The Industrial

Revolution1750-1870

Changes in Manufacturing Methods during 18th Century

• From slower, more expensive production by hand to quicker, less costly production by machine

• From work at home to work at a factory

Characteristics of the Old Industrial Revolution

• The invention of the 1st complex machines and building of the 1st factories

• The development of steam as a source of power, and its applications

• The expansion of the output of basic materials….coal, iron, steel

• The introduction of new methods of transportation and communication

Historical Method of Production

• By the late Middle Ages the manufacture of goods was controlled by trade or artisan guilds

• The guilds were organizations that set standards for their craft.

• Typically they restricted the number of workers, hours worked, types of tools that were used, etc

• As a result, the output of goods was limited

The Shift• Along with the growth of towns, the re-

emergence of trade, and the population growth came a demand for more goods than the guilds could produce.

• In the 16th century, the English textile industry defied the guilds by using the “putting out” system

• How did it work?:– individuals at home would be provided with the raw

materials– get paid for creating finished goods (ex. spinning raw

wool or cotton into thread)

Why did the textile industry become the 1st major industry to adopt the

factory system? • Demand for textiles

– cotton (which was much more comfortable than the traditional wool).

• The constant thread shortage focused attention on ways of improving spinning methods.

Results

• The amount of cotton yarn produced in England in 1790 was 10 times the amount produced in 1770

• Cotton goods became much cheaper and more available. {use of underwear}

• Wages for textile workers increased greatly• Changes in demographics: rural agrarian

life gave way to urban industrial life

Why did Britain take the lead in Industrialization?

• Natural resources:– Raw materials like coal (steam) and iron ore– Colonies (Mercantilism)

• Transportation: – Harbors– Canals– Railroads

• Agricultural changes:– enclosure movement

• Population: G.B. had – skilled workers– wealthy capitalists

• Government: – Stable– organized banking system– protected industries.

How did machines affect work?

• Less time to learn a craft

• Preferences for younger workers – Why?

• Women and children increasingly hired – Why?

• Who gets left out?

Wage System

• Old System: Domestic– Worked unsupervised in your home– Turned in finished products for money

• New System: Factory– Supervised division of labor– Paid by the number of hours worked, or the

amount of goods produced

Why Wages?

• Allowed owners to produce goods as cheaply as possible (could adjust wages)

• What determined wages?– Oversupply of workers lowered wages– What people could earn doing other jobs– Males earned more– Best way to good wages: Acquire skills

Factory Rules and Regulations

• Set break and lunch times, no off times

• 14 hours a day, 6 days a week

• Factories were poorly ventilated, dirty, unsanitary, and usually without any safety precautions, especially with machines

Average Age at Death for Different Social Groups

Gentry Tradespeople Laborers

Rutland 52 41 38

Truro 40 33 28

Derby 49 38 21

Manchester 38 20 17

Bethnal Green 45 26 16

Liverpool 35 22 15

Agricultural area, Tin-Mining center, Industrial Centers

Child Labor

• Was a necessity in many families

• Children as young as five were sent to work in mines, cotton mills

• Little protection

• No real protection until 1833 with Britain’s Factory Act, which called for enforcement of child labor laws and inspections of factories

Living Conditions

• Tenement lifestyle was the most common• Even in 1840, between 40,000 and 50,000

laborers in Manchester lived in cellars• Exposure to poor sanitation, diseases• Standard of living improved

– wages slowly increased – inexpensive consumer goods became available

to laborers

Rise of the Middle Class• As economic and political power moved

from agriculture to manufacturing, a middle class formed (lawyers, doctors, bankers, merchants, manufacturers)

• The new middle class:– Dressed differently– Lived in different communities– Gained prestige and political power– Like the upper classes, the rising middle class

could now afford things like…

Economic Systems

Goals Gov’t Decisions Economy

Capitalism (Market Economy)

Socialism

Communism (Command Economy)

Capitalism

• Goals– Use supply and

demand, natural laws

– Profit motive

• Government– Laissez Faire

Capitalism

• Decision Making– Free enterprise

– Supply and demand

• Economy– Competition

– Privately owned property

Socialism

• Goals– Equitable

distribution of resources

– Provide for basic needs

• Government– Controls major

resources and industries

Socialism

• Decision Making– Made by the

government for good of everyone

• Economy– Smaller businesses

owned privately

– Government makes bigger economic decisions

Communism• Goals

– Karl Marx:

• History of class struggle

• Bourgeoisie vs. Proletariat

• Tribes, Slavery, Feudalism, Capitalism, Communism

– Classless society, total equality

– Government will eventually wither away

• Government– Stresses cooperation

– Owns businesses

– Set prices

Communism

• Decision Making– Economic decisions

made by government

• Economy– Common ownership

of property

– Views capitalism as a threat