Industrial Revolution in Russia

The industrial revolution is the transformation of manufactory production, conditioned by manual labor, into a factory one. The process is based on the extensive use of machines. Industrial revolution in Russia began in the 19th century, in the 30s-40s, and ended in the 80s of the same century.

Industrial transition began with those industries in which manual labor was the most common. The first was the cotton industry. Machines began to be introduced into paper, cloth and other production. Machine-building enterprises were also established in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod and other cities.

Industrial revolution in Russia at the first stage was characterized by the active development of transport, rail and steamship, first of all. In 1837 the first railway was created. She connected the Tsar's village and Petersburg. And in 1851 the rails were laid between St. Petersburg and Moscow.

Industrial transition in the country began later than in the European states, more developed economically. So, for example, in England already in the sixties of the 18th century the first factories began to be created.

The industrial revolution in Russia began in the conditions of the feudal economy. This, of course, had a very negative impact on the pace and geography of the industrial transition. As a result, industrial enterprises were unevenly distributed throughout the country.

The industrial revolution in Russia at its very beginning was characterized by some slowdowns in the creation of large capitals. Being from serfs, many entrepreneurs were not endowed with legal rights. In this regard, they could not own factories, remaining dependent on the power of the landlords.

The industrial transition in Russia did not contribute to the development of new classes-the industrial proletariat and the bourgeoisie. This was due to the preservation of the economic feudal system. Workers' factories and factories were peasant farmers. In this connection, the composition of the workers was not constant at the enterprises, and the workers themselves had a rather low level of qualification.

The second industrial revolution began at the turn of the seventies and eighties of the 19th century. At that time, more than half of the industrial goods were produced by enterprises that were equipped with equipment and steam engines, which brought this equipment into operation.

Industrial transition affected (except for cotton, paper and sugar beet industry) metalworking and mining, cloth and textile, machine building and wool industries. By this time factory production prevailed over the artisan and manufactory.

The industrial revolution in the second stage had its own peculiarities. The transition continued in the new conditions: serfdom was abolished , peasant reform was carried out . All these reforms have eliminated many of the obstacles to the formation of a capitalist system in the state.

In addition, new industrial branches began to be formed: petrochemical, machine-building, chemical and others.

Industrial transition caused the emergence of regions (Baku, Krivorozhye, Donbas), free from the traditions of serfdom and rapidly developing in new socio-economic and technical conditions.

Undoubtedly, the industrial revolution had important social results. New classes began to form. After the reforms, the industrial bourgeoisie began to replenish with people from officials, peasants, merchants, nobles.

The working class was also actively formed. At the same time, the proletariat continued to be in a difficult situation. Working conditions were unsatisfactory, the working day was very long, there was lawlessness, there was no labor law, medical insurance. As a result, in the eighties and nineties the first workers' speeches took place (for example, the Morozov strike in 1885).