Once continental Europe began to regain a sense of balance, they rapidly industrialized with the help of technological innovations in the second industrial revolution and were competing for resources in similar areas. The industrialization of Europe caused discontent in certain areas among different groups in Europes population, such as women and the working class in general. This European imperialism in places like Africa led to nationalistic rivalries which ultimately would result in the Great War.
Great Britain possessed characteristics that would make it a leader in the industrialization movement. The growth in population caused advancements in the textile industry. Once the process was brought to factories, there was a need for raw materials like coal and iron ore. In order to transport raw materials, railroads were created to transports resources to the factories.
The mass production of textiles led to a great demand for workers in the factories and Great Britain experienced a shift in the population from rural areas to cities. This urbanization of Great Britain aided in the industrial growth in the nation. Great Britain utilized women and children in the factories to meet the demand for finished goods. Women and children were assigned low paying jobs with long hours.
While Great Britain focused its resources and energies into industrialization, continental Europe was in flux. Revolutionary ideas spread across Europe and led to revolution in France. France was in economic turmoil and engaged in a revolution that was expanded beyond its borders by Napoleon Bonaparte. The conquest of Napoleon stifled the growth of industrialization in continental Europe. After Napoleon was defeated, a balance of power was created and the liberal ideas that spread across Europe were replaced by conservatism. This conservatism led to a period of stability which allowed nations to industrialize.
A second industrial revolution occurred when materials such as chemicals, steel, electricity, and petroleum opened new industrial opportunities in Europe. One country that industrialized rapidly was Germany. Germany was in its infancy and took on the philosophy that the way to gain power was to have a strong military and strong industry. By 1910, Germany doubled the production of Great Britain which made it the second largest industrial power in the world behind the United States. German workers felt that the focus on industrialization led to a struggle between the haves and have nots. They felt that factory owners exploited the workers to increase their industrial might and they did not reap the benefits of their hard work. In 1848, Karl Marx and Frederich Engels wrote the Communist Manifesto and encouraged workers around the world to unite and take over the means of production from the wealthy factory owners. This socialist movement was meant to correct the ills of capitalism and industrialization but was not successful. Trade unions started to intervene when the poor work conditions in the factories was exposed. Trade unions brought about better wages, shorter work days and made work in the factory safer. Workers started to benefit from their labor, a fact that Marx did not anticipate when he proposed a worldwide industrial revolt. Nevertheless, Germany continued to rapidly industrialize and use every means necessary to become the strongest industrial nation in Europe.
Using electricity, the combustion engine and other technological innovations Europe quickly because saturated with consumers and had to look for foreign markets to sell their goods and obtain new sources of raw materials. The European countries had to find a source of untapped resources, and Africa appeared to be an excellent location to procure the resources necessary for manufacturing goods. European countries scrambled to secure areas in Africa, and resulted in the partitioning of Africa. Europeans were in constant competition for land and resources in Africa. Great Britain had hoped of securing enough land to construct a railroad from Cape Town to Cairo. France quickly secured a large portion of Northern Africa. More land equated to more power so a power struggle was being played out in Africa. Nations like Germany resented the land and resources that France and Great Britain had secured and led Germany to become more aggressive in the competition for new markets and land. The European nations had established growing rivalries which led to a heightened sense of nationalism among the European nations. This nationalism encouraged nations to build their militaries and produce as many goods as possible. The countries started to make alliances with other nations that were created, in great part due to the economic rivalries that emerged during the second industrial revolution. Nations continued imperializing other areas like China and led to more hostilities between the Europeans.
The growing tensions between nations over their industrial and imperialistic aspirations led to the outbreak of World War I. Industrialization led nations to imperialize weaker nations and the century of relative peace and stability would be ended. Herbert Spencers theory of Social Darwinism acted as justification for the actions of European nations to conquer as much land as possible and squelch people or nations that were weaker than them. According to Spencer, the nation that best adapts to its environment will survive. Europeans used industrialization as a tool to make their countries stronger. At the end of World War I, Europe was devastated and had to be rebuilt and the prosperity that nations felt prior to World War I seemed non-existent in some nations of Europe.
The growth of industrialization was different for each European nation. Great Britain led the way to Europe rapidly industrializing. Great Britain made advancements that were made possible by the abundant resources that they had access to. Other nations did not have the luck of plentiful natural resources so they developed chemicals and utilized electricity and basically expanded the technology that sparked the initial industrialization of Europe. There were significant changes that occurred in Europe between the 18th-20th centuries that transformed the social, political, and economic landscape of Europe. One of the greatest catalysts for this transformation was the pattern of industrialization that spread across Europe. Without industrialization, Europe may have never had to compete with other nations to obtain resources, workers would not have been exploited and it is possible that the Great War would have never occurred. European countries continue to industrialize today and without the innovations that occurred in industry between the 18th and 20th century, the world as we know it today would not exist.
Categories:
0 comments:
Post a Comment