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The Development of Industrial Society The Industrial Revolution Transformed the Modern World A revolution quite different from the Scientific Revolution of the 1500s or the political revolutions of the 1600s and the 1700s began in Great Britain in the 1700s. This revolution—the Industrial Revolution—transformed the ways goods were produced and profoundly affected the world. The Early Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution began in Great Britain because of a certain combination of conditions. Great Britain had what economists call the factors of production, or the basic resources necessary for industrialization: land, capital, and labor. But even before the Industrial Revolution had begun, Great Britain experienced a revolution in agriculture. This revolution had started when British farmers began to fence off, or enclose, common lands into individual holdings efficient for large-scale farming. By the 1800s, because of improvements in agriculture, farmers needed fewer farm laborers. Many unemployed farm workers moved to the cities, where they created a large labor force. Many of these workers found jobs in the cotton textile industry, which was the first industry in Great Britain to undergo mechanization —the use of automatic machinery to increase production. The Factory System Soon, inventors perfected the steam engine, which could be used to power machinery. This introduction of steam-powered machinery made work easier to do and made it possible to produce a wide array of products in a relatively short time. Most of these goods were manufactured in factories rather than in people's homes. Life in the mines and factories of the early Industrial Revolution was hard and monotonous, and life in the workers' homes was not much better. Working people lived in cramped and poorly maintained apartment houses called tenements. At the same time, the middle class grew and enjoyed many luxuries unknown before the Industrial Age. New Business Methods The factory system introduced a new phase in the development of capitalism—the economic system in which individuals rather than the government control the factors of production. Before the Industrial Revolution, most capitalists were merchants who bought, sold, and exchanged goods. We call this type of capitalism commercial capitalism. However, because the capitalists of the Industrial Revolution became more involved in producing and manufacturing goods themselves, the capitalism of this period is often referred to as industrial capitalism. Industrialization changed the methods of production and depended on division of labor, interchangeable parts, and the assembly line. It also gave rise to a new form of business organization— the corporation. Improving Living Conditions During the Enlightenment of the 1700s, a group of economists attacked the ideas of mercantilism. These economists believed that natural laws governed economic life, and that any attempt to interfere with these natural economic laws was certain to bring disaster. Adam Smith, a Scot, best stated the views of these economists. Smith wrote that every person should be free to go into any business and to operate it for the greatest advantage. The result, Smith said, would benefit everyone. We call this system of complete free enterprise laissez-faire. As time went on, more people realized that things could not be left entirely alone. Many people, such as John Stuart Mill, felt that government needed to regulate work hours and set minimum standards for wages and working conditions. These people argued that such laws would not interfere with the natural workings of the economy. Over time, governments began to agree with these reformers. Many workers, however, felt that governments were not moving fast enough. Sometimes these workers took matters into their own hands and refused to work until demands were met. We call such a work stoppage a strike. In order to strengthen their position, workers sought ways to organize permanently into associations called labor unions. Although these organizations were at first outlawed, they later became legal. Socialism Some reformers of the 1800s advocated a political and economic system called socialism. In this system the government owns the means of production and operates them for the welfare of all the people. Some thinkers grew impatient with early socialism, which advocated peaceful methods to attain goals. Karl Marx, the most important of these critics, believed that all the great changes in history came from changes in economic conditions. Under capitalism, he said, labor receives only a small fraction of the wealth it creates. Most of the wealth goes to the owners in the form of profits. As a result of this unequal distribution of wealth, the capitalist system necessarily suffered from increasingly severe depressions that would ultimately lead to a revolution led by the workers, or proletarians. Marxist, or radical, socialists generally believed in the necessity of revolution to overthrow the capitalist system. They wanted to establish a system in which the government owns almost all the means of production and controls economic planning. Today we call this economic and political system authoritarian socialism, or communism. Another group of socialists, though influenced by Marx, believed that socialism could develop gradually through education and democratic forms of government. Today we call this type of socialism democratic socialism. Under democratic socialism, the people retain basic human rights and partial control over economic planning through the election of government officials. 1 The Industrial Age Revolutionized Science and Culture In addition to changing the economy and society, the Industrial Revolution had a profound effect on science, art, music, and literature. Technology and Communication Beginning about 1870 manufacturers increasingly applied the findings of pure science to their businesses, generating a new wave of industrial growth. The application of scientific solutions to industrial problems resulted in: (1) inventions that provided rapid communications over long distances; (2) the development and use of new sources of power; and (3) the creation of new products and materials and the improvement of old ones. Advances in Science and Medicine The most significant developments in the physical sciences— those that deal with the inanimate, or nonliving, aspects of nature— during the 1800s and early 1900s centered on the atomic theory. This theory states that all matter in the universe consists of very small particles called atoms. The arrangement and structure of these atoms and their chemical combinations with each other account for the different characteristics of the materials that make up our world. Scientists also investigated the biological sciences—those dealing with living organisms. Many explored the structure of cells, the tiny units of living matter, in an attempt to better understand organic matter and thereby improve human life. Population The progress made possible by science and technology helped produce rapid population growth in industrialized countries. As the population grew, it also became more mobile. Large numbers of people moved across national boundaries and oceans to foreign lands. Others moved to cities to find jobs in the new factories. Social Sciences and Education During the 1800s interest in education and in the social sciences grew rapidly. The social sciences are disciplines that study people as members of society. These subjects include political science, economics, history, anthropology, sociology, and psychology. Literature, Music, and Art Literature, music, and art reflected the social and economic developments of the Industrial Age. Even in their most personal statements, the artists portrayed in their works a sense of the times and of the influences of scientific ideas and rapid change. Many writers of the early 1800s belonged to what is known as the romantic movement. Their work appealed to sentiment and imagination and dealt with the "romance" of life—life as it used to be, or as they thought it ought to be, rather than as it actually was. In the mid-1800s writers and artists began to abandon romanticism and turn to realism, which emphasized the realities of everyday life. Reforms Swept Through Many Areas of the World in the 1800s During the late 1800s, people throughout the world clamored for reform. Their appeals met with varying degrees of success. British Reforms Although Great Britain was a limited constitutional monarchy with executive power vested in a cabinet headed by the prime minister, not everyone had a voice in government. In the 1800s, however, a series of reforms extended rights to the entire population. At the same time, vital social and economic reforms took place. Two outstanding prime ministers— Benjamin Disraeli and William Gladstone—helped push through many of these reforms. As Great Britain instituted social and political reforms, other changes occurred within the British Empire. The British colonies of Canada, Australia, and New Zealand won selfgovernment. Nevertheless, each maintained close ties with Great Britain. The United States Unlike European governments, the United States expanded without acquiring any colonies. Instead, it expanded across North America and gave new territories the opportunity to become states on an equal basis with the original 13 states. Despite phenomenal growth, the United States had one significant problem—the unresolved issue of slavery. This issue, along with the issue of states' rights, led to a brutal civil war that raged between 1861 and 1865 and left much of the nation—particularly the South—in ruins. Nevertheless, the Union was preserved. After the Civil War, the United States experienced phenomenal growth primarily as a result of industrialization and immigration. France For many years after the Congress of Vienna, the Bourbons continued to rule France. Then in 1830 a revolt forced King Charles X to abdicate. The leaders of the French revolt then chose Louis Philippe, Duke of Orleans, who belonged to a branch of the Bourbon family but who had a record of liberal beliefs, as king. But in 1848 opposition to the regime of Louis Philippe erupted in violence. A new government—a republic—under the leadership of Louis Napoleon was soon proclaimed. Napoleon, however, had imperial ambitions similar to those of his illustrious uncle and soon proclaimed the Second Empire. The Second Empire lasted until a humiliating defeat by Prussia toppled it in 1871. France once again proclaimed a republic. Latin America By the late 1700s, the Spanish and Portuguese colonies underwent administrative reform and economic growth, inspired in part by the Enlightenment. Nevertheless, the revolutionary events in British North America and France in 2 the late 1700s aroused interest, particularly among discontented Creoles, as upper-class Latin Americans were known. By the mid-1800s this discontent had become full-scale revolution, and the nations of Latin America had won their independence. Unification of New Nations Added to Rising Tensions in Europe In the late 1800s, the political situation in Europe changed significantly. Italy and Germany each became unified nations. Russia remained a rigid autocracy, and Austria and Hungary formed the Dual Monarchy. Italy Italian nationalism became a strong force in the early 1800s. Under the leadership of fiery patriots such as Giuseppe Mazzini, people in many parts of Italy clamored for national unity. Although the nationalists made some gains, they could not agree on what type of government the united Italy should have. One group favored union under the leadership of Sardinia. There, the chief minister or premier, Count Camillo Benso di Cavour, provided the major impetus for Italian unification. Throughout the 1850s and the 1860s, Cavour used diplomacy, war, and persuasion to achieve unity. Finally, in 1870 unification was completed when the Italians claimed Rome. Prussia Like Italy, Germany remained fragmented in the early 1800s. But during the 1860s and 1870s, the long-delayed process of centralization and consolidation under the leadership of Prussia began to pick up great speed. Perhaps the person most responsible for German unification was the Prussian chancellor Otto von Bismarck, who used clever diplomacy and war against Denmark, Austria, and France to achieve unification in 1871. problems caused by liberal ideas and restless nationalities, the czars took harsh measures. Although the late 1800s witnessed reforms such as the freeing of the serfs during the reign of Alexander II, most reform efforts failed. And the czars continued to use repression to combat any erosion of their powers. Then in 1904 and 1905 the Russians fought a disastrous war with Japan (RussoJapanese War). Defeat at the hands of the Japanese spurred all the discontented groups in the country to action and led to revolution. Although the beleaguered Czar Nicholas II granted a few reforms, he later reneged on his promises and resumed his policies of repression. This repression would have disastrous consequences for the Romanovs. Austria-Hungary The Hapsburgs in Austria also had to deal with the rising tide of liberalism in the late 1800s. And to combat nationalist demands in the empire, the Austrians formed the Dual Monarchy in which both Hungarians and Austrians played a vital role in government. The formation of the Dual Monarchy failed to solve the problem of nationalities. The Austrian Germans and the Hungarian Magyars dominated the population in each of their separate national states. National minorities—the Czechs, Serbs, Croats, Romanians, Poles, and Italians—existed in both Austria and Hungary. These people benefited very little from the Dual Monarchy and continued to agitate for selfgovernment. The Dual Monarchy also faced problems abroad. In the late 1800s, the Hapsburgs clashed with the autocratic government of the Ottoman Empire over the Balkans. Although the Ottomans had ruled the Balkans for centuries, their influence steadily weakened as their empire declined. The new German Empire was a federal union under the leadership of the Prussian kaiser, or emperor. The federal government controlled all common matters, such as national defense, foreign affairs, and commerce. Imperialist Powers Competed in Many Areas of the World Beginning about 1870 several factors rekindled interest in establishing colonies. During the next 40 years, many nations became involved in imperialism—the domination by a powerful nation over the political, economic, and cultural affairs of another nation or region. Opposition to Bismarck In spite of rigid control by the aristocratic Prussians, the new German federal government soon ran into difficult problems. Dissatisfied groups formed political parties that opposed Bismarck's policies. Relations with the Roman Catholic church proved troublesome, and socialists clamored for government ownership of businesses. Through delicate diplomacy, however, Bismarck was able to deal with these problems and transform Germany into an industrial power. Background of Imperialism Imperialism arose out of a complex mixture of political, economic, and social forces. These forces included a desire for self-sufficiency, the need for new markets, the search for national pride and prestige, the need for places where people could settle and still remain loyal to the home country, and the desire to convert people to Christianity. In foreign policy Bismarck worked to build up Germany's military strength and develop a system of alliances to prevent Russia and France from becoming allies. Imperialism created bitter rivalries among the imperial powers and hatred among the colonized peoples. As European powers took over more and more of the world, these rivalries and hatreds intensified. Russia Ruled by an autocratic czar, Russia steadfastly opposed reform. Nevertheless, liberal ideals became popular among discontented Russians—particularly among intellectuals. Faced with North Africa and the Sudan In the 1800s most of North Africa and the Sudan belonged to the Ottoman Empire. Because Turkish control in many areas was weak, the Europeans scrambled to claim new colonies. 3 The French claimed Algeria, Tunisia, and Morocco. The British established dominance in Egypt and the Sudan, and the Italians took Libya. SubSaharan Africa The Europeans repeated their colonial ambitions in SubSaharan Africa. During the empire building of the 1500s and the 1600s, the Europeans had established settlements on the coasts. In the late 1800s, however, the Europeans moved inland. By 1900 Europeans claimed all land in SubSaharan Africa except Liberia and Ethiopia. Imperialism was a harsh experience for all of Africa. However, the costs and the benefits resulting from European expansion were unevenly distributed across the continent. South and East Asia The strong forces of imperialism that swept Africa in the 1800s brought' important and fateful changes to South and East Asia although the changes were not as abrupt as they were in so many parts of Africa. In India, for example, the British had long played an important role. In the mid-1800s, they increased this role and made India a part of their vast empire. 4