New farming techniques and ideas were introduced into Britain during the 18th century creating an 'Agricultural Revolution'. It was actually more of a gradual change than a sudden revolution. Before this period of time, most people lived in villages and worked on the land, producing food. Farming was done on narrow strips of land that were slightly raised due to regular ploughing. Each strip was separated from the next by a pathway. Drainage and irrigation was poor and techniques had changed little since medieval times. There are places in the UK where you can still see the ridge and furrow... Show more New farming techniques and ideas were introduced into Britain during the 18th century creating an 'Agricultural Revolution'. It was actually more of a gradual change than a sudden revolution. Before this period of time, most people lived in villages and worked on the land, producing food. Farming was done on narrow strips of land that were slightly raised due to regular ploughing. Each strip was separated from the next by a pathway. Drainage and irrigation was poor and techniques had changed little since medieval times. There are places in the UK where you can still see the ridge and furrow landscape created by this type of farming. They didn't understand about fertilisers and so once every four years, the land needed to be left fallow in order to recover. All of this meant that food production worked on a small scale but, as the population started to rapidly increase due to the Industrial Revolution, farmers needed to find ways to improve their yields. This was done by using the Norfolk crop rotation system. No land was left fallow and growing clover helped replenish the soil nutrients to give better crop yields. Not all historians agree about the Agricultural Revolution. One thing is certain though, between 1700 and 1850, agricultural production just about doubled. At the time, the population of England was rapidly increasing. If farmers had not been able to grow more crops and rear more animals, large numbers of people would have starved and the Industrial Revolution would have been slowed down. A number of people are credited with being important in the development of agriculture in the 18th and 19th centuries. Charles Townshend was a politician and a farmer. He strongly promoted the Norfolk system of crop rotation which earned him the nickname of "Turnip". A farmer called Robert Bakewell carried out a programme of selective breeding of sheep, cattle and horses. As a result of his work, new breeds of sheep that gave better wool were developed as well as bigger horses and cattle specifically grown to provide beef. Thomas Coke introduced better grasses for animal grazing and also publicised his work and the work of others through his agricultural shows. Show less
New farming techniques and ideas were introduced into Britain during the 18th century creating an 'Agricultural Revolution'. It was actually more of a gradual change than a sudden revolution. Before this period of time, most people lived in villages and worked on the land, producing food. Farming was done on narrow strips of land that were slightly raised due to regular ploughing. Each strip was separated from the next by a pathway. Drainage and irrigation was poor and techniques had changed little since medieval times. There are places in the UK where you can still see the ridge and furrow landscape created by this type of farming.
They didn't understand about fertilisers and so once every four years, the land needed to be left fallow in order to recover. All of this meant that food production worked on a small scale but, as the population started to rapidly increase due to the Industrial Revolution, farmers needed to find ways to improve their yields. This was done by using the Norfolk crop rotation system. No land was left fallow and growing clover helped replenish the soil nutrients to give better crop yields.
Not all historians agree about the Agricultural Revolution. One thing is certain though, between 1700 and 1850, agricultural production just about doubled. At the time, the population of England was rapidly increasing. If farmers had not been able to grow more crops and rear more animals, large numbers of people would have starved and the Industrial Revolution would have been slowed down.
A number of people are credited with being important in the development of agriculture in the 18th and 19th centuries. Charles Townshend was a politician and a farmer. He strongly promoted the Norfolk system of crop rotation which earned him the nickname of "Turnip". A farmer called Robert Bakewell carried out a programme of selective breeding of sheep, cattle and horses. As a result of his work, new breeds of sheep that gave better wool were developed as well as bigger horses and cattle specifically grown to provide beef. Thomas Coke introduced better grasses for animal grazing and also publicised his work and the work of others through his agricultural shows.
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