The Gilded Age and Industrialisation 1877–1900

The term Gilded Age, coined by Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner in their 1873 novel, captures the paradox of late nineteenth-century America: a surface of glittering prosperity concealing deep social divisions, political corruption, and economic exploitation. Between 1877 and 1900, the United States underwent one of the most dramatic economic transformations in world history, rising from a largely agrarian republic to become the world's leading industrial power.

Key Definition: The Gilded Age (c.1877–1900) refers to the period of rapid economic growth, industrialisation, and social change in America, characterised by extreme wealth inequality, political corruption, and the rise of big business.

---

The Causes of Industrial Growth

America's industrial revolution was driven by a convergence of factors that no other nation could match: