The Industrial Revolution and European Prosperity

The Industrial Revolution was a period of significant transformation in Europe from 1750 to 1914. This essay examines the factors that led to the revolution, including increased agricultural production, inventions such as the steam engine, and urbanization. The consequences of the revolution were far-reaching, with entrepreneurs and owners becoming wealthy while workers faced poor conditions and long hours. Reformers sought to address these issues through legislative reforms and the establishment of political parties. Ultimately, the Industrial Revolution had a profound impact on European prosperity, leading to increased standard of living, life expectancy, and leisure time.

HIS122 EUROPEAN HISTORY
The Industrial Revolution and the economic and social situation in Europe.
The Industrial Revolution, a period of major changes in agriculture, technology and
transportation, lasted from about 1750 to 1914 and radically changed the economic and social
situation in Europe. In this essay, I'll speak about how it came about and what those changes
meant in terms of eventual European prosperity.
The revolution came about gradually as a result of several factors. One of the causes
was increased agricultural production, particularly in England and other parts of Western
Europe, as farms consolidated with other farms to increase in size and practice crop rotation.
This led to more food sustenance for larger populations, which in turn produced more
consumer demand. A middle class was to emerge through these developments, which would
also fuel the industrial revolution, since those who were wealthier within the middle class
were eager to invest in inventors and entrepreneurs who wanted to change technology toward
mass production.
Certain inventions for turning manual labor into machine work and producing energy
for machines were key in making the revolution happen. The steam engine, originally
invented by Thomas Newcomen and later perfected by James Watt, is often considered the
most important. Steam power began to replace water power for mills which produced food
and other materials, notably cotton. Steam engines also changed the way transportation took
place. Boats and railroads used steam to operate and these means of transportation increased
the possibility to trade and transport raw materials and goods, which in turn increased the
demand for production.
As factories were built to satisfy these demands, and people could migrate more easily
due to transportation, (especially the railroad), urbanization took place as a result. In Great
Britain, for example, important industrial cities, like Liverpool and Manchester emerged.

Historians agree that the industrial revolution began in Great Britain, rich in natural resources
such as coal and iron, and having a network of rivers and harbors. The revolution was
furthered in Britain because of its trading activities, since it already had an established trading
enterprise, the British East India Company, in operation since the 17th century. Britain also
had a network for investment through its London Stock Exchange and this was likewise an
important factor in developing industry.
Other countries would follow suit and throughout Europe, the increasing urbanization
and development of a working class brought with it radical economic and social changes.
Economically, the entrepreneurs and owners of production became very wealthy. The
working class of laborers which had emerged however did not see the benefits of this wealth
for the first hundred years of the revolution. Workers were paid low wages and worked long
hours. The increasing demands for production brought women and children into factories as
well where they were often exploited. Engels knew of these poor conditions and together
with Marx, sought to change the economic situations through a socialist system which would
eventually take root in the 20th century. However, still during the Industrial revolution,
reformers such as Eduard Berstein in Germany sought to make changes through legislative
reforms, which led to the birth of political parties such as democratic socialism and labour
parties, which eventually advanced the rights of workers to insure that they had a liveable
minimum wage and fixed working hours. But this was a long time in coming and during the
first half of the 19th century, many people in cities were living in poverty.
There were other social problems as well, because the increase in population and
production in cities led to an increase in waste. In Great Britain, social reformer Edwin
Chadwick was active in getting factories to improve their sewage systems but he couldn't
prevent the Great Stick in the hot summer of 1858, caused by so many factories emptying
sewage into the Thames. The spread of disease was a problem as well, given the dense

populations and poor sanitary conditions. Over time, this would also improve. People who
moved to the city from the country were not always comfortable in the new environment and
had lost freedom by working long hours for someone else. The role of the family changed
when members no longer worked together on a farm but were working for different
companies with little time to be together.
There is debate as to whether the industrial revolution was materially enriching and
liberating for most people or whether it brought impoverishment and misery. The socialists
and communists might view it as further exploitation of the have-nots by the haves and point
to the abuse of children and the near slavery status of many workers left to live in abject
poverty while the wealthy got wealthier as evidence. But capitalists view it as a positive
development in fulfilling human needs. In the long run, people were much better off thanks to
the industrial revolution. While it took time for reforms to be made, when they were, people
eventually found themselves able to buy more types of commodites and their standard of
living increased. Life expectancy also increased over time because hard labor was done by
machines. What's more, with labor reforms, people found themselves with new leisure time,
and new activities emerged that served human needs. In England, a football cassociation was
formed and in the second half of the 19th century, football and rugby became professional
spectator sports. There was time for literature as well and other forms of entertainment
emerged, like circuses and theatre. All of this helped to make the industrial revolution a
major achievement for people in the long run.