Page "Victorian era" Paragraph 8

Many countries in the 19th century did not increase in population so rapidly and successfully throughout the Industrial Revolution.

At the time, some believed this lack of growth outside Britain was due to the ‘ Malthusian trap ’ theory ; Thomas Malthus argued before the start of the Industrial Revolution that it was the tendency of a population to expand beyond the limits of resource sustainability, at which point a crisis ( such as famine, war, or epidemic ) would reduce the population to a sustainable size.

England escaped the ‘ Malthusian trap ’ because the Industrial Revolution had a positive impact on living standards.

People had more money and could improve their standards ; therefore, a population increase was sustainable.