French Revolution or Industrial Revolution Essay

The First Industrial Revolution

The Industrial Revolution began in England and took place between 1750 and 1850. It was an unprecedented expansion of human productivity that enabled society to self-sustain its growth (Lindemann 2013, p. 45). It started with a rapid increase in population in Europe. From 1800 to 1850, the population in Britain had doubled (Merriman 2010, p. 516).

To accommodate the population, accumulated capital was reinvested in farming and manufacturing. England was politically stable; it had an extensive trade network; and it could supply coal and iron. These provided a conducive environment to invent the mechanization of production in the cotton industry (Merriman 2010, p. 516-523). Capital-intensive farming and the enclosure movement (effort of privatizing common lands) enabled the development of scientific agriculture and the expansion of the agricultural base (Mason 2011, p. 38). Adam Smith then published a book, The Wealth of Nations. In his book, he argued that in a liberal economy, an individual’s self-interest would regulate the economy in the best possible way if it is not hindered by government regulation (Mason 2011, p. 40). This underpinned the concept of liberalism in Britain.

However, industrialization also damaged the socioeconomic aspect of Britain. During the industrial revolution, the middle class emerged. When new industrial factories were set up in cities, more people moved from rural areas to cities as they were looking for wage labor (Merriman 2010, p. 549). Urbanization has made the poorer city districts more crowded. It became an unpleasant place to live as the England government did not provide basic urban services like police protection, water supply, or garbage disposal until 1835 (Mason 2011, p. 42). The working conditions in the factory were brutal too. The factories were often covered in black dust; the wages were so low that even children had to work in the factories to support their families; workers performed the same task multiple times a day, with few short breaks (Mason 2011, p. 43). In the rural area, the landless peasants were employed on a disadvantageous short-term basis; peasants who owned lands may not gain profit because the lands were small or low in quality (Merriman 2010, p. 547).

As workers became more vulnerable to unrestricted capitalism, the workers began to consider themselves as working-class members who had different interests from their employers. This gave birth to socialism. Socialism claims that individuals do not work alone but cooperate. Thus, the public should own or at least control property for all its members’ benefit (Encyclopedia Britannica 2019).

Different types of socialism flourished in that era. Utopian socialists such as Saint-Simon suggested a status order based on productivity (Merriman 2010, p. 564). Charles Fourier believed that society, which was based on cooperation and harmony, would free the proletariat from the bourgeoisie’s oppression (Merriman 2010, p. 563). Roben Owen, as an industrialist, provided adequate housing for his workers and opened schools for their children. He supported women's equality and believed that education and the environment could form a cooperative spirit (Merriman 2010, p. 563).

In 1844, Fredrich Engel provided a link between socialism and industrialization in his published book, The Condition of the Working Class in England (Mason 2011, p. 43). When his friend, Karl Marx first read about utopian socialism, he found them naïve. He observed the industrializing society when he was in England and considered the class struggle would certainly exist in a liberal economy (Merriman 2010, p. 568). Thus, he founded scientific socialism and formed the Communist League. In 1848, Marx and Engel produced The Communist Manifesto (Merriman 2010, p. 568).

The rise of socialism prompted rural poor to protest; and workers to form labour unions (Merriman 2010, p. 561). From 1815 to 1850, workers began to challenge the existing order through petitions and demonstrations. In 1831, they demanded equality by pressing the Commons and the House of Lords to pass the Reform Bill of 1832, which enlarged the electorate (Merriman 2010, p. 562). At the same time, workers demanded factory reform. This led to the Parliament’s acts that limited the working hours of women and children (Merriman 2010, p. 562).

The Industrial Revolution spread quickly to the rest of Europe. It could be said as the major contributor to political revolutions in Europe, for example, the French Revolution of 1789. It started the emergence of the bourgeoisie and proletariat and intensified the class struggle between the two parties.

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French Revolution of 1789

Before the revolution in 1789, France was the most influential country in terms of French literature, art, and language (Mason 2011, p. 23). France was also the first to challenge the ruling of absolute monarchy, where all sovereign power in the state resided with the king (Merriman 2010, p. 435), thus showing a revolutionary example to other European countries.

The French Revolution of 1789 occurred at about the same time as the Industrial Revolution. The latter was part of the cause of the French Revolution. It fostered the growth of the bourgeoisie, causing a rapid increase in the literacy rate (Mason 2011, p. 24). This allowed people to understand Enlightenment ideas, such as representative institutions. Besides, the absolute monarchy under Louis XVI was incompetent in solving people’s needs as it placed a huge tax burden on commoners while the nobles and clergy were exempted from taxes (Mason 2011, p. 24). The revolution ended in 1791 with the creation of a constitutional monarchy.

During the summer of 1789, to solve the financial crisis, Louis XVI convened the Estates-General, a representative assembly of the three estates: the clergy, nobility, and the Third Estate (Mason 2011, p. 440). Commoners believed that the Third Estate was capable of representing their interests and grievances on royal absolutism (Merriman 2010, p. 442). This helped unify public opinion against the king. On June 17, the Third Estate declared itself as the National Assembly (Merriman 2010, p. 443). When they tried to assemble again, they realized the monarch intended to take action against them. They swore not to adjourn until a new constitution was formed (Mason 2011, p. 26).

As the king intended to disband the National Assembly, royal troops began to form in the city (Mason 2011, p. 26). On July 14, the Great Fear (a period of peasant rioting) started when thousands of people stormed the Bastille, a royal prison that was renowned as a despotism symbol. The crowd cut off the head of the fortress commander and carried it on a pike (Mason 2011, p. 26). Peasants in the province also started to rise against their lords and destroy the feudal documents. The crowd uprising not only exposed the monarchy's vulnerability but also saved the National Assembly from being dismissed (Merriman 2010, p. 445).

On August 4, to end the Great Fear, the National Assembly ended the Old Regime by formally abolishing the remnants of feudalism, including seigneurial rights (Merriman 2010, p. 447). Other reforms like freedom of worship were also enacted. This destroyed monarchy absolutism as the king could not rule by divine right anymore (Merriman 2010, p. 447). To create a constitutional monarchy, on August 26, 1789, they announced the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen (Mason 2011, p. 26). The declaration stripped away hereditary legal privileges and placed sovereignty in the French Nation.

After creating the constitution, the National Assembly focused on solving the financial crisis by reforming the Church. To raise funds, they confiscated all the Church’s properties, issued paper money, and sold the Church lands to the public (Merriman 2010, p. 451). This had three advantages: weakening clericalism, giving peasants a return for their revolutionary activity, and strengthening the peasant entrepreneur (Hobsbawm 1996, p. 64). On July 12, 1790, the assembly enacted the Civil Constitution of the French Clergy, and the religious order was redefined (Mason 2011, p. 26).

The next year June, the constitution of 1791 was passed and the French constitution was created. It substituted the absolute monarchy with constitutional monarchy. In the constitution, the sovereignty resided in the Legislative Assembly and the king was granted a suspensive veto only (Mason 2011, p. 27).

The legacy of the French Revolution of 1789 was significant because it provided a great example of a political institution that put Enlightenment ideas in force. The revolution also set a precedent for the French First Republic in 1792.