Industrialization and Social Ferment 211830–1850 This engraving by H. Pyall from 1831 shows the entrance of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway line at Edge Hill in Liverpool. The engines seem quaint to us now, but at the time they impressed everyone with their size and speed. Railroads immediately became the symbol as well as the driving force of the industrial age. The engraving shows that even upper-class men and women flocked to see the new engines in operation. (Getty Images.) In 1830, the Liverpool and Manchester Railway Line opened to the cheers of crowds and the congratulations of government officials, including the duke of Wellington, the hero of Waterloo and now the British minister. In the excitement, some of the dignitaries gathered on a parallel track. Another engine, George Stephenson's Rocket, approached at high speed—the engine could go as fast as twenty-seven miles per hour. Most of the gentlemen scattered to safety, but former cabinet minister William Huskisson fell and was hit. A few hours later he died, the first official casualty of the newfangled railroad. Dramatic and expensive, railroads were the most striking symbol of the new industrial age. Industrialization and its by-product of rapid urban growth fundamentally changed political conflicts, social relations, cultural concerns, and even the landscape. So great were the changes that they are collectively labeled the Industrial Revolution. Although this revolution did not take place in a single decade like the French Revolution, the introduction of steam-driven machinery, large factories, and a new working class transformed life in the Western world. Peasants and workers streamed into the cities. The population of London grew by 130,000 people in the 1830s alone. Berlin more than doubled between 1819 and 1849, and Paris expanded by 120,000 just between 1841 and 1846. To many observers, overcrowding, disease, prostitution, crime, and alcohol consumption all seemed to be on the increase as a result. The shock of industrial and urban growth generated an outpouring of commentary on the need for social reforms. Painters, poets, and especially novelists joined in the chorus warning about rising tensions. Many who wrote on social issues expected middle-class women to organize their homes as a domestic haven from the heartless process of upheaval. Yet despite the
Industrialization and Social Ferment 211830–1850 This engraving by H. Pyall from 1831 shows the entrance of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway line at Edge Hill in Liverpool. The engines seem quaint to us now, but at the time they impressed everyone with their size and speed. Railroads immediately became the symbol as well as the driving force of the industrial age. The engraving shows that even upper-class men and women flocked to see the new engines in operation. (Getty Images.) In 1830, the Liverpool and Manchester Railway Line opened to the cheers of crowds and the congratulations of government officials, including the duke of Wellington, the hero of Waterloo and now the British minister. In the excitement, some of the dignitaries gathered on a parallel track. Another engine, George Stephenson's Rocket, approached at high speed—the engine could go as fast as twenty-seven miles per hour. Most of the gentlemen scattered to safety, but former cabinet minister William Huskisson fell and was hit. A few hours later he died, the first official casualty of the newfangled railroad. Dramatic and expensive, railroads were the most striking symbol of the new industrial age. Industrialization and its by-product of rapid urban growth fundamentally changed political conflicts, social relations, cultural concerns, and even the landscape. So great were the changes that they are collectively labeled the Industrial Revolution. Although this revolution did not take place in a single decade like the French Revolution, the introduction of steam-driven machinery, large factories, and a new working class transformed life in the Western world. Peasants and workers streamed into the cities. The population of London grew by 130,000 people in the 1830s alone. Berlin more than doubled between 1819 and 1849, and Paris expanded by 120,000 just between 1841 and 1846. To many observers, overcrowding, disease, prostitution, crime, and alcohol consumption all seemed to be on the increase as a result. The shock of industrial and urban growth generated an outpouring of commentary on the need for social reforms. Painters, poets, and especially novelists joined in the chorus warning about rising tensions. Many who wrote on social issues expected middle-class women to organize their homes as a domestic haven from the heartless process of upheaval. Yet despite the