The Economy, trade and Empire, 1625-1688
Agriculture
- New crops in Britain led to a revolution in eating habits and improvements in soil
fertility
- Market gardens were developed due to this, which were specialist producers of fruit
and vegetables grown to feed large groups of people e.g. London, they had a very
high standard of efficiency and produce
- In the 1640s, Britain was second only to the Netherlands in terms of agricultural
production
Enclosure-
- Consolidating scattered holdings into blocks of land, usually by fencing them off, and
reserving them for the use of a landowner
- It ensured crop production wasn’t duplicated and pastures were sued for selective
breeding, bigger farms= more food
- Not a modern development, done in the Middle Ages
- Common land wasn’t accessible anymore so there were protests by small landowners
and peasants but overall, agricultural efficiency was improved
Farming techniques-
- For crop rotation, turnips or clover (nitrogen rich) were used as fodder crops since
they replenish the soil so less land left fallow, and the amount of fallow land
decreased from 3 million acres in 1420 to 1.8 million by 1700, 4 field crop rotation
was popular in Norfolk
Water meadows-
- Process of diverting water from a nearby river to a field, regulated by gates and dams
- provided farmers with better quality hay to feed, so more animals= bigger workforce
of animals, between 1600-1700 number of horses working increased from 300,000 to
630,000, this makes farming more efficient
Development of specialised farming and the growth of employment
Specialised farming-
- before this, there had mainly been subsistence farming in which farmers only
produced what was needed for their local community
- as transport and infrastructure improved, opportunities to develop national markets
grew
- yeomanry owned large amounts of land and could experiment with new techniques
and crops e.g. turnips
, - small landowners could dedicate their entire farm to one product if it was in demand
in their area, though they were slow to specialise
Diversification and changing employment-
- the Settlement Act was passed in 1662 which allowed landowners to hire workers
more easily then get rid of them at the end of harvest, making them able to skip
paying the poor rates since most of the workers were settled in other parishes
- in 1688, there were an estimated 364,000 families working in a labour job and relied
on industry for income
Capital investment in agriculture
- investment was needed for farmers to take risks with new techniques and increase
productivity
- Higher gentry, aristocracy and richer yeomanry invested in large scale modernisation,
buying land and investing in new crops, in comparison, husbandmen were unable to
afford it
- Landowners now required more assistance in management of production and leased
out sections of farmland to tenants, meaning capital investment improved production
- Investment was required since tenants had to specialise to meet demands for rent
- In 1700 over half of agricultural land was part of large scale estates over 100 acres
and increase from only 32.2% in 1600, some in East Anglia were over 500 acres
- Counties that specialised in wheat and livestock production were dominated by
landowners able to invest heavily e.g. East Anglia, the Midlands
The development of national markets
Reasons for development-
- Growth of populations means an increased demand for food, and traditional, local
markets weren’t good enough anymore
- The biggest demand came from London and required improved roads and
infrastructure, and market gardens were created to provide fresh food for the London
markets which thrived due to the abundance of agricultural land
- The road system began to improve in the second half of the century and the first
Turnpike road act was passed in 1633 which created new toll roads opened by
merchants and businessmen
- By the end of the 17th century, key rivers like the Thames were transporting
manufactured good and agricultural produce since they had been widened and
dredged
Impact of national markets-
- Farmers still supplied small local markets and there wasn’t a proper National market
in Scotland or Ireland due to lack of transport
- The development of markets wouldn’t have been possible without improved trade
conditions and infrastructure
Agriculture
- New crops in Britain led to a revolution in eating habits and improvements in soil
fertility
- Market gardens were developed due to this, which were specialist producers of fruit
and vegetables grown to feed large groups of people e.g. London, they had a very
high standard of efficiency and produce
- In the 1640s, Britain was second only to the Netherlands in terms of agricultural
production
Enclosure-
- Consolidating scattered holdings into blocks of land, usually by fencing them off, and
reserving them for the use of a landowner
- It ensured crop production wasn’t duplicated and pastures were sued for selective
breeding, bigger farms= more food
- Not a modern development, done in the Middle Ages
- Common land wasn’t accessible anymore so there were protests by small landowners
and peasants but overall, agricultural efficiency was improved
Farming techniques-
- For crop rotation, turnips or clover (nitrogen rich) were used as fodder crops since
they replenish the soil so less land left fallow, and the amount of fallow land
decreased from 3 million acres in 1420 to 1.8 million by 1700, 4 field crop rotation
was popular in Norfolk
Water meadows-
- Process of diverting water from a nearby river to a field, regulated by gates and dams
- provided farmers with better quality hay to feed, so more animals= bigger workforce
of animals, between 1600-1700 number of horses working increased from 300,000 to
630,000, this makes farming more efficient
Development of specialised farming and the growth of employment
Specialised farming-
- before this, there had mainly been subsistence farming in which farmers only
produced what was needed for their local community
- as transport and infrastructure improved, opportunities to develop national markets
grew
- yeomanry owned large amounts of land and could experiment with new techniques
and crops e.g. turnips
, - small landowners could dedicate their entire farm to one product if it was in demand
in their area, though they were slow to specialise
Diversification and changing employment-
- the Settlement Act was passed in 1662 which allowed landowners to hire workers
more easily then get rid of them at the end of harvest, making them able to skip
paying the poor rates since most of the workers were settled in other parishes
- in 1688, there were an estimated 364,000 families working in a labour job and relied
on industry for income
Capital investment in agriculture
- investment was needed for farmers to take risks with new techniques and increase
productivity
- Higher gentry, aristocracy and richer yeomanry invested in large scale modernisation,
buying land and investing in new crops, in comparison, husbandmen were unable to
afford it
- Landowners now required more assistance in management of production and leased
out sections of farmland to tenants, meaning capital investment improved production
- Investment was required since tenants had to specialise to meet demands for rent
- In 1700 over half of agricultural land was part of large scale estates over 100 acres
and increase from only 32.2% in 1600, some in East Anglia were over 500 acres
- Counties that specialised in wheat and livestock production were dominated by
landowners able to invest heavily e.g. East Anglia, the Midlands
The development of national markets
Reasons for development-
- Growth of populations means an increased demand for food, and traditional, local
markets weren’t good enough anymore
- The biggest demand came from London and required improved roads and
infrastructure, and market gardens were created to provide fresh food for the London
markets which thrived due to the abundance of agricultural land
- The road system began to improve in the second half of the century and the first
Turnpike road act was passed in 1633 which created new toll roads opened by
merchants and businessmen
- By the end of the 17th century, key rivers like the Thames were transporting
manufactured good and agricultural produce since they had been widened and
dredged
Impact of national markets-
- Farmers still supplied small local markets and there wasn’t a proper National market
in Scotland or Ireland due to lack of transport
- The development of markets wouldn’t have been possible without improved trade
conditions and infrastructure
