This, in simple terms, is how the industrial revolution came about. However, the industrial revolution was not an overnight affair but, as we shall see, was an affair that evolved through a series of natural processes that followed a sequence of events and guided Britain into the new industrial age.
“An industrial revolution is the term generally applied to the complex of economic changes which are involved in the transformation of a pre-industrial, traditional type of economy, characterized by low productivity and normally stagnant growth rates, to a modern industrialized stage of economic development, in which output per head and standards of living are relatively high, and economic growth is normally sustained.”
CIPOLLA, C.M. (1975).
Industrial change is more than meets the eye. The effects on the nation as a whole are phenomenal. The very core-fabric of the society is changed. Economic, technological, industrial…every structure and organization is denied mercy.
The above statement by Cipolla highlights why the change should, and needs to take place in the first place. The societal structure is in need of some serious repair, and the revolution is the key. Poor techniques hassle productivity, keeping it low. Low productivity exacerbates trade keeping it low, and so the cycle continues.
Another factor which did nothing for the economic system was the self-sustained attitude of 19th century England. What needed to (and did) happen was some serious revising of the technique in which the economic system as a whole viewed the sum of all its parts, namely itself through its citizens. People needed to recognize that the way to a higher standard of living and better prospects in general, was through cooperative sweat. To produce for the benefit of the economy would be, in turn, to produce for your self.
This was shown in no clearer way than by the land enclosure policies being operated around Britain. This really began in the early 16th century following seasons of poor harvests, but was still in operation in the 19th century when the evidence through good crop yields were for all to see.
This success in crop growing techniques produced a higher quality of crop, therefore contributing to the quality of food being eaten and, indirectly to the population boom that helped set off the industrial revolution.
The population boom created a work force for the newly instigated agricultural explosion. There were now enough people to work the fields in order to get the crop harvested quicker. More productivity = more trade. More trade = more surplus. More surpluses mean that there’s more to sell and therefore more money to generate.
The money was rolling in. The economy was booming. The state was generating revenue through taxes, and was therefore able to invest in scientific research as a means of improving the techniques currently in use.
There was a demand for food, and with this came the demand for better equipment to produce this food. Jethro Tull (1674-1741) eventually perfected his revolutionary seed drill in 1714, and this made farming far more practical.
“At the time, cereals were distributed into furrows ('drilling') by hand. However, Tull had noticed that traditional heavy sowing densities were not very efficient so he instructed his staff to drill at very precise, low densities. By 1701, his frustration with their lack of co-operation prompted him to invent a machine to do the work for him.
Inspired by the memory of an organ he had once taken apart, he designed his drill with a rotating cylinder. Grooves were cut into the cylinder to allow seed to pass from the hopper above to a funnel below. They were then directed into a channel dug by a plough at the front of the machine, then immediately covered by a harrow attached to the rear.” BBC History Webpage. (2004).
The 19th century saw a rise in professional services. Along with the increase of manufacturing power came the necessity for skilled labour. People were needed to drive the power that had been harnessed. People were needed to build the bridges using the heavy machinery. People were needed to oversee the work, to pay the wages and to keep account of the money changing hands at ever increasing speeds.
The expansion was endless. Architects were needed, as were secretaries and insurance agents. Due to the increasing danger of accidents due to the close proximity of the worker to the machinery and its ever-increasing size, there was a growing need for medical staff.
All of these changes affected the application of the one service that would be needed by most of these professions…education. There was a need to school the workers in the employment of the innovative engineering equipment.
“The speed of the growth of industry expanded the need for a literate working class, and, when simple education was not enough, technical education needed to follow.” CIPOLLA, C. M. (1973).
Higher education was forced to modify in order to accommodate for this need. The growth of the labour market carried with it a demand for jobs…”as was the same in local and central government, the judiciary, the police and the armed forces.” CIPOLLA, C. M. (1973).
There will always be a bad side to every positive situation and, it should be argued, this one is no different. To work the ever increasing numbers of machines you require a never ending supply of workers. Adult workers are great, but a child will be able to get into places where an adult hand or body would have trouble. Children would be made to work unreasonably long hours, usually falling asleep where they sat and often injuring themselves. They were treated extremely badly, paid little, if anything at all and beaten if they misbehaved.
This all changed at the hands of Lord Shaftesbury when he fought to introduce the factory acts of 1847. Lord Shaftesbury would often have tea with Queen Victoria, and her son Prince Albert, in order to discuss the possibilities of reform. This is why the Victorian age is often called the age of reform.
All the services mentioned had been directly infected with the industrial bug, had headed in the required direction and were now crying out for manpower.
The financial support of research was paying off. There were better farming methods thanks to the influx of the money generated. The money was also poured into the transportation structure, namely the roads and the canals. This sanctioned the speeding up of the transporting of merchandise to their destinations, which in turn speeded up the handing over of the all essential profits.
The more money created meant that the economy was in a much better position to invest, therefore allowing it to generate further income.
The banks were enthusiastic to get in on the action. The demand for resources was mounting in line with the economy. The bigger the economy got the more capital was needed.
“The industrialist had relatively large amount of capital to work with, and the capitalist held securities that were more or less negotiable. This was due to the fact that by the end of the 18th century, the use of shares was more common in England than anywhere else. Shares were offered as a means of drawing on the vast wealth of the gentry and the nobility, many of whom were willing to invest on this principle of shares.” CIPOLLA, C. M. (1973).
Money was everywhere. The excitement created by the industrial revolution was second to none. People everywhere appeared to appreciate precisely what this new era meant for them…a new life, a new chance, opportunity. The country was gripped by enthusiasm.
It was not all work though…organised entertainment thrived as well. The theatre, pantomime and the opera all enjoyed a new-found lease of life. People were on the move. They were not restricted by mere distances anymore, not since the invention of Stephenson’s Rocket in time for the 1829 trials… “The Rocket was designed and built by George Stephenson with the help of his son, Robert, and Henry Booth, for the 1829 Rainhill Trials.
The Trials were held by the Liverpool and Manchester Railway Company, to find the best locomotive engine for a railway line that was being built to serve these two English cities. On the day of the Trials, some 15,000 people came along to see the race of the locomotives.” .” BBC History Webpage. (2004).
So, the industrial revolution infected just about every quarter of our lives. The effects of such a revolution are far reaching and beneficial beyond reproach. Much has changed since the early 18th century and thanks to those days things will never be the same again.
