Industrial Revolution: Causes, Elements, and Impact

The Industrial Revolution

Causes

• Population Growth: Living conditions improved due to advances in nutrition, hygiene, and medicine.
• Agricultural Improvements: Land increased agricultural production because it created larger farms. New machinery was introduced.
• Increased Trade: Great Britain's dominance of maritime trade led to transatlantic commerce.
• Technological Progress: New machinery was established in factories to produce goods more quickly.
• Financial Support From Agriculture And Trade: Agriculture and commercial activities provided capital that could be invested in industry.
• Favorable Political And Social Structure: The Bourgeoisie was allowed to promote measures that advanced its economic interest.

Key Elements for Industrialization

• Textile Industry: Technological innovations, such as spinning and weaving machines, increased the amount of cotton produced. This led to lower prices.
• Iron And Steel Production: Production of iron and steel led to large quantities of fuel. Innovations such as the Bessemer converter allowed factories to produce larger quantities of steel.
• Transport: The invention of the steam locomotive, the development of commercial steamships, and the opening of the first public railway made it possible to transport goods quickly.

Industrialization in Europe

The first countries to industrialize were Germany, France, and Belgium because they had iron and coal, a growing population, and railway networks.

Industrialization in Spain

It happened more slowly than in other countries due to the following factors:

• Spanish coal deposits were of poor quality.
• Spain was less technologically advanced.
• Great Britain and France invested in the Spanish railways and mining industry.

Economic Liberalism and Industrial Capitalism

Economic Liberalism

Economic Liberalism is the theory that production and free trade are essential conditions for economic growth and development. It was based on the ideas of Adam Smith, who believed that the state should not interfere with the economy.

Industrial Capitalism

Industrial Capitalism is a system which puts the ideas of economic liberalism into practice. Trade had been the most important source of profits, but under capitalism, production became a country's most profitable economic activity.

A Class-Based Society

A new type of social organization emerged in Europe which replaced the traditional estates system. This new class depended on their work, wealth, and their status.

Origins of Class-Based Society

As a result of the French Revolution, the privileges enjoyed by the clergy and the nobility were abolished. The Industrial Revolution increased the importance of the bourgeoisie, who became the owners of factories and businesses. A new social group appeared: the working class, also known as the proletariat.

Marxism

Also known as socialism, this ideology was developed by Karl Marx and was based on:

• Class struggle
• Dictatorship of the proletariat
• Communism

Anarchism

The idea of Mikhail Bakunin. He rejected the dictatorship of the proletariat and proposed:

• Individual freedom
• Communes
• Direct action