ABSTRACT
The results of the Industrial Revolution were not unique to France. Increasing industrialization helped improve medicine throughout much of Europe, which subsequently led to a decrease in child mortality and greater longevity among the general population. From 1870 to 1914, the population of Europe increased by half, from 290 to 435 million people. However, the population growth in France was small when compared to the rest of Europe—9.7%, as compared to 57.8% within the German Empire, 42.8% in Great Britain, 38.3% in Austria–Hungary, 29.5% in Italy, and 20% in Spain. 1 This industrialization led to mechanized factory production, which, in turn, produced a demand for more workers within urban areas. Specialized agricultural production in the provinces also became important, which then resulted in a reduced demand for farm laborers. This rapid industrialization within Western Europe was coupled with an economic depression that lasted from 1873 to 1895. The slump resulted in falling agricultural prices, rural poverty, and unemployment within provincial areas.
