Industrial Revolution starts in Belgium?

Belgium sits atop an arc of coal deposits which starts in northern France and stretches down into Germany. Belgium (and particularly the Netherlands) were also innovators in banking and leaders in manufacturing in the early modern period. Based on these facts, I believe it is utterly plausible that the industrial revolution could have occurred in Belgium before it did OTL in Britain.

With that in mind, what conditions might need to change in or around Belgium to kick-start an earlier industrial revolution?

Less war would probably help.

Belgium would have had to have come into being a century earlier than it did.

It would also have to exist as, of course, it doesn't

See here for a full explanation from everyone's favourite crazed headshrinker and kidnapper

Mark-ITSOT said:

Belgium would have had to have come into being a century earlier than it did.

It would also have to exist as, of course, it doesn't

See here for a full explanation from everyone's favourite crazed headshrinker and kidnapper

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I use Belgium as a territorial designation.

Codae said:

Less war would probably help.

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So a Belgium situated in a stronger state? Perhaps a surviving Burgundy could have industrialized.

Sirius said:

... I believe it is utterly plausible that the industrial revolution could have occurred in Belgium before it did OTL in Britain.

With that in mind, what conditions might need to change in or around Belgium to kick-start an earlier industrial revolution?

Click to expand...

In my history class, I was taught that it DID start in Belgium before Britain.

Jurgen Wullenwever said:

In my history class, I was taught that it DID start in Belgium before Britain.

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On any appreciable scale?

Is there a source?

Iirc, Belgium was basically second off the mark after Britain. So, delay Britain, eg by having political disorder, and Belgium could be first.

If Belgium was part of a unified Benelux, throwing the Netherlands' capital into the mix, it would probably happen. If the Kingdom of Lotharingia manages to survive in this territory, it would be a good candidate for an industrial revolution.

For fun, I'd want to go right back and have Burgundy survive as a political enitity.

OTL the industrial revolution started in the middle of the 18th century. Politicaly speaking that was not a good time for Belgium. Austria barely cared for it and Belgium was the stage for various wars in that era. What you need to develop Belgium would be less wars (at least less wars on Belgium) and it needs to be part of a country that wants to develop it.

An independent Belgium or a Dutch Belgium could in theory work, but in those cases France would still want to annex Belgium. So you either need a solid Franco-Belgium or a Franco-Dutch alliance or you need a France that completely collapsed or you need a POD early enough that France focusses elsewhere (like Italy).

Actualy the best solution might be a French Belgium, but the French political situation needs to drastically change from what is was OTL. You need more political and economic freedom in France, like there was in England or the Dutch republic OTL.

Edit: BTW for a Dutch Belgium that starts the industrial revolution, you actualy need a different Netherlands in the 18th century. The Dutch republic OTL didn't want all of Belgium, it would need better rights for catholics (or you need a protestant Belgium, thus needing a POD in the 16-early 17th century). To be fair, I think it is easier for the Dutch Republic to change than it was for the Kingdom of France.

I would sugest a more longer stable period in the 16th century. If there will be no disruption from 1566 on, an industrial revolution would be possible in the highly urbanised region of Flanders and Brabant.
Industrial revolution in this case mean a dramatic increase in size of the already established industries of the cities in Flanders and Brabant. A significant increase in the mechanisation of the industries, like textile, pottery, glas manufacturing, metal works and mining. It does not nessesary mean the use of steam power, the industrial revolution in the UK OTL made extensive use of water power in the first decades and not steam power.

There should be a demand the traditional industries couldn't meet, before any kind of Industrial revolution could happen. In my opinion would the most curcial element be the prevention of the closure of the Scheld and the Barrier treaties that prohibited Flemish to have a large scale overseas trading network.
OTL the Southern Netherlands still had a strong economy and cultural life during the Twelve Year's Truce, which could be saved by the success of the peace negotiations between the North and the South. But considering the strength of the Contrareformation in the South that might be unlikely. After all the truce ended because both sides wanted to continue fighting. They never saw tolerance of the other as a viable solution, because it implied weakness.

Another problem the Southern faces is the Catholic rejection of natural sciences. During the Austrian period the protestant North had several new universities were modern science was implemented, but Catholic south specialised itself in Humanities instead. To overcome this the parts of the teachings of Jansenius could get accepted by the Church. The Jansenists thought that God send messages to humanity in the form of natural events, ergo nature should be understood to differentiate Godly signs from plain nature. The problem with this solution is that they didn't fit in the worldview of the Jesuits and the decisions made at Trent.

Independence is not necessary per se: the Austrian policy of economic development and their disregard of the Barrier treaties was enough to stimulate the economy, see the creation of the Imperial Ostend Trading Company (the short lived 'Belgian' VOC) and the beginning of the Industrial revolution in the 1790s.