The United Kingdom in the 19th and Early 20th Century - Research Paper Example

 The United Kingdom in the 19th and Early 20th Century I. Introduction Over the years, England as a country has been joined by three more countries to form what is now known as the United Kingdom. Being one of the Western empires that thrive at the onset of industrialization, the United Kingdom has long exerted economic dominance in the world. This paper aims to assess England, later the United Kingdom in the 19th and early 20th century in terms of progress and economic position. By looking at the progress and subsequent events that shaped the history of the nation, the later changes in the British economy and society are identified with the trends. II. Body A. England’s progress and position during the 19th and early 20th century Industrialized nation. England was one of the pioneers in the industrial revolution. Being a country that benefited from wide-scale efficiency due to the advancement of technology, the country has developed its economy by moving from the agricultural society into an industrial one. With massive population growth during the 19th century, the availability of cheap labour especially from women and children had propelled the progress of the country. As stated by Professor Pat Hudson in her article at BBC.co.uk: “The period from the late 18th century to the mid-Victorian years witnessed a major shake up and change in both the economy and society. This was seen in the organisation and finance of industry and commerce, the skills and work practices of production and technology, massive population growth and urbanisation and the development and disciplining of labour (Hudson 2001).” The country has prospered mainly because of the strong domestic growth which was rooted from the people’s wage dependency (Hudson 2001), as they have been employed in many factories. With the rising demand especially in textile such as cotton, wool, etc, England gained economic dominance through trade. The country’s maritime expertise had also enabled it to pursue more opportunities around the world. Expansion of the empire. With the constant advancement in technology and England’s development of its maritime expertise, from being a country it has expanded its realm to many countries across the globe which made it a super-power during the 19th century. As according to CIA.gov: “As the dominant industrial and maritime power of the 19th century, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland played a leading role in developing parliamentary democracy and in advancing literature and science. At its zenith, the British Empire stretched over one-fourth of the earth's surface (CIA.gov, 2009).” Later deceleration of the economy The nation had experienced very rapid progress as industrialization continued. However, as the economy became heated up, England had slipped into recession. According to Hobsbawm, “Just as phase one of industrialization stumbled into self-made depression and crisis, so phase two bred its own difficulties. The years between 1873 and 1896 are known to economic historians, who have discussed them more eagerly than any other phase of nineteenth-century business conjecture, as the ‘Great Depression.’ (Hobsbawm 1999).” This deceleration of the economy could be attributed to the “early pioneering of new and untried technology (Hudson 2001).” As according to Hudson, Britain had become the ‘workshop of the world’ from which its competitors had learned through its various mistakes. As competitors grew stronger and they enter the markets of the empires and caused destabilization through price wars, the British economy had slipped into Weakening of UK due to wars. The success of the UK in the 19th century was followed by the weakening of the empire’s force due to the two World Wards that it was involved. As according to CIA.gov, “The first half of the 20th century saw the UK's strength seriously depleted in two World Wars and the Irish republic withdraw from the union (CIA.gov 2009).” B. Social, political and economic impacts from such trends The growing middle class. The industrial revolution had some serious impact on the country’s changing social and economic landscape. With easier access to capital in the economy, many people became wealthy by becoming industrialists. They, as well as people with special skills that were greatly rewarded such as engineering comprised the growing middle class in the UK during the 19th and early 20th century. “Increased demand resulted from rising incomes particularly for the middle classes and for workers with particular skills such as engineering (Hudson 2001).” Consumer revolution and social emulation. The changes in the social landscape, with the growing middle class had affected the changes in ideologies among the people. New types of consumers emerged, as wealth made other people emulate their superiors in terms of taste and possession of material things. Hudson stated, “Industrialisation had affected consumption and commerce as much as industry, leisure as much as work. It involved shifts in motivations, aspirations, ideologies and aesthetics […] It has been argued that this 'consumer revolution' from the later 18th century and into the Victorian period was also driven by social emulation. This was where each social class aspired to the habits and patterns of consumption of their superiors (Hudson 2001).” Political reforms through the influence of industrialists. The industrial revolution had provided huge contributions to the political reforms of the nation. While it had been argued that the country continued in its feudal tradition with the aristocracy maintaining rule, industrialists’ influence were seen in reforms such as “the new poor law of 1834, with suffrage extension and with free trade (Hudson 2001),” as industrialists held control of local and municipal government during the 19th century. As according to an article from the Washington State University: “This [industrialist] class also created the various movements for democratic government which swept across Europe; and it was only natural that they should have viewed their economic and political ideals as functioning hand in hand. Democracy was necessary to wrest power from the old nobility, to pass laws enabling business to thrive, and to guarantee their property rights (Washington State University.com 1998).” Changing role of women and old concepts of class, gender and ethnicity challenged. During the 19th century, industrialization had enabled women to gain wider participation to UK’s society. As industrialists’ operations needed more resources such as labour, women as well as children gained access to more earning opportunities in the country. “By the mid 19th century, industrialisation had altered the lives of women and children as much as those of men (Hudson 2001).” This change in the social landscape had prompted more societal reforms in terms of old societal concepts such as gender, ethnicity and class. Because industrialization had given better chances for people to access privileges in the society, social movements toward addressing discrimination based on these concepts had been staged. “By the mid 19th century […] ideas of gender and ethnicity as well as class had changed (Hudson 2001).” III. Conclusion England, later part of the United Kingdom had experienced rapid progress and emergence as a superpower in the 19th and early 20th century through economic dominance. England’s expertise in trade as well as its expertise in maritime expedition contributed to this economic dominance. The industrial revolution was a huge force that contributed to the rapid progress of the nation. As UK’s economy developed, the political and social landscape’s changes soon followed. The industrial revolution had created new sets of consumers as the social landscape changed, and a force behind the reforms in the politics of the country. Major changes in the role of women as well as old societal concepts such as class, gender and ethnicity had been part of the impact of industrial revolution. Works Cited Central Intelligence Agency. “United Kingdom.” The World Factbook. CIA.gov. 2009 March 5. Accessed March 7, 2009 from Hobsbawm, Eric. Industry and Empire: The Birth of the Industrial Revolution. Rev. ed. New York: New Press, 1999. Hudson, Pat. “The Workshop of the World.” British History Victorians. BBC.co.uk. 2001 January 1. Accessed March 5, 2009 from Washington State University. “Introduction to 19th Century Socialism.” WSU.edu. 1998 March 31. Accessed March 5, 2009 from < http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/hum_303/socialism.html> Read More