Cause and Consequences of urbanization in Scotland Essay

This essay lead explore relevant practise and consequences of urbanization in Scot territory from 1700-1860. A dictionary-defined term would be the social surgery w here(predicate)by cities grow and societies become more(prenominal) urban.(1. 30/08/2005). Scot fine-tune went through huge policy- fashioning and economical changes from the 1700s onwards. The country went from being a countryfied, rude high society with an estimated cosmos of 1.2 million in 1755, to being urbanised, with the race rising to oer 2.6 million in 1841(Lenman, p281, 2001).This figure is what makes the urbanisation of Scotland so interesting. What were the main factors that ca gived the creation to grow so rapidly? The expansion of population over such(prenominal) a short period and the social changes that occurred with this. The capacious rural and industrial revolutions had a major parts to play in the urbanisation of Scotland and this essay will show some enlightenment on wherefore it was so profoundly noniceable in Scotland. Another point that will be investigated is the consequences of urbanisation, how the country ultimately became a modern capitalised country from its artless beginnings.Before and up until 1750, Scotland was very much a feudalistic country. Lords rented tenants fair to middling land for them to produce food to survive. In return, the tenant would have to wear the Lords land as well as his own. The Landlord would depict the benefits, the tenant would survive, and as the majority of the commonwealth depended on the land as their lively-hood, it was a means to survival. As Devine states,_ In 1750 entirely one Scot in eight lived in a town (population of 4000 or over) and on that point was only four towns with more than 10000 inhabitants_ (Devine, 1999, p125). This shows the enormity of Scots who were living in rural communities, with the main cut into being in gardening, weaving and fishing. The changes to agriculture began with those known as the advancers, whose main outlook was to modernise the way the land was snipd.As the population of the country began to accelerate quickly, the improvers were looking to produce muddle food instead of the old way of cultivation. During the period between 1790-1840 impudently factory farm equipment was introduced and the land that was realiseally cultivated using the infield-outfield and rug and phone line method was improved by enclosing the land into fields making it more productive for crops and for livestock Crop rotations were also introduced which was making use of the land at all sentences.The introduction of single tenant farming as opposed to ferm-touns meant the beginning of the clearances, as well as agricultural tools becoming more efficient. The introduction of threshing machines reduced manual labour and the Smalls chute-the-chute a two horse plough replaced the Scots plough which required a team of oxen and horses (Devine, 1998, p138). These hot ideas did create more food yet they also left muckle homeless and jobless, as there was less labour necessityed, which left deal no choice but to move on into the towns and cities where industry had began creating jobs.The offset of the towns and cities were intricately linked with the agrarian revolution as the mass population relied on the land for the food it produced. The other main point that Devine makes is that as the agricultural market started to accelerate, the need for exchange centres that provided legal, commerce and financial facilities for the rural communities became more prominent, so several towns including Perth, Ayr and Dumfries became the provider of these services. This again contributed to expansion of towns, as people were required to work and live in the towns to facilitate these positions (Devine 1998, p32)Therefore, we open fire gather that three major changes occurred at the same time and they contributed towards urbanisation in Scotland The agrarian rev olution along with the population growth, and the expansion of the manufacturing industry.As T.M Devine States,_Urbanisation could not have taken place without a substantial attach in food production to sustain the needs of those who did not cultivate their own food supplies. At the same time, agrarian productivity had to improve in outrank to release a growing proportion of the population for non-agricultural tasks in towns and cities._ (Devine, 1998, p32)Along with theses changes the manufacturing industry began to grow rapidly. Scotland was a major shammer in the transatlantic craft industry and due to its geographical position, it was boom in the tobacco trade and it would go on to prosper in cotton and linen too. Scotlands Geographical position at this time was very important as it is situated between the Atlantic and Europe, which meant trading from one to the other, was very successful.The two major factors of the industrial Revolution were, the textile industry and the productivity of the steam engine, which was revolutionised by crowd together Watt in 1769 (Watt James online, 2005). Textiles factories and coalmines could produce more goods and they did not need to be near a water source in order to run. Due to this, the larger towns and cities began to grow rapidly._Greenock in 1700 had a population of 2000 and by 1831 it had rose to 27500.__Glasgow went from 31700 to 147000.__Paisley went from 6800 to 47000.__Kilmarnock went from 4400 to 12700__Falkirk went from 3900 to 11500. All within the time period from 1740-1850 (Devine 1998, p35)_The population growth over the short period is the most significant point here as this is what made urbanisation in Scotland different. There are umteen an(prenominal) different factors that affected the population growth but some are more significant than others are. Irish Immigration was very prominent and the migration of people from the rural areas had a major impact. For example_ The majority of the mig rants were young adults more concentrated in the marriageable and childbearing age groups than were the native inhabitants. in high spirits Migration because of its age composition was therefore likely to fuel natural sum up in the urban areas_.(Devine 1998,p41) At the same time the highlanders were leaving the land either through force as the lords apply the new cultivation techniques to the land or through choice. The majority chose to emigrate to America this did not affect the population growth as many Irish migrants were coming to Scotland looking for employment in the booming industries._Urbanisation meant more jobs, a wider diversity of social contacts and infinitely greater colour and fire in the lives of the masses_ (Devine 1998 p43)Mortality rates demonstrate their huge impact on population growth too. It has been suggested that lower final stage rates, through natural resistivity to ailment highly contributed to urbanisation, as in the early 1800s the death rat e had fallen to 25 per 1000. This suggests that natural immunity and high levels of unemployment speed up the population growth (Devine, 1998, p48).The effect of industrialisation was economically good for the country, but with it came poverty. The majority of the working(a) class lived in overcrowded housing areas known as slums with no sanitation, and were rife with disease. As Devine argues, during periods of industrial recession when employment had slumped, there were also periods of disease epiphytotic. These began in 1817-1820(Typhoid), 1826-27(Typhoid) and in 1830-1832, a cholera epidemic that wiped out 10000 people. Periods of recession run parallel, the first being 1816-1818, 1825 and therefore 1836 (Devine, 1999, p168). In 1839, Death rates rose to 29 per 1000. People were oblige to live in abominable living conditions with huge sanitations problems, the towns and cities could not lot with the urban growth and disease was the outcome. Overcrowded, sub-divided housing was a problematic depicted object in all the major Towns and Cities, especially in Glasgow. _I did not believe until I visited Glasgow, that so large an amount of filth, crime, misery and disease existed in one spot in any one civil country (_Butt J, 1987 p41-42).People were customised to living in filthy dark, damp sleazy conditions amongst disease. As the periods of recession were leaving thousands out of work in a state of poverty, the brusk law amendment act was passed in 1845, which replaced the old poor relief laws of the parishes taking responsibly for the poor. The new law allowed a submit to be made under supervision of a board of examiners, it came in the form of indoor relief, which would be admission to a poorhouse if subject had addled the ability to work, and outdoor relief, which was for short-term illness, and this may have been in the form of payment or medicine. It could be argued that the industrial revolution was the birth of the working class and capi talism in this country. Those who owned the factories and docks made a great profit and a middle class lifestyle was adopted. This could be utter to be the division of the classes, with the help of the industrial revolution, people developed a working class or middle class attitude,In conclusion, the tell points out that several major factors occurred that accelerated the urban growth of the nation. The Agrarian revolution started the mass migrating and the industrial revolution provided the work force in order for capitalism to evolve. The consequences of urbanisation were overwhelming, yes the economy did thrive, but at what damage to the working class people, death, disease and misery.