Agricultural Revolution

Population Explosion We know that the population in Britain

grew dramatically from 1700 to 1850.

As agriculture developed there was more food which meant that food became cheaper.

Poorer families could now afford to have more children because they knew they could afford to feed them.

The population explosion began around 1750.

As birth rates went up, the death rate was also going down in Britain, which meant a growth in the population.

Developments in Agriculture1. Enclosure Farming

Before the 18th Century farmers practised a type of ‘open’ farming – there were no hedges or fences to separate fields and farmer’s lands from one another.

This meant that disease spread easily

and animals could go into land that was planted for crops.

Enclosure Acts

The government introduced Enclosure Acts – these allowed farmers to

fence off their own lands.By the end of the 1700s, the land

looked like a ‘patch-work’ quilt. Good farmers could now use

better practices to improve the quantity & quality of their crops.

2. New MachineryAs with the cottage industries most work

on farms in 1700 was done by hand.

During the 18th Century new machines were invented to make life easier for the farmer.

1.Jethro Tull’s seed drill – made sure that the seeds were sown deep in the soil.

2.Cyrus McCormick’s mechanical reaper – made it easier to harvest the crop. Led to an increase in food production.

3. LivestockSelective Breeding – taking the best

animals and only allowing them to breed.

Led to an improvement in the quality of sheep, cattle & horses and a greater supply of meat, milk etc.

This meant that meat was cheaper to buy.

Introduced by Robert Bakewell and quickly copied by other farmers.

4. Four Field Systemi.e. Crop RotationLike all things soil gets tired (infertile) if not given a break.3 field system – rotate crops between three fields so that each year one field was left fallow (nothing planted in it).This was replaced by the four-field system – instead of leaving a field fallow it was planted with turnips and clover – increased the fields fertility. Developed by Viscount Charles Townsend – nicknamed ‘Turnip’ Townsend. Led to increase in the amount of food available.

Results of the Agricultural Revolution

Enclosures, selective breeding

& the four-field system led an increase in

production of food – cheaper

food.

There was more food and it was cheaper –

people lived longer and had more children –

Population Explosion

This led to rural unemployment and people moved to cities in search of

work – this contributed to the

Industrial Revolution.

There were more people living in rural

areas, but improvements in

machinery meant that less people were

needed to work on the land.

Improvements in Transport

1. RoadsRoads greatly improved after 1750.

Private companies called ‘Turnpike Trusts’ were given permission to improve & maintain roads – they then charged tolls to people who used these roads.

They called the barriers where these tolls were collected ‘turnpikes’.

Engineers like John Macadam and Thomas Telford discovered new ways of building stronger roads.

They used strong foundations on their roads and gave them a smooth surface that sloped gently away from the centre, so that water could drain into ditches at the side.

2. Canals Water transport was the best way of

carrying heavy goods, like coal and iron.

Canals were developed to link rivers to industrial cities to make this transport easier.

James Brindley, an engineer, built the first canal in 1761. It was so successful that by 1830 there were 6,000km of canals in Britain

3. Railways Following James Watt developing the rotary

steam engine in 1763, Richard Trevithick developed a ‘steam carriage’ that could run on tracks in 1804.

Rail transport began in 1825 with the first goods train going between Stockton & Darlington in England.

First passenger train ran between Manchester & Liverpool five years later in 1830.

George Stephenson designed the engine for this train which he called ‘The Rocket’ because it could travel at an amazing 46km per hour!!

The railway age had begun – soon there were Railway lines all over Britain.

Railways could rush fresh food like milk, meat and vegetables across the country and again, as fresh food became cheaper and more available peoples health began to improve in cities.