英國農業革命(英語:British Agricultural Revolution),即第二次農業革命(Second Agricultural Revolution),是17世紀中葉至19世紀末期勞動和土地生產率的提高引起的英國農業生產的空前增長。在1770年前的一個世紀中,農業產量的增長速度超過了人口增長速度,此後,生產力仍居世界前列。糧食供應的增加促進了英格蘭和威爾斯人口的迅速增長,從1700年的550萬增加到1801年的900萬,不過在19世紀,由於人口增長了兩倍多,超過3200萬,糧食國內生產逐漸被進口所取代。[1]生產率的提高加速了農業在勞動力中所占份額的下降,貢獻了工業化所依賴的城市勞動力,因此,農業革命被認為是工業革命的原因之一。
但是,歷史學家繼續爭論這次「革命」到底是什麼時候發生的、由什麼組成。G. E. Mingay認為這非單一的事件,他說:「農業革命接踵而至,一次是在1750年之前的兩個世紀,另一次是在1650年之後的世紀,在1750-1880年期間第三次,在19世紀中期是第四次。」[2]這導致最近的歷史學家認為,關於「農業革命」的任何一般性陳述都難以站得住腳。[3][4]
是次農業革命中,除了因為航海時代引入美洲作物的使得歐洲農業獲得強大的高生產力之外,耕作方法的一項重要變化是以蕪菁和三葉草輪作代替休耕。蕪菁可以在冬天種植,並且是深根的,使它們能夠汲取淺根作物無法接觸到的礦物質。三葉草將大氣中的氮固定成為一種肥料。這允許在封閉的農場中對輕質土進行高強度的耕作,並提供飼料餵養增加的牲畜,而牲畜糞便又能進一步增加土壤肥力。
英國農業革命是社會、經濟和農業技術變革的複雜相互作用的結果。主要的發展和創新包括:[5]
- 諾福克四圃式輪作:以種植飼料作物,特別是蕪菁和三葉草,取代休耕。[6]
- 荷蘭人改良了中國犁,以便用更少的牛或馬拉動它。
- 圈地運動:取消公有制,建立土地專有權利
- 建立沒有關稅、通行費和海關壁壘的全國市場
- 交通基礎設施,例如道路、運河和後來的鐵路
- 土地開發、土地排水和填海
- 擴大農場規模
- 人工選擇育種與美洲進口作物的引進
G. E. Mingay (ed.) (1977), The Agricultural Revolution: Changes in Agriculture 1650–1880, p. 3
Peter Jones (2016), Agricultural Enlightenment: Knowledge, Technology, and Nature, 1750–1840, p. 7
See also Joel Mokry (2009), The Enlightened Economy: Britain and the Industrial Revolution 1700–1850, p. 173
R. W. Sturgess, "The Agricultural Revolution on the English Clays." Agricultural History Review (1966): 104-121. in JSTOIR (頁面存檔備份,存於網際網路檔案館)
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- Overton, Mark. Re-establishing the English Agricultural Revolution. Agricultural History Review. 1996, 44 (1): 1–20. JSTOR 40275062.