Industrial Revolution in Britain - Essay Example

Industrial Revolution in Britain. Student’s Name Institution Industrial Revolution in Britain. Industrial revolution can be defined as the transition to new manufacturing processes that took place between the years 1760-1840. It can also be defined as the era in which fundamental changes took place in all kinds of industries ranging from textile all the way to social structure. The period is referred to as revolution simply because it thoroughly destroyed the old culture of doing things (Stalcup, 2002). Though the changes were thorough, they happened so gradually. It is widely believed that 1790 is the eve of this revolution but, the actual eve of industrial revolution started two centuries before this said date. It helped revolutionize the whole of Britain and economic changes were visible (Nardo, 2009). In order for this industrial revolution to take place, there were a lot of forces included (Hartwell, 1967). Firstly, one of the forces in place was relatively good level of elementary education (Stalcup, 2002). It goes without saying that then; education was of poor standard than that of today. This said and done, it is argued that Britain in Eighteenth century had a higher level of literacy and numeracy across the population compared to the other countries in Europe (Pawson, 1979). This was an asset in the Britain setup and they later used it to their advantage. It is widely recognized that the great inventors and entrepreneurs had somehow acquired the basic education and skills. They all had the basic skills that enabled them to start on their inventory journeys. They later improved their skills independently. This was the first stepping stone that Britain gladly embraced. It is this elementary education that proved to be the difference between Britain and the rest of Europe. The second force that led to the industrial revolution is advantageous government policy (Hartwell, 1967). For any business to flourish leave alone a revolution to occur, there must be favorable government policies in place (Stalcup, 2002). During the Seventeenth and Eighteenth century the Britain government and its private sectors advocated for better economic policies. It is through these policies that they were able to maximize the benefits of the national interests. The colonies that Britain acquired and defended had economic advantage to their economy. They only colonized all those countries that they had economic benefits to them. Any commercial regulation that was to be implemented or adopted was carefully twisted to suit and help British merchants and the shipping interest. All the wars and peace treaties that Britain engaged in were to help maximize the trading advantages. It is through all these favorable policies that the British entrepreneurs were able to thrive immensely. As a result of their success the country was able to move forward. The availability of raw materials and balance was another factor that led to the revolution (Stalcup, 2002). Britain being a small island was endowed with a wide variety of natural resources that were easy to exploit and also were very well located. Due to the abundance of the resources in Britain they were in a position to export some of them to the overseas markets (Hartwell, 1967). This gave them room to exploit more so as to fully satisfy the external demands. Ores of many metals were widely distributed all over the island. It is through the vigorous mining that to some way led to revolution of the smelting industries (Stalcup, 2002). The availability of coals as a raw material helped Britain move away from any fuel crisis like the one experienced during the Seventeenth century. The exploitation of coal helped them in providing cheap fuel alternative which went a long way in revolutionizing the manufacturing and transport sectors. Technology progress all over Europe was heading towards great power generation and heat use which put Britain at an advantageous position to take the lead. Security, social, and material acquisitiveness is another factor that immensely contributed to the industrial revolution in Britain (Hartwell, 1967).In the seventeenth century, a lot had happened that had effects on the eventual revolution (Nardo, 2009). They had experienced many changes in the political system, civil war, the Commonwealth, and the establishment of parliament after a long power struggle with the monarchy. The system provided ample room for prospering for all people even those who were not much into politics. True social acceptability was still achieved if one was an owner of land. The fact that Britain did not suffer from the federal structures which hindered the prosperity of the middle class helped them keep the dream of economic success. Through this the spirit of capitalism was enhanced due to the fact that the rewards for the successful people were there. Security helped them invest without fear and this went a long way in helping them establish an economic powerhouse in Europe. The other factors that came in handy to enhance the revolution were agricultural revolution, transport revolution and the financial revolution (Stalcup, 2002). For the transport revolution it helped in maintaining that raw materials were transported to the overseas or the local market. For mass demand of raw proper transport system has to be established. This will also help in transporting the finished good to their designated markets. Britain was able to substitute the ineffective methods with more effective ones. For agricultural revolution it helped open up more opportunities for the raw materials. It also helped in maintaining the supply of raw materials both locally and internationally. There was also the revolution in the ways of farming which led to more production with time. This revolution also helped Britain to become food sufficient. This helped a big way in concentrating with more development. Just like the other kinds of revolution Britain experienced a financial revolution. Stable financial organization were established which helped provide financial help to entrepreneurs and manufacturers. There were various small financial organizations all over the country. This helped in the mobilization of funds to the grass root levels. These institutions helped them to save thus helping them have financial security in the future. All these said and done, the effects of the industrial revolution way felt far and wide. The economy of Britain was affected a big way by the industrial revolution. Some of the effects of the industrial revolution were the growth and emergence of urban centers. This emergence led to other services. For the proper management of the newly established urban centers there was the need to have effective municipal services. The municipal services have helped a big deal in facilitating the effective transformation of the urban centers. Proper management of the urban towns has helped in getting the most out of them. Hospitals have been opened and funded thus helping in improving the health care. This helped Britain become a healthy nation thus giving them room for more concentration on technology advancement. This helped in creating a more independent economic life thus liberating the workers from the challenges that face their rural counterparts. Relations between capital and labor were aggravated. Industrial revolution provided the required economic base of professions, population expansion, and the ultimate goal of improving the standards of living (Taylor, 1975). People became professions in their field of work as more and more people specialists. Specialization in any line of work has a lot of disadvantages. Some of them are that it leads to more production as one becomes more and more effective. Also the quality of the goods and services provided are high. This led to an increase in the demand for goods produced in Britain. As a result, it led to more job opportunities being created for the local. High production means one is able a larger market is being targeted. This helped the economy of the country as more foreign currencies were acquired through trade. More currency means better services provided by the government. On the part of population expansion, there are services that were experienced. To begin with the population expansion was brought about by improvement of the health services. An increase in population in any country means an increase in demand of the commodities and Britain was no different. The population expansion helped in creating a local market for the manufactured goods. This made the more and more industries to be opened so as to cater for the other services needed. An increase in industries means an increase in the job opportunities. This translates to an increase in the revenue collected from the individuals and the businesses all together. The revenue collected was able to help the government plan for the future and improve the services provided. Population expansion also meant that the human resource was in abundance. This made it possible for the companies to plan without fear of lack of labor. Availability of job opportunities in Britain translated to a higher living standard (Taylor, 1975). This means that the economy of Britain was able to grow as people had money to spend. Better health care services and infrastructure had to go hand in hand with the improved living standards. Infrastructure improvements helped in easing the challenges of transporting raw materials. This helped the business to keep running and in return people were assured of getting employed. This revolution also led to the technological advancement. The country had to figure out how to keep up with the technology requirements. As the country, embarked on a journey to exploit the minerals available, challenges arose and effective solutions had to be found. These solutions were technological and needed better and more sophisticated instruments. This led to engineers designing the required materials to enhance the exploitation. They were able to harness all the available materials and minerals for their use. Britain being among the best developed countries in Europe by then, it was able to export man power to the up and coming economies. This increase foreign currency and the people of Britain were able to work outside the country as they were the only people conversant with the use of their machines. This helped open up market for their newly acquired machines and other products. Education was also another field that benefited from the industrial revolution. There was immediate need for further studies as the elementary education was not enough to take Britain further ahead economically. This led to the establishment of institutions of higher learning all over the island. This helped in equipping the students with the required skills to prosper in the outside world. It also helped people come up with new ideas and innovations. People were also equipped with the necessary skills that helped them plan for the future. They were also able to understand how to invest and save which went a long way in helping the country achieve the economic goals. Better education led to higher goods produced. It also led to more people specializing in various fields which also led to better production and high quality goods. Education also helped in enhancing the transfer of knowledge to the future generations thus guarantying continuity in economic developments. It is due to the various industrial revolutions that we have the current developments all over the world.Industrial revolution are still there although not as vibrant as it was during the past centuries. The difference between developments in various continents can be attributed to industrial revolutions and the time it was experienced. References Hartwell, R. M. (1967). The causes of the Industrial Revolution in England;. London: Methuen. Honeyman, K. (1993, April 1). Britain's Industrial Revolution.. Business History, 5, 58. Hudson, P. (1989). Regions and industries: a perspective on the industrial revolution in Britain. Cambridge [England: Cambridge University Press. Nardo, D. (2009). The industrial revolution in Britain. Detroit: Lucent Books. Pawson, E. (1979). The early industrial revolution: Britain in the eighteenth century. New York: Barnes & Noble Books. Stalcup, B. (2002). The Industrial Revolution. San Diego: Greenhaven Press. Taylor, A. J. (1975). The Standard of living in Britain in the Industrial Revolution. London: Methuen. Read More