Stages of the Industrial Revolution

The stages of the industrial revolution understand the different moments since the beginning of the advance of the industrial process, which began in England in the 18th century.

It is divided into three phases :First Industrial Revolution, Second Industrial Revolution and Third Industrial Revolution. Check below the summary of each of these periods and their main characteristics.

First Industrial Revolution

The First Industrial Revolution began in England in the 18th century and lasted from 1750 to 1850. This phase was characterized by several discoveries which favored the expansion of industries, technical and scientific progress and the introduction of machines.

In the meantime, the transition from manufacturing to the manufacturing system was driven by the inventions of the spinning machine, the power loom and the steam engine, which resulted in the mechanization of processes.

This is how the textile, metallurgical, steel and transport industries expanded. The use of coal to power the machines was essential at that time.

As a result, we have the increase in production, the replacement of manual work by industrial (from manufacturing to machine-making), the development of international trade and the increase of the consumer market.

Who was at the front of this process and contributed to its expansion was the bourgeois class that had resources and that yearned for profit. In this sense, the working class or working class called the proletariat emerged, cheap labor exploited in factories.

It is worth remembering that at that time the Industrial Revolution took place in England, which transformed London into the most important international financial capital and the country into a major dominant economic power. Later, it expanded to other European countries.

Second Industrial Revolution

The Second Industrial Revolution began in the mid-19th century and lasted from 1850 to 1950. This period was marked by the consolidation of scientific and technological progress, spreading to other European countries, such as France and Germany.

Many discoveries were important to leverage this progress that was now not restricted to England alone. Worth mentioning:

• the invention of the incandescent light bulb;
• creation of the means of communication (telegraph, telephone, television, cinema and radio);
• advances in medicine and chemistry, such as the discovery of antibiotics and vaccines.

In addition, advances in the processes of using steel were essential for the construction of machines, bridges and factories. Regarding its use, we must emphasize that steel was essential for the construction of railroad tracks, considerably marking the advance of means of transport. In addition to the railroads, the automobile and the airplane were invented at this time.

No less important was the new configuration of the use of energy sources which, in this case, was gradually being replaced by oil. In addition to serving as fuel, oil was important in the production of products derived from it, of which plastic stands out.

This set of changes and inventions were essential to revolutionize the industrial system. They brought a new panorama to the social and economic life of the population, called “Industrial Capitalism” (or Industrialism).

It is clear that, while progress and human comfort were proving favorable, on the other hand, the conditions of factory workers were precarious, including hard and long working hours and low pay.

This has been increasing social inequalities. Thus, unions began to emerge in defense of workers' rights.

Fordism and Taylorism revolutionized the factory production system with the famous conveyor belts. They streamline and optimize the process, while generating more profit for the class that owns the means of production, further reducing the cost of products.

Third Industrial Revolution

The Third Industrial Revolution began in the mid-20th century, spanning the period from 1950 to the present day. It was at that moment that there was a great advance in science, technology, information technology (with the emergence of computers, creation of the internet, software and mobile devices), robotics and electronics.

In the area of ​​science, the development of genetic engineering and biotechnology is worthy of mention, with the mass production of various medicines and advances in medicine.

Although the use of other energy sources had already evolved before, at that time, atomic energy appears with the use of radioactive elements, especially uranium.

Although the initial idea was to generate energy, the end of World War II (1939 - 1945) showed the danger in the use of radioactive elements. As an example, we have the dropping of the atomic bomb in 1945 on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan.

Another important milestone of this phase was the space conquest, when Neil Armstrong reached the moon in 1969, revealing the strength and technological achievements of his human.

It was, therefore, in the period known as the Cold War, that the space race, which began in 1957, was fought between the United States and the Soviet Union. This further demonstrated the advances in the areas of technology and the production of weapons.

In the advances of metallurgy, chemical discoveries were essential for its progress. There was the emergence of new metallic alloys that provided the advancement of means of transport, with the construction of spaceships and aircraft.

As for workers, labor rights are beginning to expand, reducing working hours, including benefits and banning child labor.

All these factors were essential for the modernization of industries and that until now continue to mark the advances of information technologies as well as globalization in the world.

Remember how the Industrial Revolution began:

Learn all about the topic by reading the articles :

• English Industrial Revolution
• Causes of the Industrial Revolution
• Consequences of the Industrial Revolution
• Industrial Society
• Industrialization
• Industry
• Questions about the Industrial Revolution