7.2 Growth and Diffusion of Industrialization

Origins in Britain

The Industrial Revolution began in Britain in the mid-1700s due to abundant coal and iron ore, capital from colonial trade, and a large labor supply from agricultural improvements (enclosure movement). Key innovations like the steam engine (James Watt) and textile machinery (spinning jenny, power loom) shifted production from cottage industry to factories, sparking urbanization.

Diffusion outward from Britain

Industrialization spread via relocation diffusion to mainland Europe (Belgium, Germany, France) and North America in the 1800s, following resource locations like coal fields and rivers. Later, hierarchical diffusion spread industry to Japan, then other parts of Asia. Each wave depended on access to capital, raw materials, transportation networks (canals, railroads), and skilled labor.

Waves and shifting locations

Industrial growth occurred in identifiable waves tied to new technologies: textiles/steam power (1780s), steel/railroads (1840s), electricity/chemicals (1870s), and electronics/aerospace (1900s+). Later, manufacturing shifted to peripheral and semi-peripheral countries with lower labor costs, a process linked to globalization and outsourcing, changing global patterns of production.

Key terms

Industrial Revolution

A period starting in Britain (mid-1700s) marked by the shift from hand production to machines and factories.

Relocation diffusion

Spread of an idea or practice through the physical movement of people, as industrialization moved from Britain to Europe/North America.

Enclosure movement

Agricultural reform in Britain that consolidated farmland, displacing workers who then moved to cities for factory jobs.

Steam engine

Key invention (James Watt) that powered factories, trains, and ships, fueling the Industrial Revolution.

Outsourcing

Moving production to other countries, often for cheaper labor, reshaping global patterns of industrial location.

Try an AP-style question

Industrialization diffused from Britain first to…

1. Sub-Saharan Africa
2. Australia
3. South America
4. Western Europe and the U.S.