Crash Course European History: The Industrial Revolution

Introduction

• Presenter: John Green
• Focus: Industrial Revolution

Life in 1820 vs. 1920

• 1820:
  • Most people worked in agriculture
  • Limited technology: no running water, electricity
  • Life centered around solar cycles
  • Standards of living similar to those in much earlier centuries
• 1920:
  • Shift from agriculture to jobs in shops, factories
  • Introduction of cars, radios, refrigerators
  • Emergence from WWI with advanced, deadly weapons

Agricultural and Trade Revolutions

• Increased productivity and distribution of goods
• Allowed for division of labor (e.g., specialized roles in farming and textile work)

European Population Growth

• Post-18th century: Population rises
• Improved diet and new food sources (corn, potatoes)
• Longer life expectancy

Key Inventions

• John Kay's Flying Shuttle: Increased weaving productivity
• Spinning Jenny (James Hargreaves): Spun multiple bobbins of thread
• Water Frame (Richard Arkwright): Powered by water, leading to the first factories

Porcelain and Collaboration

• Johann Friedrich Böttger: Invented European porcelain
• Collaboration and industrial espionage were crucial

Cotton Industry and Child Labor

• High-risk, high-failure industry
• Use of unpaid child labor, leading to injuries and deaths
• Industrial accidents common

Steam Engine and Energy Revolution

• James Watt (1776): Improved steam engine
• Revolutionized work, transportation (trains, steamships)
• Urbanization around railway hubs

Social Structure Changes

• Bourgeoisie: Factory owners, bankers, landowners
• Proletariat: Factory workers
• Middle Class: Professionals like doctors, lawyers

Impact on Women

• Shift from farm/workshop to factory work
• Continued exploitation, often underpaid and poor working conditions
• Cultural norm of women as "angels in the household"

Class Consciousness and Rebellion

• Formation of worker clubs and unions
• Initial "primitive" rebellions like the Luddite movement
• Later organizing for better conditions and strikes

Urbanization and Living Conditions

• Rapid growth of industrial towns (e.g., Manchester)
• Poor living conditions: slums, disease, lack of clean water

Spread of Industrialization

• Started in England, spread across Europe
• Less dense in Eastern Europe

The Industrial Revolution: A Continuing Process

• Ongoing impact on technology and society
• Reflection on the future: how life might change by 2120

Conclusion

• Upcoming focus on cultural and political aspects of industrialization
• Encouragement to think about ongoing changes