The Conditions and the Consequences of the Agricultural Revolution

Before the agricultural revolution there was the open field system was used. There were strips of land which were shared between farmers meaning that no one had any privacy on their farm.

There were many disadvantages of the open field. Disease could spread quickly and easily among animals from different strips. Although the strips were shared one farmer did not always have all his strips next to each other so a lot of time could be wasted travelling from one strip to another. Also there were gape between strips which wasted land. All the farmers had to agree any major change so no farmer was independent.

There were of course advantages to the open field system as it allowed farmers to share land, tools and other equipment.

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The crop rotation was very wasteful because every three years a filed went to fallow and so one filed was totally wasted for a whole year.
There weren't very good tools around so the crops were much harder to grow. Fertilisers were not as good so there would be fewer crops produced in a year.

All of these points made the overall productivity much worse but at this time there was not as great a population to feed so everyone was still being fed.

The main cause of the agricultural revolution was the demand of food because of population growth (it doubled between 1760 and 1820). Because of this prices went up quickly and a farmer could have sold something for twice as much in 1790's than in the 1780's.
The war with France interrupted overseas supplies with Europe so all food had to be produced in England itself. This put a lot of stress on farmers.

Banks were keen to lend money to farmers as it was now considered a very profitable job. Because farmers had more money, they could afford to modernise and buy more expensive fertilisers, tools and other equipment that would increase productivity. Transport improvements made easy movement to the poorer parts which needed food desperately.

Poor harvests reduced the supply of food so therefore prices went up and more was needed in a year in case the next year was a disaster.
All these points made farmers work harder and some farmers invented/thought up of new ideas which contributed to the agricultural revolution.

Alternate Version

There were many causes of the agricultural revolution: Britain was at war with France - Soldiers needed to be fed and supplies from Europe (e.g. corn) were reduced. Demand from new industrial towns grew. There were some poor harvests - This worsened the need of food. The population was rising (double in 1820 than it was in 1760); more people needed more food.

Because of these things, food prices began to rise steeply: In the late 1790's, farmers could get almost double the price for wheat that they could have got in the early 1780's. Transport improvements (roads and canals) made the movement of goods easier.

Farming was now a profitable business and had many benefits: The banks were keen to lend money to farmers who wanted to improve their land because they could see it as a profitable business; farmers could afford to modernise, open-field farmers did not keep many animals as they were expensive to feed, manure could be difficult to find with a shortage of animals, access to lime depended on where you lived and farmers did not improve the land because they did not own it.

Land was wasted - the gaps between ridges and between strips. Farmers wasted time travelling from one of their strips to another.

There were many changes in the Agricultural revolution. One of the most important being enclosure. Enclosure is the placing of walls, fences or hedges around a field. This got rid of most of the disadvantages of the open filed system. Farmers did not have to waste time travelling from one plot of land to another.

New crop rotations were introduced which were much more effective than previous crop rotations and got rid of the wasteful period of fallow. To do this fodder and corn crops were used alternately as one wore away the deep soil and one wore away the top soil. The fodder was used to fatten the animals. An alternative to this rotation was that clove, sanfoin and grass were kept down for a number of years until the ground was capable of bearing three to four years of consecutive corn crops.

There were soil improvements. Better fertilisers were used. Manure was still used but marling was more popular. Marl was a mixture of either clay and lime or chalk and lime. Lime reduced harmful acids.

Individuals such as Robert Bakewell and Thomas Coke thought up of useful ideas to increase productivity like new breeds of animals or new tools or new machinery but machinery wasn't a major part in the Agricultural Revolution.

The main change was enclosure: taking open fields and dividing them into smaller plots which are farmed by one person. Although they had been used since Tudor times but the amount used greatly increased in the 18th century. Land was enclosed to reduce wastage and to make it easier for them to make decisions about changing the use of the land.

Farmers would not need to transport, machinery, lime, manure or seeds from one strip to another. The two main ways to enclose land were by consent and by Act of parliament. Enclosure by consent: If all the landowners in a village agreed, they could organise enclosure by themselves. Enclosure by Act of parliament: Parliament could decide whether land would be enclosed if farmers argued (before 1750 there were very few parliamentary enclosures, by 1800 most enclosures were by Act of Parliament).

A meeting was held at which the owners of at least three quarters of the land had to agree to enclose the land of the village. A petition, drawn up by all the landowners, asked parliament to pass an act ordering all the farmers in the village to pass an Act ordering all the farmers in the village to enclose their land.

There were gainers and losers from enclosure. The three main gainers were landowners, tenant farmers and some labourers. The two main losers were smallholders and landless labourers. Landowners made big profits because of high prices and could charge higher rent to tenant farmers. Tenant farmers did not mind the rent because the rise in prices meant higher profits.

They could easily loan money for improvements like machinery and fertiliser. Enclosure created an enormous amount of work in digging ditches, planting hedges and building roads. The more fortunate labourers even gained a new home on their master's new estate in the middle of his enclosed land. Most smallholders could not afford the commissioner's fees and expenses.

Even when they got the money, the cost of fencing and ditches was too much. It was more expensive per acre of fencing a small farm than a larger farm. Most smallholders sold their land and became wage-earning labourers. Even when the commissioner did grant landless labourers a plot of land to try and replace the open field, it could not supply the grazing for cattle, food for pigs, ponds for geese, turf, firewood and labourers which the common land could.

Changes in the Agricultural Revolution raised productivity by a massive amount and by 1800 90% of the population's demands were being met. This is a great achievement especially as this was a time of war and bad harvests.

Yields increased without reducing soil fertility. 'New' crops and rotations made this possible. Grasses (clover, Lucerne, sanfoin) and root crops (turnips etc...) helped, creating more animal fodder, feeding and fattening animals which produced lots of manure, boosting the fertility of the land. Change as not dramatic or revolutionary and did not involve mechanisation. Improvements in iron production produced better ploughs.

Cheaper scythes emerged because of changes in their manufacture. Machinery for harvesting came in slowly: in 187s 50% of land was harvested by hand. Rapid growth in population meant more food had to be produced. Population doubled between 1760 and 1820. War and bad harvests made matters worse.

No major famines happened but food was never plentiful. Britain had an expanding transport system dependent on horses. A huge amount of fodder was required for the animals. New ways or techniques were introduced or taken up rather than discovered. Ways of providing more winter feed to keep animals alive were found.

The improved breeding and feeding of animals created bigger animals quicker. The increased number of animals provided farmers with more manure to maintain and increase soil fertility.

In 1750 50% of land was enclosed. The rest was enclosed during the 'Agricultural Revolution' in a process of private enclosure acts. The larger landowners saw enclosure as a rapid way to effect change and to take advantage of the higher profits available at times of great demand. People who could not afford to enclose their land became wage-labourers, working for the larger landowners.

Some left for jobs in towns in the mills and factories. Migrants to the city tended to be young. Enclosure increased the number of landless labourers, increasing rural poverty. The decline of small owner occupier was a gradual process. They suffered more from problems or depression in agriculture after 1815 than from enclosure.

Agriculture was also important to industrial development as a supplier of raw materials (wood etc...). Landowners frequently developed industries concerning these estates. Often farmers helped their sons in industrial activities or became involved themselves.
Farm profits went to banks which made loans to industries.

The availability of affordable food kept industrial wages down and allowed workers to have spare cash to buy industrial products thus
increasing the demand for industrial goods.

Robert Bakewell followed the work done by other breeders. His was one of the best known and at first was the most successful.
His first attempt was at his new breed of sheep called the new Leicester. These sheep fattened quickly and to an excellent size. Unfortunately the meat was very fatty and generally of a poor quality.

The Southdown took over from the new Leicester as the preferred breed of sheep.
His next attempt also wasn't very successful. He bred his improved Longhorn cattle. These also grew quickly to a good size but what it gained in weight it lost in milk.

The milk was unsatisfactory so making money out of the milk was not possible. Like the sheep the meat was very fatty and of a poor quality. The Longhorn died out as a significant British cattle breed. The longhorn was taken over by the Durham Shorthorn, bred by the Colling brothers.

Bakewell is said to have been secretive by covering up his mistakes and not explaining in detail how he achieved his results.
Overall his breeds were not very successful but he was still thought of very highly as a farmer.

Despite his long term failure he was highly regarded and some people wouldn't call him a total success but he was undoubtedly one of the greatest agricultural innovators of the eighteenth century.

Visitors were highly impressed by his farms and techniques. Arthur Young made very good comments about Bakewell. He noted the amazing gentleness with which he reared his bulls. Arthur Young also stated that he was one of the most considerable farmers in the country. Other breeders took up his work and improved it so without Bakewell these people would not have had such success.

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