They were supposedly led by a man named Ned Ludd, though he may have been an apocryphal figure. The term is derived from a group of early 19th century English workers who attacked factories and destroyed machinery as a means of protest. Such dramatic changes fueled opposition to industrialization, including the “ Luddites,” known for their violent resistance to changes in Britain’s textile industry.ĭid you know? The word "luddite" refers to a person who is opposed to technological change. The mechanization of labor created by technological innovation had made working in factories increasingly tedious (and sometimes dangerous), and many workers were forced to work long hours for pitifully low wages. Meanwhile, even as industrialization increased economic output overall and improved the standard of living for the middle and upper classes, poor and working class people continued to struggle. This rapid urbanization brought significant challenges, as overcrowded cities suffered from pollution, inadequate sanitation and a lack of clean drinking water. Though many people in Britain had begun moving to the cities from rural areas before the Industrial Revolution, this process accelerated dramatically with industrialization, as the rise of large factories turned smaller towns into major cities over the span of decades. In it, Smith promoted an economic system based on free enterprise, the private ownership of means of production, and lack of government interference. In 1776, Scottish social philosopher Adam Smith (1723-1790), who is regarded as the founder of modern economics, published The Wealth of Nations. A stock exchange was established in London in the 1770s the New York Stock Exchange was founded in the early 1790s. Cooke and Wheatstone’s system would be used for railroad signalling, as the speed of the new trains had created a need for more sophisticated means of communication.īanks and industrial financiers rose to new prominent during the period, as well as a factory system dependent on owners and managers. In 1837, British inventors William Cooke and Charles Wheatstone patented the first commercial telegraphy system, even as Samuel Morse and other inventors worked on their own versions in the United States. The latter part of the Industrial Revolution also saw key advances in communication methods, as people increasingly saw the need to communicate efficiently over long distances. Called the “atmospheric steam engine,” Newcomen’s invention was originally applied to power the machines used to pump water out of mine shafts.Ĭommunication and Banking in the Industrial Revolution Impact of Steam PowerĪn icon of the Industrial Revolution broke onto the scene in the early 1700s, when Thomas Newcomen designed the prototype for the first modern steam engine. This method was both cheaper and produced higher-quality material, enabling Britain’s iron and steel production to expand in response to demand created by the Napoleonic Wars (1803-15) and the later growth of the railroad industry. In addition to textiles, the British iron industry also adopted new innovations.Ĭhief among the new techniques was the smelting of iron ore with coke (a material made by heating coal) instead of the traditional charcoal. More efficient, mechanized production meant Britain’s new textile factories could meet the growing demand for cloth both at home and abroad, where the nation’s many overseas colonies provided a captive market for its goods. Producing cloth became faster and required less time and far less human labor. Starting in the mid-18th century, innovations like the flying shuttle, the spinning jenny, the water frame and the power loom made weaving cloth and spinning yarn and thread much easier. But prior to the Industrial Revolution, the British textile business was a true “cottage industry,” with the work performed in small workshops or even homes by individual spinners, weavers and dyers. Thanks in part to its damp climate, ideal for raising sheep, Britain had a long history of producing textiles like wool, linen and cotton.
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