The Industrial Revolution: key points (page no. 81)

The Industrial Revolution began in the middle of the 18th century in Great Britain. It was helped by the increasing of population, the new technological developments, raw materials and energy resources, communication routes and a bourgeoisie with capital.

The steam power was applied to textile manufacturing, ironworks, railways and ships.

In the latter third of the 19th century a new technological and scientific development was made and it helped the Second Industrial Revolution.

In the Second Industrial Revolution crude oil and electricity were applied as energy resources, and steel and chemical industries were developed.

Besides United Kingdom, other countries like France, Belgium, Germany, the United States and Japan became industrial leaders.

The factory became the most important production site, where machinery and workforce were placed together.

Class society replaced the ancient three estates. The two main social classes were bourgeoisie or capitalist class, who owned the means of production, and proletariat or working class, who only owned its work.

The labour movement wanted to remove class society and it developed across two main doctrines: socialism and anarchism.