Reform And Challenge 1851-86- Economy Flashcards
Gladstone on free trade
Converted ober
Described ‘excessive’ public spending as a ‘great moral evil’
Quote for lack of protectionism
Hobsbawm ‘britain was the only conutry whih systematically refused any fiscal protection to its industries’
‘Only country in which the government neither built, nor helped to finance’
‘Nor even planned any part of the railway system’
Example of ‘negative intervention’
Failure to provide protection for british goods against foreign competition
Bank of england compared to other countries
Not governmental- ‘the government had no direct access to the decision making of the bank of england’
Less stable esp compared to reichsbank in germany due to low gold reserves- more liable to cause fluctuatiohns in the interest rate
Example of poor agriculturre
‘The black year’ of 1879
Amount of wheat produced fell from 13.7 mill in 1874 to less than 6 mill 1879
How suez canal increased trade example
1879- first cargo of frozen mutton rrived from australia at the london docks
Counties which suffered most from farming depressionq
Corn growing counties of south and east
English meat, butter and milk still preferred and so could demand fair prices
Number of agriculural workers decreasing
1.5 mill to less than 1 mill 1851-1901 despite increase in population
As less women work and from 1876 no child under 10 worked unless if in harvest
Imports increased in value
1850-1875
152 mill to 373mill
Exports increasing 1850 to 1875
71 mill to 223 mill pounds
Exporting to china
1857 5 more ports opened
By 1870 more than 6 mill goods into china
Support for london docker strike
1889
Contributions poured in even from australia
Reasons for low productivity compared to germany and usa
Poverty and poor health of workforce
Limited level of investment in new technologies- esp mining industry
British capital invested aborad rather than at home
Costs of transportation within britain
Comparitively poor levels of scientific and technological education
Strong economies of usa and germany growth stat
Twice rate of british economy
Fall in price of some industrial goods during this period- textiles by over 30%
Example of agriculture pamphelet
High farming
1849
James caird
Encouraging more intensive farming
Traditional agriculture in britain
E.j. Hobsbawm ‘a place where plants grow and animals feed’
Landowning class power
4000 landowners owned abouot 60% cultivated land berween them
Let 250,000 farmers employed 1.25mill people
Examples of improved agricultural technology
Improved plougs and hoes
Widespread use of horse-drawn reaper
Artificial fertilisers used
Nitrate of soda
Superphosphates
Imports of peruvian guano (bird droppings)
German potas
Profit made by great exhibition
£185,500
Invested in buying land in kensington for v%&a museum, natural history museum, imperial college of science and technologgy
Value of british investment abroad
Quadroupled between 1850 to 1873 from 250mill to 1000mill
Increase in amount railway track
9500km to 22000km 1850 to 1875
Iron and steelworks where regionally increased
Crewe and swindon
Railroad machinery exports increase
Rapidly
8600 tonnes 1850-54
44100 1870-75
How growth of financial centre of city of london helped shippunG
British firms esp Lloyds of london dominated shipping insurance
Merchants used worldwide branches of british banks
How shippping boosted financial markets
Atlantic cable between britain and usa 1866
Enable almost instantaneous messages
Further boosting london inernaional fincancial markets
Shipbuilding regions
Glasgow, Belfast tyneside and liverpool
Increase in docks in london
5 between 1852-1886
Eg. Royal victoriia
Royal albert
Where did new coalflields open
South wales
Example of improvements made to iron and steel productiion
1856 henry bessemers converter system- steel produced in large amounts- 3 tons per hour- cheaper than other methods (Existing crucible system)
Gilchrist-thomas technique
Population growth
Almost 6 mill in 20y
Aiding growth in demand
How gov supported increasing investment
Limited liabilities acts of 1855 and 1862
Emcouraged buying of shares in firms as level of risk was limited to value of the investment
Education levels in germany compared to britain
Male illiteracy 17% in britain but 2% germany in 1875
Reason why lack of investment by businessman
Historian hobsbawm and wiener blamed class structure
Businessmen trying to emulate aristocracy rather than developing their businesses
Causes of mid victorian boom 1851-73
Improvements in technology
Agriculture, trains
Iron and steel
Shipping
Cottton
Mid victorian boom dates
1851-73
Agriculture mid victorian boom
High farming
Mixed farming- diversifying- if poor harvest not complete failure- crops as well as animals
Artificial fertilisers and technology
Royal agricultural society of eng- journals so could share ideas
Animal husbendry- selective breeding- pedigree breeds- hereford, aberdeen angus cattle- good quality beef
Trains- mid victorin BOOM
Increased demand and building
Stimulated an and steel industries- increased employment
New coalfields developed rural pit villages
Agriculture benefitted- expanding markets- milk
Manufactirers benefitte-d rapid transportation of goods
Exports of track and machinery- long term create more international competition
Iron and steel- improvements in technology
Demand at home and oversees increased
2..9mill tonnes- 5.9 mill 1855-75
Sheffield 90^% british steel- half europes total production
Engineers imporved production iron ad stee- cheaper leading to expanding markets
Usa and germany- benefit from british engineers innobation and became key competitors
Shipping- improvements in technology
Britian dominated merchant shipping
Shipbuilding oboomed- creating hobs- glasgow, tyneside, belfast and liverpool
Opening up of suex canal 1869- benefit britian as steam ships were narrow enough to fit through compared to large sailing ships
Cotton- improvements in technology
Largely based in lancashire
N-w so new liberpool where bought from us plantations
Production of cotton textiles x2 186500-70
18660 cotton famne- cibil war- raw materials start to be bought from elswhere- india
Textiles key export
Great exhibition 1851- mid victorian boom
Showed off british manufacturing- increased markets to export from- cutting edge steeam engines
Workshop of the world
Lift ttoo gb industry and paid 020y boom
Lancashire cotton- intricate and delicate
Little foreign competition- improvements about technology
Usa 1860s- civil war
Germany- frnaco- prussia war united in 1871
Empire- causes mid victorian boom
Safe market
Eexport cheap raw materials
Sell back manufactured ggoods
Growth invisable trade- causees mid victorian boom
Finance, banking, insurance
Interest on loans to otehr countries
Short term profits
Long term helped others industrialise
Prros of mid victorian boom
Improvements in technoogy
Little international competiition
Empire
Invisable trade increase
Coal production- increased capacity with steam power
6606m to 1009m tonnes 1855-70
1851-668- british ttrade- 25% world trade
Balance of payments- shipping even tough increase imports food
Cons of mid victorian boom
Britain complacent- not trying to improve
Repeal corn laws- increease foreign competition- russia and usa
Cotton reliant on usa
Long term undermined- selling train tracks and machinery, loans- invisable trade, engineers
Germany and usa mechanic mining a lot cheeaper and quicker than british by hand as would lead to mass unemployment
For ordinary people- less good- low wages and high prices
Educationan not suited to economy- latin and classics- not science and maths like in germany and usa
Great depression
1873-1896
B saul (1985))- ‘the myth of the great depression’
No depressiion- overall av decrease business profits
More agricultural depression
Great depression 1873-1896-yes
Falling profits due to fall prices000- cut costs, workers made redundant, unemployment figures increase
Production
%share world production- steel iron and coal falll- foreign competition- british coal more expensive as not using labour saving devicies
German economy increase 300^%, us economy 400%- catching britain up
Complacency
Failed to adopt new industries- electricalm chemical and engineers
Ing
Failied to adopt new machinery- typewriters and services machinery
Competition
Other countries used protective tarrifs whilst british maintained free traid- british goods expensive oversees
Little investment in this period due to falling profits
Great depression- not the case- 18730-18966
Falling pricees- long term trend
Advances on industry decreeasing cost of production
Some years saw increase unemployemnt some 2%- when inn boom- 4.6%
Economy continued to grow
Production of coal, iron, steel, cotton increase
Economy continued to grow increasingly each eyear
New markets found in developing world
Better for individuals
Cost of living fall, prices fell in real times, wages fell further
Increase retail- bicycle, telephone
Complacency not equal to depression- failure to invest
How sucessful economy 1851-86
Was on teh surface level but many underlying concerns
Esp long term with foreign competition and living standards
Successful economy 1851-86
Investment high 1850-70- 124mill/annum
Esp in agriculture, railway, house building
Railway investment and growth- stimulate iron and steal industries- increase dmeand skileld workers
Production increase
Coal 60mill to 1009mill tonnes 1855-1870
Value cotton production increase 46to105mill 1851-75
Business confidence- peel legislation
Bank charter- increased investment and profits sourced during this period
Free trade policy0- peel and gladstone
Encourage businesses to increase profits and employment- import and export of raw materials became cheaper
Trade and capital exports grew phenominally over this period
Agriculture
Mechanism and profitable beagn 18670
High farming- more intensive- increase production up to 1873
Specialised breeds- aberdeen angus- beef
Increased interest in fertilisers
Manufacture of clay pipes mprove drainage
Failure of econ 1851-73
End of golden age of agriculture
Wet summer
Poor harvest 1873
Foreign competition
Usa threaten arable farming
Usa/germany potentially stronger markets- challenge intensify as 1800s progressed
Long term 18670 onwards- tarrifs introduced
Social conditions
Unemployment and poverty similar before and after- 0minimal change for poorest in society
Unemployment1 to 11^% 1872 to 1879. 10% 1886
Health condition of working class undermined british economically and socially
Instability
Winter 1860-1- severe winter- closure many london docks- financial hardship and unemployment
Regional diff- disruption cotton- civil war- thousands lancashire unemploywed
Stats
Londes and church argued growth rates in this period nothing special
Figures to suggest boom not very reliable
While profits increase so did cost of labour and raw materials
Importance of railways oevrstated- financial disaster 1857-668
0some investment dye to warning than confidence- in textiles industry oversees competition
Amalgamated society of engineers described as
designation as a ‘respectable’ group - coldly labelled by the Socialist Sidney Webb the “aristocracy of
labour”. The majority of workers were not Unionized until 1914, the Unions of 1851 being small groups
with expensive subscription fees so as to keep out les classes dangereuses.
Benefits of being in the ase
sickness insurance, pensions, funeral
expenses and emigration grants were all available – almost 70 years before the like would be
implemented on a governmental level.
The position of the aristocracy in 1880s- strong
Gash- public statisfied with ‘political concessions made
1884 and 1885 reform acts, redistribution and uniform
Flexible with 1875 artisans dwelling act
Position of aristocracy not stable 1880s
Cannadine
Not flexible as little alternative to reform, did to save position 1884 1885 as with disraeli reofmrs- palace is safe if the cottage is hapy
Demise of aristocracy through continuing rural depop and urbanisation shift away form landed genrty
Mjddle classs dominatinb as urban based industries taking power
Church- non confomrists middle class saw themselves as morally superior to anglicans
