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The Age of Industrialisation – Key Questions & Answers

ONE MARK QUESTIONS

1. Why the merchants and traders did turn their attention towards the countryside for production in Seventeenth and eighteenth centuries ?

Ans: Production could not be expanded in the town because the urban trade and craft guilds regulated these issues in the towns strictly. Moreover, they did not allow free entry and lenient rules for outsiders.

2. Why were wages low in England during eighteenth centuries ?

Ans: In England during the Victorian Age, there was no shortage of human labour. Unemployed people, farmers and vagrants often moved through the cities in search of work. So, the industrialists had an ample supply of labour and no problem of high wage cost.

3. Give some examples of seasonal industries.

Ans: Gas works, breweries, book binding factories, dockyard works, repairing tasks in various other factories too.

4. Why was hand labour preferred in seasonal factories ?

Ans: In industries such as breweries and book binders, production was affected by the seasonal demands and changes. Hence, seasonal labours could be easily employed when the need arose. Moreover, as the supply of labour was high, it was easy to get such labourers and keep cost of production low.

5. Why the aristocrats in Victorian England demanded handmade products ?

Ans: Handmade products portrayed class, royalty, high tastes and refinement. They were unique in their own designs and carefully designed and finished, so they attracted the upper elites of the society more.

6. How did urbanisation help create opportunities ?

Ans: Urban activities like building up of roads, laying down railway lines, construction of new railways stations as railways were expanded too, drainage and sewers laid and river embankments created opportunities where people got employment.

7. Why were the women in England against Spinning Jenny ?

Ans: Women feared that they might lose their livelihood and these machines would overtake their positions so they started detesting the use of spinning Jenny in the factories.

8. By 1750’s Why the commercial networks of Indian traders did began to decline in India ?

Ans: The European trading companies secured huge concessions and trading privileges from various rulers and local courts that boosted their trade. After this, they secured monopoly rights to trade even. This impacted the trading activities of the Indian traders and merchants.

9. Who were Gomasthas ?

Ans: Gomasthas described as an Indian agent of the English East India Company who was paid to supervise weavers and craftsmen, collect supplies and deliver finished goods to the company at fixed rates. He always examined the quality of the cloth.

10. How was the relationship between the Gomasthas and the weavers ?

Ans: The Gomasthas were paid agents of the English company who were outsiders and not from the villages. He was arrogant and often marched into the villages with sepoys to beat up the weavers and craftsmen if they were late in supplying products.

11. What happened as a result of cotton being exported from India ?

Ans: As cotton was being exported to England, the availability of cotton in Indian markets was affected. Weavers had to pay high rates to purchase raw cotton which most of the weavers could not afford.

12. Why were merchants from towns in Europe began to move countryside in seventeenth and eighteenth centuries?

Ans: During the 17th and 18th centuries, the world trade and the colonies expanded which increased the demands of goods. The merchants were not able to cope up within towns because of the powerful urban crafts and trade guilds and therefore they moved to the countryside to persuade the peasants and artisans to produce for the international market and also supplied money to them.

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THREE MARKS QUESTIONS

13. Describe any three major problems faced by Indian weavers in nineteenth century.

Ans: The three problems faced by the Indian cotton weavers:

1. Their export market collapsed and the local market shrunk.
2. Indian market flooded with Manchester imports.
3. Thus the Indian weavers could not compete with the mill-made products as they were much cheaper and also they were not getting supply of good quality raw cotton.

14. How did the seasonality of employment affect the lives of Indian workers during 18th century? Explain.

Ans: Gas work and breweries industries had seasonal demand of labour in the cold months. Likewise the book binders and the printers needed labour before December as they had to cater to the demand before the Christmas. The ships were also cleaned and repaired during the winter season. Due to the fluctuation of production with the season in these industries, hand labour was preferred and were employed for the season only.

15. Where were guilds? How did they make it difficult for new merchants to set business in towns of England? Explain.

Ans: Urban crafts and trade guilds were associations of producers who trained the craftspeople, controlled the production and regulated the price and competition. During the 17th and 18th centuries, the world trade and the colonies expanded which increased the demands of goods. The merchants were not able to sustain within towns because of the powerful urban crafts and trade guilds and therefore they moved to the countryside to persuade the peasants and artisans to produce for the international market and also supplied money to them.

These trade guilds restricted the entry of the new people into the trade because monopoly rights were granted to them to produce and trade in specific products. This situation made the new merchants difficult to set up their business units in towns.

16. Why did the East India Company appoint gomasthas? Give three reasons.

Ans: The three reasons behind the appointment of gomasthas by the East India Company were:

1. Earlier due to the number of buyers of the woven cloth in the Indian market Britain found difficulties in supply and also the supply merchants and the weavers could bargain and sell it to their best buyers. But after establishing political power in Bengal and Carnatic and the monopoly right to trade Britain developed systems to control and eliminate the competition.
2. The company took the direct control over the weavers through gomastha who were paid servants appointed by the company to supervise weavers, collect supplies and check the quality of the cloth.
3. The Company also prevented the weavers from supplying the cloth to any other buyer. This prevention was done through the system of advances. The weavers were given loans to buy the raw materials and were made bound to supply it the gomastha only.

17. Why was it difficult for East India Company to produce regular supplies of goods for export in the beginning? Explain.

Ans: Due to the following reasons the East India Company was facing difficulty to produce regular supplies of goods for export in the beginning:

1. There were number of trading companies in India such as French, Dutch and Portuguese who were competing for the woven cloth from the Indian weavers and merchants.
2. Due to the heavy competition and demand of the woven cloth, the Indian weavers and the supply merchants were keeping the prices high which was not profitable for the East India Company.
3. The East India Company did not had any exclusive trading rights or monopoly over trade in India.

18. How did industries develop in India in the second half of the nineteenth century? Explain.

Ans: Dwarkanath Tagore in Bengal, Paris like Dinshaw Petit Jamsetjee Nusserwanjee Tata in Bombay and Seth Hukumchand, and a Marwari businessman set up first Indian jute mill in Calcutta.

These early entrepreneurs had accumulated wealth from the trade with China, the merchants of Madras from trade with Burma and the others from the trade with the Middle East and east Africa.

There were another group of entrepreneurs who had accumulated wealth from trade within India, supplying goods from one place to another, banking money, transferring funds between cities and by financing the traders.

19. Describe the condition of the workers in the nineteenth century in England.

Ans: Due to the news of job opportunities in the city, large number of people migrated from the countryside. This created a situation of abundance of labour in the market. Getting a job was dependent on the networks of friendship and kin relations in factories.

But not all had such connections and that's why they had to wait for weeks spending nights under the bridges or in the night shelters or the night refuges built by the private individuals or in the casual wards maintained by the poor law authorities. The abundance of labour, social connections in the factories, seasonality of work and welfare of the workers were the main issues which made the life of the workers miserable.

20. "In eighteenth century Europe, the peasants and artisans in the countryside readily agreed to work for the merchants." Explain any three reasons.

Ans: In eighteenth century Europe, the poor peasants and artisans eagerly agreed to take the advance offered by the merchants and were willing to produce goods for them. Due to the following reasons:

1. During this time in the countryside the open fields were disappearing and commons were being enclosed. The cottagers and peasants were looking for alternative source of income because they were dependent on the common lands and gathering of firewood, vegetables, berries, hay and straw for their livelihood. Many of them had small plots of land which was not sufficient to provide work to all the family members.
2. It proved good for the peasants and artisans to work for the merchants as they could now remain in the countryside and continue with their small plot cultivation.
3. Their family income was supplemented and also they were able to engage all the family members as labour resources.

21. "The First World War created the favorable conditions for the development of industries in India." Support the statement with suitable examples.

Ans:

1. Indian mills regained the domestic market as the British mills were busy with the war-needs production.
2. The Manchester imports declined in India.
3. Due to the prolonged war, Indian factories got an opportunity to produce for the war needs.
4. Many new factories were set up and the old factories ran multiple shifts, demands for workers increased and workers had to work for long hours.
5. Due to the huge economic loss in the war, Britain could not regain its dominance over the export and thus the local industries consolidated their position in the home market.

22. Explain any three reasons for the clashes between the weavers and the gomasthas.

Ans: The three reasons for the clashes between the weavers and the gomasthas were:

1. Earlier the weavers dealt with the supply merchants who lived within the weaving villages and had a close link with the weavers whereas the gomasthas were outsiders who had no social link with the weavers.
2. The supply merchants were looking after the needs of the weavers whereas the gomasthas acted arrogantly and often beat them for the delay in supply.
3. Due to the new system of gomastha the weavers lost the space to bargain, could not sell to other buyers, the price for the cloth received from the Company was very low and the loans which they received from the company tied them with the company itself.

23. Why did the industrial production in India increase during the First World War? Give any three reasons.

Ans: The three reasons for the increase of the industrial production in India during the First World War were:

1. Indian mills regained the domestic market as the British mills were busy with the war needs production.
2. The Manchester imports declined in India.
3. Due to the prolonged war Indian factories got an opportunity to produce for the war needs, many new factories were set up, the old factories ran multiple shifts, demands for workers increased.

24. Explain the effects of East India Company's exploitative methods of asserting monopoly over trade.

Ans: The effects of East India Company's exploitative methods of asserting monopoly over trade were as follows:

1. Many villagers refused taking loans and advances for doing the production.
2. They closed down their workshops and shifted back to agriculture work.
3. Some of them migrated to other villages to set up their looms.

25. Describe any three functions of gomasthas.

Ans: The three functions of gomasthas were:

1. Gomasthas were paid servants appointed by the company to supervise weavers, collect supplies and check the quality of the cloth.
2. The weavers were given loans to buy the raw materials and were made bound to supply it the gomastha only.
3. Gomasthas acted arrogantly and often beat them for the delay in supply.

26. Why was East India Company keen on expanding textile exports from India during the 1760s? Explain any three reasons.

Ans: Even after the consolidation of the East India Company's power after the 1760s the Company was willing to expand the textile exports from India because of the following reasons:

1. First, the cotton industries had not yet expanded in Britain.
2. Second, great demand of the Indian fine textiles in Europe.
3. Earlier, due to the number of buyers of the woven cloth in the Indian market, Britain found difficulties in supply and also the supply merchants and the weavers could bargain and sell it to their best buyers. But after establishing political power in Bengal and Carnatic and the monopoly right to trade, Britain developed systems to control and eliminate the competition. The Company took direct control over the weavers through gomastha who were paid servants appointed by the Company to supervise weavers, collect supplies and check the quality of the cloth.

27. Who were the jobbers? Explain their main functions.

Ans: These jobbers were old and trusted persons who got people from the villages, ensured them jobs and their settlement in the cities along with financial help during the times of crisis. The jobbers were employed to get new recruits. Thus they had authority and power. Later on they started demanding money and gifts for their favour and thus they controlled the lives of the workers.

28. Why did upper classes in Victorian period preferred things produced by hands?

Ans: The aristocrats and the bourgeoisie were the upper class people in the Victorian Britain who preferred hand- made things because these products symbolize refinement and class as they were better finished and carefully designed. They had the thinking that the machine- made goods were for export to the colonies.

29. Explain any three problems faced by the Indian weavers in 1850s.

Ans: The three problems faced by the Indian cotton weavers:

1. Their export market collapsed and the local market shrunk.
2. Indian market flooded with Manchester imports.
3. Thus the Indian weavers could not compete with the mill-made products as they were much cheaper and also they were not getting supply of good quality raw cotton.

30. How did many Indian entrepreneurs survive despite tight economic controls imposed by the British government?

Ans: Many Indian entrepreneurs survived despite tight economic controls imposed by the British government due to the following reasons:

1. The Indian entrepreneurs did not want to compete with the Manchester goods therefore they produced cotton yarn rather than fabric which was either used by the Indian handloom weavers or exported to China.
2. During the Swadeshi Movement the people boycotted the foreign clothes.
3. The Indian industrial groups organized themselves and pressurized the government to increase tariff protection and for granting other concessions.

31. Mention any three restrictions imposed by the British government on the Indian merchants in 19th century.

Ans: The three restrictions imposed by the British government upon the Indian merchants in 19th century were:

1. After establishing political power in Bengal and Carnatic and the monopoly right to trade, Britain developed systems to control and eliminate the competition.
2. The Company took the direct control over the weavers through gomastha who were paid servants appointed by the Company to supervise weavers, collect supplies and check the quality of the cloth.
3. By the end of the First World War a large sector of the Indian industries were under the control of the three biggest European managing agencies called Bird Heiglers and Company, Andrew Yule and Jardine Skinner and Company. But mostly the finance was done by the Indian people whereas the investment and business decisions were taken by the European agencies and also the Indian businessmen were not allowed to join the chamber of commerce of the European merchantsindustrialists.

32. "Historians now have to increasingly recognize that the typical worker in the mid-nineteenth century was not a machine operator but the traditional craftsperson and labourer." Analyse the statement.

Ans: The new industries were not able to displace the traditional industries. This can be proved with the fact that till the end of the 19th century less than 20% of the workforce were engaged in the technologically advanced industries and a large portion of the output was produced within the domestic units.

Food processing, building, pottery, glass work etc. were the non- mechanized sectors in which the changes were ordinary with small innovations.

The technological changes occurred very slowly because the new technology was very costly. The merchants and industrialists were highly cautious for its use as the machines often broke down and its repair was too expensive. These machines were not as effective as it was claimed by the investors and the manufacturers.

33. Describe the lifestyle of the British workers in the nineteenth century.

Ans: Due to the news of job opportunities in the city large number of people migrated from the countryside. This created a situation of abundance of labour in the market. Getting a job was dependent on the networks of friendship and kin relations in factories.

But not all had such connections and that's why they had to wait for weeks spending nights under the bridges or in the night shelters or the night refuges built by the private individuals or in the casual wards maintained by the poor law authorities. The abundance of labour, social connections in the factories, seasonality of work and welfare of the workers were the main issues which made the life of the workers miserable.

34. Explain the impact of the First World War on Indian industries.

Ans: Effects of the First World War on the Indian Industries - Indian mills regained the domestic market as the British mills were busy with the war- needs production and also the Manchester imports declined in India, due to the prolonged war. Indian factories got an opportunity to produce for the war needs, many new factories were set up, the old factories ran multiple shifts. Demands for workers increased and they had to work for long hours. Due to the huge economic loss in the war, Britain could not regain its dominance over the export and thus the local industries consolidated their position in the home market.

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FIVE MARKS QUESTIONS

35. "By the first decade of the twentieth century a series of changes affected the pattern of industrialisation in India." Support the statement with examples.

Ans: During the Swadeshi Movement the people boycotted the foreign clothes, and the Indian industrial groups organized themselves and pressurized the government to increase tariff protection and for granting other concessions.

Again the Indian industrialists shifted from the yarn production to cloth production because the Indian yarn export declined in China as the Chinese and Japanese mills became plenty in China.

Effects of the First World War on the Indian Industries - Indian mills regained the domestic market as the British mills were busy with the war- needs production and also the Manchester imports declined in India. Due to the prolonged war, Indian factories got an opportunity to produce for the war needs. Many new factories were set up, the old factories ran multiple shifts, demands for workers increased. Workers had to work for long hours. Due to the huge economic loss in the war, Britain could not regain its dominance over the export and thus the local industries consolidated their position in the home market.

36. Explain the role played by the advertisements in creating new consumers for the British products.

Ans: Advertisement is used since from the beginning to attract the buyers because it helps in making the product appear desirable and necessary.

The Manchester industrialists also put labels (Made in Manchester) on the bundles of the cloth for the following purposes - to make the place of manufacture and the name of the company known to buyers, as a mark of quality and to make the buyers feel confident about the product.

These labels carried the words, texts, images and beautiful illustrations which gave some idea about the mind of the manufacturers, their calculations and the way they approach the buyers.

Initially, the images of gods and goddesses like Krishna and Saraswati appeared on the labels for making the buyers convince that there is divine approval to sell these products.

In order to make the products more popular the products were printed in the newspapers, magazines and the most important on the calendars.

The calendars became most popular due to the following reasons - used even by the illiterates and poor, hung in tea shops, hung in homes which they see day after day through the year.

The figures of important personages, emperors and Nawabs were also used in the advertisements and calendars to expand the market of the product. These figures gave the message that this product is used by the royalty and hence it is of good quality and also if you respect these figures then give due respect to the product also.

37. Explain any five ways by which new markets and consumers were created in India by British manufacturers.

Ans: The five ways by which new markets and consumers were created in India by British manufacturers were:

1. The Manchester industrialists put labels (Made in Manchester) on the bundles of the cloth for the following purposes - to make the place of manufacture and the name of the company known to buyers, for a mark of quality and to make the buyers feel confident about the product.
2. These labels carried the words, texts, images and beautiful illustrations which gives some idea about the mind of the manufacturers, their calculations and the way they approach the buyers.
3. Initially the images of gods and goddesses like Krishna and Saraswati appeared on the labels for making the buyers convinced that there is divine approval to sell these products.
4. In order to make the products more popular the products were printed in the newspapers, magazines and the most important on the calendars.
5. The calendars became the most popular due to the following reasons - used even by the illiterates and poor, hung in tea shops, hung in homes which they see day after day through the year.
6. The figures of important personages, emperors and Nawabs were also used in the advertisements and calendars to expand the market of the product. These figures gave the message that this product is used by the royalty and hence it is of good quality and also if you respect these figures then give due respect to the product also.
7. The Indian manufactures used the figures of the nationalists on the products and passed the message that if you love your nation then buy the Indian products.

38. Why were there frequent clashes between Gomasthas and weavers in the villages? Explain five reasons.

Ans: The following were the reasons for the frequent clashes between Gomasthas and weavers in the villages:

1. Earlier, the weavers dealt with the supply merchants who lived within the weaving villages and had a close link with the weavers whereas the gomasthas were outsiders who had no social link with the weavers.
2. The supply merchants were looking after the needs of the weavers whereas the gomasthas acted arrogantly and often heat them for the delay in supply.
3. Due to the new system of gomastha the weavers lost the space to bargain.
4. The weavers could not sell to other buyers.
5. The price for the cloth received from the Company was very low and the loans which they received from the Company tied them with the Company itself.

39. Throw light on production during the protoindustrialisation phase in Europe in the 17th and 18th century with an example.

Ans: The history of industrialisation began with the setting up of the first factories but there was large scale industrial production in England and Europe which the historians refer as proto-industrialisation.

The main features of proto-industrialisation were:

1. During the 17th and 18th centuries, the world trade and the colonies expanded which increased the demands of goods. The merchants were not able to cope up within towns because of the powerful urban crafts and trade guilds and therefore they moved to the countryside to persuade the peasants and artisans to produce for the international market and also supplied money to them.
2. These trade guilds restricted the entry, of the new people into the trade because monopoly rights were granted to them to produce and trade in specific products. This situation made the new merchants difficult to set up their business units in towns.
3. The poor peasants and artisans eagerly agreed to take the advance offered by the merchants and were willing to produce goods for them.
4. During this time in the countryside the open fields were disappearing and commons were being enclosed. The cottagers and peasants were looking for alternative source of income because they were dependent on the common lands and gathering of firewood, vegetables, berries, vegetables, hay and straw for their livelihood. Many of them had small plots of land which was not sufficient to provide work to all the family members.
5. During this period London came to be known as the Finishing Centre because the finishing work of the cloth was done in London before it is exported in the international market.

40. Explain any three measures used by producers to expand their markets in the 19th century.

Ans: The three measures used by producers to expand their markets in the 19th century were:

1. The Company took the direct control over the weavers through gomastha who were paid servants appointed by the company to supervise weavers, collect supplies and check the quality of the cloth. The Company also prevented the weavers from supplying the cloth to any other buyer. This prevention was done through the system of advances. The weavers were given loans to buy the raw materials and were made bound to supply it the gomastha only.
2. The jobbers were employed to get new recruit. These jobbers were old and trusted persons who got people from the villages, ensured them jobs and their settlement in the cities along with financial help during the times of crisis. Thus they had authority and power.
3. The Manchester industrialists also put labels (Made in Manchester) on the bundles of the cloth for the following purposes to make the place of manufacture and the name of the company known to buyers, for a mark of quality and to make the buyers feel confident about the product. These labels carried the words, texts, images and beautiful illustrations which gives some idea about the mind of the manufacturers, their calculations and the way they approach the buyers. Initially the images of gods and goddesses like Krishna and Saraswati appeared on the labels for making the buyers convince that there is divine approval to sell these products. In order to make the products more popular the products were printed in the newspapers, magazines and the most important on the calendars.