The Agrarian Revolution

Syllabus tag: KCSE | History and Government | Form 1 | Topic 5 The Agrarian Revolution

Lesson objectives

By the end of this topic, you should be able to:

• Describe British agriculture before the Agrarian Revolution.
• Describe the changes that marked the revolution and explain its causes.
• Explain the effects of the Agrarian Revolution in Britain.
• Describe the Agrarian Revolution in the USA and its effects.

Summary

The Agrarian Revolution was the rapid transformation of farming methods in Britain from the mid-eighteenth century. It replaced the open field and strip system with enclosed farms, introduced crop rotation, selective breeding and new machinery, and produced far more food — but also displaced small farmers, who moved to the towns and supplied labour for the Industrial Revolution.