
Where was the most plausible spot in 1550 for the Industrial Revolution to come - oli5679
https://www.antonhowes.com/blog/the-crucial-century
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dekhn
if it wasn't for the ruinous wars, mid 1500s Italy (esp Venice and Florence)
were exactly in the right place, including powerful banks with lots of
capital, a large skilled populace, advanced science & math.

~~~
Someone
What would they use for power?
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Coal_mines_in_Italy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Coal_mines_in_Italy)
compares rather poorly to
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coal_mining_in_the_United_King...](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coal_mining_in_the_United_Kingdom).

Also, where would they get iron?
[https://www.britannica.com/place/Italy/Resources-and-
power](https://www.britannica.com/place/Italy/Resources-and-power):

 _”The Italian peninsula is a geologically young land formation and therefore
contains few mineral resources, especially metalliferous ones. What few exist
are poor in quality, scant in quantity, and widely dispersed. The meagreness
of its natural resources partially explains Italy’s slow transition from an
agricultural to an industrial economy, which began only in the late 19th
century. The lack of iron ore and coal especially hindered industrial
progress, impeding the production of steel necessary for building machines,
railways, and other essential elements of an industrial infrastructure.”_

~~~
dekhn
they would have imported it. venice was the transshipping capital of the
western world at the time and had unbelievable economic power.

