Impact of
Industrialization and
Urbanization
SSWH15 The student will be able to describe the impact of industrialization, the
rise of nationalism, and the major characteristics of worldwide imperialism.
a. Analyze the process and impact of industrialization in England, Germany, and
Japan, movements for political reform, the writings of Adam Smith and Karl Marx,
and urbanization and its affect on women.
The Industrial
Revolution
• Began in Great Britain in the 1780’s and took
several decades to spread to other Western
nations
• Several factors contributed to make GB the
starting place
– Changes in agriculture & increased food
supply
– Increased population
– Ready supply of money to invest
– Plentiful natural resources
– Supply of markets for manufactured goods
Changes in Cotton
Production
• In 18th century, cotton was made by
individuals in their homes
• A series of technological advances
including the spinning jenny, water
powered loom, and steam engine made
this inefficient.
• In 1760, Britain imported 2.5 million
pounds of raw cotton to produce cloth
• By 1840, Britain imported 366 million
pounds each year
Coal & Iron Industries
• Steam engine crucial to Britain’s
industrial revolution
• Engine depended on coal which led
to an expansion in coal production
• Natural resources included large
supplies of iron ore
• Burned away impurities on crude iron
to improve the quality
Railroads
• Particularly important to the success of
the Revolution
• 1804 – first steam powered locomotive
• By 1850 able to reach 50 mph and more
than 6000 miles of railroad tracks
crisscrossed Great Britain
• Building railroads meant new jobs for
farm laborers and peasants
• Less expensive transportation meant
larger markets, more sales, more
factories, and more machinery.
New Factories
• Another important element in the
Industrial Revolution
• This new labor system led to shift
work
• Early workers came from rural
areas so employers had to create
a system of work discipline.
Spread of
Industrialization
• By mid nineteenth century, GB had
become the world’s first and richest
industrial nation
• They produced one half of the world’s
coal and manufactured goods
• Spread to the rest of Europe at different
times and speeds
• Belgium, France, and the German states
were the first to be industrialized
• By 1850, a network of railroads spread
across Europe
Social Impact in Europe
• Industrial Revolution changed the
social life of Europe and the world
• Change was evident in the growth of
cities and the emergence of two new
social classes– The Industrial Middle Class
– The Industrial Working Class
Growth of Population & Cities
• In 1750, population in Europe was
approximately 140 million
• By 1850, it had grown to 266
million
• Over 50% lived in towns & cities
• Led to pitiful living conditions
which would prompt urban
reformers in the second half of the
century
Industrial Middle Class
• The Industrial Revolution led to
industrial capitalism, an
economic system based on
industrial production
• Industrial middle class were
made up of the people who built
factories, bought the machines,
and figured out where the
markets were
Industrial Working Class
• Wretched working conditions
• Work hours 12- 16 hrs/ 6 days a
week
• No minimum wage
• Worst conditions in the cotton millsdirty, dangerous, and unhealthy
• In coal mines dangerous conditions
including cave ins, explosions, and
gas fumes were a way of life
Impact on Women & Children
• By 1830 in Britain, women & children made
up 2/3 of the cotton industry’s work force
• Factory act of 1833, set 9 as the minimum
age and limited hours a child could work
• As children declined, women would make up
50% of the labor force by 1870
• Paid half or less than half of men’s wages.
• Eventually, laws that limited work hours of
women & children would lead to a new
pattern of work. Men outside the home and
women at low paying jobs in the home.
Early Socialism
• System in which society, usually in the
form of the government, owns and
controls some means of the production,
such as factories & utilities
• Early socialism believed in the equality
of all people & wanted to replace
competition with cooperation in industry
• Later socialists, such as the followers of
Karl Marx, labeled earlier theorists as
utopian socialists
Karl Marx
• 1848, The Communist Manifesto, was
published.
• Written by two Germans, Karl Marx and
Friedrich Engels, who were appalled at the
horrible working conditions in factories
• Blamed industrial capitalism
• Felt the working class- the proletariat- would
overthrow the oppressors- the middle class
and form a dictatorship
• Believed this revolution would result in a
classless society
New Urban Environment
• By the end of the 19th century, new
industrial world led to the emergence
of a mass society in which the
concerns of the lower classes were
central
• By 1890, urban dwellers increased to
60% in England
• Cities also grew because living
conditions improved
Reforms
• Boards of health were formed
• Building inspectors required new
regulations such as running water &
internal drainage systems
• Gas heaters made hot baths
available
• Sewer systems were built to dispose
of waster
Impact of Urbanization on Women
• New job opportunities in industrial plants,
retail shops, government services,
education, health, and social services.
• Decline in the birth rate
• By 1840’s and 50’s, the women’s
movement expanded from earning
property rights, access to universities and
jobs, into political life and the right to vote.
• Between 1890 and 1914, family patterns
began to change as working class mothers
could afford to stay at home with their
children rather than working