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    The Birth of The Railways: Task 1

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    Roseline lawrence
    The document discusses how revolutionary the development of railways was in Britain. It introduced tasks where students arrange consequences of the railways from least to most significant, including trains being faster than other forms of transport, the growth of new towns and industries, and people having more access to food and ability to travel. The document questions whether the railways should truly be considered revolutionary.

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    The Birth of The Railways: Task 1

    Uploaded by

    Roseline lawrence
    9 views2 pages
    The document discusses how revolutionary the development of railways was in Britain. It introduced tasks where students arrange consequences of the railways from least to most significant, including trains being faster than other forms of transport, the growth of new towns and industries, and people having more access to food and ability to travel. The document questions whether the railways should truly be considered revolutionary.

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    19796

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    The document discusses how revolutionary the development of railways was in Britain. It introduced tasks where students arrange consequences of the railways from least to most significant, including trains being faster than other forms of transport, the growth of new towns and industries, and people having more access to food and ability to travel. The document questions whether the railways should truly be considered revolutionary.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    9 views2 pages

    The Birth of The Railways: Task 1

    Uploaded by

    Roseline lawrence
    The document discusses how revolutionary the development of railways was in Britain. It introduced tasks where students arrange consequences of the railways from least to most significant, including trains being faster than other forms of transport, the growth of new towns and industries, and people having more access to food and ability to travel. The document questions whether the railways should truly be considered revolutionary.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 2

    How revolutionary were the railways in Britain?

    The birth of the railways


    Before the opening of the first major railway line from Liverpool to Manchester in 1830 some
    people had thought that it would be impossible to breath at such speed! Once this fear faded rail
    travel exploded, by the mid-nineteenth century the railways were changing the way that people in
    Britain lived. An interesting question for historians is how important this change really was.

    Task 1
    Arrange these ways of describing a change into a line from least significant on the left to most
    significant on the right. Spread them out on your desk/paper.

    An important
    Revolutionary A backward step A transformation
    change

    Task 2
    Now decide where each of the following consequences of the railways belongs on the line.

    2) Trains could carry a lot more


    1) Trains were eight times faster 3) New towns grew at rail
    than horses and barges, and they
    than even the fastest coach on the junctions such as Swindon and
    were cheaper than turnpike roads.
    road and even than canal barges. Crewe.
    This helped industry to grow.

    5) Food shortages became rare and 6) People could go on holiday or


    4) Commuter suburbs grew as
    diets improved. Perishable foods on day trips. Resorts like
    people began to travel to work
    like fruit, vegetables and fish Blackpool grew. Thomas Cook
    from more pleasant areas.
    became readily available. began organising cheap day trips.

    8) A national standard time was 9) National sports developed. A


    7) National newspapers developed
    introduced as trains had to keep to football league and similar
    and could be delivered every day.
    an accurate schedule. Before this, competitions became possible
    People began to take more interest
    the time in different areas within because teams could visit one
    in news and politics.
    the UK varied. another.

    11) Firms could specialise in a


    12) Labourers who built the
    10) Demand for coal, iron and single product and sell it all over
    railways were called navvies. The
    other materials grew to equip the the country because they were
    work was dangerous and there was
    new railways. able to transport it using the
    no compensation for injuries.
    railway.

    13) Canal companies and turnpike 14) In 1750 it took two weeks to
    15) It has been estimated that by
    trusts began to go bankrupt travel from London to Edinburgh.
    1880, about 300,000 jobs were
    because the railways took their By 1900 it could be done in just
    connected to the railways.
    business. nine hours!

    © www.teachithistory.co.uk 2012 19796 Page 1 of 2


    How revolutionary were the railways in Britain?

    Extension tasks

    1) Have a look at cards of the person working next to you. Do you agree with the order
    they have placed theirs in? Try to convince them that your most ‘revolutionary’ change
    should also be theirs!

    2) Look up the work ‘revolutionary’ in a dictionary or online. Do you think it is correct to


    call the British railways in the nineteenth century revolutionary?

    3) Explain, in your own words, how important you feel the development of rail travel was to
    British History. Use the examples from the cards to help you back up your answer.

    © www.teachithistory.co.uk 2012 19796 Page 2 of 2

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