The industrial Revolution began in Great Britain but spread to all of Europe and to North America. It began in the 1760s and ended in the 1840s. The European lower and middle class were the group of people that the Industrial Revolution mainly involved. Many entrepreneurs and upper class people owned the factories during this time.
Industrial revolution
Before the Industrial Revolution Europe was predominantly rural, farming land but after the Industrial Revolution it became industrialized and urban. Prior to the Industrial Revolution, manufacturing was often done in people’s homes, using hand tools or basic machines. That period was known as the Cottage System. Industrialization marked a shift to powered machinery, factories and mass production. The iron and textile industries, along with the development of the steam engine, played central roles in the Industrial Revolution. Which also caused improved systems of transportation, communication, and banking. While industrialization brought about an increased volume and variety of manufactured goods and an improved standard of living for some, it also often resulted in bad working and living conditions for the poor and working classes.
Causes
Coal and Iron deposits were plentiful in Great Britain and proved essential to the development of all new machines made of iron or steel and powered by coal. The Enlightenment and the Scientific Revolution encouraged scholars and craftspeople to apply new scientific thinking to mechanical and technological challenges. The Agricultural Revolution occurred shortly before the Industrial revolution. It resulted in an increased population. Population growth resulted in more people needing jobs, so many people came from the countryside to the city looking for work. Government Policies in Great Britain encouraged innovation and the spread of global trade. The government also created patent laws so inventors could benefit financially from their inventions.
Long term effects
A major population increase occurred after the Agricultural Revolution. Before the Industrial Revolution England was mostly farming but after the country was industrialized. Overall this revolution makes the country even more stable. Adam Smith develops a form of government where the economy is controlled by individual households and privately owned businesses. The invention of the Steam Engine changed transportation drastically. According to History.com "the Steam Engine went on to power machinery, locomotives, and ships during the Industrial Revolution.". James Watt developed the Steam Engine in 1763, he increased efficiency with this machine and it was more applicable and economical. From the 1750s to the 1820s the effects of the Industrial Revolution are very good and people are happy but from the 1820s to the early 1900s life gets very hard for the middle/lower class. But overall the Industrial Revolution produces inventions that modernize the world.