In nineteenth-century britain, most members of the aristocracy derived their wealth from

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Abstract

This article argues that liberal and Marxist theories of empire-building have placed excessive emphasis on the process of industrialization and suggests an alternative approach to modern British history and to the causes of imperialism. The interpretation brings to the fore economic activities which preceded the industrial revolution, interacted with it, and retained their vitality after the onset of industrial decline. The term 'gentlemanly capitalism' is adopted to focus attention on the most important of these activities, based on land, finance, and commercial services, and also to underline their cultural superiority and political dominance. The evolution of gentlemanly capitalism during the period 1688-1850 is then outlined. Imperialist impulses are seen primarily as overseas expressions of these interests. It is concluded that this approach offers a means of reintegrating recent research on economic history with social and political history, and thereby suggests ways of reformulating the causes and chronology of Britain's presence abroad during the past three centuries. A second article, covering the period 1850-1945, will be published in the next issue of the Review (Feb. 1987).

Journal Information

The Economic History Review publishes articles based on original research on all aspects of economic and social history. The Review is edited on behalf of the Economic History Society by leading scholars. It has been published since 1927 and is one of the world's leading journals in the field. The Review welcomes contributions based on the full range of methodological approaches used by economic and social historians and is pleased to publish high quality research on the economic and social history of any area of the world. The emphasis is on broad coverage of themes of economic and social change, including their intellectual, political and cultural implications. In addition to regular papers, some issues contain contributions to a series of 'Surveys and Speculations' which are more reflective survey articles. For many years past a comprehensive annual list of publications on the economic and social history of Great Britain and Ireland has been published. Each issue also contains a substantial number of book reviews. JSTOR provides a digital archive of the print version of Economic History Review. The electronic version of Economic History Review is available at http://www.interscience.wiley.com. Authorized users may be able to access the full text articles at this site.

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Which of the following groups benefited the most from the Industrial Revolution in the 19th century Britain?

Those who benefited most from the Industrial Revolution were the entrepreneurs who set it in motion. The Industrial Revolution created this new middle class, or bourgeoisie, whose members came from a variety of backgrounds. Some were merchants who invested their growing profits in factories.

Which of the following was a factor that pushed many Europeans to immigrate in the nineteenth century?

During the nineteenth century and the first quarter of the twentieth century around thirty million people emigrated from Europe to the United States. Causes of these vast movements of people are explained in this paper. The three main causes were a rapid increase in population, class rule and economic modernization.

Which group in the United States in the early twentieth century pressed for reforms to correct the abuses of capitalist industrialization?

Progressive Era reformers sought to harness the power of the federal government to eliminate unethical and unfair business practices, reduce corruption, and counteract the negative social effects of industrialization.

In what parts of the world did industrialization lead to major social transformation?

The changes set in motion by industrialization ushered Europe, the United States of America, and much of the world into the modern era. Most historians place the origin of the Industrial Revolution in Great Britain in the middle decades of the 18th century.