The Industrial Revolution: The Urbanization Of Society

1211 Words3 Pages

The Industrial Revolution resulted in the most profound, pervasive changes in the history of humanity which can be considered progress to a great extent. It was a pivotal phase in history, and one marked by vast innovation, helping to shape up the modern world as we know it and its influence remains essential to our lives even today. The largest and most noteworthy improvement would be the reformation of society, from an agrarian one to that of industry, through urbanization which contributed to establishing the base of modern cities and medicine and also spurred an increase in new inventions and innovations. Urbanization helped to lay the foundations for our modern cities. The origin of urbanization, the agricultural revolution, was progress …show more content…

This meant that they bought other strips of land and enclosed them with hedges or fences. These big new farms enabled farmers to experiment with different techniques such as the four-course-rotation system. This system involved wheat, oats, clover and turnips to be planted in four different fields, so that crop yield and animal feed could be produced but also because the clover and turnips could replenish the soil’s nutrients, thus, no land remained fallow. Enclosure also meant that animals could be kept in separate fields, whereby, farmers could selectively breed them to produce more resources. Lastly, newly developed equipment, such as the seed drill, helped to produce more food and also reduced labor. Meanwhile, the farmers who had either sold their land or were unable to find a position on these new farms due to the new machinery which reduced the need of labor, flocked the cities in search of employment. Presently, approximately 54% of the world’s population lives in cities in comparison to the 3% living in 1800. Migration to cities, brought along numerous advantages. New possibilities opened up for people as more occupations were introduced, such as mechanics, engineers, …show more content…

As Britain’s cities grew rapidly, they had no development plans, sanitary or building codes. Moreover, cities lacked adequate accommodations for the people who poured in from the countryside to search for jobs. New housing was built quickly and economically, with no regard for quality. Workers lived in dim, squalid shelters, with whole families crowding into one bedroom, yet they lacked basic facilities such as toilets or running water. Waste disposal was another major issue, as with no indoor toilets, the best most families could do was keep a bucket which was either emptied out into the streets or sold as manure. This refuse trickled into the local river, where most families washed their clothes, themselves and drank out of. In such conditions, diseases such as typhoid, typhus, tuberculosis and many others were rampant in towns. However, the largest killer was cholera and it was due to its high prevalence that the government took notice of the appalling hygiene conditions of the town and its people. National and local boards of health were set up and provided the foundation of public health legislation and policy. Under various Acts passed on by the government, they were given the power to ensure that new houses were built with drains and toilets (Public Health Act 1848),

Open Document