The Industrial Revolution in England can be termed a "revolution" because of the far reaching changes that accompanied it. These changes affected the social, economic and political affairs of Britain. However, it must be noted that this revolution could have only occurred with the aid of internal factors which were factors within Britain and external factors which came from the Atlantic economy. The Agrarian Revolution was the first internal factor. It took place between 1760 and 1830 in the countryside. The previous old wasteful open-field system of cultivation gave way to enclosures. Improved methods of agriculture were introduced as Rickard and Hyma stated, "There were improved methods of land cultivation, new crops, increased knowledge of fertilizing, crop rotation and diversification. These improved methods meant that less labour was needed on the farms and thus it led to freed labour migrating to the towns to become involved in the Industrial Revolution as Deane and Cole stated, "By 1881, there were 7.1 million persons living in London and Wales. In 1991, the numbers increased to 8.2 million." ".
The second internal factor was England's geographical advantages. According to Eric Evans, "England had many geographical advantages that facilitated the Industrial Revolution." He stated that there were, "A plentiful of navigable rivers to facilitate movement of bulky goods, access to the sea for foreign trade and fast flowing streams which provided motive power for the early mills. These geographical advantages definitely aided England's Industrial Revolution. The invention and use of canals was also of extreme importance to the Industrial Revolution as it increased employment in the construction industry, provided investment opportunities outside of agriculture and provided a cheap and efficient means of transportation. England's bountiful supply of natural resources was the third internal factor.
