Overview And Reasons Of The Industrial Revolution

The industrial revolution lasted from around 1760 until the end of the 19th century. The industrial revolution saw the introduction or urbanisation to towns and cities and a change from the agricultural changes and goods being produced in a more modern way. Factories were soon invented to fit the new machines that had been produced. These new machines took up too much space to fit in the regular household. Therefor they were perfect for factories. The industrial came with many reasons but there are three main ones. The three main causes are the agricultural changes, the technological advancements and the new ways of transport.

One of the main reasons for the industrial revolution was the agricultural changes that occurred in this time period. Agriculture had a major impact on the industrial revolution because it brought more efficient and cost-effective ways to produce food for you and your family. These inventions deeply influenced the industrial revolution; Jethro Tull’s seed drill, enclosure of open fields, Joseph Foljambe’s Rotherham plough, crop rotation and selective breeding.

Jethro Tull’s seed drill made farming much, much easier. The seed drill was invented in 1701 as a way to plant more efficiently. Prior to the seed drill, sowing seeds was done by hand, scattering them on the ground or placing them on the ground individually. The finished seed drill included a hopper to store the seed, a cylinder to move it and a funnel to direct it. A plow at the front created the row and a harrow at the back covered the seed with soil. It was the first agricultural machine with moving parts. It started as a one man, one row device, but later designs sowed seeds in three uniformed rows, had wheels and were drawn by horses. Using wider spacing than previous practices allowed horses to draw the equipment and not step on the plants.

The open field system was the prevalent agricultural system in much of Europe during in the middle ages and lasted into the 20th century in parts of western Europe, Russia, Iran and Turkey. The open field system was the traditional medieval system of farming in England, in which land was divided into strips and managed by an individual only in the growing season, being available to the community for grazing animals during the rest of the year. There were some disadvantages to the open field system such as cart tracks and paths leading to wastage of useful land, under utilisation of land as it was left fallow, the practice was taught as ploughing fields and leaving them vacant, farmers were forced to slaughter their animals in autumn/winter and salt the meat for future use due to lack of hay, the common grazing grounds for livestock led to spread of disease and pieces of land were often scattered forcing families and individuals to travel far to reach their fields. Although there were these bad things about the open field system, there were also major advantages such as there was much longer harvests with less cost, it insured the good and bad land was divided evenly and it allowed crops to grow naturally where they were well adapted, under the appropriate climate, during the suitable season.

Joseph Foljambe patented the Rotherham Triangular plough. This plough had an iron blade that was lighter and easier to use than the traditional wooden plough. the Rotherham plough was handled by two horses and one person whilst the traditional plough was handled required four oxen, a ploughman and an ox driver. The Rotherham plough was proved to be quicker and more efficient as well as reducing the cost for farmers. For many years this design was used extensively.