The Industrial Revolution began in the 1700s in Europe, sparked by new inventions like James Watt's improved steam engine. Important figures who contributed to innovations included Karl Marx, Edmund Cartwright, Sir Humphrey Davy, Joseph Locke, and Sir Henry Bessemer. The Industrial Revolution transformed the global economy and greatly increased production through the widespread use of new machinery. It allowed industrialization to spread from Britain to other parts of Europe and eventually the rest of the world over the 1800s.