French Revolution and Industrial Revolution: Key Factors
The Causes of the French Revolution
In France in the late eighteenth century, large sectors of society wanted major changes. There had been a significant price increase. The bourgeoisie was experiencing economic benefits, but progress was hindered by regulations that interfered with free trade and free production. Additionally, estates management and privileges of birth prevented them from accessing political power. Encouraged by enlightened ideas, the bourgeoisie demanded political changes that would end state interventionism, aristocratic privilege, and absolutism.
The National Constituent Assembly
Members of the National Constituent Assembly had to legislate to abolish the old regime, while also addressing a population that defended the revolution with arms and, for the first time, was the protagonist of the political changes. First, they proceeded with the legal abolition of feudalism. Secondly, they adopted the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. They also began drafting a constitution, which was adopted in September 1791. The Constitution defined a constitutional monarchy based on the separation of powers. It imposed a new territorial division, abolished internal customs, and established free trade. A civil constitution of the clergy imposed an oath to the church and caused division between the refractory priests and the Constitutionalists.
The Girondin Convention
The government, in the hands of the Girondins, adopted moderate positions that angered the masses. A series of problems arose between the Girondins and the Montagnards, who became the voice of the most radical elements. The first problem was what to do with King Louis XVI. The Girondins were in favor of punishing him for treason but did not want to process him until the war ended.
The Jacobin Convention
The Jacobins arrested and executed some of the main Girondin leaders with the help of the sans-culottes in the last days of May and the beginning of June 1793. They approved a new constitution that established popular sovereignty and universal male suffrage.
The Bourgeois Republic
After the fall of the Jacobins, the third stage of the convention began. The conservative bourgeoisie emerged as the great beneficiaries of the revolution. A new constitution was adopted, which restored the franchise based on a census and defined a new executive: the Directory. The Directory harshly repressed popular uprisings led by the most leftist elements.
Industrial Revolution in England
Norfolk System
Cereal farming combined with forage plants allowed for the removal of fallow, which previously required giving up part of the unplanted soil to regain its fertility.
The Increase in Population
Birth rates increased and mortality decreased.
Mechanization
The process involved the ruin of many artisans, and individualized production was gradually replaced by the factory system. The mechanization of the production process began in the textile industry with the flying shuttle of John Kay, the new spinning machines, and looms. However, the final leap to new forms of production occurred when machines began to be powered by hydropower.
Economic Liberalism
Adam Smith advocated for the supremacy of the individual over estates or organized groups and considered that the pursuit of self-interest was the engine of economic development. Conflicting interests are balanced in the market through an “invisible hand,” where prices adjust supply and demand. Thomas Robert Malthus stated that population growth would upset the relationship with existing resources, which would worsen the living standards of most people.