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Thomas Necomen Invents the Steam Engine
The engine was used to power pumps to prevent mines from flooding. The invention was later improved on, which allowed for the energy barrier in English factories to be bypassed and for industrialization to become widespread. -
The iron industry in Great Britain stagnates due to the overuse of wood for charcoal.
The event demonstrates the problems the energy barrier posed to industrialization. -
James Hargreaves invented the cotton-spinning jenny.
The device allowed for workers to easily spin cotton into thread. It helped to centralize labor and transfer England from the putting-out system to widespread industrialization in the textile industry. -
James Watt improves the steam engine by adding a separate condenser.
This greatly increased the efficiency of the steam engine and allowed for the bypass of the energy barrier. -
A canal building boom hits England. The building of canals allows the mass transport of iron and coal throughout England.
This allows for s more connected England a more national market. -
Henry Cort developed the fuddling furnace.
The furnace used coke (a product of coal) to smelt pig iron. Due to the invention, production of iron in England reached 3 million tones by 1844. -
Period: to
The Industrial Revolution in England
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An alternate spinning machine was invented by Samuel Crompton to replace the water frame.
It required more power than could be provided by the human hand and demanded massive levels of energy. -
Thomas Malthus publishes Essay on the Principle of Population
. The book argues that population would always grow faster than the food supply and that the only way to prevent excess population growth was prudent restraints such as war and disease. -
Parliament passed the Combination Acts.
The act eliminates trade unions and strikes. This caused artisans and skilled workers to lose wages as capitalists flooded their factories with women and children to reduce wages. -
Forced child labor of orphans is prohibited by Parliament.
This deprived the factories of a source of cheap labor. -
Luddites attack factories in Northern England.
Luddites attack factories in Northern England. They believed that machines were stealing their jobs, so they destroyed the new machines. This demonstrates some of the opposition that workers had to factories. -
Period: to
The Industrial Revolution Starts to Spread to the Rest of Europe
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John Cockerill bought and converted a former bishop’s palace into a factory in Belgium.
Many workers came from Britain illegally to work for Cockerill. This allowed industrialization to spread outside Britain. -
George Stephenson invented the Rocket.
The device could speed down tracks at sixteen miles per hour. This allowed for the use of railroads and caused the economy o England to become more connected. -
Until this date, it was illegal for artisans and skilled mechanics to leave Britain.
This was meant to prevent the spread of industrialization to other countries. The law was often disobeyed by factory owners in continental Europe. -
Belgium banks start to sell stock.
People who bought the stock would not lose any money beyond their initial investment if the banks went bankrupt. Due to this, many people bought bank stock. This allowed for banks to invest in industrialization because stock decreased risk. -
Belgium develops a state-owned railroad system.
The ease of transportation stimulated the growth of heavy industry. -
The Industrial Revolution spreads to Belgium.
The nation is rich in iron and coal, so it is prepared for industrialization. -
The Factory Act of 1833 is passed.
The act limited the number of hours child workers could work and stated that all children under nine had to go to an elementary school. The act caused a decrease in the employment of children and prevented the use of family units in the factory. -
Parliament repeals the Combination Act.
This officially legalizes unions in Great Britian. -
Robert Owens creates the Grand National Consolidated Trades Union.
The union was a precursor to unions in 1854 that used conservative means to achieve change in the factories. -
Friedrich List publishes National System of Political Economy.
List argued that the German states should drop tariffs against each other and adopt a uniform tariff against the rest of Europe. The system was adopted by Germany and the rest of Europe. -
The Mines Act of 1842 is passed.
It prohibits the employment of women and boys under the age of ten in mines. -
Friedrich Engels published The Condition of the Working Class in England.
In the book, Engels accused the working class of England of murder because conditions for the working class were lower in the factories than they had been in the country. -
The Great Exhibition, a famous industrial fair, is held in the Crystal Palace in Great Britian.
The palace was made entirely of glass and iron, which were cheap products due to the Industrial Revolution. The fair demonstrated that England’s economy was greatly improving and that the nation was providing 20% of the world’s goods. -
The population of England reaches 21 million.
The population increase allows for a more mobile work force willing to work wherever jobs were available.