causes of the mid-victorian boom

Question 1

agriculture in 1851

Answer 1

-was the cornerstone of British wealth ‘where plants grow and animals feed’
-landowners dominated the lords
-issues came about after moving to free trade and competed by other nations

Question 2

high farming in Britain

Answer 2

-mixed farming: crops and animals
-used artificial fertilisers and machinery
-development of animal husbandry- pedigree brands like Hereford and Aberdeen Angus recognised for their high quality

Question 3

trade and industry in mid-victorian boom

Answer 3

-the great exhibition in 1851 (at the Crystal Palace): demonstrated British manufacturing and cutting-edge steam machines
-demonstrated: lancashire cotton and the unsinkable deck chair
-experienced 20 year boom of economic prosperity

Question 4

external causes of the mid-victorian boom

Answer 4

-led the way in steamships and railways
-germany not united until 1871
-america occupied with the civil war in the 1860s
-the empire: provided a secure market and cheap raw materials
-invisible trade industry: shipping, banking, finance and insurance

Question 5

success of the mid-victorian boom

Answer 5

-1851-68, dominated 25% of total trade
-invisible trade: many foreign imports but use of shipping had no effect on balance of payments

Question 6

problems of the mid-victorian boom

Answer 6

-developed many industries in other countries
-these countries would later become their rivals

Question 7

railways in the mid-victorian boom

Answer 7

-stimulated iron and steel industries
-new coalfields developed
-benefitted agriculture: new markets opened up
-benefitted manufacturing: fast transportation of goods for exports
-tracks and machinery benefitted exports

Question 8

shipping in the mid-victorian boom

Answer 8

-dominated merchant shipping
-shipbuilding job creation: Tyneside, Glasgow, Belfast, liverpool
-opening up of the Suez Canal in 1869: benefitted British shipping as they were narrow enough to fit

Question 9

cotton in the mid-victorian boom

Answer 9

-based in Lancashire
-cotton production idoubled from 1850s to 1870s
-cotton famine due to USA civil war
-raw materials began to come from India

Question 10

coal in the mid-victorian boom

Answer 10

-vital for steam power
-production increased from 60m tonnes in 1855 to 109m tonnes in 1870
-America and germany began mechanising their coal industry whereas Britain still cutting coal by hand

Question 11

iron and steel in Mid-Victorian boom

Answer 11

-production increased from 2.9m in 1855 to 5.9m in 1875
-Sheffield produced 90% of British iron and steel and 50% of europe
-British engineers began innovating to become more productive
-USA and Germany would steal their new ideas and become rivals