The Industrial Revolution in Europe was actually sparked by the "agricultural revolution." Due to the introduction of new crops and changes in other agricultural practices, the agricultural business began to grow (Textbook pg 633).
When landlords noticed this growth they began to make the most use of their land in order to make a bigger profit. One way in which they did this was to "enclose" the common lands. The enclosure movements occured when the landlords kicked farmers off of common land in order to raise sheep and cattle there (Textbook pg 633). When this took place, many farmers were left without jobs. Most of these farmers sought out work in the countryside as spinnters, knitters, and weavers (Textbook pg 634).
This lead to the "putting-out system."The putting-out system took place when entrepreneurs "put out" raw materials that the individual workers, mostly farmers that were kicked off of the common lands, finished by weaving and spinning (Textbook pg 634). This in home labor helped many of the farmers out by giving them a second job to fall back on when the lands that they would normally be farming were out of season. Another reason that many people were getting into the business of cloth and other finished products was the rise in overseas trade. The rise in trade overseas sparked another demand for work in the production of nails and other materials for boats, because these products had to be safely carried overseas (Textbook pg 634). The cloth industry kept expanding as new, cheaper ways to make cloth out of wool and other fibers were discovered (Textbook pg 634).
In the Middle Ages, only the upper class people could afford cloth, but as the market became more efficient the prices of the cloth dropped. Those in the cloth business were not losing money, however, because as the price went down, the demand went up (Textbook pg 635). The demand for cloth triggered another industrial movement. This movement was increased mechanization (Textbook pg 635). "The invention of machines to spin thread in the late eighteenth century brought a marked increase in the rate of production" (Textbook pg 635). This was a blessing and a curse for eighteenth century Europe.
Those able to afford machines would make profit and benefit from it, but the workers who were making the cloth by hand would lose their jobs to machines.European industry began to advance technologically very quickly. "Breakthroughs in one field often led to breakthroughs in others" (Textbook pg 681). As new ways to run the machinery were discovered, the first businesses that were affected were iron and textiles(Textbook pg 681).
These breakthroughs did not come evenly, however. Some places were changing much faster than others (Textbook pg 681). This led to and uneven distribution of technology.There was a flurry of inventions in the 18th century that were specifically designed to produce mass quantities of textiles. The flying shuttle was the one of the first of its kind.
This shuttle, which was invented by John Kay of Britain in 1733, used a loom to speed up the weaving process(Textbook pg 681). This shuttle was so effiecient that another invention was made to keep up with the demand for thread (Textbook pg 681). The spinning jenny, a device that spun thread from wool or cotton, was invented by James Hargreaves in the 1760's(Textbook pg 682). The spinning jenny was made even more efficient by Samuel Crompton when he invented the "mule".
This made the spinning jenny capable of of producing as much yarn as two hundred hand spinners (Textbook pg 682). Even more inventions were introduced which led to the first modern factory (Textbook pg 682).These inventions paved the way for others and were the true beginnings of the Industrial Revolution of Europe. Although some of the "old fashioned" hand spinners would be put out of jobs, these inventions saved time and money. Those who could afford these machines could increase their profits substantially.
Therefore, the industrial revolution continued to thrive.
