The colonies and the British fleet
Aside the status and movements within agriculture, another major part was played by the colonies. Great Britain had numerous colonies across the globe, meaning that it enjoyed not only labor force, but also financial and material contributions. England had fought countless battles and with every victory, their prize was more land. Aided by its geographic position, Great Britain controlled the trade handled by its colonies. The most remarkable examples are offered by its colonies in North America, which, by 1780, were the recipients of half of the entire English exports. In the immediate aftermath however, Great Britain turned its attention to the colonies in South America and India and soon came to control these regions as well. The income generated by the trade allowed the country to form a strong fleet, "the largest merchant marine in the world as well as a navy to protect this merchant marine fleet. […] England shot to the forefront of the new capitalist economy primarily through its navy" (Hooker, 1999).
Politics
The political climate represents yet another advantage as to why the Industrial Revolution was welcomed in Great Britain. The authorities of the day implemented the principles of Adam Smith and strived to direct the national market towards freedom. In other words, the intervention of the authorities was limited, which created a liberalized market that welcomed innovation. Another useful set of policies revolved around the liberalization of the banking sector. With fewer restrictions imposed, the entrepreneurs and farmers of those days had an increased access to financial resources. "Unlike France, England had an effective central bank and well-developed credit market. The English government allowed the domestic economy to function with few restrictions and encouraged both technological change and a free market" (Kreis, 2006).
Geographic characteristics and infrastructure
A fourth set of advantages is constituted by the geographical features of Great Britain. On the one hand, there was the already mentioned insular positioning which allowed it increased trade and traveling abilities. Aside this however, England enjoyed an abundance of natural resources, mainly relative to minerals. The country possessed large quantities of iron ore and coal, both pivotal within manufacturing processes.
Returning to the actual geographic conditions, it is important to state that the small size of the country made it easy for the population to travel from one location to the other. It also reduced any dissatisfaction that could be manifested by foreign trade partners. Then,...
Why Britain?The Industrial Revolution as it has been described in Eurocentric historical analyses began in Britain during the late eighteenth century, with advancements in the textile industry. However, English imperialism and colonialism patterns are what provided the new market in raw materials that spawned the revolutionary technologies of the English Industrial Revolution (Marks, 96). Profiting off its colonies, England was able to amass the capital needed to invest in new
This was due to death of one of its greatest leaders, Aurangzeb early 1709. Leadership was seemingly absent as the last of the old and experienced leaders passed on and the new leaders took over. One of the new leaders, referred to as the nawab of Bengal took control of the British port and ordered for payment of increased tax from the British. This move was obviously advised by
The pioneering spirit of colonialism and of man's ability to make advances in stages of life primarily assigned to nature -- such as the aforementioned innovations in electricity and magnetism -- were all championed by the Enlightenment and carried over to the field of industry. Additionally, the Enlightenment helped provide some of the political context which helped to create environments in which the scientific and cultural achievements of the Industrial
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The names of British factory cities would soon spread around the world symbolizing the peak of industrialization: Liverpool, Leeds, Glasgow, Sheffield, Birmingham and especially Manchester. In order to get a better image of the city's growth and development, we will turn to statistics once again. In the 1770s, Manchester had a population of about 25, 000 and by 1850, less than a century later, its population had increased to
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