In addition to the technical and economic aspects industrial revolution had a real side, which was expressed in the transformation of the proletariat and bourgeoisie into the main classes of capitalist society. The pace of formation of the bourgeoisie, the degree of its influence on social life, the destruction of feudal relations were not the same in different countries. In the 19th century in England the bourgeoisie took a leading position in economic life. Its number in the middle of the 19th century. accounted for 8.1% of the total population. As capitalism developed and competition intensified, profound changes took place in the balance of power within the bourgeois class. The petty and middle bourgeoisie periodically went bankrupt. The big bourgeoisie, which included large manufacturers and breeders, traders and bankers, began to play a decisive role. The commercial and industrial bourgeoisie sought more radical government reforms.

The proletariat began to stand out from the mass of workers in the 18th century. With the creation by capitalism of the conditions for transforming the formal subordination of labor to capital into a real one, workers begin to form into an independent social class, a class deprived of ownership of the means of production. Its source of existence is the sale labor force. The first rank of the factory working class were textile workers. The number of workers constantly increased with the growth of production. In the middle of the 19th century. there were 10 million workers in the world, of which in England - 4.1 million (1851), in France - 2.5 million (1848), USA - 1.4 million (1850), in Germany - 0, 9 million (1850). By the 70s. in the three largest industrial developed countries ah (England, France and the USA), the number of industrial workers - the core of the working class - was 12-13 million, and together with workers employed in agriculture - 20 million. Of total number Almost half of the workers were in England. By the end of the 19th century. In terms of the size of the working class, the United States took first place, where there were 10.4 million industrial workers.

The working class has undergone not only quantitative, but also qualitative changes. The share of factory workers employed in the production of means of production increased. In the 70s and 80s. XIX century The largest group of industrial workers were textile workers. But by the beginning of the 20th century. the situation changed: machine builders, metallurgists, and railway workers became the most numerous group of the working class.

The situation of the working class up to the 60-70s. XIX century it was extremely difficult. The duration of the working day was 14-16 hours, working and living conditions were inhumane, wages were low, female and child labor were widely used. For example, in the first half of the 19th century. 50-60% of those employed in English industry were women and children. This was the reality, and the picture of the situation of workers presented in the works of Marxists is completely objective. The freedom, equality and fraternity proclaimed by the bourgeoisie turned out to be just a declaration. The situation of workers became especially difficult during periods of economic crises, which, as a rule, affected the entire industry and agriculture and affected the economies of many countries. Crises lead to the closure of many enterprises, increased unemployment, and a decline in wages and living standards of workers. The first economic crisis occurred in England in 1825.

Complete political lack of rights, exhausting labor, life in slums, hunger, disease, and high mortality caused discontent and resistance of workers to employers and led to an intensification of the struggle of the working class. However, at first, workers’ protests against exploitation were expressed in spontaneous forms of food riots, arson of enterprises, and destruction of cars. The workers' struggle intensified and rose to a qualitative level new level. The first major uprisings of workers took place in Manchester (England) in 1819, in Lyon (France) in 1831 and 1834, the uprising of Silesian weavers (Germany) in 1844, the Chartist movement for the political rights of workers in 30-40 gg. in England.

• Foreign policy European countries in the 18th century.
  • International relations in Europe
    • Succession wars
    • Seven Years' War
    • Russo-Turkish War 1768-1774
    • Foreign policy of Catherine II in the 80s.
  • Colonial system of European powers
  • War of Independence in the English Colonies North America
    • Declaration of Independence
    • US Constitution
    • International relations
• Leading countries of the world in the 19th century.
  • Leading countries of the world in the 19th century.
  • International relations and the revolutionary movement in Europe in the 19th century
    • Defeat of the Napoleonic Empire
    • Spanish Revolution
    • Greek revolt
    • February Revolution in France
    • Revolutions in Austria, Germany, Italy
    • Education German Empire
    • National Union of Italy
  • Bourgeois revolutions V Latin America, USA, Japan
    • Civil war in the USA
    • Japan in the 19th century
  • Formation of industrial civilization
    • Features of the industrial revolution in different countries
    • Ideological and political trends
    • Trade union movement and education political parties
    • State-monopoly capitalism
    • Agriculture
    • Financial oligarchy and concentration of production
    • Colonies and colonial policy
    • Militarization of Europe
    • State- legal organization capitalist countries
• Russia in the 19th century
  • Political and socio-economic development of Russia in early XIX V.
    • Patriotic War 1812
    • The situation in Russia after the war. Decembrist movement
    • “Russian Truth” by Pestel. “Constitution” by N. Muravyov
    • Decembrist uprising
  • Russia in the era of Nicholas I
    • Foreign policy of Nicholas I
  • Russia in the second half of the 19th century.
    • Carrying out other reforms
    • Go to reaction
    • Post-reform development of Russia
    • Socio-political movement
• World wars of the 20th century. Causes and consequences
  • World historical process and the 20th century
  • Causes of world wars
  • First world war
    • Beginning of the war
    • Results of the war
  • The birth of fascism. The world on the eve of World War II
  • World War II
    • Progress of World War II
    • Results of World War II
• Major economic crises. The phenomenon of state-monopoly economy
  • Economic crises of the first half of the 20th century.
    • Formation of state-monopoly capitalism
    • Economic crisis 1929-1933
    • Options for overcoming the crisis
  • Economic crises of the second half of the 20th century.
    • Structural crises
    • World economic crisis 1980-1982
    • Anti-crisis government regulation
• Collapse of the colonial system. Developing countries and their role in international development
  • Colonialism system
  • Stages of the collapse of the colonial system
  • Third world countries
  • Newly industrialized countries
• • Education of the world system of socialism
    • Socialist regimes in Asia
  • Stages of development of the world socialist system
  • The collapse of the world socialist system
• The third scientific and technological revolution
  • Stages of modern scientific and technological revolution
    • Achievements of NTR
    • Consequences of scientific and technological revolution
  • Transition to post-industrial civilization
• Main trends in global development at the present stage
  • Internationalization of the economy
    • Integration processes in Western Europe
    • Processes of integration of North American countries
    • Integration processes in the Asia-Pacific region
  • Three world centers of capitalism
  • Global problems modernity
• Russia in the first half of the 20th century
  • Russia in the twentieth century.
  • Revolutions in Russia at the beginning of the 20th century.
    • Bourgeois-democratic revolution of 1905-1907.
    • Russian participation in the First World War
    • February Revolution of 1917
    • October armed uprising
  • The main stages of development of the country of Soviets in the pre-war period (X. 1917 - VI. 1941)
    • Civil war and military intervention
    • New Economic Policy (NEP)
    • Education USSR
    • Accelerated construction of state socialism
    • Planned centralized economic management
    • Foreign policy of the USSR 20-30s.
  • Great Patriotic War (1941-1945)
    • War with Japan. End of World War II
• • Russia in the second half of the 20th century
  • Post-war reconstruction national economy
    • Post-war restoration of the national economy - page 2
  • Socio-economic and political reasons, which complicated the country’s transition to new frontiers
    • Socio-economic and political reasons that complicated the country’s transition to new frontiers - page 2
    • Socio-economic and political reasons that complicated the country’s transition to new frontiers - page 3
  • Collapse of the USSR. Post-communist Russia
    • Collapse of the USSR. Post-communist Russia - page 2

Social consequences of the industrial revolution

In addition to the technical and economic aspects, the industrial revolution had a real side, which was expressed in the transformation of the proletariat and bourgeoisie into the main classes of capitalist society. The pace of formation of the bourgeoisie, the degree of its influence on public life, on the destruction of feudal relations were not the same in different countries. In the 19th century in England the bourgeoisie took a leading position in economic life.

Its number in the middle of the 19th century. accounted for 8.1% of the total population. As capitalism developed and competition intensified, profound changes took place in the balance of power within the bourgeois class.

The petty and middle bourgeoisie periodically went bankrupt. The big bourgeoisie, which included large manufacturers and breeders, traders and bankers, began to play a decisive role. The commercial and industrial bourgeoisie sought more radical government reforms.

The proletariat began to stand out from the mass of workers in the 18th century. With the creation of conditions by capitalism for transforming the formal subordination of labor to capital into reality, workers begin to form into an independent social class, a class deprived of ownership of the means of production.

The source of its existence is the sale of labor. The first group of the factory working class were textile workers. The number of workers constantly increased with the growth of production. In the middle of the 19th century. there were 10 million workers in the world, of which in England - 4.1 million (1851), in France - 2.5 million (1848), USA - 1.4 million (1850), in Germany - 0, 9 million (1850).

By the 70s. in the three largest industrialized countries (England, France and the USA), the number of industrial workers - the core of the working class - was 12-13 million, and together with workers employed in agriculture - 20 million. Of the total number of workers, almost half were accounted for England. By the end of the 19th century. In terms of the size of the working class, the United States took first place, where there were 10.4 million industrial workers.

The working class has undergone not only quantitative, but also qualitative changes. The share of factory workers employed in the production of means of production increased. In the 70s and 80s. XIX century The largest group of industrial workers were textile workers. But by the beginning of the 20th century. the situation changed: machine builders, metallurgists, and railway workers became the most numerous group of the working class.

The situation of the working class up to the 60-70s. XIX century it was extremely difficult. The working day was 14-16 hours, working and living conditions were inhumane, wages were low, and female and child labor were widely used. For example, in the first half of the 19th century. 50-60% of those employed in English industry were women and children. This was the reality, and the picture of the situation of workers presented in the works of Marxists is completely objective.

The freedom, equality and fraternity proclaimed by the bourgeoisie turned out to be just a declaration. The situation of workers became especially difficult during periods of economic crises, which, as a rule, affected the entire industry and agriculture and affected the economies of many countries. Crises lead to the closure of many enterprises, rising unemployment, falling wages and living standards of workers. The first economic crisis occurred in England in 1825.

Complete political lack of rights, exhausting labor, life in slums, hunger, disease, and high mortality caused discontent and resistance of workers to employers and led to an intensification of the struggle of the working class. However, at first, workers’ protests against exploitation were expressed in spontaneous forms of food riots, arson of enterprises, and destruction of machines.

The workers' struggle grew and rose to a qualitatively new level. First major performances workers occurred in Manchester (England) in 1819, in Lyon (France) in 1831 and 1834, the uprising of Silesian weavers (Germany) in 1844, the Chartist movement for the political rights of workers in 30-40. in England.

In the 19th century The number of cities has increased, and the nature of their development has changed. The process of urbanization has sharply intensified. If in 1750 there were only two cities in England with a population of more than 50 thousand people, then in 1831 there were already eight. By the end of the 19th century. The urban population accounted for 75% of the country's total population.

In France, by 1870, the urban population had increased one and a half times compared to 1780 and amounted to one third of the population.

In the United States, urbanization especially intensified during the industrial boom in the 60s and 70s. XIX century

In the post-reform years, the urban population in Russia increased significantly. From the 60s to the 90s. it doubled. Largest cities were St. Petersburg with a population of 1.2 million people. (1847) and Moscow - more than 1 million people. Cities in industrial centers grew rapidly: Warsaw, Lodz, Kyiv, Baku, etc.

As a result of the revolution, the political system of new England was formed. The Industrial Revolution, in turn, contributed to the formation of a new economy and social structure. Factory industry began to play a major role in the economy. Products made in factories and factories were cheap due to the use of machines; this resulted in the gradual displacement of handicrafts and manufactures from the market. The nature of English trade also changed: more and more necessary raw materials were imported into the country, and cheap factory goods were exported outside England.

Enormous changes have occurred in the social structure of society. As a result of the industrial revolution, the old social strata (feudal lords and peasants) gave way to entrepreneurs and hired workers.

The number of entrepreneurs constantly grew and exceeded the number of old landowners. The new entrepreneurs, or bourgeoisie, represented the new industrial England. They owned factories and factories, knew markets and skillfully adapted to changing consumer demands. For the vast majority of entrepreneurs, profit became the main measure of successful activity. Without this, of course, no production could develop. Only if they had a profit could they develop their production. Therefore, with the advent of entrepreneurs and hired workers in society, a struggle began, caused by a conflict of interests: either the interests of the entrepreneur and the development of production, or the interests of the hired worker and an increase in his pay, social guarantees. The first protests by workers were directed against machines, as they were considered to be responsible for the deterioration of working conditions, the reduction of workers and wages. "Fighters against machines" were called Luddites.

During the Industrial Revolution, entrepreneurs and hired workers became the main strata of English society, which indicated the formation industrial society in England. There were other traditional layers, but they no longer played decisive role in society and gradually disappeared.

What were the nature and consequences of the industrial revolution in England?

As a result of the victory of the revolution of the 17th century. In England, the capitalist structure in agriculture began to rapidly develop, and a revolution in industrial production began.

The ideas of a republican structure, people's rule, and equality of all before the law were developed in the country. The proclaimed political principles and the new economic order formed the basis of a new industrial civilization.

In the 18th century English agriculture successfully fed cities and industrial towns. Large landownership created conditions for increased grain production, which led to lower grain prices. The growth of the urban population supported the demand for agricultural products. The rise of agriculture influenced the development of industry.

The industrial revolution began in light industry. Here, replacing manual labor with machines required less capital investment and brought quick financial returns. The invention of the steam engine sharply expanded production capabilities, another new technology. The flow of improvements and the accumulation of huge funds required a different organization of production. Manufactory was replaced by factory - large machine production designed to make a profit.

The Industrial Revolution had not only a technical, but also a social side. During the transformation, two main classes of industrial society were formed: the industrial bourgeoisie and wage workers. These two new social groups had to find their place in the old social structure and develop rules for their relationships with each other. This process was not easy, it lasted for many decades, its dynamics determined the main parameters of the development of society.

The Industrial Revolution changed the face of England. Major industrial centers(Manchester, Birmingham, Sheffield). By the end of the 18th century. Already a quarter of the population lived in cities. The transport infrastructure developed rapidly: a network of canals was built throughout the country, and paved roads were constructed. The formation of the domestic market, which was based on a solid industrial base, was completed. It was in the industrial sector that the bulk of the national wealth was now created.

The way of life and working conditions that developed during the industrial revolution did not suit everyone in the country. The relationship between the owners of industrial enterprises and the hired workers who worked there was quite complex. During that period, the degree of exploitation of workers was high. This situation gave rise to spontaneous protest.

During the Industrial Revolution, the first mass movement of workers arose - the movement of machine destroyers. This movement acquired its greatest scope in 1811–1813. Its participants called themselves Luddites after the worker Ned Ludd, who supposedly was the first to break his machine.

The Luddite movement expanded rapidly. The authorities saw it as a threat to the existing law and order. Already in 1769, parliament passed a law on death penalty for damaging cars.

The persecution of the Luddites did not solve the problems - the situation of the workers remained extremely difficult. Consequently, the desire to change it remained. The reluctance of entrepreneurs to meet the demands of workers fueled a conflict that destabilized society. Convinced of the ineffectiveness of Luddism, workers began to look for other ways to fight for their rights. Thus was born the idea of ​​​​creating trade unions (trade unions), which gradually occupied their niche in the structure of society and turned into the main form of organization of workers.

The industrial revolution that began in England could not be contained within national boundaries. More and more countries were included in the industrial revolution. In each of them he moved at a different pace and had its own specifics. However, the end result was the same: the industrial revolution radically undermined the foundations of the feudal order and created the foundation of a new “industrial” society in Europe.

In the 18th century a modification of European civilization also arose in the New World. Thus, within the framework of a single Western civilization, various forms of bourgeois progress were formed.

§ 47. Industrial Revolution and its consequences

The beginning of the industrial revolution.

At the end of the 18th century. in industrial production in a number of countries Western Europe, in which Great Britain was a pioneer, the transition from the manufacturing stage began with its manual technique to the factory production system.

This transition is called the industrial revolution or industrial revolution.

The Industrial Revolution had important consequences for the life of the entire society, but above all the changes affected the economy.

The needs of the development of manufactories contributed to a number of inventions in the field of mechanics. Spinning jennys (invented by J. Hargvis; 1765) were widely used in the textile industry; in 1779, Samuel Crompton improved the weaving process by introducing mule machines, which made it possible to obtain thinner and stronger thread than before. In 1785, the first mechanical weaving loom, Edmund Cartwright, was patented in England, and sixteen years later the first mechanical weaving factory was opened - an industrial enterprise based on machine production.

Intense competition among entrepreneurs required the constant introduction of the latest achievements of science and technology into production.

In 1765, Englishman James Watt built his steam engine. Coal was needed to operate steam engines, so its production increased sharply. The increasing need for metal led to improvements in metallurgy.

In England since the 40s. XVIII century began to use crucible melting to produce cast steel. The critical redistribution of cast iron was replaced by more productive puddling. In 1856, Englishman Henry Bessemer found a way to blow air through hot cast iron to burn off excess oxygen and turn it into steel. At the same time, the Frenchman Pierre-Emile Martin created a special furnace for processing cast iron into steel by oxidative smelting (the open-hearth method).

The length of railways in England grew rapidly. In 1825, George Stephenson, who was actively involved in the construction of steam locomotives, ran the first passenger train on the Darlington-Stockton route. In 1830, a rail line connected Manchester with Liverpool. And by 1850, the country was covered with a network of railways with a total length of 50 thousand km. The railway fever contributed to the rapid development of metallurgy, mechanical engineering, locomotive and carriage building.

The emergence of industrial society.

The industrial revolution that began in Great Britain later spread to other countries of the Old and New Worlds.

The Industrial Revolution created the conditions that gave rise to industrial society.

The process of modernization was not only accompanied by changes in the economy, but also changed the worldview of people.

Ideally, an industrial society is based on the ideas of freedom, equality and independence: entrepreneurs do not depend on the power of the state, buyers and sellers are equal, every member of society is free in their actions.

Most rapid development industrial society received in Great Britain. Here in the second half of the 17th century. freedom of trade was proclaimed, thus the formation of necessary conditions for the reign of free competition.

The formation of a layer of hired workers and the creation of an internal market (i.e., the sphere of commodity exchange within the country; everyone needed to purchase industrial products more people) in England was combined with the rapid process of the so-called primitive accumulation of capital.

Capital is money or other property that produces income.

An industrial proletariat also emerges - people working in factories. Work in factories was very hard. The working day lasted up to 18 hours a day, and wages were low. The invention of new machines led to mass layoffs, which caused indignation among workers. It was expressed in the breakdown of machines and tools (Luddism). According to English law, damaging cars was punishable by death.

In the first half of the 19th century. The industrial revolution in Great Britain was completed. Almost until the end of the 19th century. England remained the "workshop of the world."

Economic development of Great Britain and France in the first half of the 19th century.

Despite the successes, the British economy also experienced considerable difficulties. In the 19th century Great Britain entered into a state of extreme tension caused by continuous wars with France. The continental blockade imposed by Napoleon, that is, the ban on European states to trade with England, sharply increased food prices, which caused “hunger riots” in the country.

The victory over Napoleon in 1815 ended the blockade, but gave rise to new problems. Up to half a million people were dismissed from the army and navy. The government has reduced orders to industrial enterprises. Cheap European grain began to flow into Britain. The fall in prices caused panic. As a regulatory measure, “corn laws” were passed, effectively prohibiting the import of bread into the country. As a result, bread prices increased incredibly.

And yet positive results industrial revolution outweighed the consequences of unfavorable factors.

Economic development of France in the first half of the 19th century. overall it went well. In a short period, French industry grew by more than 50%. The development of the economy was facilitated by the influx of money and valuables from the countries conquered by Napoleon, protectionist policies and profitable foreign trade deals. However, long wars, and then the crushing defeat of France, dealt a serious blow to its economy. True, from the consequences unfavorable factors managed to recover quite quickly. During the period of the Bourbon restoration (1, the process of replacing manual labor with machine labor continued successfully. From 1825 to 1847, the volume industrial production increased by two thirds. A number of new industries developed rapidly, most notably the chemical industry.

General Features economic development in the second half of the 19th century. In the second half of the 19th century. Further changes were taking place in the economies of advanced European countries. They are associated with the emergence of monopolies.

Monopolies are large economic associations that exercise control over industries, markets and the economy on the basis of a high degree of concentration of production and capital in order to set higher prices and extract higher profits.

The strengthening of the role of monopolies was caused by progress in technology, which led to the complication of production process. To implement the latter, more and more capital was required, as machines and raw materials became more and more expensive. Therefore, entrepreneurs began to unite.

Economic crises, or crises of overproduction, contributed to the acceleration of this unification. The mechanism of the crises was as follows: the introduction of new technology led to a reduction in workers; people who found themselves without work stopped buying goods; and this, in turn, led to a drop in production. The first such crisis occurred in England in 1825. It soon became clear that crises were brewing in about equal number years. In 1858 the first world economic crisis broke out. During crises, many enterprises closed, entrepreneurs went bankrupt, and it was easier for an association of entrepreneurs to overcome the consequences of the crises.

The most important aspect of the development of monopolies was the new role of banks in the economy. Industrial companies established strong connections with banks to obtain long-term loans and open credit. In the second half of the 19th century. The process of merging production and capital accelerated. There were monopolies following types: cartel, syndicate, trust, concern.

A cartel is an association of independent enterprises based on a temporary agreement between them with the aim of establishing control over the sale of a certain product, increasing prices for this product and ensuring monopoly high profits.

A cartel may provide for the establishment of prices for goods that are mandatory for all participants in the association, the delimitation of sales areas, the determination of the total volume of production or sales and the share of each participant in them.

A syndicate is an association of independent enterprises in any industry, based on an agreement on the joint sale of goods.

The syndicate is created with the aim of ensuring monopoly dominance in the market, establishing monopoly prices and obtaining the highest profits. Participants in such an association bring small enterprises under their control and expand their influence in domestic and foreign markets.

A trust is a form of organization when the merging enterprises lose their independence and are subject to a single management.

The owners of enterprises included in the trust are deprived of the right to directly dispose of them.

The highest form of monopolies are concerns - associations of enterprises, banks and trading firms based on common financial dependence on a certain
groups of capitalists.

Often, concerns merged into financial groups, or financial houses (for example, the Morgan, Rockefeller houses in the USA).

After the world economic crisis In 1873, the development of cartels accelerated, but they quickly disintegrated. Nevertheless, by the end of the 19th century, cartels had become one of the foundations of the European economy. By the beginning of the 20th century. the number of concerns and trusts in the United States increased from 185 to 250.

The role of the state in the economy.

In the first half of the 19th century. government intervention in the economy was sharply reduced. Bankers, owners industrial enterprises persistently defended freedom of enterprise. In their opinion, the role of the state, in addition to protecting external interests, should be limited to creating and maintaining conditions conducive to development economic life countries (development of transport routes, means of communication, ensuring the stability of monetary circulation, etc.).

However, in the second half of the 19th century. The role of the state in governing the colonies increased, and wars contributed to the receipt of huge military indemnities by the victorious country. Government intervention in economic life also consisted in the introduction of factory legislation (limitation of working hours, insurance of workers, etc.).

The strongest influence of the state on the economy was in Germany. The nationalization of railways took place here, and a tobacco monopoly was introduced.

QUESTIONS AND TASKS

1. What impact did the industrial revolution have on the development of European countries? What is a factory, modernization, industrial society?

2. Describe the main features of the economic development of the leading countries of Western Europe in the first half of the 19th century.

3. What changes took place in the economies of developed countries in the second half of the 19th century? What are monopolies and why did they arise? How were they different? various types monopolistic associations? Make a comparison table.

4. What was the role of the state in the economy of leading countries in the 19th century?

5. Using additional materials, write a historical essay on the history of economic development of one of the countries in the 19th century. (optional).

Document

From Charles Dickens's novel The Curiosity Shop. 1841

On both sides of the road and up to the gloomy horizon, factory chimneys, crowded one after another in that depressing monotony that frightens us so much in heavy dreams, spewed clouds of stinking smoke into the sky, darkened God's light and poisoned the air of these sad places. To the right and left, barely covered by hastily knocked down boards or a half-rotten canopy, some strange machines spun and writhed among the heaps of ash, as if living beings under torture, clanged with chains, shook the ground with their convulsions and from time to time screamed shrilly, as if unable to bear the torment. Here and there we came across smoky shacks sunk into the ground - without roofs, with broken windows, propped up on all sides with boards from neighboring ruins and yet still serving as people's homes. Men, women and children, pitiful, dressed in rags, worked near the cars, threw coal into their fireboxes, begged for alms on the road, or looked gloomily around, standing on the threshold of their homes, devoid of even doors. And behind the shacks the cars appeared again, not yielding to their fury. wild beast, and the grinding and whirlwind of movement began again, and in front of them stood an endless row of brick chimneys, which still spewed out black smoke, destroying all living things, obscuring the sun and enveloping this utter hell in a dense dark cloud.

QUESTIONS FOR THE DOCUMENT

What were the effects of the Industrial Revolution on workers?

Was, in your opinion, such a situation for the workers inevitable?

The Industrial Revolution was the rapid development of technology in modern times and the transition from manual labor to machine labor. As a result of technological innovations, the social, political, and economic conditions of Europe and the whole world have undergone significant transformations. At the same time, the industrial revolution is not a one-time process. Its duration is traditional

stretch from the second half of the 13th century to the beginning of the 20th. And a number of scientists are of the opinion that this process does not end to this day, as evidenced by the ever-accelerating pace of technology development in our time, when many new products become obsolete within a few years.

Industrial Revolution in England

Traditionally, this country is called the founder of the technological revolution in modern times. Already in the 1760-80s, revolutionary changes were achieved here in a number of important areas of heavy and light industry. For example, the invention of the spinning loom and its spread throughout the island led to England becoming the largest supplier of fabrics to European and American markets. The creation of a steam engine made it possible to build a new type of ship - faster and more ergonomic, which established the dominance of the British at sea. Epochal

changes have also occurred in ground transport. So, appeared railways entangled the entire state in a network by the middle of the 19th century and became a new word in the possibility of communication between remote regions of the country - the transportation of goods, people, and animals was facilitated and accelerated. Completely new possibilities are open! Important changes heavy industry also suffered. Thus, the emergence of a milling machine and a number of other similar inventions significantly stimulated the development of mechanical engineering. The quality of the metal itself has significantly improved due to the fact that now, in its smelting, not coal was used as a fuel material, but coke. This allowed England to abandon export metal, covering its growing needs, and direct the freed funds to other industries.

Industrial Revolution in Europe

Soon the stormy pace technological development spread to the continent, giving Germany, France, the Netherlands, and Russia their own heavy and light industry factories. However, this process is different countries didn't happen at the same time. For example, in France and Belgium the industrial revolution began immediately after England, already at the end of the 13th century, but it reached Germany and Russia only in the 1830-1840s. However, this did not necessarily mean being an outsider. Germany, being a lagging country in the middle of the century, by 1900 was able to significantly increase its technological and military potential, and at the beginning of the 20th century belatedly joined in the redivision of spheres of influence in other parts of the world (the fact that virtually all world territories and led to a forceful solution to the issue - the First World War).

Impact on society

The Industrial Revolution was not limited to changes only in the technological part. It inevitably entailed social, political and economic consequences, generating new classes of society (workers, bourgeoisie), accelerating the growth of cities (urbanization). The increasing complexity of social processes led to the birth of new political and socio-economic doctrines and movements, which soon caused an explosion in the mood of the masses.