TEMA 4.

PARTE 2

INDUSTRIALIZATION IN THE REST OF EUROPE AND THE UNITED STATES.

1. What conditions did some European countries have for the industrialisation to be
given?

o Abundant reserves of coal and iron which provided raw materials and energy for
industry.
o Population growth which demanded industrial products.
o Capital for investment in industry.
o Developed railway networks to transport products.

2. How was Industrial Revolution in countries such as France and Prussia?

The French Revolution and the Napoleonic wars slowed down industrialization which took off
by the mid-19th century.
In Prussia, industrialization began with the Zollverein or customs union and it was helped by a
large railway network, naval industry and abundance of mineral resources.

3. How was industrialization in the United States?

Industrialization was possible in the United States thanks to its trade links with Great Britain
which exported machinery to the States. The process was also supported by the application of
new agricultural techniques and the abundance of raw materials in the great lands of the West.
4. How was industrialization in Spain?
The process started later than in other countries because of the following problems:
o Demand of products was very low because most of working population was peasants with
little income to buy manufactured goods.
o Machinery had to be imported because the quality of the coal was very poor and there
was very little technology in Spain.
o Capital to invest in industry was insufficient and was mainly used for railway construction
and mining
However, in the mid-19th two industries became important in Spain:
o The cotton industry (in Cataluña)
o The iron and steel industry which used charcoal (from burning wood, lower quality).
Later, coal was imported from Britain and the Bessemer converter was used to produce
steel.

THE CLASS-BASED SOCIETY.

5. What does a class-based society mean?

It replaced the traditional estates system of the Ancein Régime. In this new class-based society,
people's social status depended on their work and their personal wealth, and not on their family
background.
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6. Where can we find the origins of the class-based society?

We find the origins are found in:

o The French Revolution which abolished the privileges of the nobility and the clergy and
provokes the end of the estates system.
o The Industrial Revolution which gave importance to the wealthy bourgeoisie who owned
the factories and business. Later, a new class was born: the working class which was
formed by industrial workers.
7. Characteristics of the class-based society.
o Class-based society was determined by their wealth, although people could change class
if they obtained richness.
o Apparently, all citizens were equal before the law, although there were great economic
inequalities between classes.
o Society was divided into three groups:
o The upper class formed the wealthiest people. It included:
- The wealthy bourgeoisie formed by bourgeois capitalists who became the most
powerful group.
- The nobility, formed by landowners.
o The middle class who had a medium level of wealth. It included:
- Civil servants, lawyers and doctors.
- Lower merchants and craftsmen.
- Farmers who owned small agricultural holdings.
o The working class who lived in poverty. It was formed by:
- Industrial workers (proletariat) who worked for a salary and did not own properties.
- Tenant farmers who rented lands to cultivate it and agricultural labourers who made
seasonal work.
8. Characteristics of Spanish Society. (extra p. 94)
The lack of industrialization limited the growth of industrial bourgeoisie and the proletariat, so
Spanish society was different to the rest of Europe. There were three social groups:
o The upper class was formed by landowners, business owners and bankers which
dominated politics.
o The middle class was formed by servants, lawyers, architects, doctors and military.
o The working class included peasants, tenant farmers, day labourers and limited
proletariat.
9. Explain how life in the industrial cities was.
Owing to industrialization, many people moved from the countryside to the cities. The features
of these cities were
o Development of new modern buildings and infrastructures.
o Growth of cities in size.
o Construction of new neighbourhoods for both middle and working class.
10. Differences between middle and working-class neighbourhoods.(extra p. 96)
Middle class neighbourhoods were built far away from the noise and pollution of the
factories. They had wide avenues, gas street lights, shops and tram-lines. Houses were
normally big, well-built, and comfortable and they could have several floors.
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 Working-class neighbourhoods were built in marginal areas on the outskirts (afueras) of the
cities. Streets were narrow and there was not usually lighting or other public services. The
houses were normally small, poorly built and uncomfortable.

THE WORKING-CLASS MOVEMENT.

11. Explain how the industrial working conditions were.

As capitalism grew, the differences between the wealthy bourgeoisie and the working- class
increased.
o The wealthy bourgeoisie increased their wealth and enjoyed comfortable homes,
education, healthcare, spare time, etc.
o The working-class suffered terrible working conditions such as:
- Very low salaries for men, so women and children had to work but received even lower
salaries.
- Very long working days, between 14 o 16 hours a day.
- Child labour in factories and mines.
- Lack of safety and health conditions which led to accidents or severe illnesses.
- Workers had no rights, they could be dismissed with no compensation or if they got
sick, they lost their wages.
- Workers did not have the right to protest strike or meet.
12. Explain the role of working-class women. (extra p.97).
Working-class women had to work outside because their husband's salaries were very low.
Most women worked as servants, laundresses, seamstresses (costureras) or even in mines.
Women were discriminated at work because they earned lower wages than men although they
were doing the same job.
13. Explain the origins of working-class politics.
The bad conditions of the working class led to protests against the factory owners who thought
that if they improved working conditions, their profits would be reduced. In addition, the
principles of economic liberalism (state non- intervention in the economy) allowed the factory
owners to carry out their businesses without restrictions.
In the early 19th century the proletariat in Great Britain began to organise itself in opposition
to the factories and to the government:
- Luddites, they were factory workers who protested by destroying machines because they
thought they felt machinery was replacing them. Finally, the government established the
death penalty for those who destroyed a machine.
- First trade unions. They were associations of workers which offered help in the case of
accidents and demanded better working conditions. The unions used strikes to press the
government when negotiation failed.
- Chartist movement. This movement focused on gaining rights and influence for the
working classes. They asked for the universal manhood suffrage and political reforms
which allowed workers to become MPs (members of the parliament). Their petitions were
rejected.
The government and factory owners were forced to concede some of their demands. The
working day was reduced and laws were passed that improved working conditions
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14. What do you know about the Utopian socialism? (extra p.99)
In the first half of the 19th century, some theories criticising capitalism appeared. One of these
theories was the utopian socialism, which opposed to capitalism and aimed to improve working
conditions through education and the negotiation with the middle classes.
The main figures of this movement were:
- Charles Fourier, who wanted to organise society into communities called 'phalanxes'
where the workers could live and work together.
- Robert Owen, he set up his ideas in Scotland where he created a cooperative system
in his textile company and reduced working hours.

REVOLUTIONARY IDEOLOGIES.

15. Explain what Marxism consist of and its principles.

It was also known as socialism and it was developed by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. They
predicted the destruction of capitalism and the establishment of a communist society through
the following stages:
- Class struggle: the oppressed proletariat would fight against the capitalist bourgeoisie
in order to gain political power.
- The dictatorship of the working classes: after gaining political power, the working
classes would establish a new social and political social structure.
- The communist economy: private property would be abolished and the means of
production (resources) would be controlled by the state not by the individuals.
- The communist society: the class-based society would disappear because all the
members of the society would be equal without classes.

16. Explain what Anarchism consists of and its principles.

Anarchism was developed by Pierre Joseph Proudhon and Mikhail Bakunin who supported to
fight capitalism through a social revolution. The Anarchists principles were:
- Individual freedom: people should fight against any kind of authority such as the state
or the church.
- Direct action: each citizen should represent himself so political parties were not
necessary.
- Abolition of private property: society should be organised into communes (comunas)
where the means of production would belong to the collective and decisions would be
taken by popular assemblies.
17. ¿What do we understand by The International?
It was a movement that was born in the second half of the 19th century. It was formed by
workers' organisations from different European countries which joined together to work on their
demands internationally.
Two Internationals were established:
- The First International or IWA (International Workingmen's Association) took place in
London and included supporters of revolutionary ideologies from different countries such as
unionists, anarchists and Marxists. Their objective was to coordinate the workers around the
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 world and establish political parties that defend the workers' rights. Finally, the First
International was dissolved because of disagreements between Marxists and anarchists.
- The Second International took place in Paris and established an eight-hour working day
and the 1st May and the international day of protest for workers' rights. It only included
socialist parties and it dissolved when the First World War began in 1914.

18. Fill the table with the missing information related to the IWA. (extra p. 101)

The differences between Marxists and anarchists in the IWA

Marxists Anarchists
Organisation
Method of protest
State
Means of production

THE WORKING-CLASS MOVEMENT IN SPAIN.

19. Explain how the workers' movements developed in Spain.
The workers' movements in Spain developed as follows:
o In the first half of the 19th century:
- Luddite-style protests mainly in Cataluña where workers burnt sewing machines in
factories of the textile industry.
- Mutual aid societies called sociedades de socorro mutuo that act like trade unions.

o In the second half of the 19th century:

- The Partido Socialista Obrero Español (PSOE) and the Unión General de
Trabajadores (UGT). Both supported Marxism and organised strikes to get their
objectives.
- Anarchists: they formed revolutionary trade unions which used the violence against
business and landowners
o In 1910, anarchist who opposed to violence created the Confederación Nacional del
Trabajo (CNT), which became the biggest trade union in Spain.
There were also other non-revolutionary associations such as the círculos católicos or the cajas
rurales whose objective was to give aid to the working classes and peasants.