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FChiesa-The Industrial Revolution
by FChiesa - (2012-09-19)
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 "Industrial revolution" is a term used to describe the change from an agrarian economy to an industrialized economic system happened between the end of 17th century and the beginning of the 18th century. The term was used for the first time by the economic historian Arnold Toynbee in 1830. The revolution started in Britain but it expanded in a lot of parts of Europe and of the World. The main features of the Industrial revolution were: the Agricultural Revolution, technological innovations, the Transport Revolution,  social Revolution and working class movements.                                                                                                                                                                    At the end of the 18th century, Britain was a rural society. The use of technology in farming methods caused an Agricultural Revolution. In particular the use of new machines drove the main part of agricultural workers into towns, to search a work in factories.                                                                                                                                                                    Concerning Technological revolution, they had an important role in the Industrial Revolution. The most important innovation was the steam engine improved by James Watt.                                                                                                                                           During the Industrial revolution there was the development of transport: were built waterways, roads and railways. This development was necessary because the growing industrial system required more roads and a network of canals to transport raw materials to factories.                                                                                                                                                                              About the social revolution, the economic changes brought to this. The expansion in the industrial population brought with it the rise of the factory town, especially in the north of Britain.                                                                                                                                                                                    In addition to this, the industrial revolution bring with it the working class movements: workers began to form associations to look their interests. Their aim was t achieve improved working conditions and higher wages.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              The Industrial Revolution led to the substitution of competition for the medieval regulations which had controlled the production and distribution of wealth. Besides it developed Economic science and Socialism that are two systems antithetical of thought. The first system tried to comprehend the laws which regulated the production and distribution of wealth. Some economists wrote books that dealt about this system. The fist writer is Adam Smith that wrote The Wealth of Nations in which he investigated the causes of wealth. Then, there is Malthus' book, The Essay on population, in which he tried to understand the causes of poverty. The third book is The Principles of Political Economy and Taxation, written by Ricardo where is affronted  the distribution of wealth. Finally Mill wrote Principles of Political Economy where he dealt about how wealth should be distributed.