CBSE · Class 10 · Social Science · History: The Age of IndustrialisationWhat do you understand by the term 'Proto-industrialisation'?

Proto-industrialisation refers to the phase of industrialization that existed before the coming of the factory system. During this period, large-scale industrial production for the international market was not based on factories but was controlled by merchants. It was a decentralized system where production took place in the countryside within family farms. This phase was characterized by the involvement of peasants and artisans who produced goods manually. It served as a precursor to the modern industrial era, bridging the gap between traditional craft production and the mechanized factory system that emerged later in the eighteenth century.