Industrial Revolution

Question 1

Why did the Industrial Revolution occur?

Answer 1

The Industrial Revolution occurred as a result of a combination of political, economic, social and technological (PEST) factors.

Question 2

What were some political factors that contributed to the occurrence of the Industrial Revolution?

Answer 2

• Britain had a strong and stable government, which gave people the confidence to invest in businesses.
• Throughout the 1700s, Britain expanded its empire and this expansion gave the country access to raw materials such as cotton which was needed in industry
• Britain adopted the policy of mercantilism and ensure that its colonies only traded with Britain, thus increasing its wealth and power

Question 3

What were some economic factors that contributed to the occurrence of the Industrial Revolution?

Answer 3

• The expansion of Britain’s empire meant that Britain gained more access to raw materials which could be used in industry and in trade.
• The strong government also encouraged people to invest in businesses more.

Question 4

What were some social factors that contributed to the occurrence of the Industrial Revolution?

Answer 4

• urbanisation occurred, where an increasing number of people relocated to British cities from the countryside in search of work. This resulted in an increased demand for basic resources such as housing, infrastructure and food.
• the agricultural and textile industries were thus the first areas in which innovation occurred to meet the growing needs.

Question 5

What were some technological factors that contributed to the occurrence of the Industrial Revolution?

Answer 5

• the agricultural revolution, which was a period where farmers found more innovative and efficient ways to increase food production. The previous open field system was ineffective as there was always one field being left fallow (not in use).
• the new concept of enclosure meant that people farmed larger blocks of land, increasing food production.
• the norfolk crop rotation system meant that no field was ever left fallow.
• The changes in the agricultural industry meant that fewer labourers were required and the increased food production meant that the growing urban population could be fed, and it also resulted in greater profits for farmers, who could invest this money into other innovation.

Question 6

What was the enlightment?

Answer 6

A time period where thinkers began to challenge the traditional teachings of religious authorities.
- thinking became based on reason rather than belief
- new scientific theories and principles emerged during this time
- the enlightment also challenged the way countries were governed, for example the purpose of government, etc.

Question 7

What advances in economic thinking contributed to the industrial revolution?

Answer 7

• banking systems
• financial support
• low interest rates encourage people to take on risks on innovative technology

Question 8

What were some new inventions that boosted the Industrial Revolution?

Answer 8

• Spinning jenny
• factories
• internal combustion engine

Question 9

When was the spinning jenny invented and by who?

Answer 9

the spinning jenny was invented in 1764 by James Hargreaves, allowing for 8 threads to be spun at once.

Question 10

What was the effect of revolutionizing transport?

Answer 10

• roads
• canals
• railways
• steamships
  these inventions/improvements in transport resulted in much faster travel, which led to better communication, spread of ideas, spread of issues at the time such as political and social changes, and faster transportation of goods.

Question 11

What were the turnpike trusts?

Answer 11

the turnpike trusts were set up by the British government, they were groups which charged tolls and used the money for road resurfacing and repair as the roads were in bad condition and made travelling very difficult. This greatly improved the speed of travel, and it was especially beneficial for merchants and manufacturers whose profits increased with quicker road travel.

Question 12

When was the internal combustion engine developed and by who?

Answer 12

The internal combustion engine was developed by Etienne Lenoir in 1859 and its design formed the basics for all modern cars and engines.

Question 13

How did industrialization change how people worked?

Answer 13

Before the industrial revolution, over 80% of Britain’s population lived and worked in the countryside. After the introduction of enclosure, many people were forced to move to urban areas to work in newly built factories.

Question 14

What were working conditions like in factories?

Answer 14

• 12-16 hour long days
• low wages as factory owners wanted to earn as much as possible
• dangerous conditions as machines had no safety guards

Question 15

What was it like to work as a child labourer?

Answer 15

• child labour was a very prominent thing at the time because hiring children was very cheap.
• children were small and agile meaning they could fit under machinery and fix them when they needed repairing without having to turn the machine off
• they could fit into small tunnels in mines and often worked as trappers, bringing up ores and such.
• children who worked in mines often suffered physical deformities and long-term damage to their bodies due to constantly being exposed to raw materials and chemicals

Question 16

What was the Factory Act and when was it passed?

Answer 16

• passed in 1833 by the British government
• improved conditions for children working in factories
• stated that no children under 9 were allowed to work in textile factories and children between 9 and 13 were only permitted to work 8 hours a day.

Question 17

How did the Industrial Revolution change living conditions?

Answer 17

Industrialisation meant that most opportunities were in cities, so the urban population boomed.
- building companies constructed small, narrow, terraced houses, squeezing as many dwellings as they could
- houses did not have running water or indoor toilets and not much was done for sanitation
- cesspits were used to collect waste but the often overflowed and contaminated drinking water supplies
- epidemics of cholera and typhus

Question 18

Who challenged the status quo?

Answer 18

People such as Robert Owen, Friedrich Engels, Mary Wollstonecraft, and Charles Darwin challenged the status quo.

Question 19

What did Robert Owen do?

Answer 19

• he was an advocate for socialism and believed in looking after the welfare of his workers was just as important as making a profit for his company
• he was highly critical of child labour and stopped the employment of children under 10
• he set up a school for them to attend and made sure his workers had housing and access to doctors
• he’s “8 hours work, 8 hours recreation, 8 hours sleep” slogan was adopted by the 8 hours movement in Victoria in 1856.

Question 20

Who was Friedrich Engels?

Answer 20

• he advocated for people’s working conditions and rights through his book
• he spoke of their bad working conditions and minimum pay and how many were barely able to survive

Question 21

Who was Mary Wollstonecraft?

Answer 21

• she lacked formal education and so was self-taught.
• she advocated for equality and education for women
• she believed that men and women should be treated equally and that if women got the same chances as men, they could equally contribute to society

Question 22

Who was Charles Darwin?

Answer 22

• he wrote the book “On the Origin of Species”
• it was highly controversial as Darwin theorised that different species of plants and animals had evolved to suit their environment to ensure their survival.
• he called this natural selection.

Question 23

What political groups fought for social and political change?

Answer 23

• the women’s suffrage movement
• trade unions
• tolpuddle martyrs
• chartists
• luddites

Question 24

What was the women’s suffrage movement?

Answer 24

• women started to campaign for the right to vote and became known as suffragettes.
• many men did not believe that women were smart enough to understand politics and that they were too emotional to make important decisions.
• South Australia became the first place in the world to pass legislation allowing women to both vote and stand in parliament in 1894. British women got the right to vote in 1918.

Question 25

What were the trade unions?

Answer 25

• in 1799, the British government banned trade unions.
• workers still continued to illegally meet to fight for better working conditions and the laws banning trade unions were repealed in 1824

Question 26

Who were the Tolpuddle martyrs?

Answer 26

• George Loveless formed a friendly society after being prompted by the fall in farm labourers’ wages to support the farm workers of Tolpuddle
• those who joined sore an oath of secrecy in fear that they would get sacked
• the oath of secrecy ended up getting them arrested as a law passed in 1797 banning secret oaths
• in February 1834, six men were sentenced to 7 years transportation to Australia, however this was repealed in 1836.

Question 27

Who were the Chartists?

Answer 27

• the Chartists named themselves after the People’s Charter
• they called for all men to be able to vote as only people who owned land could vote at that time
• their 1842 petition was rejected
• by 1884, 2/3 of men were allowed to vote
• a universal suffrage bill for all men was passed in 1918.

Question 28

Who were the Luddites?

Answer 28

The luddites were protesters who objected to the use of machinery in the textile industry, as they reduced the need of skilled workers.
- from 1811 to 1817, they went about smashing machines
- severe punishments were introduced which reduced the number of riots
- 14 Luddites were hanged in 1813 for attacking William Cartwright’s mill.

Question 29

what was slavery like during the industrial revolution?

Answer 29

• by the 1750s, a third of the British merchant navy was involved in the slave trade.
• the British would trade with African kings for slaves, and gave them guns which gave them an advantage over other tribes
• the journey from Africa to America was know as the middle passage and took about 5 weeks.
• outbreaks could wipe out a quarter of the slaves before the reached their destination
• slaves were then inspected and sold once they arrived and those who were too weak or sick were left to die on the waterfront.

Question 30

When was slave trade abolished?

Answer 30

• in May 1787, the society for effecting the abolition of slave trade was formed
• in 1807, the British government banned the sale of slaves throughout its empire
• slavery itself was not banned until 36 years later (1843)

Question 31

How did the industrial revolution affect the environment?

Answer 31

the industrial revolution had devastating environmental impacts on the environment: it put pressure on natural resources as land was cleared, rivers were dammed and as pollution increased from the burning of fossil fuels (such as coal, oil and natural gas)

Question 32

how did the gold rush help australia during the industrial revolution?

Answer 32

the discovery of gold brought a flood of prospectors in the 1850s. as surface gold became scarcer, miners used steam engines to reach gold deeper underground. those who had profited from the gold rush also began to invest. This aided the development of the local industry and manufacturing which in turn sustained cities such as Ballarat and Bendigo.

Question 33

why was Australia riding on the sheep’s back?

Answer 33

• Pastoralist John Macarthur introduced merino sheep to Australia. These sheep flourished in Australia
• by 1815, Australia was exporting 30 tonnes of wool per year. by 1849, this had increased to 14800 tonnes.
• This prosperity brought by wool experts gave rise to the idiom that Australia was ‘riding on the sheep’s back’.

Question 34

What was the 8 hour movement?

Answer 34

• the 8 hour movement started in victoria in 1856.
• stonemasons stopped work and marched to parliament house, demanding that the work day be limited to eight hours.
• the government agreed to this without reducing wages
  this is why labor day is celebrated as a public holiday. This concept did not become widespread across the rest of Australia until the 1920s.