As the name might suggest, the Industrial Revolution brought industry to the fore as the main economic power. Merchants and traders wealth were no longer the standard to be measured by as the captains of industry amassed more wealth than the world had ever seen before.

The Industrial Revolution brought forth the rise of the corporations. While not a new idea, the corporation had been around for 200 years, there had never been as many corporations before, or ones that proved to be as powerful. Corporations began to dominate the economy and determine the fate of nations.

Cottage Industry practices were against everything the industrial revolution represented. Whereas most manufacturing until the 19th century had occurred in homes or local shops, new technology and urbanization promoted the rise of factories and large companies who manufactured goods cheaply and began trading them around the world.

Western Europe was the first to modernize, nations such as Great Britain and Germany had the natural and financial resources to industrialize while nations such as Spain and Turkey, as well as South America and Africa lacked the resources needed to keep up with the progress of industry.

The United States’ Open Door policy relates to the desire of American businessmen and merchants to have full access to Japanese and Chinese markets. This was achieved in the nineteenth century as the European powers forced access to China and the United States forced access to Japan.

The Treaty of Kanagawa was signed by representatives of the Japanese and American governments in 1854. It opened Japan to trade with western nations, specifically the United States. It also formally ended Japan’s centuries long period of isolationism.

The invention of the cotton gin by Eli Whitney in 1793 dramatically accelerated the productive capabilities of America’s cotton plantations. So much so that by the outbreak of the Civil War, seventy years later, America was producing more than half of the global supply of cotton - approximately sixty-five percent.

Matthew Perry was a commodore in the United States’ navy in the middle of the nineteenth century. In 1852 Perry was tasked by American President Millard Fillmore to force the opening of Japanese markets to American trade. Perry achieved this through gunboat diplomacy - he sailed into Japanese waters and essentially threatened to bombard Japanese cities unless his demands were met. His actions led to the opening of Japanese markets to American trade and the end of Japanese isolationism.

The Wealth of Nations was published by the enlightenment thinker Adam Smith in 1776. The Wealth of Nations outlines how nations can and do acquire wealth. It was widely influential and contributed to the break from mercantilism and the embracing of free market capitalism that marked Europe in the early years of the Industrial Revolution.

Triangle trade involved large scale trade of goods and slaves in the Atlantic ocean between Europe, North America, and Africa. In this trade system slaves were sent from Africa to North America; sugar, tobacco, and cotton were sent to Europe; and textiles, rum, and manufactured goods were sent to Africa.