As the first of my spy series, released in the US in March with A Baron in Her Bed - The Spies of Mayfair Series Book One, involves some aspects of the Industrial Revolution in Britain, I thought I'd share some of my research.
 A Philosopher Giving that Lecture on the Orrery, in which a Lamp is put in place of the Sun (sometimes called simply The Orrery) is a painting (oil on canvas, ca. 1766) by Joseph Wright of Derby
depicting a public lecture about a model solar system, with a lamp—in
place of the sun—illuminating the faces of the audience. Wright captures
the spirit of the Enlightenment, with knowledge as a force of moral
uplift for the audience of commoners under the tutelage of the natural
philosopher. | |
A visitor to England in 1760, the year George III
came to the throne would have found a nation which drew most of its living from
the land. Farm workers, tenants and landowners raised sheep and cattle, grew
crops or sold market garden or dairy produce.
Many people took to rural crafts – as blacksmiths, carpenters, coopers,
wheelwrights, carters, fencers, or thatchers – to name but a few.
Local markets were the hub of life as the roads were
poor.
If that visitor returned to England in 1837, the
year Victoria became Queen, they would have found many great changes,
especially in the midland shires. There were canals and barges laden with coal,
iron and manufactured goods moving slowly through the open countryside. There
were new roads linking many of the main towns, cities and ports. There were even some iron bridges. Peasants continued
to weave in their cottages, as they had done for centuries – but many had new
fangled steam engines in their backyards. Above all there were the huge new
industrial towns such as Birmingham, Manchester and Sheffield. Clouds of smoke
from ironworks or mills hung over the countryside.
More and more people were drawn away from the
countryside towards the towns. Here, they were often crowded into ramshackle
houses built by speculators; they worked very long hours for very low wages. In
many of these factories and workshops new kinds of machinery could often be
seen. Usually these machines were made of iron and powered by steam engines.
They were often highly dangerous for the people working them.
The changes listed above really gathered pace during
the reign of George III (1760-1820). The period saw many wonderful new
inventions. In this area, Great Britain led the world. Some industries such as
textiles and iron-making were changed and enlarged almost beyond belief. 
This
was the age of some of the greatest names in British industrial history –
James Watt, Edmund Cartwright, Thomas Telford, Richard Arkright, Samuel
Crompton, Josiah Wedgwood, Henry Cort, the Darbys of Coalbrookdale, James
Hargreaves and Richard Trevithick.
These changes came about in a relatively short
period of time and were due to many factors:
·
The work of scientists in many areas: on
atmospheric pressure, on accurate measurement and in chemistry.
·
Politics – the so-called “age of
enlightenment” in the eighteenth century: Revolutionary new ideas put into
practice in France and in America, which declared its independence from Great
Britain in 1776.
·
In religion, there was more freedom for
dissenting or non-conformist groups such as the Methodists and Quakers.
·
Invention was encouraged by the Society
for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce which offered high
payments to any inventor who agreed to open his invention to the public. Parliament
too was supportive financially.
·
The increase in population not due to an
increase in the birth rate, but the big fall in death rates, especially among
infants.
·
Britain had a huge overseas empire. This
provided a basic market for new products Also the empire had many of the raw
materials needed by Britain, including iron ore, coal deposits and cotton. All
of this international sea trade was protected by the greatest navy in the
world.
Research: The
Industrial Revolution, R.W. Hart.
Maggi Andersen is an author of Historical Romance, Romantic Suspense and Young Adult novels.
4 comments:
It would have been amazing to experience all the changes during the Industrial Revolution. Not so good for the workers who lost their jobs - a bit like being replaced by computers in our time.
Thanks for the enlightening post, Maggi.
Yes it was phenomenal change, Cheryl. And here we are still driving cars fueled by petrol.
Hi Maggi,
How fascinating it would have been to have lived during the Industrial Revolution. And perhaps a little mind-spinning with so many changes within such a short time period. Thanks for the fabulous post:)
Completely life changing for many I imagine. Thanks for dropping by Allison.
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