causes and effects of economic strategies of different states and empires.
Explain the development of economic systems, ideologies, and institutions and how they contributed to change in the period from 1750 to 1900.
Explain the causes and effects of calls for changes in industrial societies from 1750 to 1900.
Explain how industrialization caused change in existing social hierarchies and standards of living.

The Factory System

Essen, Germany, 1890

The Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of All Nations at the Crystal Palace, London, 1851

child workers in a textile mill, Macon, Georgia, 1909

A variety of factors contributed to the growth of industrial production and eventually resulted in the Industrial Revolution, including:
- Proximity to waterways; access to rivers and canals
- Geographical distribution of coal, iron, and timber
- Urbanization
- Improved agricultural productivity
- Access to foreign resources
- Accumulation of capital
The development of the factory system concentrated production in a single location and led to an increasing degree of specialization of labor.
The development of machines, including steam engines and the internal combustion engine, made it possible to take advantage of both existing and vast newly discovered resources of energy stored in fossil fuels, specifically coal and oil. The fossil fuels revolution greatly increased the energy available to human societies.
The rapid development of steam-powered industrial production in European countries and the U.S. contributed to the increase in these regions’ share of global manufacturing during the first Industrial Revolution. While Middle Eastern and Asian countries continued to produce manufactured goods, these regions’ share in global manufacturing declined.

The Second Industrial Revolution

The “second industrial revolution” led to new methods in the production of steel, chemicals, electricity, and precision machinery during the second half of the 19th century.

Transportation and Communication

From Travels in the Interior Districts of Africa (1799) by Mungo Park

Thomas Cook & Co. guided tourists around the world.

Railroads, steamships, and the telegraph made exploration, development, and communication possible in interior regions globally, which led to increased trade and migration.

Global Finance

Western European countries began abandoning mercantilism and adopting free trade policies, partly in response to the growing acceptance of Adam Smith’s theories of laissez-faire capitalism and free markets.
The global nature of trade and production contributed to the proliferation of large-scale transnational businesses that relied on new practices in banking and finance.
The development of industrial capitalism led to increased standards of living for some, and to continued improvement in manufacturing methods that increased the availability, affordability, and variety of consumer goods.

Urbanization

The rapid urbanization that accompanied global capitalism at times led to a variety of challenges, including pollution, poverty, increased crime, public health crises, housing shortages, and insufficient infrastructure to accommodate urban growth.

Social Class

Blackpool was a Victorian-era beach side resort which offered all the entertaining marvels of the Modern Age.

New social classes, including the middle class and the industrial working class, developed.

demographic transition
social question
aristocracy
landed gentry
captains of industry
middle class
white-collar professionals
Victorian middle class values
conspicuous consumption
mass leisure culture
cult of domesticity
working class
proletariat
Luddite rebellion
Factory Act of 1833
Communist Manifesto
trade unions
socialist parties
child labor

Social Reform

Socialists despised capitalism as unjust suppression of the working class masses.

Critics of the People’s Budget of 1911 claimed its social benefits would ruin the British economy.

In industrialized states, many workers organized themselves, often in labor unions, to improve working conditions, limit hours, and gain higher wages. Workers’ movements and political parties emerged in different areas, promoting alternative visions of society.
Discontent with established power structures encouraged the development of various ideologies, including those espoused by Karl Marx, and the ideas of socialism and communism.
In response to the social and economic changes brought about by industrial capitalism, some governments, organizations, and individuals promoted various types of political, social, educational, and urban reforms.