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How Did The Industrial Revolution Affect Public Health

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also transformed people’s lives with the emphasis on ‘fine craftsmanship’ which showed the importance of steam power; showing the sheet form of modernisation taking place in Britain by the active innovations by people. The emergence of steam power he reckons was the ‘greatest revolution in economic history’ and would really transform the lives of ordinary people by them employing thousands of labourers to make their jobs easier and more efficient to do. The steam power enabled the building of steam engines which local businessmen in the words of Wilkes saw as an ‘opportunity to make a fortune’. This would have been due to the sheer amount of trade being able to be transported and travel across the country by steam powered engines and iron railways and the locomotion being transformed into a usable feature. By 1820, there were 15,000 miles of railway track in Britain and by the first official commercial use of railway being in 1830 showing the change over the short period of time as now people were able to use this method of transportation to shorten their journey times and seek a better and efficient way to travel. The success of railways allowed coal, timber and cattle to be moved along the tracks and allowing ordinary businessmen and farmers to expand their profits and make …show more content…

The death rate in the early 18th century upon the beginning of the revolution was appallingly bad with people’s health in general ‘being worse in 1800’ than earlier centuries. Hill argues that the industrial revolution actually helped to lower death rates due to the ideological results of the increased emphasis on a sober workforce for the completion of tasks efficiently- required when working amongst machinery. This was further reinforced by the 1751 gin tax implemented by the government to reduce the number of people able to afford to consume

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