CBSE Class 10 Social Science Revision Notes The Age of Industrialisation: The history of industrialisation is intertwined with the progress of technology and rapid advancements in our modern world. It encompasses the rise of machines and factories, the introduction of railways and steamships, and the overall journey of development and innovation. Chapter 4 of CBSE Class 10 Social Science’s History explores this age of growing technology throughout the past decades. In this article, you can check and download the detailed revision notes for this chapter.
Revision Notes for CBSE Class 10 History Chapter 4 Age of Industrialisation
1 Before the Industrial Revolution
Proto-industrialization refers to a pre-factory phase that predates the establishment of factories in England and Europe. During this period, large-scale industrial production for the international market took place outside of factory settings. In the 17th and 18th centuries, European merchants ventured into rural areas, providing financial support to peasants and artisans and commissioning them to produce goods for the global market. Due to restrictions imposed by rulers granting exclusive production and trade rights to different guilds in urban areas, merchants were compelled to expand their operations in the countryside. Impoverished peasants and artisans willingly participated in this proto-industrial system as it allowed them to remain in rural areas and continue their small-scale farming activities. This system formed part of a network of commercial exchanges controlled by merchants.
1.1 The Coming Up of the Factory
The establishment of the earliest factories in England occurred in the 1730s, but it was not until the late eighteenth century that the number of factories significantly increased. A key industry that symbolized this new era was cotton, which experienced a boom in production during the late nineteenth century. Richard Arkwright played a crucial role in this development by creating the cotton mill. These mills housed expensive machinery and centralized all the production processes under one roof, effectively streamlining management and operations.
1.2 The Pace of Industrial Change
In Britain, the cotton and metals industries emerged as the most dynamic sectors during the early stages of industrialization. Cotton dominated the first phase of industrialization until the 1840s, followed by the rise of the iron and steel industry. Despite the growth of new industries, traditional sectors faced challenges in being replaced by the emerging ones. While the steam-powered cotton and metal industries set the pace of change, the traditional industries did not remain stagnant and also underwent some advancements. Technological changes, including the improvement of the steam engine by James Watt, were introduced gradually. Watt’s patent of the improved steam engine in 1781, manufactured by Mathew Boulton, marked a significant milestone. However, steam engines were not widely adopted in other industries until later in the century.
2 Hand Labour and Steam Power
Human labour was abundant in Victorian Britain, and industrialists did not face issues with labour shortages or high wages. Rather than a lack of workers, industrialists focused on the need for substantial capital investment. Seasonal fluctuations in production were common in many industries, and in such cases, industrialists often opted for manual labour, hiring workers for specific seasons. Machines were not always preferred in these industries, as the demand for labour varied with the seasons.
2.1 Life of the Workers
The availability of abundant labour in the market had a significant impact on the lives of workers. Securing employment often relied on pre-existing networks of friendship and family connections within factories. Finding jobs was challenging for workers until the mid-nineteenth century. However, wages began to increase in the early nineteenth century. The fear of unemployment led workers to express hostility towards the introduction of new technology, such as the Spinning Jenny in the woollen industry. In the 1840s and onwards, urban areas experienced intensified building activity, creating more employment opportunities. Infrastructure development included widening roads, constructing new railway stations, expanding railway lines, digging tunnels, establishing drainage and sewer systems, and embanking rivers.
3 Industrialisation in the Colonies
3.1 The Age of Indian Textiles
In India, silk and cotton goods were dominant in the global textile market before the rise of machine industries. A diverse group of Indian merchants and bankers played a crucial role in the export trade network, providing financing, transportation, and supplies to exporters. However, by the 1750s, this network controlled by Indian merchants began to decline. European companies emerged as the new power players, initially obtaining concessions from local courts and eventually gaining monopoly rights to trade. The shift from old ports to new ones symbolized the growing influence of colonial powers. European companies took control of trade through the new ports and utilized European ships. Many traditional trading houses collapsed, and surviving businesses had to adapt to a network shaped by European trading companies.
3.2 What Happened to Weavers?
After the 1760s, the East India Company’s consolidation did not initially result in a decline in textile exports from India. Prior to establishing political control in Bengal and Carnatic during the 1760s and 1770s, the company struggled to ensure a consistent supply of goods for export. However, once political power was secured, the East India Company implemented a system to manage and control the textile trade, aiming to eliminate competition, control costs, and maintain a steady flow of cotton and silk goods. This was achieved through several measures:
- Eliminating existing traders and intermediaries associated with the cloth trade, and establishing direct control over the weavers.
- Prohibiting Company weavers from engaging with other buyers.
- Providing weavers with loans to purchase raw materials, with the condition that the produced cloth be handed over to the company’s representative (gomastha).
- Weaving involved the entire family, with children and women participating in different stages of the process.
- The previous close relationship between supply merchants and weavers was replaced by gomasthas, who were outsiders lacking social connections with the village.
In some areas of Carnatic and Bengal, weavers established looms in other villages where they had family ties. In other regions, weavers joined village traders in revolting against the East India Company and its officials. As time passed, many weavers started refusing loans, shutting down their workshops, and turning to agricultural labour. By the beginning of the 19th century, cotton weavers faced a new set of challenges.
3.3 Manchester Comes to India
In 1772, Henry Patullo remarked on the constant demand for Indian textiles, as no other nation produced goods of comparable quality. However, by the early 19th century, India experienced a decline in textile exports, while British cotton goods saw a significant increase in exports. By the late 18th century, the import of cotton-piece goods into India was restricted. Indian cotton weavers faced two main challenges during this time:
- The collapse of their export market.
- The contraction of the local market, which became saturated with imports from Manchester.
By the 1860s, weavers encountered a new problem: a scarcity of good-quality raw cotton supply. The export of raw cotton from India increased, leading to higher prices. Towards the end of the 19th century, additional challenges emerged for other artisans as well. Factories in India began mass production, resulting in a flood of machine-made goods saturating the market.
4 Factories Come Up
In 1854, the first cotton mill was established in Bombay and began operating in 1856. Over the next few years, four more mills were established in Bombay, and during the same period, jute mills were established in Bengal. The first jute mill was set up in 1855, followed by another one in 1862. In the 1860s, the Elgin Mill was started in Kanpur in northern India, and a year later, the first cotton mill in Ahmedabad was established. Production began at the first spinning and weaving mill in Madras in 1874.
4.1 The Early Entrepreneurs
In the late eighteenth century, British traders in India started exporting opium to China and importing tea to England, marking the beginning of trade history. Some visionary businessmen, such as Dwarkanath Tagore in Bengal and Parsis like Dinshaw Petit and Jamsetjee Nusserwanjee Tata in Bombay, saw the potential for industrial development in India. Seth Hukumchand, a Marwari businessman, established the first Indian jute mill in Calcutta in 1917. Opportunities for investment in industries emerged, leading to the establishment of various factories.
However, due to colonial restrictions, Indians were unable to trade manufactured goods with Europe and were primarily limited to exporting raw materials and food grains such as raw cotton, opium, wheat, and indigo, which were in demand by the British. European Managing Agencies like Bird Heiglers & Co., Andrew Yule, and Jardine Skinner & Co. played significant roles by mobilizing capital, establishing joint-stock companies, and managing them.
4.2 Where Did the Workers Come From?
As factories expanded, there was a growing demand for workers. Many workers migrated from neighbouring districts in search of employment opportunities. For example, in 1911, over 50% of the workers in the cotton industries of Bombay came from the neighbouring district of Ratnagiri, while the mills in Kanpur relied heavily on workers from the surrounding villages within the Kanpur district. News of job opportunities spread, prompting workers to travel long distances in hopes of finding work in the mills.
However, despite the increasing demand for workers, securing employment was challenging. The number of job seekers always exceeded the available jobs. To recruit new workers, most industrialists relied on intermediaries known as jobbers, who were brought from their own villages. Industrialists assisted these jobbers in settling down and provided them with financial support when needed.
5 The Peculiarities of Industrial Growth
European Managing Agencies focused on tea, coffee, mining, indigo, and jute for export. Indian businessmen established industries, with yarn from spinning mills used domestically or exported to China. The Swadeshi movement and competition from Chinese and Japanese mills led to a decline in Indian yarn exports. Industrial growth remained slow until the end of World War I.
However, the war boosted Indian mills as they supplied war-related goods. Industrial production flourished, and Manchester lost its previous dominance in the Indian market.
5.1 Small-scale Industries Predominate
The majority of industrial labor remained in small-scale industries, with few employed in registered factories. Handicraft production, especially handloom cloth, grew in the twentieth century, aided by technological advancements that improved productivity without raising costs significantly.
Different groups of weavers faced varying degrees of competition from mill industries, with some specializing in coarse cloth and others in finer varieties. However, increased production among weavers and craftspeople did not always lead to prosperity. They worked long hours, including women and children, but they were not simply remnants of the past in the age of factories. Their lives and work were integral to the process of industrialization.
6 Market for Goods
Advertisements has long played a role in promoting new products and shaping consumer culture. They create a sense of desirability and necessity around products, influencing people’s perceptions and creating new needs. In today’s world, advertisements surround us, appearing in newspapers, magazines, hoardings, street walls, and television screens.
Since the early days of the industrial age, advertisements have been instrumental in expanding product markets and shaping consumer preferences. Manchester industrialists, for example, labelled their cloth bundles with tags indicating the quality, with the prominent “MADE IN MANCHESTER” label instilling confidence in buyers. Some labels even featured beautifully crafted images, including depictions of Indian gods and goddesses.
Manufacturers also utilized printing calendars to popularize their products, often incorporating images of gods to enhance their appeal. Over time, advertisements evolved to become a platform for promoting the nationalist message of Swadeshi, aligning with the cause of indigenous production and self-reliance.
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