Dear Jentleman,
There are numerous reasons for the evolution of the industrial
revolution in Great Britain and not elsewhere. Many point to the
financial structure in Britain at the time, which favoured the
development of industrial innovations. This is also in comparison to
other countries, which were not stable at that period (France), or
whose sources of riches were concentrated elsewhere (Spain, Portugal).
This also includes the concentration in Britain of the resources
needed for the Industrial Revolution to evolve:
"According to those who've studied this turning-point in world
history, the following conditions had to exist before the first phase
of the Industrial Revolution could occur:
- Population with "modern" attitudes towards work: to create the
combination of factory work and urban life required, one needed a
population no longer tied to the land and specific places. Without
changes in attitudes towards place, one could not find a workforce
willing to move from the country to the city.
- Literacy: Such a revolutionary change in kinds of work also required
people who could read and write.
- Widely available printed materials, particularly including those
with technical diagrams: simple literacy could not enable the exchange
of information and receptivity to it required for fundamental economic
and industrial change. Many technical advances required (a) multiple
copies of (b) mechanically reproduced technical texts and diagrams
that were (c) comparatively inexpensive. Such widely available
materials, which high-speed printing made possible increasingly after
1850, produced enormous growth of amateur scientific, engineering, and
other technological innovations. (Ivins)
- An easily commercializable product needed by -- and affordable by --
many people: Cotton, little used until the technology to manufacture
it cheaply, proved such a product desirable at home and abroad.
- Adequate transportation and communication: in eighteenth-century
Britain "transportation and communication were comparatively easy and
cheap, since no part of Britain is more than seventy miles away from
the sea, and even less from some navigable waterway" (Hobsbawm, 17).
- Markets: England and countries in similar conditions had to have
access to both local and international economies.
- Government commitment to subordinate foreign policy to economic
ends" (Source: "The Industrial Revolution: An Introduction"
<http://65.107.211.206/technology/ir/ir1.html>).
"The Industrial Revolution, one of the most vital periods of change in
Great Britain, occurred because of the stable economic, social, and
political stance of the country, as well as brought lasting effects in
Britain in each of these areas. With its fast growing monopoly on
ocean trade, its renewed interest in scientific discovery, and its
system of national banks holding tight to its financial security,
Britain was, at the time of the Industrial Revolution, ripe for
change. It was the great historical epoch we call the Industrial
Revolution which would forever change city life, social class
structure, the power of the British nation amongst others of the
world, the production of machinery, and the strength of the economy of
Britain. Because of the Industrial Revolution, never again would the
British have to suffer the results of no changes regarding the
inequalities of the working world, nor doubt the strength of their
country, yet come to view the word "technology" in a completely new
way." (Source: "The Industrial Revolution in Britain"
<www.midthun.com/the.htm>).
Further Sources
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Industrial Revolution: The Industrial Revolution in Great Britain
www.factmonster.com/ce6/history/A0858818.html
The Industrial Revolution and the Failure of Great Britain
http://65.107.211.206/technology/ir/ir7.html
Frommers.com : Destinations : Great Britain : In Depth : The
Industrial Revolution & The Reign of Victoria. Great Britain.
www.frommers.com/destinations/ greatbritain/2498026795.html
Internet Modern History Sourcebook: Industrial Revolution
www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/modsbook14.html
History & Government Division - Industrial Revolution (Great Britain)
www.vpl.vancouver.bc.ca/branches/LibrarySquare/
his/StudyGuides/industrial.html
My search terms were "great britain" with "industrial revolution" and
"pre conditions OR preconditions".
I hope this answer helped you. Please let me know if you need
clarifications on it. I'd be pleased to clarify my answer before you
rate it. |
