Themes
Explore the Age of Revolution through our four key themes: Political revolution, War and the international order, Social and cultural revolution, and Economic and technological revolution.
Each theme is packed with intriguing objects, artworks, documents – even songs, alongside fascinating facts and information. Tags make searching across themes easy, bringing together people, events, ideas and topics.
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Political revolution
From Mary Wollstonecraft, Thomas Paine and American Independence, to revolutionary France and Marx and Engels, enduring ideas about equality, rights and freedoms during the Age of Revolution, and some of their key proponents.
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Social and cultural revolution
The movements for better working conditions, rights and representation for ordinary people, the campaign against transatlantic slavery, the migration of people within and beyond Britain, and the wave of artists, musicians and authors who reflected the period’s upheavals in works that still resonate and delight today.
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Economic and technological revolution
Life-changing discoveries and innovations in scientific thinking, technology and medicine in the Age of Revolution, their impacts on work and society, and relationships with trade and the economy.
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War and the international order
The wars precipitated by the struggles for independence and attempts at empire building that characterise the Age of Revolution, and their impact on the changing world map.