Unfication of the American Colonies before the Revolution

The world had to be politically prepared with a strong and predictable government in order for the change to take place. This was the case in Great Britain, the area in which Industrialization is believed to have begun. The English government had existed since 1688, and people felt safe. During the 1600s, England gained 13 colonies in North America, but lost them in 1776. Though this may seem like a weakness for Britain, in the long run Britain had an equal trading partner in the future, instead of a weak and exploited trading partner.

Around the mid 1700s, the English economy was doing very well. During this period in history, shipping goods by water was much cheaper than shipping goods by land. Beginning in the 1770s, the increase in canal building projects connected almost all parts of England to the sea. Between 1760 and 1780, canals connected almost all major areas of coal producing, metal producing, and

All of these political and economic aspects of life added to create one of the most important changes in history. Europeans had moved from a rural society of scattered farmers to a fully industrial and urban society.

There were many techniques and inventions that helped lead to industrialization because of the effects on farming. One technique was Charles Townsend’s idea about crop rotation. Throughout the middle ages, the plot of land was divided up into three sections. Two of these sections would be farmed, while one would be left fallow. This meant, only about 66% of the farmland was being used. Townsend discovered that different plants need different nutrients from the soil, and discovered a way to use almost all the land during all of the planting seasons. Inventions such as Jethro Tull’s steel tipped plow broke through tougher soil, allowing for more land to cultivate. Tull also invented the seed-drill, and introduced the technique of planting seeds in rows and burying them. In the year 1710, Parliament began passing the Acts of Enclosure. Previously, it was illegal to fence off land, and the peasants farmed the land as a community. But by 1750, land was fenced off, and peasants could not farm any land except their master’s. By this time, farming had become more efficient, and there was less of a need for workers on farms. As a result, many unemployed peasants moved to the cities.

This created a surplus of workers in the cities. These workers

Some topics in this essay:
Enclosure Previously, James Watt, North America, Columbian Exchange, Industrial Revolution, Charles Townsend’s, Jethro Tull’s, Britain Britain, Britain Industrialization, Smith European, steam engine, putting system, surplus workers, england sea, columbian exchange, economic aspects, trading partner,