The Industrial Revolution: Transformations and Social Impacts

Posted on May 17, 2024 in Geography

The Industrial Revolution

Work and Energy

The Industrial Revolution was characterized by:

  1. Work done in factories by machines and workers.
  2. The use of fossil fuels, such as coal.
  3. Increased production and sale of goods thanks to improved transport.
  4. Growth of the working class.

Causes of the Industrial Revolution

Several factors contributed to the rise of the Industrial Revolution:

  1. Population’s new economic needs.
  2. Technological advances.
  3. Industrial expansion (accumulation of capital that could be invested).
  4. Driving force behind commerce.
  5. The role of the wealthy middle class.

Unequal Economic Development

The unequal rate of economic development divided the world into two groups:

  1. Developed countries.
  2. Industrialized countries.

4.1. The First Industrial Revolution (Textile Industry)

England was the first country to industrialize. The growing demand for textiles for the expanding population caused the industrial take-off. To increase production, new technologies that mechanized all stages of the textile production process were invented. Water-powered machines eventually gave way to mechanical looms powered by steam engines.

Between 1780 and 1840, Belgium, France, and Germany began their own industrial revolutions with the help of British technology. In other countries, industrialization was delayed because of guilds, internal customs, and the aristocracy’s scorn of manual labor.

Iron and Steel Industry

The iron and steel industry was a key sector in the First Industrial Revolution. It developed thanks to the demand for iron tools and machinery for the agricultural and textile sectors. Coal emerged as a new fuel source. A key invention by James Watt (1769) was the steam engine.

The Revolution in Transport and Machinery

In 1829, Stephenson used the steam engine to power a locomotive for the first time. This innovation was driven by the need to transport agricultural and industrial products. Before this invention, overland transport had been via carts drawn by animals.

Cartel: A group of independent companies that make agreements to control prices, production, and markets.

4.2. The Second Industrial Revolution

Technological advances led to new methods of industrial manufacture. New technologies emerged in almost all of Europe, Germany, Japan, and the United States.

Key developments of the Second Industrial Revolution included:

  • Oil began to be used as a new source of energy.
  • The steam engine was replaced by electricity-powered engines.
  • In 1856, the iron and steel industry underwent significant growth.
  • The chemical industry developed synthetic products that replaced natural ones.
  • Huge advances in transport, e.g., railways, fast steel-hulled boats.
  • Work reorganization helped increase industrial productivity.
  • Capitalism adapted to the needs of industrialization:
    1. Banks were opened to store savers’ money and provide loans to industrial and railway companies.
    2. Companies began to form corporations, creating cartels, trusts, and holding companies. The goal of these mergers was to prevent competition between sellers and control the market.

5. The Class Society

The class society is the social stratification model typical of the liberal industrial period. The liberal revolutions laid the legal foundations for the equality of all citizens before the law. However, industrialization contributed to economic inequality between individuals. Wealth became a primary factor in social division.

Three Main Classes

The Upper Class (Nobility and the Wealthy Middle Class)

The upper class consisted of the Old Regime nobility and the wealthy middle class:

  1. Nobility lost their privileges but kept their areas of land.
  2. Wealthy middle class (bankers, industrialists, owners of transport companies, etc.)

The Middle Class (Grew as the Economy Developed)

The middle class was divided into two groups:

  1. Middle middle class: Liberal professionals, civil servants, employees in banks, companies, and offices.
  2. Lower middle class: Merchants and artisans.

The Working Class (Peasants and Urban Working Class)

Peasants were still the largest percentage of the population. They lived in extreme poverty, and industrialization did not benefit them.

The urban working class was a diverse group:

  • At the beginning of the industrialization process, most of the urban working class were artisans, but their numbers decreased over time.
  • At the same time, the number of industrial workers increased.

Proletariat: Men, women, and children who worked in factories with machines that did not require any particular skill or strength.

Development of Industrial Cities

The rural exodus meant that industrial cities underwent sustained growth. Urban growth was disorganized at first. In the 19th century, urban growth and sanitation began to be planned. This planning helped perpetuate the urban model that differentiated between districts based on the wealth of their inhabitants.

  1. The wealthy middle class tended to live in areas where the quality of the buildings was higher.
  2. Factories were moved to the countryside. Working-class districts developed there, but they were poorly planned, with substandard housing.

5.1. The Labor Movement

The labor movement began in the mid-19th century. Its objective was to improve the poor living and working conditions of workers during the industrialization process.

Liberal Economics Theory (Capitalism)

In the 18th century, most European governments believed in mercantilism. The liberal thinker Adam Smith proposed a new theory: a nation’s wealth is all of the goods that it produces and its commerce, not just its gold and silver.

Principles of Liberal Economics

  1. Individual initiative and profit maximization are the driving forces of the economy.
  2. Private property and free trade.
  3. Supply and demand are the invisible hands that control the economy.
  4. Governments should not interfere in economic activity.

Effects of Liberal Economics

Liberal economics allowed the Industrial Revolution to develop and therefore promoted progress and economic growth. However, it also promoted significant inequalities between the rich upper class and the rest of society.