Its citizens also had to learn how to manufacture many of the goods they needed themselves, as they could no longer purchase them from their neighbours, thereby forcing the introduction and development of new ideas. Britain also had the people to exploit these resources through their innovative new industrialists. Many were non-conformists, isolated from the rest of society and unable to enter fields like politics, so they chose to shine through business and industry. The British Government at the time was purposefully laissez-faire towards business, allowing it to develop by itself, making Britain arguably freer to develop than most countries, enabling the new industrialists to prosper.
Agrarian Revolution
Change and development is continious in the history of any nation .In some conditions development
Is so slow that the pattern of society barely seems to change in the course of centuries.At other times
Circumstances combine to alter social and economic life so rapidly that the change can be noted in the
Life of an individual. After centuries of comparatively slow development in Britain, from the middle of
The 18th century ,became involved in a series of rapid agrarian and industrial changes which both to
Contemporaries and to after generations appeared revolutionary.
The factors which brought about the greatest changes in the existing system were the adoption of new
Farming techniques ,machines and methods , the enclosure of open fields and the growing population.
New farming techniques consisted of improvements in crop rotation , soil fertilization and selective
Breeding allied with the development of new machinery.
Four names are commonly associated with these innovations:
Jethro Tull (1674-1741) is best remembered for the invention of the seed drill, which planted in rows, rather than broadcasting, thus allowing hoeing between rows.
Charles Townsgend ( 1674-1738) introduced marl a mixture of clay and lime -to his sandy Norfolk estates. He advocated the use of turnips
as fodder as an addition to traditional rotational crops.
Robert Bakewell (1725-1795) pioneered selective breeding and developed quick-fattening sheep for mutton.
Thomas Coke ( 1725-1842) set out to educate farmers in new methods. He initiated agricultural shows and encouraged his tenant farmers to improve their methods by granting them long leases.
In 1750 much of the British countryside was farmed by an open field system. This suited a system geared to subsistence farming. Large open fields were divided into strips either owned by freeholders or rented from the local squire by tenants. However, open fields farming was in some way wasteful. It often meant long walks between a farmer's different parcels of land and the loss of acreage to path and tracks among the fields. It encouraged the spread of weeds and plant diseases. Fields were susceptible to damage from unfenced animals which also made selective breeding impossible .This open field system was not found everywhere. Enclosure meant joining the strips of open field to make larger compact pieces of land. Half the country was already enclosured , especially the areas catering for the markets of large cities such as London. . Some farmers had bought or exchanged land in order to facilitate enclosure. The extent of this enclosure is difficult to document as opposed to the later Parliamentary enclosures which were the climax of the transformation of British agriculture. There were two great periods of enclosure -the 1760s and '70s and the period of the Napoleonic Wars from 1793-1815. In both cases the timing was due to the opportunities for greater profits due to high cereal prices and the initiative was taken by large landowners. Prior to 1740 most land was enclosed by agreement between the major landowners but where smaller landowners opposed it an Act of Parliament had to be obtained. After 1750 this became the accepted practice.
The effects of enclosure were both economic and social. Enclosure facilitated new agricultural methods and led to more land under cultivation. It enabled livestock farming to work in tandem with arable farming and encouraged selective breeding. However, it meant a decline in the number of small landowners and cottagers and many farm labourers left for the industrialising cities. This migration away from the land was compensated for by the increased volume and regularity of employment for those who remained. There was still little labour saving machinery and enclosure meant work putting up fences and hedges, building new farms, and making roads to transport the increased volume of produce. The numbers engaged in agriculture rose from 1.7 million in 1801 to 2.1 million in 1851, but this did not match the increase in agricultural output. This meant that farm labourers were becoming more productive, which coupled with the rise in population, released workers from the land.
When assessing the changes in agriculture between 1750 and 1815 it is also important to look at its relationship with industry. In fact there were no direct links - both helped each other. True, the growth in population created a greater demand for agricultural products but at the same time farmers embraced new methods and often helped to finance improved transport systems which allowed them to feed the workers of the ever-expanding industrial cities. Landowners exploited the mineral deposits under their land, or used it for developing urban estates. Money was also moved from country banks to the cities. At the same time some industrialists invested in agriculture, sensing the possibility of high profits.
In conclusion it can be seen that in as much as there was an agrarian revolution between 1750 and 1815 it was a slow one, and a continuation of earlier changes. There was a diffusion of new ideas , but it was hindered by the considerable regional differences in agricultural practice. However, the uniquely English system of landholding was well suited to change. Large landowners had the capital to invest in innovation. It was in the interest of the tenant-farmers to change their existing methods and there was a large rural labour force on hand to carry out the changes. The end of the open field system and the enclosure of previously unusable land meant that during this period the acreage of cultivable land increased. Finally, all this meant that agriculture was able to sustain the increased demand for food caused by the growth in population, while itself reaping some of the rewards of The Industrial Revolution.
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a revolution which included the change of industrial methods of productivity. Its most significant issue was the development of new inventions their fast spreading. Moreover, it was a drastic transformation from " work done by hand to work done by machine " and it also changed the system of production: from the domestic to the factory system.
The first Industrial Revolution: a) " Iron and Coal, Steam and Textile "
Iron and Coal:
A major breakthrough in the use of coal occurred in 1709 at Coalbrookedale in the valley of the Severn River. There English industrialist Abraham Darby successfully used coke-a high-carbon, converted form of coal-to produce iron from iron ore. Using coke eliminated the need for charcoal, a more expensive, less efficient fuel. Metal makers thereafter discovered ways of using coal and coke to speed the production of raw iron, bar iron, and other metals.
These advances in metalworking were an important part of industrialization. They enabled iron, which was relatively inexpensive and abundant, to be used in many new ways, such as building heavy machinery. Iron was well suited for heavy machinery because of its strength and durability. Because of these new developments iron came to be used in machinery for many industries.
b) Steam :
If iron was the key metal of the Industrial Revolution, the steam engine was perhaps the most important machine technology.
