The industrial middle class (bourgeoisie) was the primary beneficiary of the Industrial Revolution.

This class included the owners of factories, mines, and railroads, as well as professionals like lawyers and doctors.

Their political goals often aligned with liberalism, advocating for property rights, free trade, and constitutional government.

Middle-class culture emphasized values such as hard work, self-discipline, and moral respectability.

The industrial working class (proletariat) consisted of wage laborers who had moved to cities and sold their labor to factory owners.

They experienced shared conditions of low wages, long hours, and poor housing, which fostered a sense of 'class consciousness.'

Early forms of working-class organization included trade unions, which fought for better wages and working conditions.

Workers also engaged in protests, strikes, and political movements to advance their interests.

The relationship between these two new classes was often one of conflict and antagonism.

This class structure, defined by one's relationship to industrial production, became the new social reality of the 19th century.