Britain: Losing and Gaining an Empire 1763-1914
, Trade: The changing nature and extent of trade
‘extent’ – in this case can be judged by the volume/scale/growth of trade
‘nature’ - can be defined as the types of goods traded, the routes taken and the way in which
trade was conducted e.g by steam power or by sail
The three main themes that consistently can be applied as paragraphs for almost every
question are
1) {insert factor mentioned in question}
2) The importance of government policy and industrialisation
3) Protection of/changing trade routes and the acquisition of strategic bases
Keep these overarching themes in mind when looking at the content and have a think about
what facts you would include in each paragraph before looking at the information and essay
plans on page ….?
The Industrial Revolution-
Primarily the reason this was important to British trade because they were the first country to
industrialise, and technological innovation and the mechanisation of industry not only allowed
for new manufactured goods to be traded which thus gave Britain access to trade in new
markets, but it was the fact that industrialisation allowed for Britain to establish a monopoly on
manufactured goods which was most important.
In Economics this industrial edge Britain had to dominate world trade of industrialised goods
would be called comparative advantage
Textiles & Industry – (has never come up as a factor in an essay!)
• Richard Arkwright’s water frame enabled cotton mills in Lancashire by 1950 to facilitate
50% of the world’s cotton cloth trade.
• By 1913 Britain dominated 70% of the world’s textile trade
• The East India Company in 1821 (it was de facto controlled by the British government)
invested £1 million into Bengal production of silk which was used in British
manufacturing
Coal, Steel & Iron
• By 1830 Britain produced and exported 15 million tons of coal which doubled to 30
million by 1850 showing how profitable it was as a source of income.
• By 1880 British coal production exceeded 65 million tons
• Coal was a product which allowed for manufacturing and not only catalysed
industrialisation but pioneered it further as it was burnt as fuel to power furnaces and
machinery in factories
, Trade: The changing nature and extent of trade
‘extent’ – in this case can be judged by the volume/scale/growth of trade
‘nature’ - can be defined as the types of goods traded, the routes taken and the way in which
trade was conducted e.g by steam power or by sail
The three main themes that consistently can be applied as paragraphs for almost every
question are
1) {insert factor mentioned in question}
2) The importance of government policy and industrialisation
3) Protection of/changing trade routes and the acquisition of strategic bases
Keep these overarching themes in mind when looking at the content and have a think about
what facts you would include in each paragraph before looking at the information and essay
plans on page ….?
The Industrial Revolution-
Primarily the reason this was important to British trade because they were the first country to
industrialise, and technological innovation and the mechanisation of industry not only allowed
for new manufactured goods to be traded which thus gave Britain access to trade in new
markets, but it was the fact that industrialisation allowed for Britain to establish a monopoly on
manufactured goods which was most important.
In Economics this industrial edge Britain had to dominate world trade of industrialised goods
would be called comparative advantage
Textiles & Industry – (has never come up as a factor in an essay!)
• Richard Arkwright’s water frame enabled cotton mills in Lancashire by 1950 to facilitate
50% of the world’s cotton cloth trade.
• By 1913 Britain dominated 70% of the world’s textile trade
• The East India Company in 1821 (it was de facto controlled by the British government)
invested £1 million into Bengal production of silk which was used in British
manufacturing
Coal, Steel & Iron
• By 1830 Britain produced and exported 15 million tons of coal which doubled to 30
million by 1850 showing how profitable it was as a source of income.
• By 1880 British coal production exceeded 65 million tons
• Coal was a product which allowed for manufacturing and not only catalysed
industrialisation but pioneered it further as it was burnt as fuel to power furnaces and
machinery in factories
