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• History Channel 4:30 minutes

The Industrial Revolution

• Major changes took place in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation and technology in the 18th and 19th centuries.o Had a huge effect on the socioeconomic and

cultural conditions of the time.o Began in Great Britain, spread throughout

Europe, North America and eventually the world.

Time Periods

• Time spans vary depending on historians.• Eric Hobsbawm stated it ‘broke out’ in Britain

in the 1780’s, but that it was not fully felt until the 1830’s or 1840’s.

• T.S. Ashton held that it occurred between 1760 and 1830.

First and Second Industrial Revolutions

• First Industrial Revolution began in the 18th century (Phase 1 was from 1700 – 1840, and Phase 2 was from 1840 – 1890.) It merged into the Second Industrial Revolution around 1850. (was recognized from 1890 – 1940)

• Technology and economy progressed with steam-powered ships and railways.

• Later in the 19th century, the internal combustion engine and electrical power generation came on board.

Turning Point

• The Industrial Revolution was the most important event in the history of humanity since the domestication of plants and animals.

• Average income and population began to exhibit sustained growth.o Economic growth took place in capitalist

economies.

Effects of Industrialization

• In the early years of the Industrial Revolution, Great Britain tried to keep other countries from learning about its new technology.

• Advances in technology, as well as a boom in the production of coal and iron ore, spurred industrial growth in the United States and Germany.o A rapid rise in population expanded the work force.

• By the late 1800’s, all three countries were the industrial leaders.

Effects (Cont.)

• Helped raise the standard of living.o Created more jobs.

• However, there were hardships for factory workers.oWages were generally poor, women earned less

than men, no sick pay, elderly faced pay cuts and loss of jobs.

Effects (Cont.)

• Urbanization – the growth of cities took place.o Farm families who could no longer make a living

moved to cities to find jobs.o Liverpool, England soared from 77 000 to 400 000.

• 19th century cities were not prepared for such a population explosion.o Housing, sanitation and hospital facilities could not

keep pace. o In Britain, about 26 in every 100 children died before

the age of five.

Changing Values

• Before the Industrial Revolution in England, most people lived in small villages and farmed the land worked by their families for years.

• Relatives, friends and the church gave them a sense of belonging.

• This feeling began to disappear as people left their hometowns to move to cities.

Benefits

• Factory-made goods were plentiful and priced within reason for most people.

• Growing cities offered many chances for advancement.

• Workers who acquired special skills and education, had hopes of entering the growing middle class.

Solutions

• 19th century thinkers based theories on the role of the workers, business owners and government in an industrialized society.

• Scottish philosopher and economist Adam Smith stated the principle of laissez faire.o Government should not interfere with business.

• He felt society would run best under a free-enterprise system.

Principles of Laissez Faire

• In Smith’s 1776 book, “The Wealth of Nations”, he set forth four principles.

1. Entrepreneurs should be free to run their business in the way that will bring them the most profit.

2. More profit to the entrepreneur leads to business expansion, which creates more jobs and goods.

Principles of Laissez Faire (Cont.)

3. Free competition gives people the chance to do the jobs they do best.4. Government should not meddle in business. Its only duty is to keep peace and order.

Population Growth

• English minister and economist Thomas Malthus declared in 1798 that population growth always grows faster than the food supply.o Also, the supply of workers becomes greater than

the demand. This resulted in unemployment, low wages and poverty.

Role of Government

• Early in the 1800’s, some people thought the only way problems from the laissez faire could be solved, was to pass laws that would improve working conditions.

• They also wanted to expand voting rights and give greater educational opportunities to the poor.

Socialist Ideas

• Under the capitalist system, factories, mines and railroads were privately owned.

• Reformers favored socialism as a way to lessen the gap between rich and poor.o The means of production would be publicly owned

and operated for the good of all people.oWealth should now be more equally distributed.

Cooperative Communities

• Some socialists dreamed of creating a utopia.• This ideal society could be created if

communities were owned and operated by the people who lived and worked there.

• Charles Fourier wanted to set up phalansteries, which would have 1600 members to do the job they were best at and would share in everything that was produced.

A Model Town

• Another utopian socialist who put his ideas into practice was Robert Owen.

• Managed a cotton mill in Manchester, England by the age of 19.

• In 1799, he became manager and part owner of the New Lanark mills in Scotland.o He raised wages, improved working conditions and reduced

the hours of work.o Had his workers live in comfortable housing, sold them food

and clothing at fair prices. Included dorms and housing.

A Model Town (Cont.)

• In 1825, he set up a community at New Harmony, Indiana, where profits would be shared by all and members would cooperate with one another for the good of the community.o Some citizens couldn’t live together, while others

refused to work.• The experiment ended in failure.

Karl Marx

• The most influential socialist thinker was Karl Marx. (1813-1883)

• He worked as a newspaper editor in Prussia, but was forced out of the country, because government authorities were angry with his writings.o Settled in England.

Karl Marx (Cont.)

• Insisted capitalism and utopian communities had to be replaced by a different economic and social system.o This was to be called communism.

Communism

• A form of complete socialism, in which all property and the means of production would be owned by the people.o All goods and services would be shared equally.

• He claimed his theories were based on scientific analysis of history.o History follows scientific law just as nature does.o Economic forces, such as the way goods are

produced and distributed, is what shapes history.

The Class Struggle

• Marx said there were two classes in society:1. The ‘haves’.2. The ‘have nots’.

• The ‘haves’ control the production of goods and own most of the wealth.

• The ‘have nots’ do the labour, but get no rewards for it.

Economic Power

• The bourgeoisie, the middle-class capitalists, held the economic power according to Marx in a modern industrial society.o They own factories, mines, banks and businesses.

• These capitalists dominate and exploit the proletariat, the wage earning laborers.

• He also claimed that the class that holds economic power, also controls the government. Ex. Lawmakers pass laws to help capitalists increase their profits.

A Working Class Revolution

• Marx believed the capitalist system would disappear.o Capitalists would reap large profits, but workers in

factories had miserable working conditions and low wages.

o Owners of small businesses would be ruined by competition with powerful capitalists. They would be forced to be ordinary workers, thus increasing the working class.

• Soon there would be only a few rich people and the proletarian masses.

A Working Class Revolution (Cont.)

• At this stage, Marx predicted an upheaval.o The workers would seize control of the

government, destroy the capitalist system and the ruling class.

o This would create a society run by the working class.

• In the Communist Manifesto, written by Marx and Engels in 1848, they sounded the call for a working-class revolution.

Marx’s Predictions Fail

• He looked only at economic forces, but political, religious and psychological forces affect historical developments as well.

• Did not foresee the enormous gains workers made such as higher wages, shorter hours and better working conditions.

• The middle class was not pushed down into the ranks of the lower class.o Most industrialized countries now have a very large

middle class.

Marx’s Predictions Fail (Cont.)

• Working-class revolutions would break out in the industrialized nations.o They never occurred.o Rather, in Russia, China and Cuba, Communist

revolutions took place. They failed to create the kind of socialist society that he

envisioned. The state did not wither in those countries, it became

more powerful.

Political Reforms in Britain

• Its system of government grew out of the tradition of common law and documents, such as the Magna Carta and the Petition of Rights.

• British Parliament had been the same for over 600 years. (early 1200’s to the early 1800’s)o Consisted of a House of Lords and a House of

Commons.o During the 1700’s, power shifted from the House

of Lords to the House of Commons.

A Limited Democracy

• In the early 1800’s, political democracy was still limited.

• Woman could not vote, and property requirements kept men from voting or holding most public offices.

• Religious restrictions prevented Catholics, Jews and other non-Anglicans from being elected to the House of Commons.

Removal of Religious Restrictions

• In 1829, Parliament passed the Catholic Emancipation Act, which opened nearly all government jobs to Catholics.

• Jews and others still lacked full rights, as you needed to be Christian to obtain positions.o Gradually, restrictions were lifted so that Jews

could hold office, serve on juries and practice law.

Pressure For Democratic Reforms

• In 1830, Parliament was still dominated by aristocratic landowners.

• The Reform Bill was passed in 1832, which gave the new industrial cities more representation in parliament.

• A change in property requirements extended voting rights to well-to-do men in the middle class.

The Chartist Movement

• Many workers were still denied suffrage.• The People’s Charter of 1838 demanded

voting rights for all men, secret ballot and annual elections.o Eventually, all these demands were met and

became law. Except annual elections.

The Right To Vote

• The Reform Bill of 1867 gave the vote to working-class men, thus doubling the number of voters in Britain.o Conservative Party leader Benjamin Disraeli played the

leading role in this reform.• The Liberals sponsored the Ballot Act in 1872, which

provided for secret ballot.• The Reform Bill of 1884 gave suffrage to rural

workers, which greatly increased the number of voters. Almost all men could now vote.

The Status of Women

• Women of all classes faced political and social inequality.

• Most felt the role of the woman was at home.• In 1867, John Stuart Mill proposed that women be

allowed to vote. Only 25% voted in favor of this.• Some felt their representation in government was

taken care of by their husbands, while others said they lacked ability to take part in political life.

Economic and Social Reforms in Britain

• Faced with the problems of the Industrial Revolution, British reformers began to campaign for change.

• They held meetings, wrote pamphlets and drew up petitions calling for laws to limit child labor.

Factory Act

• Passed in 1833.• Could not employ a child less than nine.

o 9-13 year olds could not work more than eight hours per day.

o 13-18 year olds could not work more than twelve hours per day.

• By the early 1900’s, the ten hour day was established in England for all workers who were over the age of 14.

Improvements in Education

• Believed education would help do away with poverty, crime and superstitious beliefs.

• The Education Act of 1870 gave local governments the power to set up elementary schools.

• By 1891, these schools were free and attendance was required.

Luddites

• Weavers and skilled handicraft workers were being replaced by machines.

• Factory owners feared Ned Ludd, the legendary leader of the Luddites.oMasked group who attacked textile factories and

smashed the machines that were blamed for putting everyone out of work.

The Beginning of Labor Unions

• Despite the work of the Luddites, machines continued to replace workers.

• Workers came together to form labor unions, organizations designed to represent their interests.

• To spur change, union members sometimes called strikes, refusing to work until management agreed to raise wages and improve conditions.

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