Changing ideas about wealth and power

After the and the of the in 1660, businesses boomed in London. This was a period when wealth and power started moving away from aristocratic landowners to companies trading internationally in commodities such as sugar, tobacco, spices, tea, coffee and textiles.

The Bank of England and the London Stock Exchange formed the financial hub of a system of trade and profit that needed raw materials and cheap or enslaved labour.

The world of commerce and stock markets that was born in 17th and 18th century Britain is still the dominant economic system in the 21st century.

Next up

Test your understanding

Changing ideas about the world

More guides on this topic

Migrants to Britain c1250 to the present overview - OCR B
Medieval England 1250-1500 overview - OCR B
Attitudes towards migrants in medieval England - OCR B
The diversity of medieval migrant communities - OCR B
Jewish communities and their expulsion from England in 1290 - OCR B
The diversity of other European migrants, 1500-1750 - OCR B
The Huguenots and other Protestant refugees, 1500-1750 - OCR B
Early African and Indian migrants, 1500-1750 - OCR B
Industrial Britain, 1750-1900 overview - OCR B
The diversity of European migrants, 1750-1900 - OCR B
The growth of Asian and African communities, 1750-1900 - OCR B
Migration from Ireland, 1750-1900 - OCR B
Immigration in the Modern Era, 1900-present overview - OCR B
Refugees and ‘enemy aliens’ in the Modern Era, 1900 - 1947 - OCR B
Commonwealth immigrants in the Modern Era, 1948-present - OCR B
Economic migrants, refugees and asylum seekers, 1945 - present - OCR B
Migrants to Britain, c1250 to the present - exam preparation - OCR B

��ý

Early Modern Britain and the world, 1500-1750 overview - OCR BChanging ideas about wealth and power