Population and Society in the 18thC Flashcards
What is an issue with studying 18th century demography?
18th century demographic data is almost none-existent and at the best patchy for everywhere but England
What is an issue with Scottish and Irish demographic studies?
Scottish and Irish demographic studies come from Sinclair’s Analysis of the Statistical Account of Scotland (1825) or from Hearth taxes, and are therefore very narrow
How is English demography of the 18th century usually studied?
English demography of the 18th century is largely studied via a sample of 404 parishes which are incredibly representative from 1993
What is a drawback of the 404 parish sample?
The 404 parish sample does have too few small parishes and too many large ones
What are the two ways of analysing demography pre-censuses?
Pre-census demographic studies can use inverse protection or back projection
What is inverse projection?
inverse projection estimates the size & age of population from trends or events
What is back projection?
Back projection back dates and revises the age structure the derive ‘earlier’ censuses at 5 year intervals
By how much did the English population increase 1731-1871 according to R. Schofield?
R. Schofield found that the English population quadrupled, from 5.3 million to 21.5 million
In the eighteenth century what was the percentage growth rate of population according to R. Schofield?
R. Schofield suggests the population growth rate to have been 154% throughout the eighteenth century
What was the life expectancy 1781-1821?
35-39
What was the gross reproduction rate in 1681 versus 1816? When did it peak?
The gross reproduction rate was 1.94 female children per woman in 1681, 3.06 in 1816- the peak was in the 1810s
What can the acceleration in growth rates in the eighteenth century be attributed to?
The acceleration in growth rates can be attributed to an increase in fertility rather than a decrease in mortality- although there has been post-revisionist critique of the fertility-focused lens used
What arguably impacted the birth rate?
The birth rate was arguably impacted by a fall in average marriage age by 3 years 1750-1850
When (regarding life-cycles such as childhood, young-adulthood, old age) was the youngest year?
The “youngest” year for British demography was 1826- this arguably meant that the labour force by 1830s/40s was at its fittest and most able
What did A. Lee find in regards to the national average wage of labour?
A. Lee found that the national average (real) wage of labour had a consistent growth rate of 0.6%
When was Malthus’s catastrophe first proposed as a demographic theory?
The malthusian catastrophe was first proposed as a demographic theory in 1798
What was the population of London by 1700?
By 1700 the population of London was 575,000
What did D. Levine argue about early eighteenth-century life?
D. Levine suggested that proto-industrialisation provided a new and effective framework for family earning because the household was a unit of production
What is the cottage economy argument with regards to eighteenth-century demography?
The cottage economy argument suggests that the main growth in demand for labour was outside of agriculture
How did London’s share of Britain’s population increase 1811-71?
London’s share of the British population was 11% in 1811, by 1871 only 14%, showing that change was not concentrated at the centre
How did large towns’ share of Britain’s population increase 1811-71?
The share large towns had of Britain’s population increased from 2% in 1811 to 18% in 1871
How did small towns’ share of Britain’s population increase 1811-1871?
The share small towns had of Britain’s population increased from 12% in 1811 to 22% in 1871
How did rural share of Britain’s population decline 1811-1871?
The rural population of Britain decreased to 60% of the total British population
What was a link between demography and economic practise?
There was a consistent structural demand for unmarried and thus untethered labour
