Why Is Enclosure Important In England

During the 18th century Britain was growing. As a result of this hasty expansion the existing systems and techniques used in agriculture were no longer sufficient to feed a rapidly increasing population. This meant that change to the extremely wasteful older system was needed in order to fuel the growing needs of the country, and to feed the ever growing population.

There were many causes of this agricultural revolution Britain was at war with France consequently the soldiers needed to be fed, and due to war, supplies imported from Europe (e.g. corn) were reduced. This added significant strain on the food being produced in England which added stress to the farmers. In the early 18th century, much of the countryside was farmed as an open field
Enclosure simply meant doing away with the 'Open Field ' system, replacing it with large fields, enclosed by fences or hedgerows and drained by the landowners. The system of Enclosure had the simple advantage over the 'Open Field ' system, in that it produced far more food, and meant that no land was wasted. There were two methods of gaining Enclosure, either via consent of all the landholders in a village or by Parliamentary Enclosure.

With Enclosure, farming quickly became a cost-effective business and had many benefits: The banks were keen to lend to farmers who wanted to improve their land because they could see it as a profitable business. As a result of this, farmers could afford to modernise. The new system also made selective breeding easier, substantially improved people 's diets and increased the amount of fresh meat, dairy products and vegetables being produced. This system, therefore, was extremely successful in dealing with the inefficiencies of the past, and dealt with the dietary needs of the expanding
Middleton states that the opportunity of separating and limiting rotten parts of land is of infinite consequence, stating that it would benefit the health of the nation and the production of the crop. Furthermore, Middleton states that with the aid of intelligent breeders - there would be a means to breed sheep and cattle superior to the current crop. This was indeed the case; Robert Bakewell is noted for being one of the first to successfully breed the strongest cattle far superior to the cattle produced in the open field system. This process was called Selective Breeding, and only made possible with an enclosed