Editing Industrial Revolution (section)

====Germany====
{{main|Economic history of Germany}}
Germany's political disunity{{mdash}}with three dozen states{{mdash}}and a pervasive conservatism made it difficult to build railways in the 1830s. However, by the 1840s, trunk lines linked the major cities; each German state was responsible for the lines within its borders. Lacking a technological base at first, the Germans imported their engineering and hardware from Britain, but quickly learned the skills needed to operate and expand the railways. In many cities, the new railway shops were the centres of technological awareness and training, so that by 1850, Germany was self-sufficient in meeting the demands of railway construction, and the railways were a major impetus for the growth of the new steel industry. Observers found that even as late as 1890, their engineering was inferior to Britain's. However, German unification in 1871 stimulated consolidation, nationalisation into state-owned companies, and further rapid growth. Unlike in France, the goal was the support of industrialisation, and so heavy lines crisscrossed the Ruhr and other industrial districts and provided good connections to the major ports of Hamburg and Bremen. By 1880, Germany had 9,400 locomotives pulling 43,000 passengers and 30,000 tons of freight, and pulled ahead of France.<ref>Allan Mitchell, ''Great Train Race: Railways and the Franco-German Rivalry, 1815–1914'' (2000)</ref>

Based on its leadership in chemical research in universities and industrial laboratories, Germany became dominant in the world's chemical industry in the late 19th century.<ref name=Haber>{{harvnb|Haber|1958}}</ref>