THE AGE OF REVOLUTION

INTRODUCTION

Warming Up
What comes to your mind when you think about the word REVOLUTION? Complete the
spidergram, then share your conclusions with your classmates. Add new words to the
diagram after the discussion.

Overview
1. Read the text below and complete the chart.

The transition from a world of artisan manufacture (homemade production)

to a factory system is known as the Industrial Revolution. It began in Britain
in the early years of the 18th century.
In a little over a century, Britain went from a largely rural population to a
country of industrialized towns, factories, mines and workshops.
What

When

Where

2. Read the text again and circle the best definition for “Industrial Revolution”.

a. a glorious war that led to the end of the monarchy.

b. a radical change in the social structure that affected large numbers of people
and took place in a relatively short period of time.

c. a violent transition from one system of production in a society to the next that
affected large numbers of people and took place in a relatively short period of
time.

d. a successful attempt by a large number of people to change the political system

of their country.

3. Look at the pictures, read the text again and complete the captions.
Map Skills
Examine the two maps. Complete the following text with the words in the box.

iron colonies machines natural

coal canals cotton market

Resources
In the 18th century Great Britain had many ​_____________ sources for ​_____________
ore and ​_____________ . This made the island an abundant place for natural fuel and
proved essential to the development of all new ​_____________ ​. Great Britain, being a
navy based country, had ​_____________ ​that made the transport of natural resources
easier throughout the island. Moreover, the nation received cheap raw materials, like
_____________​ , from the ​_____________ ​and had a huge ​_____________​ there.
Studying Skills
1. Read about another factor that led to the Industrial Revolution in Britain. Then
complete the table on the next page with suitable expressions from the text.

POPULATION GROWTH
Before 1760, Britain was a predominantly agricultural country with a relatively
small population of less than 9 million. A “modern” government - a long-time
constitutional monarchy - ruled the country after the Glorious Revolution of 1688.
They encouraged i​ mprovements in the national economy​.
From about 1740, the population of Great Britain started to grow, largely because
of a ​declining death rate ​that resulted from ​improved living standards and it
continued to do so, with the population reaching 18 million by 1851. Such
population explosion brought about both an ​increased demand for food​, goods,
and services, as well as an ​enlarged labor force​.

: Great need

: Bigger number of people available for work

: Better daily life

: Government in which the monarch must follow a constitution

: Minor mortality

2. Referring to the previous text, decide if the underlined events were causes or
effects of the rise of population. Copy them in the correct boxes.
Communication Skills
Read about a third major change that occurred during the 18th century and find answers
to the following questions. Be ready to answer them orally.

THE AGRICULTURAL REVOLUTION

Due to the population growth, there was a need for more food. A factor that led to
increased food production was a new system of ​four-field crop rotation​. It
involved growing four different crops over four years in each field. So the field was
never left fallow (unproductive) as in the old open-field method of farming.
The new system was encouraged by a new way of organizing the land as a result
of ​enclosures​. The ​enclosure system ​allowed large landowners to put fences or
walls around what had been common village land. Consequently, they could
expand the land under their control and produce more for the market. They
became rich and invested in new machinery so they needed fewer workmen on
farms. Many farmers moved to cities and the number of small farms began to
decline

a. Why did changes take place in

farming in the 18th century?

b. Why was the open-field system

inefficient?

c. How did the four-field crop rotation

increase food production?

d. What put an end to the open-field

system?

e. What advantages did enclosures have for landowners?

f. What happened when innovations in farming were introduced?

THE AGRICULTURAL REVOLUTION

Setting the Scene

For thousands of years following the rise of civilization, most people lived and worked in
small farming villages. However, a chain of events set in motion in the mid-1700s changed
that way of life for all time. Today, we call this period of change the ​Industrial and
Agricultural Revolution​.
These revolutions started in Britain. In contrast with most political revolutions, they were
neither sudden nor swift. Instead, it was a long, slow, uneven process in which production
shifted from simple hand tools to complex machines and food harvesting became
mechanized. New sources of power replaced human and animal power. They both spread
from Britain to the rest of Europe, to North America, and around the globe.

A Turning Point in History

In 1750, most people worked the land, using handmade tools. They lived in simple cottages
lit by firelight and candles. They made their own clothes and grew their own food. In
nearby towns, they might exchange goods at a weekly outdoor market.
Like their ancestors, these people knew little of the world that existed beyond their
village. The few who left home traveled only as far as their feet or a horse-drawn cart
could take them. Those bold adventurers who dared to cross the seas were at the mercy of
the winds and tides.
With the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, the rural way of life began to disappear.
By the 1950s, many country villages had grown into industrial towns and cities. Their
inhabitants bought food and clothing in stores that offered a large variety of
machine-made goods. Their homes were crowded, multistory apartment buildings.
Industrial-age travelers moved rapidly between countries and continents by train or
steamship. Urgent messages flew along telegraph wires. New inventions poured out each
year.
Still more stunning changes occurred in the next century, creating our familiar world of
skyscraper cities and carefully tended suburbs. How and why did these great changes
occur? Historians point to a series of interrelated causes
that helped trigger the industrialization of the West.
A New Agricultural Revolution
Oddly enough, the Industrial Revolution was made possible in part by a change in the
farming fields of Western Europe. The first ​Agricultural Revolution ​took place some
11,000 years ago, when people learned to farm and domesticate animals. About 300 years
ago, a second agricultural revolution took place. It greatly improved the quality and
quantity of farm products.

Improved Methods of Farming

The Dutch led the way in this new agricultural revolution. They built earthen walls known
as dikes to reclaim land from the sea. They combined smaller fields into larger ones to
make better use of the land and used fertilizer from livestock to renew the soil.
In the 1700s, British farmers expanded on Dutch experiments. Some farmers mixed
different kinds of soils to get higher crop yields. Others
tried out new methods of crop rotation. ​Lord Charles
Townshend ​urged farmers to grow turnips, which
restored exhausted soil. ​Jethro Tull ​invented a new
mechanical device, the ​seed drill,​ to aid farmers. It
deposited seeds in rows rather than scattering them
wastefully over the land.
Educated farmers exchanged news of experiments through farm journals. ​King George III
himself, nicknamed "Farmer George," wrote articles about his model farm near Windsor
Castle.

Enclosure Movement
Meanwhile, rich landowners pushed ahead with ​enclosure​, the process of taking over and
fencing off land formerly shared by peasant farmers. In the 1500s, they had enclosed land
to gain pastures for sheep and increased wool output. By the 1700s, they wanted to create
larger fields that could be cultivated more efficiently.
As millions of acres were enclosed, farm
output rose. Profits also rose because
large fields needed fewer workers. But
such progress had a human cost. Many
farm laborers were thrown out of work,
and small farmers were forced off their land because they could not compete with large
landholders. Villages shrank as cottagers left in search of work.
In time, jobless farm workers migrated to towns and cities. There, they formed a growing
labor force that would tend the machines of the Industrial Revolution.
Changes in Agriculture
New inventions contributed to an agricultural revolution during the 1600s and 1700s.
Today, the development of ​new sources of fuel ​encourages even more use of machine
power in farming.

TOPIC QUESTION: How might agricultural developments increase farm productivity and
efficiency?

The Population Explosion

The agricultural revolution contributed to a rapid growth of population that continues
today. Precise population statistics for the 1700s are rare, but those that do exist are
striking. Britain's population, for example, soared from about 5 million in 1700 to almost 9
million in 1800. The population of Europe as a whole shot up from roughly 120 million to
about 190 million during the same period. Such growth had never before been seen.
The population boom of the 1700s was due more to declining death rates than to rising
birth rates​. The agricultural revolution reduced the risk of famine. Because they ate
better, women were healthier and had stronger babies. In the 1800s, better hygiene and
sanitation, along with improved medical care, further slowed deaths from disease.

New Technology
A third factor that helped trigger the Industrial Revolution was the development of ​new
technology​. New sources of energy, along with new materials, enabled business owners to
change the ways work was done.
During the 1700s, people began to harness new sources of energy. One vital power source
was ​coal​, used to develop the ​steam engine​. In 1712, inventor ​Thomas Newcomen ​had
developed a steam engine powered by coal to pump water out of mines. About 1769,
Scottish engineer ​James Watt ​improved on Newcomen's engine. Watt's engines would
become a key power source of the Industrial Revolution.

Improved Iron
Coal was also a vital source of fuel in the production of ​iron​, a material needed for
construction of machines and steam engines. The Darby family of Coalbrookdale
pioneered new methods of producing iron. In 1709, ​Abraham Darby ​used coal to smelt
iron, or separate iron from its ore. When he discovered that coal gave off impurities that
damaged the iron, Darby found a way to remove the impurities from coal.
Darby's experiments led him to produce better-quality and less expensive iron.
High-quality iron was used more and more widely, especially after the world turned to
building ​railroads​.
SECTION 1 - Assessment
1. Identify: ​(a) Charles Townshend, (b) Jethro Tull, (c) Thomas Newcomen, (d) James
Watt, (e) Abraham Darby.

2. Define:​ (a) coal, (b) enclosure, (c) smelt.

3. Comprehension​:
a. Describe ​how the Industrial Revolution changed daily life, becoming a
turning point in history.

b. Identify​ ​three causes of the population explosion in Europe.

c. Explain ​the impact of each of the following technologies: (a) steam power, (b)
improved iron.

4. Critical Thinking:
a. What were the immediate and long-term effects of the agricultural
revolution?

b. How do you think increased population contributed to the Industrial

Revolution?