Industrial Revolution• The industrial revolution would change society

completely• It revolved around three main industries:

textiles, mining and steel production• Before the industrial revolution all clothes were

handmade• It was a cottage industry and was extremely

slow in production• A number of inventions would change all this

however

• James Hargreaves invented the Spinning Jenny• This allowed a weaver to spin eight times more

yarn• Richard Arkwright developed a water frame

which produced stronger thread• Huge factories(Mills) were built to house these

new big machines• These factories produced huge amounts of

cloth• They required huge numbers of people to work

in them

Spinning Jenny Water Frame

• This saw a surge in factory employment as people moved away from the land

• Coal played a vital part in the industrial revolution• Coal provided the power that ran steam engines

which were used in factories• It was also converted to coke which was essential

for the making of steel• Coal miners worked around 12 hours a day in

terrible conditions• Most mines were far underground and could only

be reached by deep shafts

• There were several different jobs in the mines• Hewers cut the coal from the face, hurriers

then transported it from the face to the mineshaft

• Hurriers were usually women and children• Children as young as 5 were used as trappers• The opened and closed trap doors as coal carts

passed• The mines were extremely dangerous• Explosions from pockets of gas and pit collapses

were a constant problem

• Miners were also constantly breathing in coal dust

• Flooding was also a real danger with miners often drowning

• Injuries constantly occurred. Miner often became crippled with back problems because of the cramped conditions

• Most of the new machines, ships and factories were now made of iron and steel

• This led to huge demand for iron and steel

• In order to make steel there were several steps to go through

• First iron ore was extracted from the ground• Coke was used to heat a blast furnace where

the iron ore was smelted• This produced a weak iron or steel• Abraham Darby discovered how to convert

coal into coke• Henry Court discovered ”pudding and rolling”

which improved the quality of wrought iron

• By 1850 tens of thousands of people in Britain worked in steel production

• They were usually located close to coal mines• The workers faced dangers from the molten

metal and the extreme heat• Britain would go on to become known as the

workshop of the world

Working Conditions• Workers began work at 5.50 and worked

between 12 and 16 hours a day.• They worked 6 days a week and there was no

such thing as holidays• If people could not turn up for work they

would lose part of their wage or sometimes their job

• There was huge competition for jobs as people flowed into the cities

• This meant people who were unable to attend work could easily be replaced

• It also drove wages even lower• This meant one wage was not enough for a

family to survive on• This led to children having to go out to work• Child labour was extremely common during

the industrial revolution

Living Conditions• During the industrial revolution there was a

clear class system in England• There was the upper, middle and working class• The population of Britain more than doubled

from 9 to 22 million between 1801 and 1851• This led to overcrowding in the towns and

cities• Whole families often lived in one roomed

apartments

• Sanitation was a huge problem as very few English cities had water or sewerage systems

• This along with air pollution from the factories greatly increased the probability of disease

• Among the most common of the diseases were typhoid, cholera, smallpox and consumption(TB)

• Drinking was a major social problem and further put people into poverty

• The rich at the time ate well but the poor relied on gruel(porridge)

• High levels of crime existed due to the extreme poverty that people suffered

• Education for the working class was almost non-existent

• This was the case as most of the children had to work

• The rich however were educated very well in private fee paying schools

• There was little time for leisure but despite this some pastimes did exist

• Bare- knuckle boxing and fog fighting were popular

• Football also began to have its foundation at this time