Why did Britain take the lead in the Industrial Revolution?

Question

How were families transformed by the Revolution? What were the effects of the Industrial Revolution?

Answer 1

Because it was the only place where shopkeepers and artisans were sufficiently free to experiment without regard to what the government or the church might think about it.

Answer 2

There are a number of factors explaining why Britain why then:
1) a very productive new system of agriculture which allowed the freeing up of labour to go into the factories
2) a flexible political system
3) a superior transportation system (roads, canals, coastal transport)
4) a broad cultural understanding of the science underlying new technologies
5) a workable patent system
6) a large Empire from which raw materials could be drawn, to which goods could be sold and in which profits could be made which could in turn be invested in industrialization

Families were transformed from units of production to units of consumption. The household became less self-suffienct in terms of producing that which it consumed. Instead one or more family members went out to work for wages to buy things the family wanted.

The effects of the industrial revolution were also many and varied.
1) Though it took time to take hold and was very uneven eventually it produced a substantial and broad rise in standards of living.
2) A change from a mainly rural and agrarian based to a mainly urban and industrial society.
3) Class conflict between those who owned the means of production and those who sold their labour.
4) A reinforcing of British world leadership.
5) The end of mercantilism in favour of free trade and laissez faire.
6) The factory system
7) The reinforcement of separate spheres for men and women in society.

Answer 3

The reason Britain took the lead in the industrial revolution is because that is where in 1713 the industrial revolution originated. Coupled with British economic empiricism the industrial revolution flourished under Britannia's guidance.

Answer 4

There is a book called "Las Venas Abiertas de America Latina" (The Open Veins of Latin America) by Eduardo H. Galeano, that comments on the role of Latin America and UK imperialism on European progress. If you are interested in the subject, I would also recommend Enrique Dussel. Particularly his essay on a new Latin American historiography.
To summerize both, the steam engines of Britain were fueled by the silver of Potosi.
Anyway, the argument takes you to this day, when First World comfort is financed by thirdworld resources. Check the link. Galeano and Dussel's scholarship is outstanding and globally recognized.
Peace.

Answer 5

i read about this recently in a book called "the end of oil". Nothing was said that was really different than what we learn in history classes, but they summed it up nicely and it was fairly interesting. I suggest you take a peek at it.

Answer 6

this is up for discussion and there are in fact more answers to the question