British in The 18th Century

Unit V
The 18th Century: Industrial

Revolution
The Plan:
1. Britain in the 18th Century

2. The New dynasty: the Hanover's (1660-1910)
3. Politics and Money
3.1. The Bank of England
3.2. Robert Walpole
3.3. Lord Chatham
3.4. The War with France
3.5. Growth of International Trade
4. The Loss of the American Colonies
4.1. Radicals
5. Ireland in the 18th Century
6.Republic in Britain
6.1. Oliver Cromwell the Lord Protector
6.2. Republican Britain
6.3. The Levelers
1. Britain in the 18th Century
Before the end of the 18th century Britain had become a very
powerful country. It became wealthy through trade. The wealth
made possible both an agricultural and an industrial revolution. The
invention of machinery destroyed the old cottage industries and
created factories. At the same time it caused the growth of
unemployment. This splitting of society into very rich and very poor
was a great danger to the established order. In France the misery
of the poor led to revolution in 1789. Britain was saved from
revolution party by the local control of the ruling class and partly
by Methodism, a new religious movement in Britain.
2. THE NEW DYNASTY: THE HANOVERS (1660-1910)

King James I (Stuart) had a granddaughter,
Sophia, who was a Protestant. She married the
Elector of Hanover. The British Parliament
declared their son, George Hanover, the heir
to the English throne after Queen Anne, who
had no surviving children. When Queen Anne
died in 1714, George ascended the English
throne as George I. George I was a strange
king. He was a true German and didnt try to
follow English and spoke to his ministers in
French. But Parliament supported him because
he was a Protestant.
There were some Tories who wanted the
deposed James IIs son to return to Britain as
James III. James didnt want to change his
religion, but he wanted the English throne. In
1715 he started a rebellion against George I.
but the rebellion was, put down: Georges army
defeated the English and Scottish Jacobites,
as Stuart supporters were called. The
Hanovers ruled Britain till 1910.
George I Hanover
3. Politics and Money

3.1. The Bank of England
At the end of the 17th century
the government had to borrow
money in order to pay for the
war with France. In 1694, a group
of financiers who lent money to
the government decides to
establish a bank. The new bank
was called the Bank of England.
It was given the right to print
bank notes, which could be used
instead of coins. The paper
money which is used today
developed from these bank
notes.
3.2 Robert Walpole

The power of the government during the
reign of George I was increased because
the new king didnt seem very interested
in his kingdom. The greatest political
leader of the time was Robert Walpole.
He is considered Britains first Prime
Minister. Walpole developed the political
results of the Glorious Revolution of
1688. He insisted that the power of the
king should always be limited by the
constitution. The limits to royal power
were these:
1)The king could not be a Catholic:
2)The king could not remove or change
laws;
3)The king depended on Parliament for
his money and for his army.
Robert walpole
3.3 Lord Chatham

Walpole wanted to avoid war because it
took a lot of money. The most important
political enemy of Walpole was Lord
Chatham. Chatham was sure that in
order to be economically strong, Britain
should develop international trade.
Trade involved competition. France was
the main rival of Britain because it had
many colonies. Chatham was certain that
Britain must beat France in the
competition for the markets. When
Chatham was in the government, he
decided to make the British navy the
strongest in the world. He also decided
to seize a number of Frances trading
ports abroad.
Lord Chatham
3.4 The War with France

The war with France broke
out in 1756 and went on all
over the world. In Canada
the British took Quebec in
1759. This gave the British
control of the important
fish, fur and wood trades.
In India the army of the
British East India Company
defeated French armies.
Soon Britain controlled most
of India. Many Britons
started to go to India to
make their fortune.
3.5. Growth of International Trade

During the 18th century Britains
international trade increased rapidly.
By the end of the century the West
Indies were the most profitable part
of Britains new empire. They formed
one corner of a profitable trade
triangle. Knives, swords ant cloth
made in British factories were taken
to West Africa and exchanged for
slaves. The slaves were taken to the
West Indies were they worked on
large plantations growing sugar.
From the West Indies the ships
returned to Britain carrying great
loads of sugar grown by the slaves.
4. The Loss of
the American Colonies
In 1764 there was a serious quarrel over taxation
between the British government and the colonies in
America. Some American colonists decided that it
was not lawful for the British government to tax
them without their agreement. They said that if
they paid taxes to the British government, they
must have their own representatives in British
Parliament. In 1773 a group of colonists at the port
of Boston threw a shipload of tea into the sea
because they did not want to pay a tax on it which
the British government demanded. The event
became known as the Boston tea-party. The British
government answered by closing the port. The
colonists rebelled. The American War of
Independence began. The war in America lasted
from 1775 until 1783. The result was a complete
defeat of the British forces. Britain lost all its
colonies in America, except Canada.
4.1.
Radicals
Many British politicians openly supported the colonists.

They were called radicals. For the first time British
politicians supported the rights of the kings subjects
abroad to govern themselves and to fight for their rights
against the king. The war in America brought new ideas of
democracy.
5. Ireland in the 18th Century

The position of the Irish Catholics was
poor under British rule. The Protestant
Parliament in Dublin passed laws which
prevented the Catholics from taking
any part in national life. Catholics could
not become members of the Dublin
Parliament. They couldnt become a
lawyer, go to university, or join the
navy. The Catholics were second-class
citizens in their own land. In order to
increase British control, Ireland was
united with Britain in 1801 and Dublin
Parliament was closed. The United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
lasted for 120 years, until 1921, when
the independent Irish Republic was
formed.
6. Scotland in the 18th

century
The Stuarts, maid
many attempts to win back
the English throne. The first Jacobite revolt to
win the crown for James IIs son, in 1715, had
been unsuccessful. In 1745 the Stuarts tried
again.
6.1 Bonnie Prince Charlie

James IIs grandson, Prince Charles
Edward Stuart, better known, as
Bonnie Prince Charlie, landed on the
west coast of Scotland. With his
army he entered Edinburgh and
defeated an English army in a
surprise attack. Then he marched
south. But Bonnie Prince Charlies
success was not long. Many of
soldiers left Prince Charlies army and
moved back to Scotland. In 1746
Prince Charlies army was defeated by
the British army at Culloden. The
rebellion was finished.
Bonnie Prince
Charlie
Industrial
revolution
7. Industrial Revolution
By the early 18th century simple machines had already been
invented. With the help of the machines, a lot of goods could be
made quickly and cheaply.
By the middle of the 18th century, industry began to use coal for
changing iron ore into good quality iron or steel. This made Britain
the leading iron producer in Europe. One invention led to another.
In the middle of the century other countries were buying British
uniforms, equipment and weapons for their armies. New machinery
was invented which replaced handwork. In 1764 a spinning machine
was invented, which could do the work of several hand spinners.
The weaving machine invented in 1785. In allowed Britain to make
cheap cloth. Now factories didnt need so many workers as before.
As a result a lot of workers became unemployed.
In 1799 some of unemployers, known as Luddites, began breaking
up the machinery which had put them out of work.
The situation in the country was very tense. People were afraid of
a revolution like the one in France.
8. Society and Religion: Methodism

Britain avoided revolution partly
because of a new religious movement.
The new movement didnt come from
the Church of England. It was led by
the founder of the Methodist Church
John Wesley.
John Wesleys Methodism was above all
personal and emotional form of religion.
It was organized in small groups all
over the country. Methodism was able
to give ordinary people a sense of
purpose and dignity. John Wesley was
no friend of the ruling classes, but he
was
deeply
conservative.
He
disapproved of the French Revolution
and taught people to be hard-working
and honest.
John Wesley
9. Revolution in France.
The French Revolution in 1789 alarmed
all European countries. The ruling
classes saw the danger of revolution in
Britain. Some radicals called for
reforms in Britain.
Tory crowds attacked the homes of
radicals in Birmingham. The Whig Party
was split. Those who feared revolution
joined William Pitt the Younger (the
son of Lord Chatham), a leader of the
Tories. Those who wanted reforms
joined the radical Whig leader Charles
James Fox.
The British government was so afraid of
revolution that that it imprisoned
radical leaders. It also formed the socalled yeomanry forces in order to use
them to prevent revolution.
William pitt
Charles James
fox
10. The War with Napoleon.

In the 18th century many European countries were defeated
by Napoleon, the leader and commander of the French
army. In 1793, after Napoleons army invaded Belgium and
Holland, Britain went to war.
Britain decided to fight France at sea because it had a
strong navy. The commander of the British fleet, Admiral
Horatio Nelson (p.374-348), won brilliant victories over
the French navy, near the coast of Egypt, and Copenhagen,
and finally near Spain, at Trafalgar in 1805, where he
destroyed the French-Spanish fleet. Nelson was himself
killed at Trafalgar.
But he became one of Britains greatest national heroes.
In the same year as Trafalgar, in 1805, a British army
landed in Portugal to fight the French. This army, with
Portuguese and Spanish allies, was commanded by Arthur
Wellington. Like Nelson, Wellington quickly proved to be a
great commander. After several victories over the French
in Spain, he invaded France. Napoleon, weakened by his
disastrous invasion of Russia, surrendered in 1814. But the
following year he escaped and quickly assembled an army in
France. Wellington, with the help of the Prussian army
finally defeated Napoleon at Waterloo in Belgium in June
1815.
Napoleon I
Bonaparte
Horatio nelson

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Unit V

The 18th Century: Industrial

1. Britain in the 18th Century

1. Britain in the 18th Century

2. THE NEW DYNASTY: THE HANOVERS (1660-1910)

3. Politics and Money

3.2 Robert Walpole

3.3 Lord Chatham

3.4 The War with France

3.5. Growth of International Trade

Many British politicians openly supported the colonists.

5. Ireland in the 18th Century

6. Scotland in the 18th

6.1 Bonnie Prince Charlie

8. Society and Religion: Methodism

10. The War with Napoleon.

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