THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION

The Industrial Revolution is the substitution of competition for the mediaeval regulations which had previously controlled the production and distribution of wealth.
In Europe itled to growth of two systems of thought:

1. Economic science                  
2. Socialism

The development of Economic Science in England has four chief landmarks, each connected with the name of one of the four great English economists:

1. Adam Smith’s “Wealth of Nations”, in which he investigates the causes of wealth;
2. Malthus’s “Essay on Population”, in which he describes the causes of poverty;
3. Ricardo’s “Principles of Political Economy and Taxation”, in which he deals with distribution of wealth;
4. John Stuart Mill’s “Principles of Political Economy”, in which he speaks about how wealth ought be distributed.

The industrial revolution implied two facts: the growth of population and the agrarian revolution.

As a consequence of the Decrease in rural population:

1. common-field system of cultivationwas destroyed;
2. common and waste lands were enclosure;
3. small farms consolidated into large ones.

It is interesting to analyze agricultural advance with a more specific approach: it was due to agricultural innovations such as the improvement of breed and cattle and the Rotation of crops. Moreover the causes has to be attributed to new invention, like the steam-plough and the creation of agricultural societies.

The causes of the growth of industry are, first of all, mechanical inventions in textile industry such as the “Spinning-jenny”, that is a machine spinning with more than one spindle, the water-frame, Crompton’s mule and the Self-acting mule (invented by Kelly, then improved by Roberts). But the most important innovations were the steam engine, patented by James Watt, and the power loom.

Moreover the mechanical revolution in iron industry led industry to grow. It can be provided some examples: the smelting by pit-coal and the Application of steam-engine to blast furnaces.

The improvement of communication has to be added to the causes of the growth of industry. It can be identified with Canal, Turn-pike road and railroad.

As a result of it all there were periods of over-production and of depression and the substitution of factory system for domestic system.

Revolution in distribution of wealth caused rise in rents aroused by money invested in improvements, consolidation of farms, enclosure system and the high price of corn.

The process of industrialization caused social changes in manufacturing world:
the workmen were individually unknown by the great capitalist employers and they got low wages.As a consequence farmers earned lots of money, habits changed and class conflict broken out.

On the other hand low wages, rise of prices and fluctuations of trade often led working people to misery.

Conclusion: the effects of the Industrial Revolution proved that free competition may produce wealth without producing well-being.