Industry in Germany in the 18th Century

·         The Industrial Revolution – “a period from the 18^th to the 19^th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transport, and technology had a profound effect on the socioeconomic and cultural conditions”

·         Started in the UK and gradually spread outward throughout Europe, North America, and finally the world

·         Nearly every aspect of daily life was influenced in someway

(A model of a Spinning Jenny, used to spin wool, which helped to start the Industrial Revolution)

·         Textiles and mining were very important to Germany in the 18^th century

·         Because the country was divided into so many small states, it was not until after 1800 that the process of industrialisation began to really get underway

·         The first German textile factory was built in Ratigen near Duesseldorf in 1784 – called “Cromford” after its English model, but very much on its own in Germany

·         Textile manufacturing was first mechanized in Germany, mainly in established cities and trading centers like Aachen, Krefeld, and Saxony

·         First German spinning machines were used in Chemnitz in 1782 and the town then became a pioneer in Engineering

·         In Upper Silesia as well as the State of Prussia, the local aristocratic landowners had enough capital to invest

·         Tests were made to lift water with the help of steam engines

·         Coal-mining was expanded

·         At the end of the 18^th century, the first coke(low-ash, low-sulfur bituminous coal)-driven blast furnace was constructed in Gleiwitz

·         Some areas of Germany, such as the area around the River Ruhr, remained rural, with only one ironwork factory

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industrial_Revolution

http://www.erih.net/industrial-history/germany.html

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/87/Spinning_jenny.jpg