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Topic: Why Industrial Revolution Began in Great Britain and then Spread Globally
Analyze costs of such industrialization and its effects on the global community.

Course: World Civilizations

The Industrial Revolution began in England in 1733 with the setting up of the first

cotton mill. A new world had thus begun with the creation of new inventions and setting

up of several factories. This was a period when fundamental changes occurred in

textiles metals manufacturing, transportation, agriculture, economic growth and the

social structure of England. The period is referred to as a revolution because it entirely

changed the old order and brought about drastic changes that continued between 1760

and 1850. It is widely believed that the industrial revolution was a consequence of

events that had begun to happen almost two centuries before this period because the

ideas of scholars such as Galileo, Descartes and Bacon had now begun to take positive

shape. Advancements in agricultural techniques led to enhanced supplies of food and

raw material, transformation of the industrial structure and new technologies that led to

the increase in production, profits and over all trade and commerce. Most of these

conditions were very closely inter-related and the development of one sector led to the

development of the other1.

Most of the products that people use today are manufactured by processes of mass

production on assembly lines that use power driven machines. People in ancient times

were not privileged to have such products but were required to spend long hours to

make even the simplest of objects with hand labor and tedious efforts. The power and

energy that they could use was limited to the use of animals. However the Industrial

1
Lucas Robert, (2004). The Industrial Revolution: Past and Future,
http://www.minneapolisfed.org/publications_papers/pub_display.cfm?id=3333, Accessed on 11 March, 2010.
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Revolution has changed the way human beings live as also the methods by which

products are manufactured.

The Industrial Revolution had begun in England for several reasons. England was a

country that had seen the forerunners of the industrialization process during the

previous century. There was a big revolution in agriculture and cottage industries while

a wider commercial revolution was gradually taking shape. Such developments boosted

the growth of infrastructure sectors such as insurance, banking, shipping and joint stock

companies. There was already a flourishing handicraft industry in England that used

wool and cotton from overseas markets as raw material. A scientific revolution had also

taken place in terms of new inventions that could be used for the development of

industries. There was a shortage of wood used for energy, construction and ship

building which stimulated efforts to search for alternatives. There were abundant

supplies of iron for construction and coal for energy generation and England had a long

and varied coast line with several rivers and natural harbors that enabled cheap and

convenient transportation by water. The population in England had grown quite fast

during the 18th century thus providing abundant labor for industries 2.

Hargreaves invented the spinning jenny in 1765 that was capable of spinning

several spools of cotton simultaneously. Although the spinning jenny was hand powered

it could multiply the amount of yarn spun at any given time. The water frame was

invented during the same time which had capability to spin hundreds of spools at a time

although it needed huge quantity of water and could spin only coarse thread. Both the

2
Kreis Steven, (2006). The Origins of the Industrial Revolution in England,
http://www.historyguide.org/intellect/lecture17a.html, Accessed on 11 March, 2010.
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inventions were immensely helpful in spinning fine and coarse threads respectively.

Alternative methods were enabled with the invention of Crompton’s mule that was

powered by a steam engine and thus cotton yarn could be spun in large quantities.

Weaving of cloth was done by hand until the perfection of the power loom in 1800.

Initially the weavers were paid very well but with the advent of the power loom they

were displaced and large number of people became unemployed because of

industrialization3.

The industrial structure during the period was characterized with hurdles in the

context of energy generation. Coal was used for heating but coal mines had started to

flood on a constant basis and in 1705, with the invention of Newcomen’s engine an

efficient way to pump out water from the mines was found. The textiles machines that

were invented till that time could only be run on water power which put limits on their

locations. Moreover, shortage of lumber was beginning to threaten industrial growth.

The iron industry which used large amounts of lumber to make charcoal that was

required in furnaces to produce pig iron was also at risk of being adversely impacted.

During the 1780s, the most important invention was made by James Watt in extensively

improving the design of the steam engine. It was now possible to generate power to run

the iron industry at other locations other than close to water sources 4.

Bellows that were steam driven allowed the substitution of charcoal with coke to be

used in blast furnaces. The Puddling Surface was developed during the 1780s by Henry

3
Deane Phyllis, (1979). The First Industrial Revolution. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

4
Eric Hobsbawm, 1999). The Age of Revolution: Europe 1789–1848, Weidenfeld and Nicolson Ltd.
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Cort along with the steam powered rolling mills, which revolutionized the iron industry.

The alteration in the sources of energy from wood to coal and the substitution of wood

with iron as the main material used in construction, set the pace for speedy

industrialization. The industrialization revolution in England got a major boost because

of the revolution in the available modes of transport. Iron rails were established for the

hauling of coal carts to water transport terminals and the rail road became a viable and

economical means of transport with the increasing use of iron rails and the steam

engine. These were the most significant achievements in transport since ancient times.

Once established, the rail road system enabled consumers and industries to have easy

and cheap access with each other. With the resultant increase in the volumes of goods

that were produced, a huge market economy began to develop. Industrial development

in the rest of Europe could not keep pace with what was achieved in England for at least

a generation. In fact industrial development lagged behind in Europe primarily because

England was separated from the continent because of the Napoleonic wars that

prevented the speedy spreading of technology in other areas 5.

Because of the industrial revolution massive changes took place in the lives of

people in most parts of the world. Having begun in England, the industrial revolution

gradually spread to other countries of Europe and then to America during the 1800s. By

the middle of the 19th century the industrial revolution had spread across whole of

Western Europe and the north eastern parts of America. There was increased

production of industrial products because of the introduction of power driven machines

and the growth of industrial establishments. Prior to the industrial revolution most
5
Crafts Nicholas F R, (1985). British Economic Growth During the Industrial Revolution, New York; Oxford University Press.
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people worked in rural areas and with industrialization financial institutions flourished

and capitalists began to take over control of manufacturing facilities. In England there

was improvement in the standard of living of people as trade unions enabled better

wages for workers. However there are some negative aspects of the industrial

revolution in England in the context of the overcrowded and unhygienic conditions in

which workers were forced to live in because of rapid industrialization in most cities.

Most historians are in agreement that the Industrial revolution proved to be a turning

point in the world’s history. The entire western world was transformed from agricultural

and rural societies to urban and industrial societies. The revolution enabled several

material advantages but also set in motion an array of problems that the present world

still continues to suffer from. Air and water pollution are what the modern world has

inherited from the Industrial Revolution6.

As the Industrial Revolution progressed, England continued to strengthen its

position as a colonial power and its colonies served as a major source of raw materials

to the industries and as markets for the manufactured goods rolling out of its industries.

British colonies helped England a great deal in stimulating the iron and textile industries

as the demand for its goods began to grow rapidly during the later part of the 18 th

century. The increased demand led businesses to compete with each other for the

limited supply of raw materials and labor, thus increasing the cost of production. The

increase in costs made profits to fall and England began to face difficulties in meeting

the huge demand. It thus became imperative for England to improve its capacities to

produce cheaper goods. Businesses could not increase prices for fear of reducing
6
Hulse David H, (1999). The Early Development of the Steam Engine, TEE Publishing, Leamington, Spain.
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demand and hence began seeking efficient and economical means of utilizing capital

and labor whereby worker productivity would increase faster than the costs of

production. This objective was achieved by developing technology, factories and

machines7.

One of the most outstanding achievements of the industrial revolution was the use of

advanced machinery in textile industries. Cottage industries were replaced with better

machinery that considerably increased production and led to centralized control over

workers. Agriculture and rural industries were significantly transformed in shifting to the

raising of raw materials in place of food; sizes of farms increased and were organized

on industrial lines. Huge amounts of capital were invested in the agricultural sector and

there was improvement in the management of farms as also in the quality of crop seeds

and livestock.

Before the advent of the industrial revolution spinning was done domestically on

spinning wheels that were very slow and the threads that they produced were fragile

and rough. Better spinning and weaving machines were introduced and by the 1760

advanced machines had revolutionized the textile business. The spinning jenny and the

water frame invented by James Hargreaves and Sir Richard Arkwright respectively

solved most problems in the textile industry making England the most dominating

industrial power in the world. Industrialization created the factory systems which were

responsible for the creation of modern cities because large numbers of workers

migrated to the city to get employed in industries. This was best illustrated with the

development of mills in Manchester which became the world’s first industrial city. The
7
Maxine Berg, (1992). Rehabilitating the Industrial Revolution, The Economic History Review 45
 7

industrial revolution enabled the organization of labor and the formation of trade unions

to cater to the interest of workers. Employers had to bow down to the bargaining power

of trade unions that resulted from the empowerment of skilled labor.

The industrial revolution spread into Europe some time later because of the delayed

application of new technologies that were developed in England. Technologies were

mainly purchased from England and by 1810 the Ruhr Valley had developed

considerably. Governments of Germany, Russia and Belgium provided funding for new

industries but industrialization was a slow process in these countries because of the

reluctance of England in allowing free transfer of technology. In France, the industrial

revolution did not happen as it did in other European countries because the government

preferred to adopt a different model. French historians have argued that industrialization

and economic growth in the country took place at a rather steady pace during the 18 th

and 19th centuries8.

In America there was initially widespread use of horse powered machinery during the

early period of industrialization, which was restricted in areas such as New England and

North east America. These areas were characterized with having fast flowing rivers.

Gradually water powered processes became more economical and horse powered

production processes were withdrawn. Most of the raw material was cotton that came

from the southern states of the country and it was not until the Civil War during the

1860s that the industrial revolution had a strong impact on the country, when steam

power was introduced in manufacturing processes in place of water power. Thereafter,

the industrialization process spread speedily across different parts of the country 9.

8
Hudson Pat, (2009). The Industrial Revolution, Bloomsbury.
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The industrial revolution changed the entire world and its social structure, mainly for

the better, although several disadvantages can be traced in terms of the long term costs

to humanity in terms of pollution, far reaching climatic changes and the gradual

depletion of natural resources and deterioration in the environment, which threatens the

very existence of future generations. The industrial revolution brought remarkable

changes in altering the structure of societies and the way in which humans live.

Significant changes have occurred in family structures and the remarkable improvement

in technology that has been achieved in the modern world was initiated during the

industrial revolution. But the cost of modernism is taking its toll in the form of after

effects of the industrial revolution. With the consistent demand for raw materials to meet

the requirement of industries and human needs, the maximum cost to humanity has

been in terms of the depletion of natural resources which have had several destructive

effects on the planet in addition to providing a bleak future full of hardships for the

coming generations. Natural habitat is gradually reducing because of which climate

change threatens the very existence of this world and of humanity. It is indeed true that

technological development has come at a great cost to humanity and it is in this context

that nations and scientists are now making hectic efforts to save the earth from further

destruction.

Bibliography

9
Roger Beck B, (1999). World History: Patterns of Interaction. Evanston, Illinois; McDougal Littell.
 9

Crafts Nicholas F R, (1985). British Economic Growth During the Industrial Revolution,
New York; Oxford University Press.

Deane Phyllis, (1979). The First Industrial Revolution. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.

Eric Hobsbawm, 1999). The Age of Revolution: Europe 1789–1848, Weidenfeld and
Nicolson Ltd.

Hudson Pat, (2009). The Industrial Revolution, Bloomsbury.

Hulse David H, (1999). The Early Development of the Steam Engine, TEE Publishing,
Leamington, Spain.

Kreis Steven, (2006). The Origins of the Industrial Revolution in England,

http://www.historyguide.org/intellect/lecture17a.html, Accessed on 11 March, 2010.

Lucas Robert, (2004). The Industrial Revolution: Past and Future,

http://www.minneapolisfed.org/publications_papers/pub_display.cfm?id=3333,
Accessed on 11 March, 2010.

Maxine Berg, (1992). Rehabilitating the Industrial Revolution, The Economic

History Review 45

Roger Beck B, (1999). World History: Patterns of Interaction. Evanston, Illinois;

McDougal Littell.