The 18th century Britain

Prepared by – Ihnatiuk Yulia

21-au
Plan
 Society in 18th Century Britain
 Population in 18th Century Britain
 Agriculture in 18th Century England
 Food in the 18th Century
 Houses in the 18th Century
 Clothes in the 1700s
 Leisure in the 18th Century
 Education in the 18th Century
 Transport in the 18th Century
 Medicine in the 18th Century
Society in 18th Century Britain

  During the 1700s Britain built up a

great overseas empire. The North American
colonies were lost after the War of
Independence 1776-1783. On the other hand
after the Seven Years War 1756-1763 Britain
captured Canada and India. Britain also took
Dominica, Grenada, St Vincent and Tobago
in the West Indies. In 1707 the Act of Union
was passed. Scotland was united with England and Wales.

 The population was growing wildly. Cities were dirty, noisy, and
overcrowded. London had about 600,000 people around 1700 and
almost a million residents in 1800.
Society in 18th Century Britain
.
 Owning land was the main form of wealth in
the 18th century. Political power and
influence was in the hands of rich landowners.
At the top were the nobility. Below them
were a class of nearly rich landowners called
the gentry. In the early 18th century there
was another class of landowners called
yeomen between the rich and the poor.

 However other middle class people such as

merchants and professional men became
richer and more numerous, especially in the
towns.

 Below them were the great mass of the

population craftsmen and laborers. In the
18th century probably half the population
lived as subsistence or bare survival level
 Society in 18th Century Britain
At the end of the 1700s a
 In the early 18th century
group of Evangelical
Christians called the
England suffered from “Clapham Sect” were formed.
gin drinking. It was They campaigned for an end
cheap and it was sold to slavery and cruel sports.
everywhere as you did They were later called the
not need a license to sell Clapham Sect because so
it. Many people ruined many of them lived
in Clapham. They are
their health by drinking
described by the historian
gin. Sadly for many poor Stephen Michael Tomkins as
people drinking gin was "a network of friends and
their only comfort. The families in England,
situation improved after with William Wilberforce  as
1751 when a tax was its centre of gravity, who were
imposed on gin. powerfully bound together by
their shared moral values and
 by social activism.
 Population in 18th Century Britain
 At the end of the 17th century it was
estimated the population of England
and Wales was about 5 1/2 million. The
population of Scotland was about 1
million.  In the late 18th century it grew
rapidly and by 1801 it was over 9
million in Britain. The population of
London was almost 1 million.

 There were two very different lifestyles

in 18th-century England: the rich and
the poor. With the Industrial
Revolution, which started in the middle
of the century, came new machinery
that saved time and made some
people very wealthy. The rich were
getting richer and the poor, poorer.
Many people were out of work
because suddenly machines were
doing their jobs. It was a difficult life
for poor people: There was no government
assistance for the unemployed, and many
had trouble finding their next meal or a
warm place to sleep.
 Population in 18th Century Britain
During the 18th century
towns in Britain grew
larger.
 in the late 18th century
new industrial towns in
the
Midland and the North of
England mushroomed. 
But the life in those cities
for unemployed was hard.
Especially for kids .
 For every 1,000 children born
in early-18th-century
London, almost 500 died
before they were 2, generally
due to malnutrition, bad
water, dirty food, and poor
hygiene.
 Orphans roamed the streets;
because they didn’t attend
school, they had little chance
of improving their situation
and change their life.
Agriculture in 18th Century England

 During the 18th century agriculture was

gradually transformed by an agricultural
revolution. Until 1701 seed was sown by
hand. In that year Jethro Tull invented a seed
drill, which sowed seed in straight lines.
 He also invented a horse drawn hoe which
hoed the land and destroyed weed between
rows of crops.

 Furthermore until the 18th century most

livestock was slaughtered at the beginning
of winter because farmers could not grow
enough food to feed their animals through
the winter months.
 Agriculture in 18th Century England
 Until the 18th century most land in
England was divided into 3 fields. Each
year 2 fields were sown with crops while
the third was left fallow (unused).
 The Dutch began to grow swedes or
turnips on land instead of leaving it
fallow. (The turnips restored the soil's
fertility).
 When they were harvested the turnips  Also in the 18th century
farmers like Robert Bakewell
could be stored to provide food for Began scientific
livestock over the winter. The new stock breeding
methods were popularized in England (selective breeding).
by a man named Robert 'Turnip'
Townshend (1674-1741).
 Food in the 18th Century
The rich, only
a tiny minority of the
population, lived luxuriously.
Their calendars included
dinner parties, opera, and the
theater. Many had inherited
their great fortunes and never
knew what it was to have to work
or cook meals.
 There was little change in
food in the 18th century.
Despite the improvements
in farming food for ordinary
people remained plain and
monotonous. For them meat
was a luxury. In England a
poor person's food was
mainly bread and potatoes.
 In the 18th century drinking
tea became common even
among ordinary people.
 Houses in the 18th Century
 The rich built great country houses. A famous
landscape gardener called Lancelot Brown (1715-
1783) created beautiful gardens. (He was known
as 'Capability' Brown from his habit of looking at
land and saying it had 'great capabilities'). The
leading architect of the 18th century was Robert
Adam (1728-1792). He created a style called neo-
classical and he designed many 18th century
country houses.

 In Georgian Britain the wealthy owned

comfortable upholstered furniture. They owned
beautiful furniture, some of it veneered or inlaid.
In the 18th century much fine furniture was made
by Thomas Chippendale, George Hepplewhite and
Thomas Sheraton The famous clockmaker James
Cox (1723-1800) made exquisite clocks for the
rich.
 Clothes in the 1700s
•In the 18th century men wore knee-length
 Fashion was very important for the rich
trouser like garments called breeches and
in the 18th century but poor people's
stockings. They also wore waistcoats and frock
clothes hardly changed at all.
coats. They wore linen shirts. Man wore buckled
shoes.

•Women wore stays (a bodice with

Both men and women wore wigs and
for men
three-cornered hats were popular.
strips of whalebone) and hooped
petticoats under their dresses.
Women in the 18th century did not
wear knickers. Fashionable women
carried folding fans.
Leisure in the 18th Century
 Traditional games remained popular in the
18th century. These included games such
as chess, draughts and backgammon. They
also tennis and a rough version of football.
It is believed dominoes was invented in
China. It reached Europe in the 18th
century.

 Then in 1759 a man named John Jeffries

invented an entirely new board game
called A Journey Through Europe or The
Play of Geography in which players race
across a map of Europe.

 Horse racing was carried on for centuries

before the 18th century but at this time it
became a professional sport. The Jockey
Club was formed in 1727. The Derby began
 Leisure in the 18th Century
 The theater was also
Many people enjoyed cruel 'sports' like
popular. In the early 18th cockfighting and bull baiting.
century most towns did not (A bull was chained to a post and
have a purpose built theater dogs were trained to attack it).
and plays were staged in Rich people liked fox hunting.
buildings like inns. However Public executions were also popular
in the late 18th century and they drew large crowds.
theaters were built in most Boxing without gloves was also
towns in England. popular (although some boxers began
 Reading was also a popular
to wear leather gloves in the 18th century).
pastime in the 18th century
and the first novels were
published at this time. Books
were still expensive but in
many towns you could pay
to join a circulating library.
The first daily newspaper in
England was printed in 1702.
 Education in the 18th Century
 In the early 18th century charity
schools were founded in many towns
in England. They were sometimes
called Blue Coat Schools because of
the color of the children's uniforms.
Boys from well off families went to
grammar schools. Girls from well off
families also went to school. However
dissenters (Protestants who did not
belong to the Church of England)
were not allowed to attend most
public schools. Instead they went to
their own dissenting academies.
Transport in the 18th Century
 Transport was greatly improved during the 18th
century. Groups of rich men formed turnpike trusts. Acts
of Parliament gave them the right to improve and
maintain certain roads. Travelers had to pay tolls to use
them. The first turnpikes were created as early as 1663
but they became far more common in the 18th century.

 Transporting goods was also made much easier by

digging canals. In the early 18th century goods were
often transported by pack horse. Moving heavy goods
was very expensive. However in 1759 the Duke of
Bridgewater decided to build a canal to bring coal from
his estate at Worsley to Manchester. He employed an
engineer called James Brindley. When it was completed
the Bridgewater canal halved the price of coal in
Manchester.  They played a major role in the industrial
revolution by making it cheaper to transport goods.
 Transport in the 18th Century
 Travel in the 18th century was
made dangerous by highwaymen.
The most famous is Dick Turpin
(1705-1739). Originally a butcher
Turpin does not deserve his
romantic reputation. In reality he
was a cruel and brutal man. Like
many of his fellow highwaymen
he was hanged. Smuggling was
also very common in the 18th
century. It could be very profitable
as import duties on goods like
rum and tobacco were very high.
Art and Science in the 18th Century
During the 18th century England produced
two great portrait painters, Thomas
Gainsborough (1727-1788) and Sir Joshua
Reynolds (1723-1792). Meanwhile the artist
William Hogarth (1697-1764) painted scenes
showing the harsh side of 18th century life.
The Royal Academy of Arts was founded in
1768. In theater the greatest actor of the 18th
century was David Garrick (1717-1779).

In science Joseph Priestley (1733-1804)

discovered oxygen. Henry Cavendish (1731-
1810) discovered hydrogen. He also calculated
the mass and density of the earth. 
William Herschel (1738-1822) discovered
Uranus. The Scottish engineer Thomas Telford
(1757-1834) built roads, canals and bridges.
 Medicine in the 18th Century
 Knowledge of anatomy greatly improved in the 18th
century. The famous 18th century surgeon John Hunter
(1728-1793) is sometimes called the Father of Modern
Surgery. He invented new procedures such as tracheotomy.

 A major scourge of the 18th century was smallpox. A

doctor named Edward Jenner introduced vaccination.

 In 1700 many people believed that scrofula (a form of

tubercular infection) could be healed by a monarch's touch.
(Scrofula was called the kings evil). Queen Anne (1702-1714)
was the last British monarch to touch for scrofula. However
there were still many quacks in the 18th century. Limited
medical knowledge meant many people were desperate
for a cure. One of the most common treatments, for the
wealthy, was bathing in or drinking spa water, which they
believed could cure all kinds of illness.
 Sources
 DAILY LIFE IN 18th CENTURY BRITAIN.
http://www.localhistories.org/18thcent.html
 What Was It Like to Live in 18th-Century England?
https
://blogs.ancestry.com/cm/what-was-it-like-to-live-in-1
8th-century-england
/
 GREAT BRITAIN IN THE XVIII CENTURY.
https://blocs.mesvilaweb.cat/Subirats/?p=58973
 A timeline of 18th-century Britain.
http
://www.britain-magazine.com/carousel/a-timeline-of-1
8th-century-britain