The Modern Age in Europe — Industrial Revolution
ICSE Class 9 · History & Civics · Chapter 18
What this chapter covers
- Definition of the Industrial Revolution
- Causes of the Industrial Revolution: why England came first
- Causes of the Industrial Revolution: inventions and new sources of power
- Capitalism: meaning
- Causes for the rise of capitalism
- Socialism: meaning
- Causes for the rise of socialism
Key points
- The Industrial Revolution was the change from hand production at home to machine production in factories, which began in England in the second half of the eighteenth century.
- It is called a revolution because it changed the source of power, the place of work, the scale of production and the structure of society.
- The domestic system was replaced by the factory system, in which workers ran machines owned by an employer for a wage.
- England came first because of the Agricultural Revolution and enclosures, a growing population, plentiful capital and banks, colonies and overseas markets, coal and iron, good waterways and harbours, and a stable government.
- Inventions in textiles (flying shuttle, spinning jenny, water frame, spinning mule, power loom), Watt's steam engine, new methods of iron-making and new forms of transport made mass production possible.
- Capitalism is the system of private ownership of the means of production, run for profit in a free, competitive market.
- Capitalism rose because of the growth of trade, the large investment the factory system needed, the decline of feudalism and guilds, banks and joint-stock companies, profits from colonies, a rising middle class and laissez-faire ideas.
- Socialism is the system of community or state ownership of the means of production, run for the welfare of all and aimed at equality.
- Socialism rose as a reaction to exploitation of workers, child labour, slums, unequal wealth and unemployment, helped by trade unions, class consciousness and the ideas of Owen, Marx and Engels.
Questions answered
Define the Industrial Revolution.
The Industrial Revolution is the far-reaching change in the methods of production that began in England in the second half of the eighteenth century, in which goods came to be made by power-driven machines in factories instead of by hand in homes and small workshops.
Why is the Industrial Revolution described as a revolution although it was gradual and peaceful?
Its results were as deep and lasting as those of a political revolution: the source of power, the place of work, the quantity of goods produced and the structure of society all changed completely.
What was the domestic system? Why did it give way to the factory system?
The domestic system was the method in which workers made goods by hand in their own homes with simple tools, usually for a merchant. It gave way because its output was small and slow, and it could not meet the rapidly growing demand for goods once power-driven machines, too large and costly for a cottage, were invented.
How did the enclosure movement supply labour for the factories?
Enclosure fenced off common lands and open fields into large private farms. Small farmers and labourers who lost their land and grazing rights moved to the towns in search of work and became factory workers.
State two ways in which colonies helped Britain to industrialise.
Colonies supplied cheap raw materials such as cotton, indigo and timber, and they served as protected markets for British manufactured goods.
Name the inventors of the flying shuttle, the spinning jenny and the power loom.
The flying shuttle was invented by John Kay, the spinning jenny by James Hargreaves, and the power loom by Edmund Cartwright.
How did the presence of coal and iron help England?
Coal was the fuel for steam engines and for smelting iron, and iron was needed for machines, rails and bridges. Since the deposits often lay close together, both could be used cheaply.
What is meant by capitalism?
Capitalism is an economic system in which the means of production are privately owned and run by individuals or companies to earn profit, while production, prices and wages are decided mainly by competition in a free market.