The Agricultural Revolution was a profound transformation that agriculture and livestock underwent, from the 18th to the 19th century . This happened in Europe , mainly in Great Britain.

This period made it possible to produce enough food for the entire population and contributed to the consolidation of internal and external marketing .

The advance of agricultural technologies and machinery , added to various laws that allowed to take over land and surround it for cultivation, led to an increase in production and livestock of almost 90% . In this way, populations began to spread out into the countryside, creating new cities and generating internal trade .

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Causes and Effects of the Agricultural Revolution

Causes

The main causes of the Agricultural Revolution were the following:

• New laws that allowed farmers to take over public land, to safely farm and raise livestock.
• The invention of mechanized systems for cultivation , plowing, seeding and efficient irrigation.
• The crop rotation in place of the fallow technique which increased production without the need to rest the land for their fertility.
• The discovery of new fertilizers, improvements in seeds and selection of livestock, which increased the quality of production .
• The inclusion of new crops that increased the supply in internal and external trade.

Effects

The main consequences of the Agricultural Revolution were the following:

• An increase in the surplus of food and raw materials demanded by the growing urban population.
• The increase in production and foreign trade generated  economic well-being in society , which increased the demand for industrial, capital and consumer goods .
• The availability of surplus agricultural labor , which would later be essential for the growing urban industry.
• An increase in the economic power of the high landowners, who would later invest in modern industries.
• The birth of new towns and cities that, in some cases, became metropolises.

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Relationship between the Agricultural Revolution and the Industrial Revolution

The Agricultural Revolution is closely related to the Industrial Revolution, since it was the main cause of its emergence.

The change from public to private ownership in land legislation and the introduction of machinery in the plowing and sowing process led the working class to migrate to the cities and peasants and artisans to become industrial workers.

On the other hand, with the increase in food production and the reduction in its price, the population had more money available to invest in mass-produced and industrial products .

Finally, the need to maintain a good level of food production stimulated the creation of technologies that meant the Industrial Revolution. Likewise, innovations in farming techniques during the Agricultural Revolution, along with better infrastructure, gave further impetus to the revolution.