In the 1800s, as cotton production was either sluggish or unaffordable compared to the increasing
demand for cotton or the amount of food to be paid for by export, large-scale cotton plantations
were created in the United States, across the Atlantic Ocean. The workers there were African slaves.
Just in time, a cotton machine with 50 times the efficiency of traditional handwork was invented in
America, so the cotton plantation in America was able to make large quantities of cotton cheaply.
Thus, the pattern of triangular trade emerged as Britain import American slaves, provide those slaves
to American cotton plant, American cotton plants supplying cheap cotton produced by slaves to
Britain, and cotton textiles produced by slaves export to America and Africa.
In particular, exports to India increased tenfold in 20 years as the cotton textile industry collapsed
early on by China. Imports and exports to India was extremely vital to Britain’s economy.
After the Battle of Waterloo, following the cotton industry, the British led railway construction began
as the rise of steel industry, bringing Britain’s boom to a climax.
The Industrial Revolution marks a major turning point in history; almost every aspect of daily life
was influenced in some way. In particular, average income and population began to exhibit
unprecedented sustained growth. Some economists say that the major impact of the Industrial
Revolution was that the standard of living for the general population began to increase consistently
for the first time in history, although others have said that it did not begin to meaningfully improve
until the late 19th and 20th centuries.[6][7][8]
GDP per capita was broadly stable before the Industrial Revolution and the emergence of the
modern capitalist economy,[9] while the Industrial Revolution began an era of per-capita economic
growth in capitalist economies.[10] Economic historians are in agreement that the onset of the
Industrial
Revolution
is
the
most
important
event
in
the history
of
humanity since
the domestication of animals and plants.[11]
Although the structural change from agriculture to industry is widely associated with Industrial
Revolution, in United Kingdom it was already almost complete by 1760
An economic recession occurred from the late 1830s to the early 1840s when the adoption of the
original innovations of the Industrial Revolution, such as mechanized spinning and weaving, slowed
and their markets matured. Innovations developed late in the period, such as the increasing
adoption of locomotives, steamboats and steamships, hot blast iron smelting and new technologies,
such as the electrical telegraph, widely introduced in the 1840s and 1850s, were not powerful
enough to drive high rates of growth. Rapid economic growth began to occur after 1870, springing
from a new group of innovations in what has been called the Second Industrial Revolution. These
new innovations included new steel making processes, the large-scale manufacture of machine tools
and the use of increasingly advanced machinery in steam-powered factories.[1][18][19][20
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industrial_Revolution
The economic development that is shown during the Industrial revolution in Britain, was massive
after the change into of capitalist form of nation. However, when you zoom in, the city laborer’s
quality of life was
The term `industrial revolution' is, of course, a metaphor and, as has long been recognised, it is in
some ways a misleading one. The notion can now be more fully clarified in the light of the recent
research summarised above. i) There was a revolutionary change in the structure of employment. In
the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries the proportion of the labour force employed in
industry increased, and the proportion employed in agriculture fell very rapidly. ii) Much of the
employment in industry continued to be in small-scale, handicraft activities producing for local
markets. These traditional industries were barely affected by technological advance, and so
experienced little or no increase in output per worker. iii) The acceleration in the overall pace of
economic growth was perceptible, but relatively modest. There was no great leap forward for the
economy as a whole, or even for the whole of industry, despite the spectacular growth of cotton
textile production. iv) The rate of economic growth increased as more was invested in fixed capital,
and productivity growth quickened. There were deservedly famous technological advances such as
Crompton's mule and Watt's steam engine. These developments aided Britain's exports of
manufactures. However, in most of the economy, productivity growth remained painfully slow in the
first half of the nineteenth century. v) Mid-nineteenth century Britain is often labelled the `workshop
of the world', and the advance of productivity in a few industries did indeed enable Britain to sell
around half of all world trade in manufactures. However, this should not blind one to the key
implication of Tables 3 and 4: the main feature of British industrialisation involved getting a lot of
workers into the industrial sector, not getting a high level of output per worker from them once
they were there. Co-existing with the cotton and the other famous export sectors were many low
productivity, low-paid and non-exporting industries.
The unusually low share of employment in agriculture in Britain (as compared to Europe) by the
early nineteenth century prompts the question: how did this happen? At one level it is quite easy
to explain. By international standards labour productivity in British agriculture was very high (in
1840, for example, output per worker in French agriculture was only about 60% of the British level),
and it had grown References (1) N.F.R. Crafts, British Economic Growth during the Industrial
Revolution (Oxford, 1985) (2) P. M. Deane and W. A. Cole, British Economic Growth, 1688-1959
(Cambridge, 1962) (3) M. W. Flinn, Origins ofthe Industrial revolution (London, 1966) (4) D. S. Landes,
The Unbound Prometheus (Cambridge, 1969) (5) W. W. Rostow, The Stages of Economic Growth
(Cambridge, 1960) significantly from the sixteenth century on. From 1750 to 1850 the number of
jobs in agriculture rose only very slowly, while the number of non-farm workers who could be fed
by the output of each farm worker rose more than 2.5 times. Productivity increases were achieved
by better crop yields from rotations involving legumes and fodder crops, by increases in farm size
and by investment in livestock, drainage and implements. (For further discussion of these and
related changes in agriculture see the two articles in REFRESH 3, Autumn 1986). As a result of these
advances in agricultural techniques during the period of the industrial revolution,the growth in total
factor productivity in the economy as a whole exceeded that in the industrial sector, though not
that in factory industry alone. These important agricultural improvements after 1750 should always
be remembered so that the phrase 'industrial revolution' does not mislead. At the same time the
very success of agriculture makes its declining relative importance a bit puzzling. If we were so
good at farming why did we come to rely so much on imported food (over a fifth of our
consumption by 1840)? This problem has only recently begun to receive serious attention, and the
answer is not yet fully understood. It seems likely that one reason is to be found in Britain's even
greater superiority in producing textiles for export. (This phenomenon was bad news for farmers in
the same way that North Sea oil ex orts over the past decade have aid for imports of manufactured
goods at the expense of IC mestic manufacturing.) Another possible reason is the strong impact of
income growth on the demand for services and handicrafts in both town and country
Visitors, given the chance to examine paper money closely, were able to see how the vignettes on banknotes could
offer a narrative of the change and development of four key themes: agriculture, industry, shipping and maritime
trade.
Agriculture
£20 banknote, Hereford, 1820-1863 (1981,1122.232)
Agriculture had dominated the British economy for centuries. During the 18th century, after a long period of
enclosures, new farming systems created an agricultural revolution that produced larger quantities of crops to feed
the increasing population. In early 19th-century Britain, land was of great political and economic significance: the
aristocracy and gentry owned much of the countryside, and their tenants farmed and reared livestock. New tools,
fertilizers and harvesting techniques were introduced, resulting in increased productivity and agricultural prosperity.
Indeed, despite the phenomenon of urbanization and industrialization, agriculture remained a principal provider of
employment in the provinces, both supporting and being supported by industry. Geographical specialization of
products was established, with south-eastern England specializing in grain, for example, and Scotland or
Leicestershire in breeding cattle and sheep. Paper money such as that from Yorkshire or Herefordshire illustrates the
importance of farming through idealized images of agricultural bliss.
£10 banknote, Ross-on-Wye, 1822-1846 (1981,1122.528)
Industry
By the mid-18th century, population growth and increasing foreign trade created a greater demand for manufactured
goods. Mass production was achieved by replacing water and animal power with steam power, and by the invention
of new machinery and technology. Among other innovations, the introduction of steam power was a catalyst for the
Industrial Revolution. James Watt’s improvements to the steam engine, and his collaboration with Matthew Boulton
on the creation of the rotative engine, were crucial for industrial production: machinery could now function much
faster, with rotary movements and without human power. Coal became a key factor in the success of
industrialization; it was used to produce the steam power on which industry depended. Improvements in mining
technology ensured that more coal could be extracted to power the factories and run railway trains and steamships.
Britain’s cotton and metalworking industries became internationally important, but the manufacture of glass, soap
and earthenware also flourished.
£20 banknote, Manchester, 1800-1863 (1981,1122.347)
The early mechanization of the textile industry and the applications of new technologies, including Richard
Arkwright’s water frame for the cotton spinning wheel, revolutionized production in the textile mills. More efficient
ways of weaving cotton helped Manchester become the most important British centre of the cotton industry (often
called ‘Cottonopolis’) and the world’s first industrial city. Paper money issued in Lancashire shows the importance of
the textile industry in the county.
Like Manchester, Dewsbury grew substantially during the 19th century. It became an important centre of the
‘shoddy’ industry: that is, the recycling of old woollen products for the creation of blankets and other woollen goods
of inferior quality. A banknote issued in Dewsbury bears an image of a local cotton recycling factory.
The metal industry developed into one of the most profitable in the country from the late 18th century onwards.
Exported wares increased the flow of capital into the British economy, and the iron, copper and steel industries
played an important role in changes to the country’s infrastructure and in the expansion of transportation networks.
By the late 18th century, the west Midlands had become one of Britain’s major industrial centres and the area became
known as the ‘Black Country’ because of its landscape of foundries and furnaces. Birmingham saw its metalworking
industry flourish: brass fittings, buttons, guns, nails and pins were some of the most important goods that were massproduced.
Shipbuilding and maritime trade
As an island, Britain has always depended on its maritime trade. With the Industrial Revolution, shipping increased in
importance as the distribution of products and the movement of people increased dramatically. The coastal, foreign
and slave trades placed new demands on the shipping industry, and brought employment and substantial wealth to
the coastal towns. At the same time, the need for shipbuilding and ship repair also grew. The introduction of steam
power, the use of iron and steel in shipbuilding and other advances in the design of merchant ships made sea travel
faster and more reliable, and by 1819 steamships had extended beyond rivers, and were undertaking ocean voyages.
With the export trade dominating markets, and trade routes expanding, shipping became very important for the
British economy and was closely linked to the progress of the Industrial Revolution.
Local bankers were often ship owners too, and the imagery of maritime industry and trade that they used on paper
money illustrates the significance of shipping, fishing and shipbuilding in local economies. Liverpool, Newcastle and
other cities prospered and became increasingly urbanized during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Docks grew
in size, new canals and warehouses were constructed and significant numbers of people moved to major ports. The
following cities are indicative examples of the development of shipping and maritime trade during this period and
they all issued paper money featuring maritime imagery, thus emphasizing the importance of such trade in the local
and national economy.
£5 banknote, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 1836-1846 (1980,1130.248)
Sited on the east side of the Mersey Estuary, Liverpool’s proximity to Manchester was crucial to its development as
one of the most important English ports.
Similarly, Newcastle had a long history as a centre of trade and shipbuilding, but from the mid-18th century its port
became even more important. Sunderland, also in the north east, was another major trading port during the 19th
century.
£5 banknote, Bristol, 1867 (CIB.5792)
Local industries such as glass, pottery and rope-making, combined with the long established coal trade and
shipbuilding, brought new prosperity to the north east, as well as a larger population and an increasingly urban
landscape.
Equally significant in the economic prosperity of the time was Bristol. An important commercial port and
shipbuilding centre from its earliest days, Bristol profited greatly from the slave trade, and the shipping industry
remained crucial to the city’s development throughout the 19th century.
Changes in infrastructure and architecture
£10 banknote, Warwickshire, 1886, (2006,0405.58)
During this period of intense industrialization the landscape of the countryside was transformed. New towns were
established and industrial centres became even bigger, crowded with more factories and warehouses. At the same
time, the increases in production made necessary the creation of a well-organized system of transport. With the
adoption of the steam engine in locomotives, transportation of goods became quicker, easier, cheaper and more
reliable. Railways expanded significantly and the new railway connections boosted coastal towns as well as
previously remote and isolated provincial towns. Improved roads were built and new iron bridges were erected in
areas where previously communication had been difficult. At the same time, navigation through rivers and canals
expanded the distribution network of raw materials, livestock and consumer goods, and the major industries
consequently benefited greatly from the new advances in communications. The first canals were dug in Lancashire
and others soon followed, connecting industrial centres with ports, coalfields and trading centres. Liverpool, for
example, was connected by canals to Manchester and its thriving textile industry.
10 guinea banknote, Liverpool, 1801 (1986,1031.60)
Following the expansion of urban centres, ports and transport networks, changes also took place in the architecture
of the cities, with the construction of new housing as well as grand public buildings, such as town halls and libraries,
botanical gardens and concert halls. A revival of the neo-classical and gothic styles created a visual link to a glorious
past and stood as a testament to a city’s grandeur and urban prosperity, inspiring a sense of civic pride. Such pride is
evident in a number of the provincial banknotes issued in the 18th and 19th centuries, which include vignettes of new
public buildings or historical landmarks.
Page three
Changes in social and living conditions
£5 banknote, Carlisle, 1837-1896 (1981,1122.91)
The industrial and economic developments of the Industrial Revolution brought significant social changes.
Industrialization resulted in an increase in population and the phenomenon of urbanization, as a growing number of
people moved to urban centres in search of employment. Some individuals became very wealthy, but some lived in
horrible conditions. A class of prosperous industrialists, ship owners and merchants dominated, accumulating great
wealth, but at the same time the working classes had to live with minimum comforts in overcrowded environments.
Children were sent to work in factories, where they were exploited and ill-treated; women experienced substantial
changes in their lifestyle as they took jobs in domestic service and the textile industries, leaving the agricultural
workforce and spending less time in the family home. This period also saw the creation of a middle class that enjoyed
the benefits of the new prosperity. People started spending their free time entertaining themselves in theatres,
concert halls and sports facilities or enjoying the countryside in long promenades.
Most important, however, 19th-century Britain experienced political unrest as the industrialization and urbanization
of the country created a need for social and political change. There were increasing demands for improved social
welfare, education, labour rights, political rights and equality, as well as for the abolition of the slave trade and
changes in the electoral system. As a result, the slave trade was abolished in 1807 and the Great Reform Act was
passed by Parliament in 1832. After this Reform Act, manufacturing cities such as Birmingham and Manchester could
be represented in Parliament for the first time, thereby substantially changing the character of parliamentary politics.
Conclusion
The Industrial Revolution brought fundamental changes in the British way of life. Scientific innovations and
technological improvements contributed to the advancement of agriculture, industry, shipping and trade and to the
expansion of the economy. With the increase of capital and the need for credit, banking developed not only in London
but also in the countryside. Industrialists, shipbuilders, merchants and other private manufacturers established
provincial banks and issued paper money in the form of bills of exchange and notes, primarily in order to provide
payment for labour and for the purchase of raw materials.
The exhibition The Industrial Revolution and the Changing Face of Britain offered an insight into the creation of
country banking and a testimony to the economic development of the rural regions of Britain in the 19th century. As
this essay has sought to indicate, the iconography of the banknotes of the time, so well represented in the British
Museum’s collection, shows a narrative of agricultural, industrial and maritime prosperity alongside an architectural
boom – a positive, and indeed somewhat idealized, picture of wellbeing and progress.
https://www.britishmuseum.org/research/publications/online_research_catalogues/paper_money/pa
per_money_of_england__wales/the_industrial_revolution/the_ind