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Industrial Revolution: Great Britain
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The Industrial Revolution unfolded in the United States even more vigorously than it had in Great Britain. The young nation began as a weak, loose association of former colonies with a traditional economy. More than three-quarters of the labor force worked in agriculture in 1790. Americans soon enjoyed striking success in mechanization.... This was clear in 1851 when producers from many nations gathered to display their industrial triumphs at the first World’s Fair, at the Crystal Palace in London. There, it was the work of Americans that attracted the most attention.
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The Industrial Revolution began in Great Britain for several reasons. The country had large deposits of coal and iron, the two natural resources on which early industrialization largely depended. Other industrial raw materials came from Great Britain's colonies. By the mid-1700's, the country had become the world's leading colonial power. Great Britain's colonies not only provided raw materials, but ... provided markets for manufactured products. These colonial markets helped stimulate the textile and iron industries, which were probably the two most important industries during the Industrial Revolution.
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During the Industrial Revolution, advances were made in transportation and communication. In Britain, roads made of longer-lasting surfaces and canals connected all parts of the nation. A mining engineer, George Stephenson, developed the first steam-powered locomotive, opening the way for the building of railroads. Railroads and steam-powered ships improved transportation around the world. In 1837, an American inventor, Samuel F.B. Morse, devised the telegraph, which revolutionized communications.
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The first Industrial Revolution occurred in Great Britain at the end of the 18th century; it profoundly altered Britain's economy and society. The most immediate changes were in the nature of production: what was produced, as well as where and how. Labor was transferred from the production of primary products to the production of manufactured goods and services. Far more manufactured goods were produced than ever before, and technical efficiency rose dramatically. In part, the growth in productivity was achieved by systematic application of scientific and practical knowledge to the manufacturing process. Efficiency was ... enhanced when large agglomerations of enterprises were located within limited areas.
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The Industrial Revolution began in Great Britain because social, political, and legal conditions there were particularly favorable to change. Property rights, such as those for patents on mechanical improvements, were well established. More importantly, the predictable, stable rule of law in Britain meant that monarchs and aristocrats were less likely to arbitrarily seize earnings or impose taxes than they were in many other countries. As a result, earnings were safer, and ambitious businesspeople could gain wealth, social prestige, and power more easily than could people on the European continent. These factors encouraged risk taking and investment in new business ventures, both crucial to economic growth.
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Because the first Industrial Revolution occurred in Great Britain, that country became for a time the workshop of the world. For much of the 18th century, London had been at the center of a complex world trade network that became the basis for the growing export trade associated with industrialization. The export market provided an indispensable outlet for the products of the textile and other industries, where the introduction of new techniques led to a rapid expansion of output. The available data suggest that the growth rate of British exports accelerated markedly after 1780. The export orientation of the expanding trades conferred additional benefits on the growing economy: Export revenues provided British producers purchasing power to import raw materials used in industrial production, and merchants engaged in the export trade acquired skills that proved to be of great value in promoting domestic commerce.
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