Industrial Revolution

Impact of Unions

- Because of bad working conditions and unlivable wages, workers organized unions. - Unions allowed workers to work together to protect their rights and bargain for better pay and/or work conditions. - Owners saw unions as unfair because they prevented competition, this lead to employee/employer disputes. - For many years, the British government denied the workers' right to form unions, and instead, union members would be thrown in jail. Sometimes even riots would occur

Who made up the newfound middle class of the Industrial Revolution era?

-The Industrial Revolution had brought enormous amounts of money into the country. Most of this wealth went into the pockets of merchants, factory owners, and shippers. These people would make up a growing new middle class. -This new middle class had changed Britain's social structure. In the past, landowners and aristocrats had taken the top position in British society. They were the ones with the most wealth and power. Now, some factory owners and merchants were wealthier than them. -Gradually, a middle class that was neither poor nor rich began to emerge. This group included an upper middle class of government employees, doctors, lawyers, and those who held management positions in factories, mines, and shops.

Why did the Industrial Revolution begin in Great Britain?

1. Natural resources were plentiful in Britain. The country's rivers provided water power for the new factories and a means for transporting raw materials and finished products. Britain also had abundant supplies of coal and iron ore. 2. Expansion of farmland, good weather, improved transportation, and new crops such as the potato dramatically increased the food supply.More people could be fed at lower prices with less labor. Now even ordinary British families could use some of their income to buy manufactured goods. 3. With the increased food supply, the population grew. This forced many peasants to move to towns, creating a labor supply for factories. 4.Britain had a ready supply of money, or capital, to invest in new machines and factories. Entrepreneurs found new business opportunities and new ways to make profits. 5. A supply of markets gave British manufacturers a ready outlet for their goods. Britain had a vast colonial empire, and British ships could transport goods anywhere in the world. Domestic markets increased. A growing demand for cotton cloth led British manufacturers to look for ways to increase production.

What natural resources were abundant in England at the beginning of the industrial revolution?

Britain had relied on three important resources; waterpower, coal, and iron ore. -Waterpower and coal supplied the energy for the new machines. Additionally, there was iron ore, used for machines, tools, and buildings. -Great Britain also had a favorable geography; it was an island nation with fine harbors and a fleet of over 6,000 merchant ships, which gave Britain access to raw materials and markets. (Which were both essential to industrial growth) -Britain also had a favorable climate for new ideas. In the 1700s, many Brits were interested in science and technology. The Royal Science Club, founded in England in 1660, had become a universal club for the exchange of scientific ideas and practical inventions. This resulted in business people being interested in willing to invest in the manufacturing of new inventions. -Britain also had a good banking system. By the 1700s, Britain had the best banking system in Europe. Britain had made loans, and invested money at reasonable interest rates; which encouraged business people to invest in better machinery, build new factories, and expand better operations. -Britain also had supreme political stability. Although Britain partook in many wars in that time period, none of them were fought on British soil. This freedom from war gave Britain an advantage over their neighbors, and many governors supported laws that encouraged investment in both home and abroad.

Impacts of Major Inventions:

Farming: The seed drill allowed farmers to sow seeds at a specific depth. A larger share of the seed germinated, boosting crop yields. Steam Engine: For the first time in history, people had a source of power that could've been used anytime, anywhere. Now, factories could be placed in areas that did not require waterpower nearby. Selective Breeding: Better livestock and rising crop production meant more food- fewer people went hungry, and nutrition improved. The population had increased as well. The enclosure movement had also forced many people off their land. This led to many farmers working in factories. Steam Power: Encouraged further industrial growth (transported raw materials and finished products), provided millions of new jobs (leveling hills, digging tunnels, etc.) agricultural boost (now farmers could send milk and fruit to markets in distant cities) and an increase in travel.

Who was Samuel Coulson?

In 1831, Parliament set up a committee to investigate cases of child abuse. A worker named Samuel Coulson told parliament that in busy times, his young daughters would start work at 3 AM and end at 10:30 PM. As a result, Parliament passed the Factory Act of 1833. This new act made it illegal to hire children under the age of 9, and children from ages 9-13 couldn't work for more than 8 hours a day.

Orphans in the Industrial Revolution

Orphan children had faced the worst plight in factories. Factory owners employed large numbers of these poor children in return for room and board. The child workers were almost never fed properly. Their lodgings were nothing more than a few piles of straw, besides the machines they worked at for 12-14 hours a day. Worked under very dangerous conditions and faced injuries, and sometimes even death.

Positive and Negative Effects of the Industrial Revolution

Positive Effects: The Industrial Revolution shifted from an agrarian economy to a manufacturing economy where products were no longer made solely by hand but by machines. This led to increased production and efficiency, lower prices, more goods, and migration from rural areas to urban areas. Negative Effects: Poor working conditions (leading to early death and child labor), poor living conditions (slums), low wages (children were forced to work for the family due to low wages) and pollution (coal mines.)

Describe the impact of the railroad.

Railways spurred industrial growth by giving manufacturers a cheap way transport materials and other finished products. The railroad boom provided jobs for hundreds of people as rail workers and miners. Railway boosted England's agricultural and fishing industries, which could transport their products to distant cities. By making travel easier, the railway encouraged country people to take city jobs and lured city dwellers to resorts in the countryside.

What industries were booming at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution?

Textile, railroad, and steel industries. The textile industry consisted of the making of clothes and fabrics. -Inventions such as the spinning jenny and the cotton gin had helped with this, due to the invention of the spinning mule (combination of spinning jenny and water frame) being set up in factories by wealthy textile merchants. The cotton gin had helped improve industries as well due to much of England's cotton production coming from the Southern United States. The cotton gin would help remove the seeds from raw cotton, a job previously being very time-consuming for the slaves. -In addition to that, the railroad had boomed. In 1804, a British engineer named Richard Trevithick made an engine that was both small and powerful, yet good enough to haul along a set of rails. Other British engineers had begun to build upon this and improve his invention. Railroads spread all throughout England, and eventually, the Liverpool-Manchester railway was built- and it had been an immediate success. Thousands of passengers traveled between the two cities every day, which had helped with industrial growth, provided millions of new jobs, gave a boost in agriculture, and motivated people to travel.

Factory work vs farm work

The life of a farm worker was dependent on agriculture and the performance of his or her crops, rural, and less regimented than that of a factory worker. Factory workers, on the other hand, worked hours for a set wage, depending less on nature and more on how much he could sell his labor from. Family members would also be split up in factories, rather than on farms, where they would work together.

Major Inventions

Tull: Jethro Tull had been a farmer; he had seen that the usual way of sowing seed by scattering it across the ground had been wasteful, leading for many of the seeds to take root. He had solved this problem with an invention called the seed drill in 1721. This seed drill had allowed farmers to sow seeds in well-spaced rows at specific depths. A larger share of the seed germinated, boosting crop yields. Watt: The issue regarding the fact that factories had to be built near rushing water had become a problem for factory workers- such places were often far from raw materials, workers, or markets. This problem had come to the attention of James Watt, whom thus invented the steam engine. Was a mathematical instrument maker at the University of Glasgow in Scotland. Bakewell: Robert Bakewell had been a farmer who began trying to raise larger sheep in order to provide more meat and wool. By only allowing the best animals to breed (***selective breeding) he increased the weight of sheep and also greatly improved the taste of the mutton. Stephenson: Built a locomotive. George Stephenson had gained a solid reputation by building 20 engines for mine operators in Northern England. In 1821, he began to work on the world's first railroad line.