Before the Industrial Revolution, people lived in small farming villages, consisting of about 500 people or so. The people lived simple lives, farming and trading with nearby villages. The villagers used handmade tools, raised their own animals, and made goods such as clothing and food. These small villages were everywhere in Europe and Great Britain, where the Agricultural Revolution started.
The Seed Drill
The Seed Drill was an invention made by James Watt. He made it for quick and efficient planting of crops, so it could be completed much faster than by hand. It was made to plant seeds at a specific depth and equally apart, so seeds would not be wastefully scattered on the land.
The Enclosure Acts
The introduction of factories in Britain and Europe started a wave of heavy urbanization in coal mining towns and villages. The factories used steam engines to mass manufacture goods. The factories provided a surplus of products that could be bought cheaply, fueling the economy. The introduction of factories also brought around social classes: The lower working class, the middle class, and the higher rich class. The people in the lower class were poor families that had all family members working in the factories to support themselves, children included.
Coal
Coal was instrumental in the energy revolution. The energy revolution was a period of people using raw materials like to coal to power machines such as the steam engine. Coal was used to smelt iron ore to have better quality iron that could be made into steel. Coal was also used to heat buildings.
The Steam Engine
The steam engine was an invention made by Thomas Newcomen, to pump water out of coal mines. It was later remade and improved by James Watt to use in machines in factories and eventually power trains and steamboats.
Industrial Factories
The introduction of factories was huge in the industrial revolution. Factories were built in villages and coal mining towns, and as a result of the factory building caused massive urbanization. It also gave way to social classes, the lower working class, the middle class, and the high rich class. The factories quickly manufactured surpluses of goods from raw materials which could be bought cheaply, fueling the economy.
Male Factory Workers
Male workers were primarily employed in factories while their wives stayed home and took care of the children. The men were paid very little and worked in dangerous conditions. The men were seen as low class laborers, slaving away for their entire life. Eventually, after years of terrible work, they protested and went on strikes, and as a result of some of these, some factories raised pay or shortened work hours.
Female Factory Workers
Women began to become heavily employed in textile factories and cotton mills after factory owners saw they could pay women half as much and have them as more obedient worker than men. Also after years of mistreatment, women began to rise up and demand reform and change, sparking large feminist movements.
Reform
Large reform came around after years of striking and protests from factory workers. Bills and laws were passed banning children from working long hours or from working at all, and banned more than a 10 hour work day for adults. Factories became regulated, cutting down pollution and deaths from machinery. The government used capitalist and socialist ideas to make these reforms for the people.
Governments/Economies
Capitalism was the primary economy and government in Europe. The economy was capitalist, where people can have their own independent businesses and make their own profit, but also there were socialist ideals implicated in the government. Russia, however, used communism. Karl Marks introduced socialism and communism to the world, which he tried to spread, but the capitalist way proved better for Europe.
