The Age of Industrialisation Important Questions for Class 10 Social Science History

The Age of Industrialisation Important questions: The Age of Industrialisation explores a transformative period when economies, societies, and cultures were fundamentally reshaped by industrial growth. The chapter focuses on the rise of industrialisation in Europe, especially England, during the 18th and 19th centuries, and its spread to other regions.

Important Questions Class 10 Social Science History Chapter 4 also examines the impact on India under British colonial rule, where traditional industries were altered, leading to major socio-economic changes. Studying The Age of Industrialization, important questions help students focus on key events and prepare effectively for exams.

The Age of Industrialisation Important Questions Answers

Focus on key events, industrial growth, and socio-economic changes during the 18th–19th centuries. These The Age of Industrialisation important question that helps students revise efficiently for exams.

Section – A (1 Mark Questions)

1. The earliest factories in England came up by the ______. But it was only in the late eighteenth century that the number of factories multiplied.

(A) 1760s 

(B) 1830s

(C) 1730s 

(D) None of the above

Ans. (C) 1730s

2. The first symbol of the new era was ________. Its production boomed in the late nineteenth century.

(A) Cotton 

(B) Wool

(C) Silver 

(D) Aluminium

Ans. (A) Cotton

3. ___________ created the cotton mill.

(A) Orville Wright

(B) Richard Arkwright

(C) James Watt

(D) None of the above

Ans. (B) Richard Arkwright

4. The production process (carding, twisting and spinning, and rolling) is associated with the production of _______.

(A) Cotton 

(B) Ships

(C) Railways 

(D) None of the above

Ans. (A) Cotton

5. Growing at a rapid pace, ________ was the leading sector in the first phase of industrialisation up to the 1840s.

(A) Shipping 

(B) Mineral industry

(C) Cotton 

(D) None of the above

Ans. (C) Cotton

6. With the expansion of railways in England from the 1840s and in the colonies from the 1860s, the demand for ______ and _______ increased rapidly.

(A) Iron and Steel
(B) Jute and Cotton
(C) Aluminium and Bauxite
(D) Copper and Steel
Ans. (A) Iron and Steel

7. By 1873, Britain was exporting iron and steel worth about £ 77 million, double the value of its ______ export.

(A) Meat
(B) Cotton
(C) Steam engines
(D) None of the above
Ans. (B) Cotton

8. Ordinary and small innovations were the basis of growth in many ______ sectors such as ________.

(A) Non-mechanised
(B) Mechanised
(C) Both (A) and (B)
(D) None of the above
Ans. (A) Non-mechanised

9. James Watt patented the new engine in _______.

(A) 1791
(B) 1581
(C) 1681
(D) 1781
Ans. (D) 1781

10. Which of the following statements are true about Steam Engines?

(A) At the beginning of the nineteenth century, there were not more than 321 steam engines all over England.
(B) Mathew Boulton manufactured the new model of steam engines.
(C) James Watt improved the steam engine produced by Newcomen and patented the new engine in 1781.
(D) All of the above.
Ans. (D) All of the above

11. _________ products came to symbolise refinement and class.

(A) Machine Made
(B) Handmade
(C) Both (A) and (B)
(D) None of the above
Ans. (B) Handmade

12. ________ goods were for export to the colonies.

(A) Handmade
(B) Machine made
(C) None of the above
(D) Both (A) and (B)
Ans. (B) Machine made

13. Before the age of machine industries, silk and cotton goods from ______ dominated the international market in textiles.

(A) India
(B) Britain
(C) China
(D) France
Ans. (A) India

14. ______ and ______ merchants took the goods from Punjab to Afghanistan, Eastern Persia and Central Asia.

(A) Turkish and Persian
(B) Armenian and Persian
(C) Afghan and Persian
(D) Chinese and Persian
Ans. (B) Armenian and Persian

Section – B  (2 Mark Questions)

15. How did the seasonality of employment affect the lives of Indian workers during the 18th century? Explain.

Ans. Seasonality of employment affected the lives of the Indian workers during the 18th century in the following ways.

• Seasonality of work meant a prolonged period of unemployment. Workers were forced again onto the streets.

• Many went back to their villages.

• Others looked for odd jobs in the cities.

16. What were guilds? How did they make it difficult for new merchants to set up business in the towns of England? Explain.

Ans. Guilds were the associations of artisans or merchants who controlled the practice of their craft and trade in a particular city. They were very powerful as they were granted monopoly rights by the rulers to produce and trade in specific product. 

They themselves trained the people in their trade or craft. They regulated competition and restricted the entry of new people in the trade. This made it difficult for the new merchants to set up their business in towns of England.17. Explain the effects of East India Company’s exploitative methods of asserting a monopoly over trade.

Ans. The following were the effects of the East India Company’s exploitative methods of asserting monopoly over trade.

• Many peasants and weavers deserted the villages and had to migrate to other villages.

• In many places, there were revolts and clashes against the Company and its officials.

• Weavers began refusing loans and closed down their workshops. They took to agricultural labourers.

18. Describe any three functions of Gomasthas.

Ans. Gomasthas were connecting links between the British and the weavers. The following were the main functions of the Gomasthas:

• Supervision of weavers for their work

• Collection of finished products

• Examination of quality of products

• Giving punishments to weavers and information to British

19. Who were the jobbers? Explain their main functions.

Ans. Jobbers were the paid workers of the industrialists. They were old and most trusted workers. The following were the main functions of the jobbers:

• Jobbers got the people from villages, ensured their jobs and helped them to settle in the city.

• They often helped the workers by providing them money in time of crises.

20. Why did the industrial production increase in India during the First World War?

Ans. The War had created a new opportunity for the industrial production in India:

1. The War situation had forced the British mills to produce things that were needed for the army. This had led to the decline of Manchester imports into India. Suddenly, Indian mills had a vast home market to supply to.

2. As the War prolonged, Indian factories were called upon to supply war needs: jute bags, cloth for army uniforms, tents and leather boots, horse and mule saddles and a host of other items.

3. New factories were set up, and old ones ran multiple shifts. Many new workers were employed and everyone was made to work longer hours.
   Over the war years, industrial production boomed, local industries consolidated their position, substituting foreign manufactures and capturing home markets.

21. How did a series of inventions in the eighteenth century increase the efficiency of each step of the production process in cotton textile industry? Explain.

Ans. A series of inventions in the 18th century increased the efficiency in every step of the production process, especially of cotton. The process of producing cotton involved carding, twisting, spinning and milling.

• The inventions enhanced the output per worker, enabling each worker to produce more, and they made possible the production of stronger threads and yarn.

• Richard Arkwright then created the cotton mill. Cloth production was spread all over the countryside and was carried out in village households.

• Also now the costly new machines could be purchased, set up and maintained in the mill under one roof and management. This allowed a more careful supervision over the production process, a watch over the quality and the regulation of labour, all of which was difficult to do when production was in the countryside.

22. What problems were faced by the Indian cotton weavers in the 19th century? Describe.

Ans. The Indian cotton weavers faced many problems in the 19th century:

1. Their export collapsed.

2. The local market shrank being flooded by the Manchester imports. Produced by machines at lower costs, the Manchester cotton goods were so cheap that they attracted the buyers and the Indian textiles could not compete with them.

3. By 1860, Indian weavers faced a new problem. They could not get sufficient supply of raw cotton of good quality. This happened because a Civil War had broken out in America and the cotton supplies from the US to Britain were cut off and Britain turned to India. As raw cotton export from India increased, the price of raw cotton shot up. Indian weavers were forced to buy raw cotton at a very high price, so weaving did not remain profitable.

4. Factories in India also produced goods at a mass scale which flooded the Indian markets. Thus the Indian weavers faced a tough time and it became difficult to survive.

23. Why did technological changes occur slowly in Britain in early 19th century? Explain any three reasons.

Ans. Technological changes occurred slowly in Britain due to the following reasons:
• New technology was expensive and merchants and industrialists were cautious about using it. For example, at the beginning of the 19th century, there were only 321 steam engines. There were no buyers of steam engines for years.
• The machines often broke down and repair was costly.
• The machines were not as effective as their inventors and manufacturers claimed.
• Machines were oriented to produce uniform, standardised goods for a mass market. But the demand in the market was often for goods with intricate designs and specific shapes which required human skill, not mechanical technology. At that time the upper classes preferred things produced by hand.

24. Describe the achievements of any three early industrialists in British India.

Ans. Having earned enough from trade, some businessmen had visions of developing industrial enterprises in India.
In Bengal, Dwarkanath Tagore made his fortune in the China trade. He turned to industrial investment, setting up six joint stock companies in 1830s and 1840s.
In Bombay, Parsis like Dinshaw Petit and Jamsetjee Nusserwanjee Tata who built huge industrial empires in India accumulated their initial wealth from exports to China and raw cotton shipments to England. Seth Hukumchand, a Marwari businessman, who set up the first Indian jute mill in Calcutta in 1917, also traded with China.

25. How did many Indian Entrepreneurs survive despite of tight economic controls imposed by the British Government?

Ans.
• Many Indians became junior players in the trade with China by providing finance, procuring supplies and shipping consignments.
• Some merchants from Madras traded with Burma, the Middle East and East Africa and accumulated capital.
• Certain other commercial groups operated within India by carrying goods from one place to another, banking money, transferring funds between cities and financing traders.

26. Advertisements played a part in expanding the markets for products and in shaping a new consumer culture. Explain.

Or
Explain the role played by advertisements in creating new consumers for the British products.
Or
In which ways did the British and the Indian manufacturers and traders advertise their products?

Ans.

1. When Manchester industrialists began selling cloth in India, they put labels on the cloth bundles, to make the place of manufacture and the name of the company familiar to the buyer.

2. When buyers saw ‘Made in Manchester’, written in bold on the label, they felt confident to buy the cloth.

3. But labels did not carry words and texts. They carried images and were beautifully illustrated with images of Indian gods and goddesses. The printed image of Krishna or Saraswati was also intended to make the manufacture from a foreign land appear familiar to Indians.

4. Manufacturers also printed calendars to popularise their products. These calendars were used even by the illiterate. They were hung in tea shops and in the homes of the poor and even in offices and middle class apartments.

5. When Indian manufacturers advertised, the nationalist message was clear and loud. If you care for the nation, then buy only ‘Indian’ products. Advertisements became a vehicle of the nationalist message of Swadeshi

27. Why was it difficult to get jobs in Indian factories and mills even when so many of them had come up in the 19th century?

Ans.

1. The number seeking jobs always remained more than the jobs available.

2. During the same time agriculture was also not prosperous. Therefore, there was always a large influx of unemployed youths from villages who came to cities and towns looking for jobs in the newly set up mills and factories.

3. Entry into the mills was also restricted. Industrialists usually employed jobbers to get new recruits. Very often, the jobber was an old and trusted worker. He got people from his own village, ensured them jobs and helped them settle in the city. Gradually, they began to demand money and gifts for this favour and began controlling the lives of workers.

Section-D (5 Marks)

28. Why were there frequent clashes between gomasthas and weavers in the villages?

Ans. The ‘gomasthas’ were paid servants whose job was to supervise weavers, collect supplies and examine the cloth. In many weaving villages there were clashes between the gomasthas and the weavers who began ill-treating the villagers.

1. The earlier supply merchants had lived within the villages and had a close relationship with the weavers, looking after their needs and helping them in times of crisis.

2. The new gomasthas were outsiders with no long-term social link with the village.

3. They acted arrogantly and punished weavers for delays in supplies, beating and flogging them with the help of sepoys and peons.

4. The weavers lost their freedom to bargain for prices and sell to different buyers and received miserably low prices from the company.

5. The loans they had accepted had tied them to the British Company.
   
   

29. Describe the process of gradual growth of factories in England in the light of problems it faced.

Ans. The earliest factories in England came up by the 1730s. Their number multiplied in the late 18th century. A series of inventions in the 18th century increased the efficacy of each step of the production process. They enhanced the output per worker, enabling each worker to produce more. With the creation of cotton mill by Richard Arkwright, all the processes of cloth production were brought together under one roof and management. This allowed a more careful supervision of the production process, a watch over quality, and the regulation of labour, all of which had been difficult to do when production was in the countryside.

30. Highlight Any Four points which enabled the handloom sector score over machine made goods and face the competition.

Ans. The handloom sector scored over the machine made goods and was able to face competition because:

1. This happened partly because of technological advancements. By the second decade of the 20th century, weavers started using fly shuttle. This increased productivity of every worker, sped up production and reduced labour demand. By 1941, over 35 per cent of handlooms in India were fitted with fly shuttles. In regions like Travancore, Madras, Mysore, Cochin and Bengal, 70 to 80 per cent of handlooms had fly shuttles.

2. There were many other small inventions that helped weavers improve productivity and compete with mills.

3. Also, the demand for finer varieties of cloth bought by the rich, was very stable. Even famines did not affect the sale of Banarsi or Baluchari sarees.

4. Mill production could not imitate and compete with specialized weaves such as the famous sarees with woven borders and the famous lungis and handkerchiefs of Madras.
   
   

31. How did the First World War prove to be a boon to the Indian Industries? Explain.

Ans. The First World War proved to be a boon to Indian Industries:

1. The war created a dramatically new situation with British Mills busy with war production to meet the needs of the army, Manchester imports into India declined.

2. Suddenly, Indian mills had a vast home market to supply to.

3. As the war prolonged, Indian factories were called upon to supply war needs, jute bags, cloth for army uniforms, tents and leather boots, horse and mile saddles and a host of other items.

4. New factories were set up and old ones ran multiple shifts.

5. Many new workers were employed and everyone was made to work longer hours. Over the war years industrial production boomed, local industrialists consolidated their position, substituting foreign manufactures and capturing home markets.
   
   

32. Explain the process of industrialization in Britain during the 19th century.

Ans. The most dynamic industries in Britain were clearly cotton and metals. Growing at a rapid pace, cotton was the leading sector in the first phase of industrialization up to the 1840s.
Later iron and steel industry led the way. With the expansion of railways in England from the 1840s and in the colonies from 1860s, the demand for iron and steel increased.
The new industries could not displace traditional industries. At the end of the 19th century, less than 20 per cent of the total workforce was employed in technologically advanced industrial sectors. The pace of change in the ‘traditional’ industries was not set by steam-powered cotton or metal industries. Ordinary and small innovations were the basis of growth in many non-mechanized sectors such as food processing, building, pottery, glass work, tanning, furniture making and production of implements. The technological changes occurred slowly. New technology was expensive, and merchants and industrialists were cautious about using it. The machine often broke down and repair was costly.

33. Explain any five ways by which new markets and consumers were created in India by British manufacturers.

Or
Describe the techniques which were adopted by the Manchester industrialists to sell their goods in India.

Ans.

1. When Manchester industrialists began selling cloth in India, they put labels on the cloth bundles, to make the place of manufacture and the name of the company familiar to the buyer.

2. When buyers saw ‘Made in Manchester’, written in bold on the label, they felt confident to buy the cloth.

3. But labels did not carry words and texts. They carried images and were beautifully illustrated with images of Indian gods and goddesses. The printed image of Krishna or Saraswati was also intended to make the manufacture from a foreign land, appear familiar to India.

4. Manufacturers also printed calendars to popularise their products. These calendars were used even by the illiterate. They were hung in tea shops and in the homes of the poor and even in offices and middle class apartments.

5. Figures of important personages, of emperors and nawabs adorned the advertisements and calendars. The message often seemed to say that if you respect a royal figure, then respect this product as it was being used by kings.

6. When Indian manufacturers advertised, the nationalist message was clear and loud. If you care for the nation, then buy only ‘Indian’ products. Advertisements became a vehicle of the nationalist message of Swadeshi.

Section-E (4 Marks)

34. Proto-industrialization (PI) is regarded as a preliminary stage in the progression of modern industrial economics that preceded and paved the way for full-fledged industrialization.

This concept was initially introduced by Mendels twenty years ago. Mendels put forth two fundamental propositions. Firstly, the proto-industrial phase was characterized by the expansion of rural domestic manufacturing, which increasingly connected families to national and international markets. Secondly, rural industrialization was so extensive and economically and socially dynamic that it became the primary driving force behind the transition to the second phase, known as industrial capitalism, which was centered around centralized urban production. These propositions have given rise to a stimulating and innovative field of discourse, exploring the interconnectedness of industrial development with social, political, and cultural aspects of life, rather than treating them as separate areas of study. Consequently, the increased involvement of men, women, and children in manufacturing has been linked to changes in their agrarian roles, gender attitudes, sexual lives, age of marriage, and living standards. Additionally, it has been associated with the emergence of regional specialization, commercial and financial skills, and work skills.

(i) What were the factors that led to proto industrialization in Europe?

Ans. Proto-industrialization in Europe, from the 16th to 18th centuries, was driven by factors like surplus agricultural production, population growth, cottage industries, availability of raw materials, and domestic systems of production. It laid the groundwork for later industrialization by fostering specialized production and trade, eventually leading to factory-based industrialization.

(ii) What were the outcomes of proto industrialization?

Ans. Proto-industrialization in Europe resulted in increased specialization of rural labor, growth of cottage industries, and regional economic development. It created a foundation for later industrialization by generating valuable skills and entrepreneurial spirit. However, it also led to economic disparities and social changes, with some regions benefitting more than others